Do Not Create A Win-Lose World Series

Do Not Create a Win-Lose World

Squid Game Part 2

James 4:1-6

Steve Meenho Kang

www.evergreencommunity.org

We are in part two of this series, “Squid Game.”

The Netflix drama “Squid Game” became the number one show on Netflix in all 83 countries where Netflix streams.

“Squid Game” is a drama in which participants risk their lives to play a survival game to win a prize of 40 million dollars.

But why is this drama so popular all over the world?

One of the reasons is that it reflects the sentiments of the present age.

It created a consensus among many people.

Nowadays the COVID-19 crisis has made life more difficult for many people.

So many people believe that they have to compete and win over others to survive.

And this drama shows modern people’s life in a cross-section.

Everyone who participates in this game will play in 6 games in total.

They have to win each game to qualify for the next game.

In other words, you have to beat the other 455 players to become the final winner.

So, they play a game of survival to the end.

Many people feel that this game of survival is taking place in their own daily lives.

They struggle every day to survive in this hellish world.

The strong prosper at the expense of the weak.

And the weak perish at the expense of the strong.

But is this true?

Do we have to live according to the rule of the survival of the fittest?

So, imagine that James, the brother of Jesus, saw this drama.

Imagine also that he is looking at the society today.

He would be very sad to see people living by the law of the survival of fittest.

He would be so sad to see people who are trying to beat others so that they can win.

Therefore, if James saw “Squid Game,” he would say these.

I. We must stop fighting according to our desires (vv. 1-2a).

Verses 1-2a say this.

1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight.

Instead of the climate of peace necessary for the production of righteousness, they were fighting and quarreling.

James asked, “What causes fights and quarrels among you?”

His answer is “Don’t they come from your desires?”

The Greek term “desires” is “hedonon” which means “pleasures.”

It is the source of the English word “hedonism.”

Hedonism is the philosophy that views pleasure as the chief goal of life.

James stated that these pleasures reside within them.

And they competed with others to gain satisfaction.

Pleasure was the overriding desire of their lives.

James said, “You eagerly desire something, but you don’t get it.”

And their desire was so strong that they were willing to kill and covet.

This is exactly what the people in “Squid Game” were doing.

They all wanted to be the grand prize winner.

They did whatever was necessary to beat others to win.

Since they were all going after the same prize money, that created fights among them.

They were even willing to kill others to get what they wanted.

They believed that in order for them to win, they had to beat others.

They thought that this world is a win-lose world.

They believed that, in order for them to win, others must lose.

They believed that it is impossible to have a win-win world.

People who function with this idea, wish for others’ failure.

They constantly compete with others.

They distrust others.

At the end, they will all lose.

But sadly, this is how people think nowadays.

This is how people in this world view others and treat others.

But this kind of thinking will lead everyone to fight with each other.

This kind of thinking will create a world that is impossible to live in.

People who think this way will cheat, lie, take advantage of the weak, use others, and even kill others.

And this is what we see in the daily news.

However, the followers of Jesus must live differently.

We must stop fighting according to our desires.

II. We must seek blessings from God (vv. 2b-3).

Verses 2b-3 say this.

You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

James repeated his assertion.

Even with all their consuming desires, they were not able to obtain what they wanted.

What was the reason?

It was not because they had wrong parents.

It was not because their spouse did something wrong.

It was not because of the lack of education.