Explore the Bible Lesson Preview November 18, 2018 With Submission Background: James 3:13-4:17 Lesson: James 4:6-17

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1 Explore the Bible Lesson Preview November 18, 2018 With Submission Background: James 3:13-4:17 Lesson: James 4:6-17 Motivation: Submission is a red flag word in America, primarily because we all want to emphasize rights over responsibilities. However, before we can submit to our spouse, or to church leaders, we must first learn to submit to God. Examination: I. Wisdom from Above (13-18) HCSB, p. 2141: 3:13-18 In these verses James continued addressing the role of teachers, particularly their spiritual maturity. Speech plays a role here ( don t brag and deny the truth ), but the larger issues are envy and selfish ambition. Far from being minor character flaws, these traits are earthly, unspiritual and demonic. 1. Shown Who is wise and has understanding among you? He should show his works by good conduct with wisdom s gentleness. (13) Just as good works are the outward result of an inner experience of grace (2:18), so good conduct with meekness (humility) is the outward sign of Godly wisdom: 1 / 11

2 James seems to again especially address teachers ( who is wise and has understanding among you cf. 3:1) Our spoken word must be backed up by a Godly lifestyle. 2. Sin But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your heart, don t brag and deny the truth (14) James lists four sins that are especially prevalent among teachers: 1. bitter envy Teachers and musicians are on a stage and are tempted toward comparisons with their peers. Satan tempts us with the desire for the approval of our listeners. Without careful precaution, a teacher may grow bitter toward another teacher who has a bigger following or gets more recognition. 2. selfish ambition Bitter envy is a signal that one is not seeking glory for the Kingdom of God but rather for himself. This can be especially prevalent among Pastors who use their people to build their own ministry rather than using their ministry to build up people. Self-seeking leads a Sunday School teacher to homestead, referring to my room, my class, and my lesson. Homesteading leads to an inward-focused, us four and no more ; we will not be moved mentality which is the death-knell of a spiritual organization. 3. brag Another me-centered characteristic of false wisdom is taking carnal pride in accomplishment. Such boasting reveals that the person feels that he/she revealed God s truth rather than knowing that God worked through them. 4. deny the truth All of the aforementioned sins deny the validity of the Believers claim to be in Christ. A teacher s attitude can contradict all the truth in God s Word. (2 Tim 3:1) 4. Sensual Such wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, unspiritual and demonic. (15) These three characteristics of ungodly wisdom have a parallel in John s descriptions of worldly temptations: James 3:15 I John 2:16 2 / 11

3 Earthly Lust of the flesh Unspiritual Lust of the eyes Demonic Pride of life (not of the Father) 5. Symptomatic For where envy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every kind of evil (16) Explore the Bible Commentary (Summer, 2003) p. 117: False wisdom has destructive results. Exercising it leads to disorder and every evil practice (3:16), Envy and selfish ambition do not build up the fellowship of believers but destroy its spiritual life, health, and ministry. Disorder in the church implies believers are double-minded and double-tongued. Every evil practice suggests all kinds of bad, wicked deeds. Such deeds have no good purposes, benefits, or results. 6. Saintly But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peace loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without favoritism and hypocrisy. (17) 1. Repentant pure cleansed of sin and self-seeking; without ulterior motives. 2. Relations peace loving - at peace with both man and God. 3. Reasonable gentle - not willing to condemn quickly, forbearing, courteous. 4. Ready compliant open to other s ideas and appeals; conciliatory (Moffat) open to reason (RSV) 5. Responsive full of mercy and good fruits not just sympathetic but one who is 3 / 11

4 ready to help with kind actions. 6. Rooted without favoritism this refers to maintaining a steadfast course; the Amplified translates it free from doubts (and) wavering. (Col. 2:6-7) 7. Real without hypocrisy Godly wisdom is sincere and straightforward. 7. Sowing And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who cultivate peace (18) A truly wise person will be known as a person of peace. Inner-peace results in those who make peace. Jesus said, Blesse d are the peacemakers (Matt. 5:9); however, making peace doesn t always mean capitulation. God calls on us to stand up for what is right and to confront sin in order to bring a lasting peace. (Eph. 4:15) II. Sin & Submission (4:1-5) 1. Fighting What is the source of wars and fights among you? Don t they come from the cravings that are at war within you? (1) (2 Pet. 2:11) 1. Strife wars and fights - James emphasizes the seriousness with which God views dissension in His church. 2. Source cravings In His parable of the soils, Jesus taught of the seed choked with cares, riches and pleasures of life (Luke 8:14) Paul wrote to Titus For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another (3:3). John described those desires as the lust of flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). William Barclay states The ultimate choice in life lies between pleasing oneself and pleasing God; and a world in which man s first aim is to please themselves is a battleground of savagery and division ( The Letters of James and Peter, p. 99) HCSB, p. 2141: 4:1 While pride and selfishness are natural to a fallen humanity and often 4 / 11

5 serve as a basis for advancement in worldly rank, James names them as the source of wars and fights within the congregation. Wars and fights indicates physical conflict among members and/or factions within the congregation. The source of conflict was the cravings at war within you. Cravings refers to the pleasures of life, the pursuit of which leads to conflicts. 3. Frustration You desire and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. You do not have because you do not ask. (2) Believer s Study Bible, p. 1761: 4:2 Murder here is probably to be understood metaphorically and not literally, according to the context. However, in 5:6, James is apparently condemning wealthy unbelieving Jewish landowners who had actually murdered just and non-resistant workers. Context is the key in both interpretations. The graphic language is a stark reminder of the world s ultimate inability to satisfy our deepest longings. 4. Fruitlessness You ask and don t receive because you ask with wrong motives so that you may spend it on your evil desires. (3) William Barclay, pp The craving for pleasure in the end shuts the door of prayer. If a man s prayers are simply for the things that will gratify his desires, they are essentially selfish and therefore, it is not possible for God to answer them. The true end of prayer is to say to God, Thy will be done. The prayer of the man who is pleasure dominated is: My desires be satisfied. It is one of the grim facts of life that a selfish man can hardly ever pray aright; no one can ever pray aright until he removes self from the center of his life and puts God there. In this life we have to choose where to make our main object our own desires or will of God. And, if we choose our own desires, we have thereby separated ourselves from our fellow men and from God. 5. Friendship Adulteresses! Don t you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? So whoever wants to be the world s friend becomes God s enemy (4 ) Believers Study Bible, p :4 Adulterers and adulteresses is a strong metaphor for those who have been spiritually unfaithful to God and who have engaged in an affair with the world (that evil organized system under the rule of the devil which opposes God and His will). This unfaithfulness results in: (1) experiencing hostility from God and (2) becoming God s enemy. (Hos.9:1) 6. Focus Or do you think it s without reason the Scripture says that The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously? (5) Believers Study Bible, p. 1762: 4:5 The precise O.T. text James has in mind is unclear, as is the correct translation. NKJV translators 5 / 11

6 understand the Spirit to be the Holy Spirit and not the human spirit (contra KJV). This judgment is probably correct, and it should be noted that if this is the proper translation/ interpretation, it is the only reference to the Holy Spirit in this epistle. The verse then is best understood as saying that the Holy Spirit, who indwells believers, intensely desires their loyalty, love and faithfulness. As for the O.T. text James is citing, there are two possibilities: (1) he has in mind a text like Ex. 20:5, or (2) he has no particular scripture in view, so that rather this verse conveys a theme concerning God and His people which runs throughout the O.T. III. Through Humility (4:6-10) 1. Resisting (6-7) 1. God resists the proud God resists the proud (6b) Why is pride condemned so thoroughly in scripture? William Barclay suggests three reasons (pp ): a. It does not know its own need to be supplied. b. It cherishes its own independence. It will be beholden to no man and not even to God. c. It does not recognize its own sin. It is occupied with thinking of its own goodness and never realizes that it has any sin from which it needs to be saved. A pride like that cannot receive help, because it does not know that it needs help, and, therefore, it cannot ask. 2. God gives grace to the humble gives grace to the humble, Explore the Bible Commentary (Summer 2003) p. 123: the humble willingly submit to God and His ways. They recognize their dependence on Him. To them God gives grace, which means God shows His favor to the humble. He blesses them spiritually with forgiveness, 6 / 11

7 deliverance, strength-what they need to follow His will. He graciously restores them to full fellowship when they fail and repent. (Matt. 23:12; Prov. 6:15-19; 1Pet. 5:5-7) 3. Believers resist the devil Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. (7) James teaches a strong word on personal responsibility, a concept that is erased from a popular culture. In 1:13-15 we learn that sin is the result of being drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Now James provides the alternative: resist the devil. Paul writes in 1 Cor. 10:13 that you won t be tempted beyond what you are able. Therefore, sin is a result of our wrongful choices; it is not irresistible. (Luke 4:13; Matt 4:11; Eph. 4:27) 3. Repentance (4:8-10) Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, double-minded people! Be miserable and mourn and weep. Your laughter must change to mourning and your joy to sorrow. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you. HCSB, p. 2141: 4:7-9 James issued ten commands needed to resolve the conflict within the congregation. The theme is repentance and forgiveness. The use of imperatives followed by and suggests that the result of each command is conditioned by the response to it, which yields the idea, if you do X, then Y results. Submit to God carries the idea of self-humbling; resist the Devil suggests an active resistance against temptation. Sinners and double-minded people are parallel ideas that characterize both the teachers and the congregation. Double-minded recalls the doubter of 1:8. 4:10 The words humble yourselves and He will exalt you summarize the path to having forgiveness from God as well as reconciliation among members of the congregation. IV. Through Grace (11-12) 7 / 11

8 Don t criticize one another, brothers. He who criticizes a brother or judges his brother criticizes the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one lawgiver and judge who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? (4:11-12) A. Believers are responsible to exhort Don t criticize one another brothers. (11a) Paul commands to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15) while Jesus said that love for one another is our badge of identity as Christians (John 13:35) Slander is condemned in Eph 4:31, Col.3:8, Titus 3:2 and 1 Pet. 2:1. HCSB, p. 2142, 4:11-12 Criticism is malicious, judgmental speech toward others. It violates the royal law (2:8 and by extension the Mosaic law. Since the One who gave the law also judges according to it, there are never grounds for critical speech directed toward another member of the congregation. B. The law is responsible to condemn But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge (11b) James declared the ro yal law to be you shall love your neighbor as yourself (2:18) Slander of fellow believers is a gross violation of this law; in effect, the law breaker is putting himself above God s law. Rather than letting the law condemn sin, the slanderer decides to do it on his/her own. (John 15:12) C. God, alone, is responsible to judge There is one law giver and judge who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? (12) James was simply echoing Jesus stern rebuke against judging (Matt 7:1-5). When we judge one another, we re putting ourselves in a position that only God should occupy. (Luke 6:37; John 5:27; 8:15; Acts 17; 31; Rom. 14:10; 1 Cor. 4:5; Col. 2:16; Heb 10:30; 1Pet 4:5; Jude 15; Rev 6:10; 20:4) V. Through Submission (4:13-17) 8 / 11

9 Come now, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit. You don t even know what tomorrow will bring what your life will be! For you are like smoke that appears for a little while, then vanishes. Instead you should say, If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that. But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So it is a sin for the person who knows to do what is good and doesn t do it. 1. Temerity Come now, you who say (13) HCSB, p. 2142: 4:13-17 In this section the issue is boastful speech that indicates arrogance. It is unclear whether the merchants of verse 17 were all Christians, but verse 15 suggests that some were. 4:13-14 In a hypothetical but realistic scenario, James accused a merchant who had big designs on making a profit of leaving God out of his plans. Neglecting to entrust our hopes and plans to God and His counsel is paramount to arrogance and unbelief. If He is really the Lord of our lives, we see all things as coming from His hands and we speak of plans and outcomes accordingly. 2. Temporary For you are like smoke that appears for a little while then vanishes (14) James continues his condemnation of pride and arrogance (6) This is not a word against advanced planning; rather it is judgment against presumption. (13) He concludes all such boasting is evil (16) (Ps. 19:12-13). C. Trusting Instead you should say, If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that (15) Our lives must be lived in an attitude of dependence upon God. D. Trespass So it is sin for the person who knows to do what is good and doesn t do it (17) Sin may be manifested in overt actions: wrong actions (1 John 3:4), wrong words (Matt 12:37), and wrong thoughts (Matt. 5:22). Here we learn of the sin of negligence. James gave a stern warning against pride (6), speaking evil (11), judging (12) and boasting (16). Barclay comments: James ends with a threat. If a man knows that a thing is wrong and still continues to do it, to him it is sin. James is in effect saying, You have been warned; the truth has been placed before your eyes. To continue now in the self-confident habit of seeking to dispose of one s own life is sin for the man who has been reminded that the future is not in his hands but in God s. ( Barclay, p. 114) (Ps. 34) 9 / 11

10 Application: 1. Believers are to resist the devil and submit to God. (Prov. 3:5-6) 2. Submission involves repentance, cleansing and humility. 3. Humility requires dependence upon God daily. (Ps. 37:4-7) Leaders Pack Item 2: Outline of Galatians; James Biblical Illustrator, p. 22: Humility: A Biblical Overview Notes: **You may access David s Lesson Preview in MP3 format at: g ; Dates: 8/29-11/14 Midlink; 11/8 A Night of Worship with Beth CYP; 11/9 Re: Create Date Night; 11/10 Legacy 685 Appreciation Dinner; 11/15 Staff Hunt Retreat; 11/18 Christmas Store gift collection; 11/18 Thanksgiving Lunch (Spanish); 11/22-23 Thanksgiving Holidays; 11/25 No LBS; 12/1 Deacon s Christmas Party; 12/6-9 - Celebration Performances; 12/15 Night of Hope Tour with (CYP); 12/23 10 / 11

11 No LBS; 12/24 - Christmas Eve 2,4 & 6; 12/24-25 Christmas Holidays; 12/31 Summit New Year s Eve. 11 / 11