It's going to take us several days to get through Chapter Four because it contains so much valuable advice. We are going to need to break it down into segments so we can take a good look at each portion.
Today James talks about the human desire to "have". We spend a lot of time thinking about what we want and we spend a lot of time working toward getting what we want. A lot of the things we want are necessary for daily living or necessary for a fulfilling life. There's nothing wrong with wanting a roof over our heads, food on our tables, and clothes on our backs. There's nothing wrong with wanting health and happiness for ourselves and for our loved ones. There's nothing wrong with wanting our relationships with family and friends to be satisfying and encouraging. But James is going to tell us today that sometimes the reason we don't have all these things in our lives is because we are going about getting them in the wrong way.
He's also going to warn us about greed and covetousness. We want far more than is necessary for a fulfilling life, don't we? There's something in us that always wants more, something that never quite gets to the point of saying, "It's enough." As King Solomon observed, "The eye never gets its fill of seeing." (Ecclesiastes 1:8) Everywhere we go, we're confronted with merchandise or advertisements that cause us to want more. We may already have twenty pretty dresses in the closet, but what if we see one in the store we really like? We want it, don't we? We want our homes to be more impressive, our cars to be newer, our clothes to be the latest styles, our jewelry to be impressive, our hair to be well-dressed, our relationships to be so good they cause others to envy us, our jobs to provide enough money that we spend some just for fun, and on and on and on. Granted, not everyone is motivated by material things. But perhaps what they want is to be more popular, to be more noticed, to be in a position of authority over others, to be recognized and rewarded for talents or hard work. Our wants take various forms, and what motivates you may not be the same things that motivate me. But generally speaking, there's almost always something more we want in our lives. Our wants may be noble or they may be greedy. But either way, James is going to offer some explanations for why we may not be getting what we want.
"What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you?" (James 4:1) James knows that the source of disunity in the church often comes from the desire of some to be superior to others. He talked about this earlier in the week, showing us that as Christians we have no right to be envious of each other or to always be trying to "one up" someone else. We each have been gifted by God, and we each have valuable work to do for His kingdom. We should support each other, not try to outdo each other. If a person's desire is to hold a position of authority in the church, this desire should not be motivated by selfish ambition. It should be motivated by a heart that sincerely wants to serve the Lord and by the assurance that there is a calling on that person's life to fill a position of authority in the church. James is saying something like this, "The reason some of you can't attain an office in the church is because your hearts aren't in the right place. The proof of this is that quarrels break out among you regarding who is the most qualified or the most deserving. You are motivated by a spirit of pride, not by a humble desire to serve the Lord in the best way possible."
Being motivated by the wrong spirit leads to obtaining our wants in sinful ways. The things we want may not be sinful themselves, but in this fallen world we are going to be tempted to take shortcuts to getting what we want. Satan is going to try to entice us to obtain what we want by taking it from someone else instead of praying for it or instead of performing honest work to get it. James has seen lives ruined by greed and selfishness. "You desire but do not have, so you kill." (James 4:2a) I would venture to say that most murders have occurred because the killer wanted something another person had. On the news we often hear about mass murders or serial killings, but the reason these things make the news is because they are relatively rare. The vast majority of murders are committed for what, sadly, we could call the "typical" reasons. They are committed because someone desired something they didn't have. They desired someone else's money or possessions, or they desired someone else's spouse, or they desired someone else's position or popularity.
"You covet but cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight." (James 4:2b) It's possible to actively dislike someone simply because their life appears to contain all the things we want for ourselves. Have you ever known people who seemed to have it all? Has it ever made you not want to be chummy with that person because deep down you resented them having so much? Sometimes we may think to ourselves, "It isn't fair for one person to be so good-looking and talented, and to have a great marriage, and to have kids who never get in serious trouble, and to have a high-paying job, and to have a beautiful house, and to have new cars, and to go on such fabulous vacations." Do you know anyone on Facebook who constantly makes posts that you are certain are just intended to show off? Have you ever made a face when you are scrolling through the newsfeed and see those posts? I'm going to be honest and raise my hand and admit that I've wrinkled up my nose and said to myself, "There's Betty Jo bragging about her house again," or, "Here's another picture of roses Mary Lou's husband brought home to her." I also have to be honest and say these posts wouldn't bother me at all if deep down I didn't wish I could afford to replace my worn out floor coverings or if I didn't wish my marriage had always been as perfect as Mary Lou's looks like it is. (By the way, I made those names up. I don't know a Betty Jo or a Mary Lou, but you know what I mean. We are probably all acquainted with people we feel a little envious of.)
We don't always get what we want, but sometimes we have no one to blame but ourselves. We're going about getting what we want in the wrong way or in the wrong spirit. The next reason we may not have what we want seems obvious but it's one I think we often miss: "You do not have because you do not ask God." (James 4:2c) Are we praying for the things we want? Obviously, if what we want is not something we can pray for with a clear conscience, it's something sinful. But I'm talking about the things that most people want out of life. If some of those things are missing, have we asked God for them? You would think this would be the first thing we'd do, but in my own life sometimes I realize I've been bothered by something for a long time and haven't asked God to fix it. Someday we are going to see God in all His power and glory, and even though I know there will be no sad tears in heaven, I wonder if we are going to realize that we thought too small while we lived on the earth. There is so much more power and victory and help available to us than we can imagine. Sometimes we don't have what we want or see the changes we want simply because we are not praying about these things.
And lastly, we may be asking God for our wants, but we may not receive what we want because we intend to use what we get in the wrong way. "When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." (James 4:3) It's not a sin to ask God for a job that will support our families. The Lord knows what we need and is able to provide what we need. But if we ask Him for more money because we intend to spend it in sinful ways, or because we are just so greedy that nothing ever satisfies us, we shouldn't be surprised when God doesn't say yes.
There are other reasons why some things in our lives aren't exactly the way we want them to be right now. This may be due to sin in the lives of those around us, because what other people do effects us. God may allow hardship into our lives for a purpose, because He intends to do something for us through that hardship. But James has observed several ways in which we cause ourselves to lack things we want. He doesn't want us to miss out on blessings from the Lord, so he is trying to prevent us from missing out on God's best.
***There won't be a blog post on Wednesday because my sister is having surgery in the morning for Stage 1 breast cancer and I'll be leaving home very early. I can't tell you how much I would appreciate all of you praying for her full recovery. We'll meet back here on Thursday to pick up where we left off.***
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