God’s Jealously Provides More Grace ! Series

INTRODUCTION #19

1. Open your bible to James 4:4-6.

2. We’ve already discussed v. 4, but it is important to read it again. It will serve as an introduction to vs. 5&6.

3. Verse 4 warns Christians against becoming friends to the world to the extent that we become guilty of committing spiritual adultery.

4. Throughout the O. T. God is pictured as the spiritual husband of his people. In the N. T. Christ is pictured as being the spiritual husband of all that are members of the church (Rom. 7:4 & 2 Cor. 11:2).

5. Verse 4 warns Christians to not participate in the immoral and unscriptural things of the world, otherwise we become an enemy of God.

6. Let’s read verse 4, “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

7. Let’s now discuss what we need to understand that will help us to guard against becoming a friend of the world.

DISCUSSION

I. FIRST, JAMES 4:5 TEACHES THAT THE SCRIPTURES NO WHERE TEACH THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO HAVE SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP WITH THE WORLD AND AT THE SAME TIME BE PLEASING TO OUR GOD, WHO IS JEALOUS OVER US.

1. Let’s read James 4:5, “Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?

1) If one can be friends of the world and friends with God, the scriptures are untrue. God cannot tolerate divided loyalty. In Matt. 6:24 Jesus says, “No man can serve two masters”.

2) The second part of James 4:5 means God loves men with such a passion he cannot at any time or in any way be content and allow his children to flirt with worldly activities or unscriptural teaching.

3) There is no one passage of scripture which says exactly: “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”. However, in Exodus 20:5 the scripture makes a similar statement when it says, “… For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…”

4) God, Christ and the Holy Spirit are grieved (Eph. 4:30) and spiritually “jealous” when those professing to be their spiritual children are flirting with worldly immorality and worldly teaching.

2. Let’s use an illustration to cause us to think about the type of jealously that God feels when men and women don’t show their loyalty and faithfulness to God.

1) Men, how would you feel if your wife got $200.00 from the man next door when she needed money to buy food for the children, instead of coming to you?

2) Or if, when she needed counsel or handy man help around the house, she asked for help from men in the neighborhood instead of coming to you?

3) It would break your heart. And that is what flirting with the morals and teachings of the world does to God. It breaks His heart when we go the way of the world.

4) It is as if we are saying, "Lord, you are not adequate. Your way is not the right way; it's not the best way for me.”

5) “I am going to have to get what I want from others." James says the result of this attitude is that we become adulterous and, for a good reason, God gets jealous!

The scripture in James 4:5 says, "the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”.

3. James is teaching Christians that they must understand that, as the spiritual bride of Christ that they belong to God and Christ and to no other!

II. SECONDLY, JAMES 4:6a TEACHES THAT GOD’S JEALOUSLY HAS SUCH A STRONG DEGREE OF LOVE IN IT, THAT GOD’S FIRST DESIRE IS NOT TO CONDEMN US WHEN WE DISAPOINT HIM, BUT RATHER HIS FIRST DESIRE IS TO EXTEND MORE GRACE TO US.

1. Let’s read James 4:6, “But He gives more grace….”

(1) Despite the natural, unbelieving, worldly hearts of men, God nevertheless gives more or greater grace.

(2) It is as if those who are guilty of being friends to the world are saying, “James, you have correctly described our situation; and, it is very true that we are too often guilty of being worldly and involved in doctrinal error. Is not then our situation hopeless and helpless?”

(3) James’ answer is, ‘No! Granting that you are often worldly, there is no good reason for you to yield to such desires.

(4) The reason that you don’t have to remain worldly is because there is “grace” to assist you. There is “more than a sufficient amount of grace” to meet your needs. God’s “grace is more and greater than the worldliness and false doctrine which will try to pull you down’.

2. The point being made by James is very much like Paul’s statement in Romans 5:20&21: " 20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”