James chapter 4. James is speaking to the Jewish Christians, the Jews among the dispersion, who are professing Christ.
! He starts off his chapter by bringing up what is a friendship with the world, a type of worldliness in them that he confronts very directly.
And we'll see as we go through this how James deals with them and hopefully draw some conclusions for our church this day and age.
Before we dig into the text, I'm just going to pray and then we'll walk through it. Sound good?
All right. Lord, I thank you, God, for your word. Thank you, God, that in your word is power.
Thank you that it is a living word that is alive and active.
I pray, God, that you would help me to speak truthfully from your word, that you would give me your mouth, Lord, to only speak what you are saying.
I pray that you would encourage us, Lord, and build us up today, that we would walk away more sanctified, Lord, more trusting of you, more repentant, God.
In true and earnest repentance, Lord, we would turn back to you where we have gone astray.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
Okay, James chapter 4, beginning in verse 1.
It says,
Okay, so there's a lot in here.
As I was praying and thinking about how I would present this before you.
James is writing to Christians who are duplicitous in their living and acting as Christians.
He starts off with a question.
He says,
So he poses a question.
Obviously, there's not perfect unity.
At least that, you know, he can maybe see.
He knows that there's tension.
And then there's a little bit of fighting.
There's a little bit of arguing.
There's a little bit of obvious quarreling.
And he asks the question.
He's like,
What causes this?
Okay.
And then he almost rhetorically answers just after.
He says,
Isn't that this, that your passions are at war within you?
In other words, you fight because you want to fight from deep within.
You have a genuine reason for fighting.
It's not happenstance.
It's not, well, you know, like, I just don't get along with this person.
And, you know, so we bicker, you know.
He clearly gets to the heart of the quarreling and the fighting by saying,
There's something within us or within you that drives the fighting, and it's your passions.
He says,
Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?
In Mark 7, verse 14, Jesus says,
And he called the people again and said to them,
Hear me, all of you, and understand.
There's nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him.
But the things that come out of a person are what defile him.
Okay, so Jesus doubles down in a very similar manner to James,
saying that it's not the externals that frustrate us and cause us to quarrel and fight,
but the internals.
Okay, out of our, Jesus later says,
Out of our heart come all these things, envy and malice and greed and lust,
and all these things from within, out of our own hearts.
James is doing the same thing as Jesus.
He's doubling down and saying,
I know exactly what's going on here.
And I think you can see later that they actually do as well,
but there is a suppression of that truth,
or maybe a sharing,
even though they do know the truth that's within them,
there's a sharing of, or being okay with that,
that's letting them go on and quarreling and fighting.
And so, you can see here in Mark 7, when Jesus speaks,
he's almost reminding the people.
You can see it, he says,
he called the people again to himself.
And then, he's very direct.
He says, hear me all of you,
and understand that it's not,
there's nothing outside a person
that by going into him can defile him.
Okay, so he's reiterating, he's like,
you have to remember something about what comes from within,
and what issues from within outward,
not merely outward in.
Okay, and then he explains
how that person is guilty from within,
and not from the outside causes.
So, a lot of the times with us,
you know, in our day-to-day life,
we're tempted to think that
we get ripped off by
so many different things.
You know,
if only I made more money,
if only I had,
you know,
a different boss,
maybe different spouse,
you know,
if only he understood me,
if only she didn't nag me,
all these things.
I am this way because of the outside.
Okay?
Well, Jesus says,
no, you're not this way.
These frustrations within you
aren't merely,
only causal from the outside.
There's another acting thing,
and that's called your passions within you.
Paul gets at this when he says that
our passions are aroused by the law.
So, when the commandment comes,
sin comes as well.
It comes alive in us.
Not in the other person,
but in us,
Paul says in Romans 7.
And so,
it's really important for us to remember
as we're reading James,
is that
we are the same,
you know,
these people were born after Adam
in sin,
and so are we.
So,
this type of quarreling,
this type of struggle,
is the same struggle
that we are vulnerable to.
Okay?
And these aren't
maybe degenerate unbelievers.
These are professing Christians.
So,
this is our category as well.
So,
when we read this,
let's hear the words of James
and examine ourselves.
Amen?
Okay.
You see this all the time.
I think,
honestly,
with parenting,
it's even more clear.
Parents love to make excuses
for their children's misbehavior,
even if there's some truth to them.
You know,
I hear a lot,
you know,
he just didn't nap.
Sorry.
It's just like,
well,
yeah,
it makes sense.
I would probably be a little crabby
if I was tired,
but,
in the end,
his lack of napping
is not the causal agent
for his screaming.
Right?
They come out of the womb
disobedient,
and
it's not merely that
the world is against them.
It might be,
but
we as parents
are supposed to teach them
how to master their passions
within them.
Okay?
You know,
I was listening to,
actually,
an unbelieving parent talk
to his son,
probably three or four years old,
and his son was really fussy,
would not calm down,
and all the dad was saying
is basically,
son,
like,
you ate a lot of sugar.
You know,
that's what happens
when you have too much sugar.
You know,
you hit a low,
and you need to learn from that.
I'm kind of thinking,
like,
he probably did eat a lot of sugar,
but that is not the reason
for why he's acting this way.
You know,
in fact,
if I ate a lot of sugar,
I would probably be super stoked.
You know,
like,
maybe I'll hit a low later
and be like him,
but
the problem is not
the externals.
I think you guys get that,
but
it's not merely that,
you know,
it's all external,
but
we frustrate ourselves,
you know.
This dad was trying
to convince his son
that he really valued
not fussing,
which was pretty much
pointless for his son
because his son
clearly didn't have that
as a category for value.
You know,
he valued sugar,
you know.
Not fussing,
he was cool with not fussing
because
he wants something
completely different.
That's an easy
illustration for us,
but we,
like children
in Christ,
if we are not
sanctified by the Holy Spirit,
are not mature
and are like children,
okay,
in that we
want to do the things
that we should not
want to do.
From within,
we
don't have self-control,
you know.
We might have
it put together
on the outside,
but where
is our hearts?
Are we like children
in our hearts,
wanting,
maybe even lusting,
as we're going to examine
the way that James speaks?
So it's good to ask ourselves
and even pray,
Lord,
make us not like children,
as the Apostle Paul said.
Let us grow up
into maturity.
Save us from the ways
that we are
throwing
inner tantrums.
Okay,
and so
James says,
is it not your passions
that are at war
within you?
All right,
and
he says,
you desire,
so that's the passion element,
you desire
and do not have,
so you murder.
You can even hear
James chapter 1
in here,
the progression of sin.
First comes desire,
and then
it gives birth
to sin.
It says,
you desire
and do not have,
so you murder.
You covet
and cannot obtain,
so you fight
and quarrel.
You do not have
because you do not ask.
So we fight
and quarrel
because we want to.
We fight
also because we're empty.
Okay,
notice how
James says,
you desire
and do not have,
okay,
emptiness.
You don't have,
and so you murder.
Now,
emptiness
doesn't necessarily
lead to
only the sin of murder,
as we can see
when James says,
you also covet
and what?
And cannot obtain,
so you don't have
something again.
Okay,
you do not have,
can't obtain,
you don't possess,
because you do not ask.
So,
we see James
is going hard,
he's saying,
he's like,
you fight because
you want to,
and you fight
because you're empty.
You fight because
you don't have something.
The emptiness
always comes
from a place
of not being satisfied.
It always comes
from the lack
of satisfaction,
lack of having enough,
and so,
that makes
our passions
eager
to fill
the lack,
right?
And James
says,
you do not have,
almost shockingly,
in a way,
shockingly simple,
that is,
you do not have
simply because
you don't ask.
So,
he turns it away
from their passions
and their emptiness
and now turns it
towards God.
You don't,
you don't have
something because
you don't actually
come to the one
who possesses it,
who owns everything,
who is God,
who created you
in this world
with everything in it.
You don't have
because you don't
come and ask.
You ask,
verse,
in verse 3,
you ask and do
not receive
because you ask
wrongly.
Okay,
now he's doubling
down on even
the asking.
It's not merely
asking,
but it's,
why do you ask?
What do you ask
for?
With what motive?
He says,
you do not ask,
or you ask
and do not receive
because you ask
wrongly
to spend it
on your own
passions.
He says,
there is a way
that you come
to the Lord
that's genuine.
That doesn't say,
okay, James,
we get it.
Pray to the Lord,
you know,
and we'll get something.
I'll pray to the Lord.
Lord,
give me what I want.
You know,
just,
just make,
make my wife
less this way.
It's like,
well,
the Lord's just like,
maybe I called you
to love her,
right?
And vice versa.
We pray all the time.
Maybe we don't,
maybe we don't call it prayer.
Maybe we just offer up
thoughts to God
of accusations
of the things
in our life.
But this is an asking,
this is an asking
that's wrong.
This is asking wrongly.
And we need to watch out
with how we approach God.
And we're going to see
as James walks through this,
how we actually do truly
come to the Lord
and ask genuinely.
that we receive.
So he says,
you ask and do not receive
because you ask wrongly.
Spend it
on your own passions.
This reminds me of
when Jesus fed
the 5,000.
He gave them all bread,
performed the miracle.
And he,
he brought a crowd with them
as he left.
and then he started
to speak to them
and he's just like,
I know why you're seeking me.
It's because
you enjoyed the bread
I gave you
and you probably want
some more of that.
Maybe it wasn't a bad thing,
but you can kind of hear
a tone in there
of
childlike
following.
You're only seeking me
because I fed you.
You know,
you don't really want
to ask of me
for my teaching.
You don't really care
about my teaching.
You want to be fed again.
And that's when he,
of course,
says,
I am the bread of life.
I am
the one who comes down
from heaven
and feeds you.
Not in a mere
temporal sense,
but I feed your soul.
You know,
and so
you can hear that
even as James speaks
with the asking
of the Lord.
Do we ask
in the mere temporal sense
for a temporal bread,
so to speak?
Or are we seeking
the Lord
because we want Him?
We want the satisfaction
that comes from Him
as the bread of life.
So in verse 3,
he says,
you ask and do not receive
because you want
to spend it wrongly.
And then James
keeps going.
He says,
you adulterous people.
He brings His rebuke
just almost to its antithesis.
He calls them
an adulterous people.
Okay?
I mean,
this is,
so if you're a Jew,
even if you're a,
now a Messianic Jew,
follower of Jesus,
you don't forget
all that you were raised
and born with
from the Old Testament
scriptures.
These people are
well keyed into the law.
And that is one,
as we know,
one of the Ten Commandments,
you shall not commit adultery.
Okay?
So he just straight up,
doesn't seem like he
cuts any corners.
He spares the temperate speech.
And he just says,
you are an adulterous people.
Okay?
Sure,
if I would hear this
and I had a little bit
of pride in me,
I would be very offended.
So James says,
you're an adulterous people.
And both the Old Testament
and the New Testament
speaks of God
in a way,
many times,
as our husband,
we are his bride
in a covenant,
in a marriage covenant,
so to speak,
spiritually.
And,
the Jews know this.
And so James says,
you
are a people
having an affair.
there's something
grossly unfaithful
about you.
There's an infidelity
that has snuck
into your hearts
with how you live,
with how you say,
I live for the Lord.
I live for God.
And he's saying,
you are an adulterous people.
You fight and quarrel.
You let your lust
and your passions
rule you.
Okay?
We want to say,
and I would caution
even myself
as I read this,
we want to say,
surely not me.
You know?
Or surely not to
the degree
that I would
put other
people in the category of.
You know,
that's not me.
I know who it is.
They're in that category.
And so,
I think I'm good
with the Lord.
James,
watch out.
So as to
not actually
be found
genuinely
in the category
that James
is speaking to.
The Lord wants
us to be humble
and receive
what the Lord
is saying
to James.
Examine ourselves.
He spares no expense.
He says,
you are an adulterous people,
unfaithful in the way
that you are living
and acting.
And the reason
that I know this,
he says,
is because you are
fighting and quarreling.
Okay?
Now,
that doesn't mean
that we're off the hook
if you have
a
merely
externally
non-quarreling
marriage,
friendships,
etc.
Because remember,
he doubles down
on the passions.
You know,
there is a way,
and I'm sure
all of you
have experienced this,
where you can
hold it together,
but you are angry
on the inside.
Okay?
James is also
speaking to us.
Who know that
and struggle with that.
Maybe we'd be humble.
Okay?
This is the exact language,
actually,
that Jesus uses
in Matthew 12,
when he's talking
to the Pharisees,
essentially the
proud ones
of his day,
professing Christians,
maybe,
they would say,
or at least
followers of
their father Abraham.
He says,
an evil
and adulterous
generation
seeks for a sign,
but no sign
will be given,
except the sign
of the prophet Jonah.
So he uses,
again,
to the Jews,
this image
of evil
and adulterous
infidelity.
and we
must take heed
that we
understand
where James
is going.
So,
moving on,
what does he say
after his
strong abuse?
Do you not
know
that friendship
with the world
is enmity
with God?
Therefore,
whoever wishes
to be a friend
of the world
makes himself
an enemy
of God.
in what ways
do we live
our lives
that are,
that we know,
what areas
are we neutral
to the world
so that we can
have
maybe some
pleasure
and mostly,
we might say,
living for the Lord,
that sort of thing.
I would,
I would press this
that there is no
neutrality to the world.
that we can share.
Neutrality to the world
ends
in serving
two masters.
We,
we can't be neutral.
We either have to be
enemies of the world
so as
to not be
drawn in
by the world.
Friendship with the world
is enmity with God.
You know,
a lot of examples
of this is,
obviously,
we're put in,
we're in the world.
Jesus says,
you know,
we're in the world
but not of the world.
We're called to preach
the gospel to the world
so we have to
interact with the world,
much of the world,
all the time.
But,
obviously,
I hope it's obvious
that James is speaking
about the state
of our souls
with the world.
Our souls must remain
untouched by the stain
of the world.
And he's speaking
of the world
in this sense,
not in the
all-encompassing
general world
but the world
that is in rebellion
against God
and the ways of God
that doesn't accept
God's Son,
Jesus Christ.
And we must watch out
that we don't
become
neutral.
Obviously,
not share,
but the neutrality
is difficult.
That is where
the schemes of the devil
want to sneak in
and let us think
like the world.
We're born into it.
We're born into
actually already
having a carnal mindset.
And praise be to God
that if we're in Christ,
we are daily
being sanctified,
saved from that carnality,
but take heed.
You know,
Corinthians says,
if any man thinks
he stands,
let him take heed
lest he fall.
Okay?
God is saving us,
no doubt.
And we should have
assurance
on God's promises
that he will indeed
cleanse us,
but God does not want
us to be
unaware
and passive.
And so,
that leads me to
the next part of James
where James
starts to begin
his solution
to their problem.
He kind of just went
on a mini saga
of explaining,
diagnosing,
and then rebuking
them hardcore
for what's going on.
And he says
in
verse 6,
right there,
yeah,
verse 6,
but he gives more grace.
Therefore,
it says,
God opposes the proud
but gives grace
to the humble.
This is the first part
of his portion
that we kind of get
a little bit of a lift,
right?
At least on the back
end of that.
He says,
God opposes
the proud
but gives grace
to the humble.
A lot of this
comes from
simply not
knowing God
as he truly is
and
the pride
of life
as 1 John says,
the love of the world,
things like money,
things like just
ways of thinking
that are carnal.
all these things
are desirable
but when we actually
think about God,
we seldom have
a true fear
that extinguishes
our pride.
If we truly
feared the Lord,
we would regard
the ways
and the methods
of the world
as nothing
in comparison
to the ways
of God.
God,
as in the prophets,
I think Isaiah
the prophet says
that
the Lord says
that I
am not like you.
My thoughts,
what I think
as God,
are not your thoughts.
We are not God.
Now a lot of us
may be like,
well duh,
we're not God.
But
we act
as though
we have
the final say,
that we are
the masters
of our own destiny,
so to speak.
We determine
the ways
and methods
of our life.
But let me remind us
that God
is not like us.
Okay?
God is not
like us.
God is not a man
that he should
lie,
the scripture says.
We lie
to ourselves
and are tempted
by the king
of lies,
the devil.
He speaks
and we listen.
Okay?
God is not like us.
God is so far
different from us.
And
make no mistake,
God is condescended
to where we
can know him
and become like us
in the sense that
in the face
of Jesus Christ
that we can know God.
But make no mistake
that God
is not
one of us.
Okay?
God is completely other.
He is completely holy
without stain,
without threat
of neutrality
to the world.
He would have to
not be God
to lay down
his divine
nature
in order to
be like us.
And I'm saying
all these things
that are the fundamental
things in Christianity
that we should
yes and amen
and even
you know
in the general sense
we do.
But I'm reminding us
because we're forgetful.
Okay?
It means that
all of our
methods,
all of our
principles,
all of our
practices,
beliefs,
opinions,
preferences,
tastes,
styles,
must
in the end
come into subjection
and must bow
prostrate before
the true and living God.
Okay?
His name
is the King
of Kings.
And
he will have that
written on his thigh
when he comes.
We're forgetful.
The reason I bring this up
is because
to not
live and regard
God as such
is to be proud.
Okay?
James says
in verse 6,
but he gives more
grace.
Therefore it says
God opposes the proud
but gives grace
to the humble.
So,
this is also
another weighty
verse.
God opposes
the proud.
God straight up
opposes our
prideful selves.
I don't know
about you,
but I do not
want to be
opposed by God.
Even as we
build this church,
it would be
a lot of sorrow
if in our pride
God opposed
Christ's church.
Lord,
save us
and help us
that we be not
lifted up
in our own souls.
That we not
care so much
for the things
of the world
or the thoughts
of men
that we
care less
about the thoughts
of God.
God
So,
let's really
consider the
severity of this.
It's not merely
that our spouses
oppose us,
our friends
when we're
prideful or
in some general
way that life
is of less
quality and
worse for us
because of our
pride,
but it's
actually,
maybe all those
things are true,
but it's actually
that the almighty
true and living
God who created
us opposes us
in some way.
God stands
against us
when we're proud.
You see this
throughout scripture
many times.
I mean,
you could even
say that that
was the origin
of evil.
It was the pride
of Lucifer
that made him
be cast down.
It was the pride
of Adam and Eve
in the garden
that brought
humanity with
him into the grave.
It was the pride
of Saul
that he became
wise in his own
eyes,
Samuel said,
and he lifted
himself up
that he was
removed as
God's anointed.
This lives
very close
at hand.
O Christ
Church,
may we not
build God's
house with
pride in our
hearts,
for God
will not
build with
us.
So what are
some examples
of pride?
There's so many
examples of
pride.
When I was
praying
specifically for
our body
and the Lord
to speak,
like,
Lord,
if you
would convict
us of this
sin of
elevation and
loftiness in
our own
selves and in
our own
pride,
what would
it be?
And a couple
things came to
mind that I
think maybe
aren't concrete
but could be
for our body.
One of them
is when we
have a culture
that speaks
the truth in
love,
as we should,
or we
confront one
another as
we should,
there's
kind of two
acting parts
in that
equation.
One is the
deliverer,
right?
Pride in
bringing the
confrontation,
pride in
getting it
across,
right?
Trusting in
yourself to
make something
happen,
right?
So that's
pride in the
deliverer.
But also,
let's say
there is
true speaking
the truth in
love.
So that is
without pride.
That's truly
loving the
person,
truly caring
for them.
But then
there's the
other side
of the
reception,
the receiver
of the
word.
Oftentimes
what can
happen,
I think
it's always
the case
where I'm
tempted when
I'm confronted
with pride,
is to
immediately
be offended.
Immediately
say,
you know,
you're wrong,
or even
if you're
right,
you're still
wrong.
You know,
kind of
attitude.
A type
of cringe
that pushes
you to
go with
your passions,
right?
And I
think this
is a way
that God
would warn
us as a
church when
we are
confronted,
even with
small things,
seemingly
small things,
not to be
lifted up
in our
pride,
so as
not to
receive
what the
Lord might
be saying.
Okay?
It might
seem like
on the
outside,
like,
everything
can be
cordial and
temperate and
good,
but examine
our hearts
with how we
actually believe
when someone
comes to us
and say,
hey,
I think
this might
be a little
off,
or I think
there might
be,
maybe even
not like
straight up
confrontation
of sin
per se,
but maybe
even just
bringing up
our personal
ways,
bringing up
a better
method of
something,
a better
way of
doing
things.
If we
bring something
up and say,
hey,
I think it
would be best
to do
something this
way,
X,
Y,
and Z,
insert your
own scenario,
and the
other person
is just like,
nah,
my way is
better,
kind of
reaction in
your heart,
or,
this guy
doesn't know
what he's
talking about,
like,
I think
I'm,
you know,
my way is
better,
and your
way might
be better,
but your
heart is
not,
okay,
and watch
out lest
we lift
ourselves up,
even in
the small
things,
even in
the ways
and the
methods
and the
principles,
okay,
the Lord
stands
against the
pride of
our hearts,
and so,
are we
immediately
offended,
do we
stay offended,
do we
provide
ourselves
with a
sort of
purgatory,
a time
where,
you know,
I'm offended
until I'm
not,
you know,
a certain
amount of
time passed,
or my
relationship's
bad right now,
but it'll get
good type of
attitude,
it's like,
no,
make it right,
confess your
sin,
resist your
sin,
resist those
feelings that
rise up
within you,
okay,
we're all
susceptible to
this,
I know
myself that
I'm tempted
many times
to be
offended,
and to
think,
to elevate
my way
above others,
and God
forgive me,
and give me a
heart after
his,
lack of
submission
to God,
or the
authority that
God has
appointed,
either authority
in the church,
or authority
in the home,
husbands,
and wives
that relationship,
one of the
worst,
one of the
worst things
to be
is a
person in
authority
that although
someone
submits to
your authority
and yet
disagrees,
is kind of
begrudgingly
goes along
in that
sort of
submission.
That's not
submission,
because full
submission actually
says,
I'm stating
what I
disagree,
if it's not,
you know,
obviously sin,
and things that
God tells you
to oppose,
but if it's
mainly things
that you have
differing opinions,
methods,
principles,
one of the
things that's
the worst
is when
you say,
you know what,
I'll go along
with you because
you're the guy
in authority,
you're my
husband,
but I'm not
going to be
happy the
whole time.
I'm just
going to go
along with
you because
I have to,
and you know
what,
I disagree,
so I don't
have to be
happy about
it.
Well,
that's not
real submission.
That's simply
trying to
appease God
and the
person you're
under just
to get
by,
and the
Lord wants
us actually
to submit
with joy,
to say,
you know what,
this is not
on me.
God has
appointed the
authorities that
be,
and I am
going to
champion their
way,
even though I
disagree,
even though it's
not how I
want it,
but I will
with joy
support them
because in
doing so,
I am
obeying the
Lord.
And when we
say we have
submission,
when we say
we,
you know,
we are
obeying,
when in
reality our
hearts are
far from
obedience,
we betray
our own
selves and
the Lord.
Another area
I think pride
can sneak
in,
or maybe
just,
this is a
little bit
at a
different
angle,
but discounting
yourself and
your gifting.
We have
some exceptional
people in
this room,
exceptionally
gifted people
by the
Lord.
the Lord
has given
people gifts
in this
room.
And I
think
sometimes
we can
discount
ourselves
and say,
no,
the Lord,
you know,
the Lord
uses people,
but probably
not so much
me,
and I'm
fine with
that,
and maybe
I'll just
kind of
just sit
my whole
life type
of thing.
that sounds
slightly
humble,
but the
problem is
if the
Lord gifts
you,
if it's
the Lord
who gives
and you
say,
no,
I won't,
you can
see the
pride in
that,
right?
You can
see the
disobedient
aspect towards
how the
Lord gifts
us.
And so
don't
discount
yourself.
If the
Spirit of
God truly
lives in
us,
then we
will want
His Spirit
to be
dispensed
from us.
Okay?
And so
where are we
at?
I think I'm
still on
verse 6.
It says,
God opposes
the proud,
but gives
grace to
the humble.
Submit
yourselves
therefore to
God,
resist the
devil,
and he
will flee
from you.
Draw near to
God,
and he
will draw
near to
you.
Cleanse
your hands,
you sinners.
Purify
your hearts,
you double-minded.
So,
he opposes
the proud,
but he
gives grace
to the
humble.
Now we're
getting into
the good
news of
this passage,
which James
prepares us
for,
I think,
in exposing.
Every time
the gospel
comes with
good news,
it always
comes with
conviction,
with a
type of
repentance.
If the
gospel is
good news
to you,
but your
sin is
nowhere in
sight,
and there's
no evidence
of repentance,
it's merely
good news.
It's not the
gospel.
And so,
he says,
God opposes
the proud,
but he gives
grace to the
humble.
So when we
know that
we're sinners,
when we know
that we lift
ourselves up,
what do we
do?
Do we stay
there,
like I said,
or do we
humble
ourselves?
Humility is
always way
easier and
way better.
I mean,
easier in the
sense where
it's not easy
that you have
to deny your
pride,
because that's
hard to do,
but it always
goes better.
It always is
easier in the
sense where
humility,
when someone
genuinely
confronts you,
for example,
and says,
hey,
you sinned in
this area,
or hey,
you're not
great at this,
you know,
speaks the truth
and love to
you,
and you have
an option.
Do I be
lifted up?
Do I entertain
my pride and
offense?
Or do I say,
this is an
opportunity for
me to be
humble?
I can be
humble right
now.
I can say,
you're right,
I did do
that,
or yes,
that's not
my strength.
Thank you
for bringing
this to me.
I'll pray
about this,
you can pray
for me,
and I'm
going to
seek the
Lord and
be better.
That's
humility.
That's
humility.
That always
brings the
Lord into
it.
There's no
opposition from
God on that.
God does
not oppose
that person
that bows
and says,
Lord,
you know
you're right,
I am
but a
man,
and you
are
God.
Okay?
James
in verse
7 says,
submit
yourselves
therefore
to God.
After he
says all
this,
he says,
what do
we do
now?
We
submit.
We
come
underneath
the
Lord.
We
agree
with
the
Lord.
We
agree
that
only
the
Lord
is
right.
Submit
yourselves
therefore
to
God.
Resist
the
devil
and
he
will
flee
from
you.
The
author
of
pride
you might
even
say,
the devil
tempts us
to be
proud,
tempts us
to come
in,
agrees and
partners with
our flesh
to lift
us up.
James
says,
resist him
and he'll
leave.
That's
a promise.
If you
say,
I will
be
humble,
even
though
it's
painful,
even
though
my
offense
is
real
and
strong,
I
will
submit
to
the
Lord
and
Satan
must
be
gone.
He
will
flee
from
that
person.
Verse
8,
draw near
to God
and he
will
draw near
to
you.
Cleanse
your hands
you
sinners
and
purify
your
hearts
you
double
minded.
This is
one of
my
favorite
verses
in
James,
honestly,
in the
whole
Bible.
It's
a
promise.
If we
draw
near
to
God,
he
will
draw
near
to
us.
Okay?
How many
times
are we
tempted
to
feel
distant
from
the
Lord,
alienated
from
God,
when the
scripture
says,
in fact,
that if
we
were in
Christ,
we
were
once
alienated,
Ephesians
says,
but now
we
have
been
brought
near.
Okay?
Draw
near to
God,
and he
will
draw
near
to
you.
Malachi
chapter
3,
7
says,
return
to
me,
Lord
speaks
to
Israel,
return
to
me,
and I
will
return
to
you,
says
the
Lord
of
hosts.
Similar
thing,
right?
And
someone
will
say
to
me,
well,
how
do
I
draw
near
to
God?
How
do
you
do
that?
You
know,
like,
what's
the
way?
And
the
way
is
through
the
gospel.
At
one
time,
we
were
alienated,
far
from
God,
but
now,
you
don't
have
to,
there's
no amount
of
works
you
could
do,
no
amount
of
sacrifices
to
offer,
there
is
no
holy
site
that
you
could
travel
to
and
do
a
pilgrimage
to.
In
fact,
actually,
you
can
come
to
the
Lord
now,
presently.
That's
the
good news
of the
gospel,
is that
you
don't
have
to
rely
on
your
good
works,
you
don't
have
to
rely
on
someone
else
to
mediate
for
you,
but
the
gospel
preaches
to our
hearts
and
says,
you
can
draw
near
to
God
now,
presently.
And
someone
will
say,
how do
I
draw
near
to
God
now?
Well,
thankfully
the Bible
explains to
us how.
In
Hebrews
chapter
11
verse
6
says,
and
without
whoever
would
draw
near
to
God,
okay,
for
whoever
would
draw
near
to
God
must
believe
that
he
exists
and
that
he
rewards
those
who
seek
him.
So
how do
we
draw
near
to
God?
Whoever
would
draw
near
to
God,
you
must
believe
that
you
are
drawing
near
to
a
God
who
is
there,
who
is
approachable,
and
you
must
expect
something
from
him,
that
he
would
give
you
something.
You
can
see
that
throughout
all
of
James
speaking.
You
don't
have
because
you
don't
ask.
Go
get
what
the
Lord
has.
If
you
draw
near
to
the
Lord
and
believe
that
he
will
give
it
to
you,
in
other
words,
he
rewards
those
who
seek
him,
then
you
will
draw
near.
He
will
give
it
to
you.
And
so
you
can't
draw
near
to
God
unless
you
believe
that
he
exists.
You
can't
draw
near
to
God
if
you
believe
that
he
will
give
you
nothing.
You
have
to
draw
near
because
you
know
that
he
is
good
essentially.
And
when we
draw
near
to
God
we
should
do
what
the
apostle
did
what
Paul
did
in
Romans
8.
He
says
in
verse
32
he
who
did
not
spare
His
own
son
but
gave
him
up
for
us
all
!
How
things
okay
he
will
give
us
all
things
if
we
draw
near
to
him
through
faith.
In
Luke 11
he
says
for
whoever
asks
receives
and
the one
who
seeks
finds
and
to
the
one
who
knocks
it
will
be
open
what
father
among
you
if
his
son
asks
for
fish
will
instead
give
him
a
serpent
or
if
he
asks
for
an
egg
will
give
him
a
scorpion
if
you
then
who
are
evil
know
how
to
give
good
gifts
to
your
children
how
much
more
will
your
heavenly
father
give
the
holy
spirit
to
those
who
ask
him
and
so
James
is
bringing
it
all
the
way
back
to
true
repentance
if
we
find
ourselves
proud
if
we
find
ourselves
lifted
up
he
says
draw
near
to
God
he
says
to
cleanse
your
hands
okay
this
means
we
actually
have
about
our
sin
if
you
find
yourself
after
you
sin
saying
it's
all
good
God
forgives
me
moving
on
almost
as if
you
forget
God
I
think
James
is
kind
of
like
not
true
repentance
okay
we're
not
into
condemnation
we're
not
into
beating
yourself
up
but
the
Lord
wants
us
to
be
serious
about
our
sin
he
wants
us
to
genuinely
cleanse
our
hands
he
says
let
your
laughter
be
turned
to
gloom
in
other
words
we
have
to
be
seriously
sorrowful
that
we
have
sinned
against
the
holy
God
and
then
the
promise
comes
in
verse
10
humble
yourselves
before
the
Lord
and
he
will
exalt
you
or
in
other
words
and
he
will
lift
you
up
Jesus
says
whoever
exalts
himself
will
be
humbled
!
God
will
come
with
sincerity
in
our
hearts
and
we
could
ask
the
Lord
earnestly
to
cleanse
us
in
our
humility
and
he
will
and
so
I
would
exhort
you
guys
if
any
of
you
be
in
pride
in
any
way
even
if
you
deem
it
to
be
small
do
not
deem
it
small
enough
so
that
you
do
nothing
repent
cleanse
your
hands
and ask
the
Lord
to
forgive
you
draw
near
to
him
who
gives
grace
and
he
will
draw
near
to
you
I
pray
that
Christ's
church
is
built
that
this
church
is
built
off
of
a
foundation
of
humility
before
the
Lord
and
I
believe
that
the
Lord
will
do
that
I
close
with
Hebrews
chapter
10
it
says
let us
draw
near
with a
true
heart
in
full
assurance
of
faith
with
our
hearts
sprinkled
clean
from an
evil
conscience
and
their
bodies
washed
with
pure
water
let us
hold fast
the confession
of our
hope
without
wavering
for he
who
promised
is
faithful
and let
us consider
how to stir
one another
up to love
and good
works
not neglecting
to meet
with each
other
as
is the
habit
of some
but encouraging
one another
as we
see
the
day
drawing
near
as