James: Practical Faith
James 4:7-10
Pastor Jefferson M. Williams
Chenoa Baptist Church
11-17–2024
Intro
When I was a youth pastor in Mississippi, a girl brought her new boyfriend to youth group. She was 13 years old and he was about to be 18 years old. I made an offhand comment about the age difference that set her and her parents off.
They demanded a meeting with the senior pastor and me. They also were very vocal in the church about my “disrespect” of their daughter. They wanted my head on a silver platter.
Truthfully, I was hurt and then mad. It was an offhand comment but I meant it. I didn’t think it was a good idea for this junior high girl to be dating a senior in high school. I wanted to go into the meeting guns blazing.
I called a very wise friend of ours and asked her what I should do.
She told me to look up every reference in the Bible about making peace and then kneel and read each one out loud in my office. After reading the verse out loud, I was to make a decision to obey that Scripture completely, regardless of what her parents throw at me.
I did as she directed. When it came time for the meeting, I was no longer mad and had a peace that passes all understanding.
I asked to be the first to speak. I apologized for the way I said what I said and asked the student’s forgiveness. I did this sincerely, with a joy that I couldn’t manufacture on my own.
My quiet, peaceful and kind demeanor defused the situation. But that only happened because I made a choice to submit myself under God’s Word and be obedient to it.
Review
James is a practical book and he is most interested in our spiritual maturity.
Warren Wiersbe didn’t hold back when he wrote:
“Spiritual maturity is one of the greatest needs of churches today. Too many churches are playpens for babies instead of workshops for adults.”
So far, we’ve seen the test of trials, temptations, how we handle the Word, how we handle other people, how our faith results in good fruit, how our words can glorify God, and how Godly wisdom can be shown by a godly life.
Two weeks ago, we began studying chapter four, where James addresses why there are conflicts and fights among the people of God.
James begins with two questions:
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?
Those of us who are born again have a new nature and are filled with the Holy Spirit who is making us more and more into the image of Jesus.
But that doesn’t mean our old nature disappeared. The old nature, our fleshy, selfish, prideful side of us wages war against the new nature. We have all felt that conflict when we are faced with a temptation or with an opportunity to lie to get out of trouble.
You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight.
We murder people with our words and assassinate their character on social media.
We also covet, hotly desire, [bitterly envy], but we can’t ever attain what we want, and that leads to conflict with others.
Chuck Swindoll pointedly states,
“If a disagreement should be resolved and could be resolved, but is not, then our stubbornness and selfishness are at the core of the failure.”
James then writes that selfish living leads to selfish praying.
You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
He writes that when we do pray, we see God as a holy vending machine in the sky.
We ask with wrong motives - “gimme gimme prayers.” Prayer is not about getting things from God but about aligning our will to His will.
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
When James writes about the “world,” he means the system in our culture that is hostile toward God.
John defined it this way:
“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.” (I John 2:15-17)
This doesn’t have to be outright rebellion. Sometimes it's the little compromises with the world that can suck the life from our souls.
Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us?
F.B. Meyer wrote:
“James went so far to speak of them as adulterous and then adopting a gentler, pleading tone, he says, ‘You have grieved the Holy Spirit who has come to dwell in you, who yearns with a jealous envy to possess your entire nature for Himself.”
But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
Charles Spurgeon once said:
“If you are willing to be nothing, God will make something of you. The way to the top of the ladder is to begin at the lowest round. In fact, in the church of God, the way up is to go down; but he who is ambitious to be at the top will find himself before long at the bottom.”
So James has asked a question and elaborated the problem. This morning, he is going to give us the solution to solving the conflict that rages within the church.
Please turn with me to James 4.
Prayer.
The Blessing of Brokenness
Like a machine gun, James is going to rattle off a series of commands.
This is one of the most amazing sections of James and we are going to take these imperatives slowly, one at a time.
When we have messed up, when we are in conflict, when our pride has got the better of us, there is a way back.
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
Submit yourselves to God.
There is a “therefore” here in the Greek. When faced with conflicts, internal and external, the most important thing we can do is to bow the knee in submission to God.
Kent Hughes writes:
“James’s opening command grates like fingernails across the chalkboard of contemporary culture.”
Remembering that God opposes the proud, we place ourselves under the authority of God. This is something that our culture disdains.
I was at the pool and noticed a woman with a full back tattoo. I wandered by several times, hoping not to look too creepy, trying to figure out what it said.
I finally just asked her and she said it was the poem “Invictus.” I smiled and said, “So, you are the captain of your soul?” And she said yes, that’s why she got the tattoo. (She was impressed I knew the poem)
Invictus, written by William Earnest Henley, could be a mission statement for modern day American culture.
Out of the night that covers me, ? Black as the Pit from pole to pole, ?I thank whatever gods may be ? For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance ? I have not winced nor cried aloud. ?Under the bludgeonings of chance ? My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears ? Looms but the Horror of the shade, ?And yet the menace of the years ? Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate, ? How charged with punishments the scroll, ?I am the master of my fate:? I am the captain of my soul.
The proud will not submit. They are the captains of their own souls.
43 monkeys escaped from a research and breeding facility in South Carolina. Interestingly, they didn’t go far. Most of them hung around in the trees next to the facility and jumped back and forth across the fence.
Why didn’t they go farther? Because they knew that the facility is where they get feed.
Sadly, this reminds me of me. I don’t want to be cooped up by God’s rules but I don’t want to go far because I still want His blessing.
Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
But those who submit are called to follow the humble, self-emptying example of Jesus and choose to follow in His footsteps.
We are to be still and know that He is God. We are to get under and listen carefully.
The tense of the verb means to make a choice and do it at once. We are called to be subject to God and obey Him in everything.
It is the only way to salvation and the only avenue toward growing in Christ.
Francis Ridley Havergal, an English poet and hymn writer, visited a London home in 1874. There were ten people in attendance, some of whom were Christians but not fully committed and others that were unsaved.
She prayed, “Lord, give me this house.” Before she left the house, eight of the ten had surrendered their lives to Christ.
She was so excited that she wrote a hymn now known as, “Take My Life.”
Take my life and let it be?consecrated, Lord, to thee.?Take my moments and my days;?let them flow in endless praise,?let them flow in endless praise.
Take my hands and let them move?at the impulse of thy love.?Take my feet and let them be?swift and beautiful for thee,?swift and beautiful for thee.
Take my voice and let me sing?always, only, for my King.?Take my lips and let them be?filled with messages from thee,?filled with messages from thee.
Take my silver and my gold;?not a mite would I withhold.?Take my intellect and use?every power as thou shalt choose,?every power as thou shalt choose.
Take my will and make it thine;?it shall be no longer mine.?Take my heart it is thine own;?it shall be thy royal throne,?it shall be thy royal throne.
Take my love; my Lord, I pour?at thy feet its treasure store.?Take myself, and I will be?ever, only, all for thee,?ever, only, all for thee.
D.L. Moody said,
“Let God have your life, He can do far more with it than you can.”
Can I ask you a question? Why are you fighting love?
There was a Broadway musical entitled, “Your arms are too short to box with God.”
Charles Spurgeon wrote:
“If you will not submit, your faith is a lie, your hope is a delusion, your prayer is an insult, your peace is presumption, your end will be despair.” - Spurgeon
Stop fighting. Put down your pride and humble yourself before the God that created you and loves you with an everlasting love.
[Kneel]
Resist the Devil and he will flee from you.
First, and most importantly, we are to bow the knee to our Great High Commander and be willing to engage the fight under His banner.
James has already made the point that the world, the flesh, and the devil all play a part in our conflicts with others.
So after submitting to God we are called to resist the devil.
Before we can stand before satan’s onslaughts, we must bow low before God.
We are not called to attack the devil but to resist. This is a picture of a dam that is holding back a torrent of water not by moving but by being immovable.
Ranchers out west were at a loss as to how to stop coyotes killing their sheep. They had tried everything, including electric fences.
One rancher found a unique solution. He bought a llama. Llamas aren’t scared of anything. The coyote approaches, they stand up straight and stare it down. Coyotes are opportunists and don’t want to mess with the strange animal guarding the sheep.
Paul wrote to the Ephesians:
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” (Eph 6:10-13)
Pastor Watchman Nee writes:
“Every Christian must learn to stand. Each one of us must be prepared for the conflict. We must know how to sit with Christ in the heavenly places and we must know how to walk worthy of Him down here, but we must also know how to stand before the foe.”
Paul writes that Satan often “masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Cor 11:14) and Peter warns his readers to be alert because
“Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (I Peter 5:8)
There is a war going on between the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of darkness.
If we were in a car together and a bee got in and you are allergic to bees. What if I caught the bee in my hand and he stung me and then I let it go. Would you be afraid of it anymore? No. It can buzz and buzz but it can no longer sting you and it is slowly dying.
That’s what Jesus did to satan on the cross - he took his stinger for you.
Jesus defeated satan on the cross and we stand in that victory.
We resist his lies and his deception and his attempts to create conflict between believers.
And we have this promise that as we stand by the “word of our testimony and the blood of the lamb,” (Rev 12:10), the devil will flee from us.
It’s been said that the devil can wrestle against a Christian but he cannot pin him.
So we submit ourselves to God, we resist the devil and then we are given an invitation and a promise.
[Stand]
Come near to God and He will come near you.
This is a verse that you need to underline, circle, put on an index card and memorize.
When ungodly behavior or worldliness or conflict puts distance between you and God, there is a way back.
How do we draw near to God?
We can draw near through worship, gratitude, prayer, and service.
Most people know Jeremiah 29:11:
"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
That verse hangs in a frame in our living room.
But do you know the rest of the promise?
“Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jer 29:12-13)
But that promise was limited.
In the Old Covenant, God is very clear to Moses and the people do not come close to Him or they would die.
But now, God says come. Draw near to Him. Not to check off a box. Not to try to win His approval.
He doesn’t just want to save you or forgive you, He wants to be near you.
Joseph Hart wrote these words of a famous hymn:
Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,
weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you,
full of pity, love and power.
I will arise and go to Jesus;
he will embrace me in his arms;
in the arms of my dear Savior,
O there are ten thousand charms.
I want you to really listen. If you feel distance between you and God, remember, God hasn’t moved, you have. Come home.
Once we have drawn near to God and are in the presence of His holiness, we will realize just how sinful we really are.
[Take a step forward]
Wash your hands you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double minded.
Remember that James is writing to Jewish Christians in the 40 AD. The idea of ritual washing was deeply ingrained in their hearts.
Washing of the hands was part of being ritually pure before God.
James calls sinners to wash their hands of their sinful actions.
He then calls us to purify our hearts of our sinful attitudes.
James invented the word, “double-minded” (lit double souled) and in this context represents an attempt to be a friend of the world and of God.
This is a call to repent of our sins.
His readers would have known David’s words well:
“Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place. The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.” (Psalm 24:3-4)
As we submit and draw near to God, we recognize how sinful we really are.
Isaiah saw a vision of God “high and lifted up, seated on a throne, and the train of His robe filled the temple.” (Is 6:1)
Isaiah is completely overwhelmed and cries out:
“Woe to me!”… “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” (Is 6:5)
When fishing with Jesus and after a huge haul of fish, Peter was overcome in the presence of Jesus:
“When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8)
The Westminster Shorter Catechism has an excellent definition of repentance in Question 87:
“Repentance unto life is a saving grace, whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience.”
Put more simply, repentance is a change of heart that leads to a change of direction.
We were returning to the church after our day of missions in New York. The church was on 101st street. I was driving and deep in conversation with a student riding shot gun when a voice came from the back.
She said, “Isn’t the church on 102nd street?”
When I said yes, she said, “Well, we just passed 108, 110, and 112 street. I think we are going the wrong way.”
She was right. We were going the wrong way.
I had to stop. Then I had to turn around, no easy feat in Queens. But then I was on the right path.
In the very first Gospel sermon, Peter proclaimed,
"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” (Acts 3:19)
If you are a thousand miles away from God, how many steps back is it? Just one!
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9)
[Wash your Hands]
Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.
James continues his call to open and thorough repentance. We are to move beyond outward acts to a heart attitude of sorrow over our sins.
The result of sin is separation from God and God will do what it takes to bring us back to Him. Remember, He will not allow his children to sin successfully.
But guilt, or as the Bible calls it, godly sorrow, is a good thing for a Christ-follower.
Paul explained this to the Corinthian Christians:
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” (2 Cor 7:10)
Jesus said,
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matt 5:4)
We do not mourn and weep because we have broken God’s rules but because we have broken His heart.
David writes of this in Psalm 32:
“Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.
When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.”And you forgave the guilt of my sin.” (Psalm 32:3-5)
The prophet Joel calls us to
“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love and he relents from sending calamity.” (Joel 2:12-13)
The Puritans speak of the gift of tears.
John Newton, a former alcoholic and slave trader, is said to have this gift and put into verse:
“Amazing grace how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch [outcast, rogue, scum, snake, villain, worm] like me
I once was lost but now I’m found
Was blind but now I see.”
[Wipe away tears]
Humble yourself before the Lord, and He will lift you up.
James ends this section by bookending verse 6 and 10 together.
The word humble means “a sense of modesty, without arrogance, the opposite of pride.” It produces a correct view of ourselves, our relation to Christ, and others.
Kyle Snodgrass writes,
“An understanding of God’s work is always an attack on the ego, not to obliterate or humiliate the self, but to bring into relation with God and redirect its interests. In losing life we find it.”
The prophet Micah wrote:
“He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)
John Stott wrote:
“Pride is your greatest enemy, humility is your greatest friend.”
On Friday night, 80,000 people showed up to watch Jake Paul, a 27 year old YouTuber, fight 58 year Mike Tyson.
Jake is the ultimate promoter but not a very good boxer. Most of his wins have come against MMA fighters or older boxers.
If you were to scroll Twitter or Instagram Friday, the majority of people wanted Tyson to knock the arrogant kid into next week.
Instead, what we we got was a scripted fight were no one threw any real punches, and they split a purse of 60 million dollars.
We live in a culture that is obsessed with promoting ourselves, and our brand and exalting ourselves above others.
Google reports that there were 24 billion selfies taken last year and more people died taking selfies than in shark attacks!
But we are not called to exalt ourselves. In fact, we are called to die to ourselves.
“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25)
We are to take our cue from John the Baptist. He was asked whether it bothered him that people were flocking to Jesus and he responded, “He must increase, and I must decrease.” (John 3:30)
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[Kneel with hands up]
Video: Freedom (Repentance)
Ending Songs:
I Set My Hope on Jesus
Lord, I Need You
