Pastors Jim and Marie Watt
(From: JAMES #5 - 4:1-12)
C. 4:1-12 THE WORLDLY SPIRIT SET IN ITS TRUE CONTEXT
1. 4:1-10 FULL REPENTANCE BREAKS YOKE OF WORLDLINESS
a. 4:1 FLESHLY PLEASURES PRODUCE CONTENTIONS
POthen POle-moi [4171]kai POthen MAchai [3163]en huMIN? Ouk enTEUthen,
Whence wars and whence fightings among you? come they not hence,
ek ton he-doNON [2237]huMON ton stra-teu-oMEnon [4754]en tois MEle-sin huMON?
of your :pleasures that war in your :members?
b. 4:2 FLESHLY LUSTS ARE NEVER SATISFIED
e-pi-thuMEIte, kai ouk Eche-te: phoNEUe-te, kai zeLOUte kai ou DUnas-the e-pi-tuCHEIN:
You lust, and have not: you kill, and are jealous and cannot obtain:
MAches-the [3164]kai po-leMEIte [4170]; ouk Eche-te, diA to meaiTEIS-thai huMAS.
you fight and war; you have not, because you ask not.
c. 4:3 You ask, and receive not, because you ask amiss, that you may spend itin your :pleasures.
aiTEIte, kai ou lamBAne-te, di’ HOti kaKOS aiTEISthe, HIna en tais he-doNAIS[2237]huMON da-paNEse-te.
d. 4:4a Adulteresses, know you not that the friendship of the world is enmity with :God?
moi-chaLIdes [3428], ouk OIda-te HOti hephiLIa tou KOSmou ECHthra tou TheOU es-tin?
e. 4:4b Whoso therefore intends to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy.
hos eAN oun bou-leTHEPHIlos EInai tou KOSmou echTHROS tou TheOU kaTHISta-tai.
f. 4:5 OUR UNREGENERATE SPIRIT HAS UNLAWFUL ENVYING
edoKEIte HOti keNOS [2761]hegraPHELEgei,
Or think you that the scripture says in vain,
Pros PHTHOnon [5355]e-pi-poTHEI [1971]to PNEUma ho kaTOki-sen [2730]en heMIN?
Does the spirit which he made to dwell in us long unto envying?
g. 4:6a But he gives greater grace. MEIzo-na de DIdo-sin CHArin.
h. 4:6b Wherefore itsays, :God resists the proud, but gives grace to thehumble.
di’ HO LEgei, Ho TheOS hu-pe-rePHAnois [5244]an-tiTASse-tai [498], ta-peiNOIS de DIdo-sin CHArin.
i. 4:7 Be subject therefore to :God; but resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
hu-poTAge-te [5293]oun toTheO; anTISte-te [436]de todi-aBOlo, kai PHEUxe-tai [5343]aph’ huMON.
j. 4:8a Draw nigh to :God, and he will draw nigh to you.
egGIsa-te [1448]toTheO, kai egGIsei huMIN.
k. 4:8b Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify yourhearts, youdoubleminded.
ka-thaRIsa-te [2511]CHEIras, ha-mar-toLOI, kai hagNIsa-te [48]karDIas, DIpsu-choi [1374].
l. 4:9 THERE IS A TIME FOR HEAVY SORROW FOR SIN
ta-lai-poREsa-te [5003], kai penTHEsa-te [3996], kai KLAUsa-te [2799]:
Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep:
Ho GElos [1071]huMON eis PENthos me-ta-straPHEto[3344], kai hechaRA eis kaTEphei-an.
let your :laughter be turned to mourning, and the joy to heaviness.
m. 4:10 Humble yourselves in theLord’s sight, and he shall exalt you.
ta-peiNOthe-te [5013]eNOpi-on KuRIou, kai huPSOsei [5312]huMAS.
2. 4:11-12 THE BACKBITER ELEVATES SELF ABOVE GOD
a. 4:11a Speak not one against another, brothers.
Meka-ta-laLEIte [2635]alLElon, a-delPHOI.
b. 4:11b THE BACKBITER ELEVATES HIMSELF ABOVE GOD’S LAW!
ho ka-ta-laLON a-delPHOU, eKRInon ton a-delPHON auTOU,
Who speaks against a brother, or judges his :brother,
ka-ta-laLEI NOmou, kai KRInei NOmon [3551]:
speaks against the law, and judges the law:
ei de NOmon KRIneis, ouk ei poi-eTES NOmou, alLA kriTES.
but if you judge thelaw, you are not doer of thelaw, but judge.
c. 4:12 WILL A JUDGING MAN ELEVATE HIMSELF ABOVE THE LAWGIVER?
heis es-tin no-moTHEtes [3550]kai kriTES, Ho duNAme-nos SOsai kai a-poLEsai [622]:
One is lawgiver and judge, he who can save and destroy:
su de tis ei ho KRInon ton pleSIon [2087]?
but who are YOU that judges your:neighbor?
NOTE: Oswald Chambers is among many who clearly state that few believers indeed truly know the depths of perversity and potential of evil that lies in the human heart of each one of us. Jeremiah says – “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked – who can know it?”
Few believe that thiscould apply to himor her!
But here James, the brother of Jesus, the apostolic pastor of the church of Jerusalem, is saying the very same thing. God cannot show an individual the truth of this passage until he has reached the end of himself. In his hopelessness he cries out to God as did David in Psalm 51 – ThenGod reveals the truth about his total bankruptcy – and thenthe glad tidings and good news of the Gospel comes: In Christwe are morethan conquerors.
The third biography on Oswald Chambers by David McCasland brings out this truth by telling in detail how Chambers reached this point – and thencame through into such a Galatians 2:20 experience, that by the time he reached the age of 43 and then went home to glory, he had over 50 books in MS form under his belt. His widow Biddy, after but 7 years of marriage, transcribed from her short-hand notes, and had over 47 published posthumously. Only 3 were published before his home going.
We allneed a deep and yet deeper baptism into God’s divine love. Smith Wigglesworth desperately cried out for this, as his only hope. Then, it is really Jesus loving through us with the unconquerable love of God (Romans 5:5). Then people see in usmore of our Lord than ourselves. We are there – but we have died to the self life in thislife down here – and Jesusis now able to manifest Himselfthrough us – His cleansed and yielded channels.
Is this the way you see the Book of James? They called James – “Old Camel Knees” – they were so calloused through his much-kneeling in prayer. See Acts 15 to understand the Wisdom of God that came through James because of his faithful prayer life. - J.A.W.