James 4:1-10
Intro: • Does James appear to expand on his previous statements that worldly wisdom, jealousy, and
selfish ambition create disorder and “every evil thing”? (cf. 3:15,16)
• How do these contextual circumstances color the interpretation of these verses?
- belief-only teachers? (cf. 2:14,18-20; 3:1)
- Jewish-Christian legalism?
- economic impoverishment of Jewish Christians in Judea?
- anti-Roman sentiment in Judea in early 60s of first century?
Vs. 1 • Were the “quarrels and conflicts” James mentions between...
- Christians in the church community to which James was writing?
- Judean residents in general?
- Romans and Palestinian peoples?
• What was the source of their anti-social behaviors?
- passions in their physical bodies?
- selfish ambitions in the Body of Christ?
- diabolic egomania in the hearts of the people?
- hedonistic self-concern within Christians?
- passionate nationalism among Judean peoples?
Vs. 2 • How would you explain the “lust that was leading to murder”?
- Christians desiring to be fundamentally right, so they would kill those who
disagreed?
- Jewish-Christians desiring self-rule, so they engaged in murderous mercenary acts
against the Romans?
- Christians desiring power or authority, so they had murderous hate for those
standing in their way? (cf. Matt. 5:21.22; I Jn. 3:12,15)
- Christians with such selfish desires that they would kill another Christian to get
what they wanted?
• Does the “envy that leads to fighting and quarreling” refer to...
- jealous regard for “truth” that led to conflicts?
- zealous nationalism that led to militaristic war with the Romans?
- power-envy that led to internecine struggles?
- personal jealousy that created discord and contention?
Vs. 3 • What was James saying about their prayer requests?
- “You do not have what you really want because you do not seek God’s wisdom
and fulfillment”?
- “You seek the selfish fulfillment of your desires to indulge your own self-interest”?
- “You want nationalistic self-rule so you can do your own thing, whether it is what
God wants or not”?
- “You want God to bless what you’re doing even though it is evil, and God will not
answer such requests”?
Vs. 4 • Do you think that James’ charge of “adulteresses” refers to...
- physical adultery between Christians?
- spiritual adultery or unfaithfulness to God?
• Why does James declare such an either/or dichotomy between the world and God?
- because Satan is the “ruler of this world” (cf. II Cor. 4:4) in opposition to God?
- because the world-system is antithetical to the kingdom of God?
- because no man can serve two masters at the same time? (cf. Matt. 6:24)
Vs. 5 • What does James mean by the unknown “Scripture” he cites?
- God is jealous that the Holy Spirit in the Christian should be in control of the
Christians’ behavior?
- God desires that the spirit that he created in us should function as intended?
- the Spirit that dwells in Christians intensely desires that we be faithful to God?
- God cannot tolerate unfaithful people and jealously desires His bride, the Church,
should allow His Spirit to be the indwelling Lord of Christian lives?
Vs. 6 • Is James saying that...
- God’s grace is greater than His jealousy?
- greater is the grace of He who is in you, than the disorder of he who is in the
world? (I John 4:4)
- the dynamic of God’s sufficiency is greater than the satanic solicitation to sin?
- God’s grace is sufficient to overcome our sinful and self-oriented tendencies?
• When James quotes (apparently from Prov. 3:34; cf. I Pet. 5:5) is he indicating that...
- God’s character is contrary to arrogance, but provides for the lowly?
- God is set against proud self-sufficiency, but He supplies all things to those who
are receptive and available to His sufficiency?
- God resists those who think they do not need Him, but graciously gives everything
necessary to those who know they need Him?
Vs. 7 • How many imperatives does James use in the series of exhortations in verses 7-10,
whereby he seems to seek to encourage humility, repentance and faithfulness?
• Choose the meaning which you think best expresses James’ meaning in his admonitions:
• “Submit to God”
- Be willing to be subordinated to God
- Do what God says.
- Subject yourselves to God’s sovereign control.
• “Resist the devil and he will flee from you”
- Engage in the battle of spiritual warfare with the devil and he will be defeated.
- Resist the diabolic tendencies of demonic wisdom (3:15), selfish ambition
(3:14,16), and friendship with the world (4:4), and they will be overcome.
- Stand against Satan by standing dependently in Christ, and selfish sinfulness will
be conquered.
Vs. 8 • “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you”
- Does God seem far away? Guess who moved!
- The more you seek God, the more you will sense Him close to you.
- Come to God in repentance and contrition, and you will find Him ever ready with
His grace, love and forgiveness to accept you.
• “Cleanse your hands, you sinners”
- Cleanliness is next to godliness.
- As priests of God, you cannot come before God without being cleansed.
- Sinful Christians need to confess their sins, and be cleansed of all unrighteousness
(cf. I John 1:9)
• “Purify your hearts, you double-minded”
- develop a single focus on God instead of a double-vision on God and the world.
- those who think they can go with God and dabble with the devil must give up the
latter for a pure heart.
- make your choice – you can’t straddle the fence and walk in two worlds.
Vs. 9 • “Be miserable, mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to
gloom.”
- you must be distressed and devastated about your sinful behavior.
- foolish festivities of worldliness must be replaced by repentance.
- the “sackcloth and ashes attitude” of repentance is in order when Christians
misrepresent the character of God.
Vs. 10 • “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.”
- those who are dependent upon Christ will be glorified.
- Submit to God in repentance, and God will make you all He wants you to be.
- Take your proper place of subordination before God, and He will lift you up on
high.
Conc. • If you were to select a theme for these verses, what would it be?
• Are there any individual or collective sins that we need to repent of?
