James 4:1-12
Friendship with the World
4 Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? 2 You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures. 4 Adulterers! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose that it is for nothing that the scripture says, “God yearns jealously for the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives all the more grace; therefore it says,
“God opposes the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.”
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Lament and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into dejection.10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Warning against Judging Another
11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers and sisters. Whoever speaks evil against another or judges another, speaks evil against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is one lawgiver and judge who is able to save and to destroy. So who, then, are you to judge your neighbor?
What does the Passage say?
V. 1-3 James says that the lust of worldly desires is the reason for all conflicts. It is what comes as a result of our greed.
V. 4-10 He continues by saying that the love of worldly things, put us against God. It is interesting how Eugene Peterson describes it. He says, “You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care?” (v. 4-5 The Message) God calls us to turn away from the world and humble ourselves.
V. 11-12 James considers speaking badly about our brothers and sisters as an evil act.
What does the Passage say to me/us?
“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded” (v. 8 NRSV).
The only way we can humble ourselves and remain holy in this world is by drawing near to God. When we draw near to God, all evil of the world will flee. The more we have the desire to draw near to God, the easier for us to resist evil.
Do you desire to be with God?
Prayer
Lord, help us to see the unseen of this world. Help us to see how the world desires cripple us. Draw us near to you, and cleanse us. In the power of your Son’s name we pray, AMEN.
Click to subscribe to our Daily Devotion.
You will receive a devotion in your inbox every morning.