I invite you to turn in your Bibles to the book of James. We pick up where we left off last in that book. We're beginning right at chapter 4. That can be found on page 1201 in the Pew Bibles in front of you if you're using the Pew Bible, 1201. James chapter 4, but I will begin my reading up at verse 13 of chapter 3 for the sake of context.
From above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there'll be discord in every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this: that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the scripture says he yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you."
Well, with our move into chapter 4 of this book this evening, James continues his exposition of worldly wisdom and heavenly wisdom. And just like in verse 13 of chapter 3, James asks the question, "Who is wise and understanding among you he now asks a different question at the beginning of chapter four: "What causes quarrels? What causes fights among you?"
Now, maybe at first glance it would seem like James is moving on to a different subject, a new subject with this new question that he asks, but he's really not. He's simply diving deeper into his point between the difference of wisdom and of the difference between worldly wisdom. And heavenly wisdom. And in driving deeper this point, James presents the reader with a sad but realistic look at the heart of those who practice worldly wisdom.
So, as we begin to look at this text together, let me just ask you: After reading this text, after hearing a little bit of the difference between worldly wisdom and godly wisdom, what kind of wisdom do you practice? What kind of wisdom are you inclined to? I'm sure after hearing a question like that, to all of us, maybe our gut reaction is to think and say, "Godly wisdom, of course." But I think after we carefully listen to what James has to say here, it'll become clear to us that we more likely practice both. We practice both. We practice both at different times in our lives. At times we cling to Christ and we deny the world and that worldly wisdom, but then at other parts we get other times we give in to our default mode and we practice worldliness now because at different points we practice both we can all be thankful for God's grace, can't we? Which is really where James wants to ultimately take this discussion in this section. He wants to get us to verse six of this passage: "But he gives more grace." What a wonderful statement of good news for sinners who trust in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins! "But he gives more grace," and thank God that he does, because each and every one of us needs more grace.
Well, as I said, James begins these verses by expounding further upon the difference between worldly wisdom and heavenly wisdom. And he does by asking that first question, "What causes quarrels and fights among you?" And the answer is this: he says, "Is it not that your passions are at war within you?" The jealous, selfish heart is a heart that is at war internally. And you see, one who is internally at war with their desires is also one who tends to be at war with others. It is the internal wrestling and conflict of the heart that so easily spills over into one's relationships with others.
And so James expounds further. He says, "You desire and you do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel." The idea is this: that the the inward desires of the heart or the the desire of the heart wants and desires, but when when the heart doesn't obtain that object of its desires those desires don't just go away. They become stronger, more influential in the life of this individual. As one commentator says, they foment into envy, hatred, and eventually, if not checked, if not denied, could even lead to something like murder.
One well-known fictional portrayal of this twistedness of the heart is the character Gollum in The Lord of the Rings. Gollum, who was once known as a hobbit by the name of Smeagol, but through years and years of depraved obsession and desire for the ring of power, Smeagol morphs into this disturbing creature, Gollum. Now, thankfully, we don't morph into disturbing creatures. But the reality is, the results are, internally, we can be that same way, can't we? We can be pretty ugly when it comes to us desiring what we desire. We can be pretty ugly when we give in to our jealousy and our selfish ambition.
This is exactly what James has spoken of already when he describes the process of temptation back in chapter one. He says there, "Each person is tempted when they're lured and enticed by their own desire. Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin." This is a sad reality of worldly wisdom and the jealousy and selfish ambition which characterizes it. This is the reality of worldly wisdom which leads to one's own self-detriment.
Now, worldly wisdom can go by many names, but James uses two names here in our text. He calls worldly wisdom "friendship with the world" and "adultery." Now, while the description of friendship with the world might seem like a softening of this description that James has so far presented us with, it's really not. James calls worldly wisdom here "friendship with the world" in order to contrast worldly wisdom with friendship with God.
Think about that for a moment. The friendship that James speaks of here isn't just like two friends who happen to be acquaintances. James is speaking of a more intimate kind of relationship here. You see, we might all have people that we consider to be our best friends people that we know so well. and people who know us so well. But I propose to you that there is still an even closer relationship that can exist within us than even those closest friendships that we have: the relationship between me, myself, and I.
You know what I'm talking about, right? We can all have great relationships with me, myself, and I. Me, myself, and I never contradict each other. Me, myself, and I always agree on what we want. We're always on the same page, always in agreement. We always know what we want and how to obtain what we want. James calls this "friendship with the world" because it's the way of the world: the self-centeredness, the selfishness, the self-ambition.
You see, this worldly wisdom is even often displayed in one of the most sacred relationships that God has established on earth: marriage. Marriage. And it happens within Christian marriages or non-Christian marriages. Where two people don't relate to each other along the lines of God being gracious to each of them, and so they then in turn are gracious towards each other. But instead, people are tempted to relate to each other along the lines of the dynamic of "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. You serve my idol and I will serve yours."
However, what happens when those idols are not served? What happens when backs don't seem to be scratched? Well, what James tells us here is that it leads to quarrels, fights, war.
And James teaches us here that this intimate, self-centered, self-obsessive relationship with ourselves and the things that we desire not only puts us at odds with others: husbands and wives, friends, anyone, but it even puts us at odds with God himself.
James says in verse 4, "You adulterous people, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be friends with the world makes himself an enemy of God."
This friendship with the world is, as James puts it here, spiritual idolatry or adultery. It's contrary to God. It's a betrayal of the intimate friendship and relationship that one can have with the Lord. Self-centeredness is really the epitome of worldliness. And the heart of worldliness not only leaves no room for God, but it stands at odds and in opposition to God.
This brings to my mind the story of Rachel in Genesis 30. Maybe you remember: Rachel couldn't have children. And when she saw that she couldn't bear children, she goes to Jacob and she says, "Give me a child or I'll die." That wasn't just a rejection of Jacob or even her own life, but ultimately it was a dissatisfaction with the Lord and his plans for her life.
Then there was the Israelites, right? Show the same kind of worldliness 1 Samuel 8, where they say, "Give us a king like the nations." That wasn't just a rejection of Samuel. It was ultimately a rejection of the Lord as their king.
See, the truth is, just as Jesus said, we can't serve two masters, not money and the Lord, not our own heart's desires and the Lord. not anything and the lord we would serve the one and hate the other so brothers and sisters, this is a sad picture that James presents, is it not? A sad picture of the the inner workings of worldly wisdom in the heart. And I think a a section like this could leave the reader feeling pretty low as they face the reality of their sinful hearts.
But it's at this point in this book that James really touches on a monumental shift in this text. He moves from the reality of a sinful heart to the reality of God's grace.
Notice what he says in verse 6. Look down with me: "But he gives us, or he gives more, grace."
In the middle of this sad presentation of worldliness, we find one of the most amazing little words in all of Scripture: the word "but."
The word "but."
Now, if I'm correct and maybe Dr. Bittner can correct me on this, but is a contrasting coordinating conjunction, whatever that means. But we know what the word "but" means and does in a text like this. James says, in the face of this picture of a twisted heart that reminds us of a figurative creature like Gollum, "but he gives more grace."
Who gives more grace? God. God gives more grace!
What a magnificent declaration of the good news for Christians! Again, we're all familiar with the word "but" in passages like Ephesians 2, right? "We were dead in our sins and transgressions in which we once walked, but God..."
The reality is, we all struggle with these kinds of sins: selfishness, jealousy. We all can easily revert to our default mode of self-centeredness, worldly wisdom, worldliness. But the good news of the gospel is that God is gracious. He's gracious. He's patient. He's merciful. Although we indeed are sinners, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son for sinners, that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
Yes, indeed, we were dead in our sins and trespasses in which we formerly walked, and therefore children of wrath. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead, made us alive in Christ. By grace we've been saved, right? By grace.
This is not of ourselves. It's not by works, lest anyone should boast. Yes, we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. But by grace we have been saved.
Salvation is all of grace. God is so magnificently gracious.
You see, James has spoken of a number of sins in this book, has he not? In fact, sometimes James can be very heavy in the way that he speaks of sin. He speaks of anger. He speaks of favoritism, partiality, slander, wrong ways of using the tongue, worldly wisdom, bitterness, jealousy, selfish ambition. All sins that the church in the first century definitely struggled with.
But these are not just sins that the church in the first century were familiar with. We too are familiar with anger, are we not? We too are familiar with favoritism and partiality. We too are familiar with using our tongues in ways that are dishonoring to the Lord. We too are familiar with practicing worldly wisdom, bitterness, jealousy, selfish ambition.
This book addresses these issues because Christians will continue to struggle with these issues until the end of time. They're not sins that were just those in the first century practice. These are not sins that just occur out in the world. These are sins that we see in our own hearts today. And as such, we need to deny them. We need to deny them and, in humility, confess them and seek the grace of God and the forgiveness there is in Jesus Christ.
See, as I've said before, it's sins like this that we tend to think we can so easily hide just below the surface of our hearts. Yes, they often spill over into relationships, but there's times that we can self-deceive ourselves into thinking, "I can hide this. This can be hidden, right?"
What is one of the main characteristics of sin? Deception. Our very own hearts deceive us. Jeremiah 17 says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, desperately sick. Who can understand its ways?"
Paul tells the church at Ephesus in Ephesians 4 to "put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires." The writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews 3, "But exhort one another every day as long as it is called today, that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin."
Sin deceives us. That deception so easily leads us to think more highly of ourselves than we ought to. It leads us to pride.
Listen to what Martin Luther said about the deceitfulness of sin when commentating on Hebrews 3. He said, "Deceitfulness of sin, that is the love of one's own righteousness, blinds them and hardens their heart. Yet at the same time, they think it's good it's a good thing to glory in their own righteousness and be pleased with it. Though that indeed is the very worst of all vices, the extreme antithesis of faith. Faith rejoices and glories in the righteousness of God alone, that is in Christ himself."
Luther speaks of the pride that rises up in the heart of one who has been deceived by their own sin again deceived into thinking more highly of themselves than they ought.
I would call such a person a "proud sinner." A proud sinner. What's a proud sinner? A proud sinner is a sinner who thinks more highly of themselves than they should. A proud sinner is someone who compares their sin to others and therefore thinks more highly of themselves than they ought.
Remember the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, right? Isn't that exactly what the Pharisee did? He compared himself to the tax collector, and so thought he could be proud and boast even in the presence of God.
You see, this is not what the Bible teaches. In fact, in this very book, James says back in chapter 3, verse 14, "But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic."
Demonic! I thought that was interesting that James calls worldly wisdom here demonic. Did that catch you? off It caught me. struck me What? Why would James say that such wisdom is demonic?
Well, think about it. What was the sin that led Satan to turn on God? Pride. Pride. Jealousy. Envy. Selfish ambition. That's why James says that this sin or these sins are demonic. They're sins that so easily lead us to thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought.
And so, yes, we are a people who need the grace of God. And again, thank God that he gives more grace. Our God is gracious. Our God is slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. He's given his people grace upon grace. As Paul says in Romans 5, "Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more."
So I encourage you tonight, Christians: remember the grace of God. Remember the grace of God to you in election. He was gracious to choose you before the foundation of the world. Remember his wonderful grace in reconciling you to himself through the work of his Son, Jesus Christ. suffered so that we would not have to suffer. Jesus Christ lived a perfectly righteous life that we could never live on our own.
James has all of this in mind when he says, "God gives more grace." What a comfort! What unspeakable comfort for those who trust in Jesus Christ! What hope! What confidence not in and of ourselves, but in our Lord and Savior!
See, Christians, God never grows tired of giving us grace. He's gracious. He continues to be gracious to us. He knows we are weak. He knows our frame. He knows we are sinful. And when we come to him seeking his forgiveness and grace, he will never say, "No more. No more. You've exhausted my grace." He will never say something like that.
Remember the context of what James is saying here in this book. We just got through a section where he talks about the ugliness of the heart that practices his worldly wisdom. He even says in verse 4, "You adulterous people." In verse 5, "You people have chosen friendship with the world over friendship with God." And then he says in verse 5 again, "You people make God jealous for you." But the Lord gives more grace.
We often sing the hymn, "How Deep the Father's Love for Us." And when it comes to songs that we are familiar with, we can so easily just go through the motions of singing such songs, right? But listen to the words of this hymn: "How deep the Father's love for us, how vast beyond all measure, that he should give his only son to make a wretch his treasure."
Brothers and sisters in Christ, do you know how deep the Father loves you? Do you know how vast beyond all measure that love is? It's love that is so deep that he gave his only begotten son for you to make sinful wretches like us his treasures!
Our God's response to our sin is to be gracious and kind to us because of Jesus Christ.
Now, yes, there is another side to this truth, isn't there? That grace is reserved for what James says here: the humble. "He gives grace to the humble, but he opposes the proud."
Again, back to the Pharisee and the tax collector if you recall, back in Luke 18, in that parable it says there that Jesus said this to those who were confident of their own righteousness and look down on everyone else: those who were confident in their own righteousness and look down upon everyone else. Those were proud sinners that Jesus was addressing, just as James is addressing proud sinners here.
God opposes the proud, yes. He gives grace to the humble.
So how then should we respond to God's amazing, magnificent grace? Humility, right? Humility.
God's grace is his unmerited favor. We've done nothing to earn it. He's given it to us in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Yes, there will be some who think they can trample on the grace of God. There'll be some who take his grace for granted and even in their minds think they can use it as a license for immorality. Friend, if that's you, God will not be mocked. He will not be mocked. His kindness, his patience, his grace is supposed to lead us to repentance.
So, humble yourselves.
We respond to God's grace by humbling ourselves. You know, if you've met a person that you can say is genuinely humble, I'm sure that's a person who knows God and knows themselves before God.
Now, I've shared with you a number of times from this pulpit that one of my favorite passages is found in Isaiah 6. Isaiah 6 presents the reader with the prophet isaiah one who was humbled to his very core when he came face to face with the vision of God. Remember, Isaiah is a prophet; comparatively speaking, he is indeed a holy man, not your run-of-the-mill sinner. With this vision, Isaiah says of himself, "Woe is me, for I am lost! I'm a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts."
Isaiah knew God, and he knew himself in light of God, and he was humbled to the core of his very being.
But then, after Isaiah stands there in all humility, do you remember what happens? The angel there one of the seraphim take a coal. they It takes a coal from the fire of the altar, and it touches Isaiah's lips. And the angel says, "Your guilt is taken away. Your sin is atoned for."
How do you think Isaiah responded to such grace? With even more humility, right?
God's grace to the sinner should always result in humility humility in the heart of the sinner.
What does such humility look like in the life of a Christian? Well, James, in a very practical way, brings us to the verse 7, where he says:
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. submission humility Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you."
This is a call to continued repentance, is it not? A continued repentance in response to God's grace. It's essentially what Jesus tells us in Matthew 16: "Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me."
Simply put, repentance is a change of mind, a switch from the outlook of living for oneself and now living for the glory of God and in light of the grace and mercy of God.
But true repentance isn't just about external actions. True repentance involves deep-seated, godly sorrow for one's sin. And that's why James says here, "Mourn, weep, even wail over our sins."
But the truth is, those who mourn they will be comforted, right? What is it, brothers and sisters, that the Lord desires? He says he doesn't desire sacrifice. It's a broken and contrite heart that he desires.
So let me ask you again tonight: Do you practice worldly wisdom or godly wisdom?
If you remember from chapter 3, verse 13, godly wisdom is expressed through what? Humility. The meekness of wisdom, James says.
Christian, don't be afraid to humble yourself before yes your brothers and sisters. Don't be afraid to humble yourselves before your God. The Lord doesn't desire sacrifice. He desires a broken and contrite spirit, and he gives more grace.
Let's pray.
Lord, what a beautiful text that reminds us of your grace and mercy. We thank you, Lord, that you indeed are gracious and kind and patient to us. You have loved us with an everlasting love. You've shown that love to us in the giving of your Son, Jesus Christ. May we, as your people, those who have been so lavishly blessed with your grace, may we be those who respond with humility, brokenness, Lord, and joy as well as we look to Christ and know the salvation that we have in him. We pray this all in his name. Amen.