Warning Against Worldliness
Tom Shrader walks through James 4:1-12, arguing that the quarrels and conflicts among believers trace back to selfish ambition, bitter jealousy, and a friendship with the world that puts a person at war with God. Drawing on Philippians 3, Exodus 20, and Tim Keller's concept of counterfeit gods, he shows how idols—jobs, relationships, success—promise fulfillment only God can provide. The antidote, he argues, lies in ten commands from James 4:7-10: submitting to God, resisting the devil, drawing near to God, and mourning over sin so that genuine peace and the fruit of the Spirit can take root.
“Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes themselves an enemy of God — you can't serve two masters.”
— Tom Shrader
Series: Blue Jean Theology (2011)
Recorded: 2011 at East Valley Bible Church
Duration: 48 min
Themes: worldliness, idolatry, jealousy, conflict, humility, repentance, selfishness, peace, struggling with jealousy, navigating conflict, feeling unfulfilled, new believer, young adult, married couple, struggling with ambition, dealing with broken relationships
Scripture: James 1:1, James 1:22, James 3:14-16, James 4:1-12, Philippians 3:12-14, Romans 15, Exodus 20:1-5, Isaiah 66:2, Isaiah 6, Ephesians 6
Theological Themes: sanctification, becoming holy, hamartiology, sin nature, counterfeit gods, soteriology, spiritual warfare, fruit of the spirit
Full Transcript
Introduction and Context
Open your Bibles, if you would please, to the book of James. If you don't have a Bible, raise your hand and the guys will give you a copy — you're welcome to take it with you. If you get a Bible from us, turn to page 654 and that will get you to the book of James.
Almost every week, when we do a book study, you will hear us review the context and remind ourselves of the audience. James tells us right off in chapter 1, verse 1, that he is writing to the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad. This is an epistle where James is not concerned so much about us finding salvation as much as living a life that has been changed as a result of an encounter with Christ.
As you read through the scripture, you will see words like salvation, rescued, and redeemed. So let me make sure we are all using the same definitions. What we mean is: saved from, rescued from, delivered from a life apart from God. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and the wage of sin is death — and that death means separation. I am separated from Him.
But the grace of God is found in faith. It is given to us, and we are saved and we are redeemed. The wage of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life, found in one place — in Christ Jesus. We believe there is one way that I can be in right relationship with God, and that is through Christ. There is only one path that leads to Him.
That salvation means I am saved by grace, and the instrument of that is faith. Religion, works, and human effort play no role in my salvation. However, once I have come into this right relationship, there should be a life that is changed. I should see the result of an encounter with Christ. I should be able to look at your life and see that there is something different and unique about you.
The Key Verse: Doers of the Word
The key verse is chapter 1, verse 22: *"Prove yourself to be doers of the word, not merely hearers who delude themselves."* James is addressing a problem, and the problem was that these people loved to hear the word of God. In our context, they loved moments like we are having here. These are sweet, sweet moments.
I think — and I mean this — for those of us who get to come here every week, we forget how sweet they are. I listen to how much Susan misses what you probably take for granted: the worship together, the time in the conference center, the time in the chapel, taking communion together. She simply cannot get out of the house to be here, and she has only been to church once since Christmas.
I ought to be able to see that if you know Christ as Lord and Savior, it makes some difference in your life.
Review: Two Kinds of Wisdom
What we looked at last week comes directly to bear on what we look at this week, so let us do a review. Look back at chapter 3, particularly verses 14, 15, and 16. James is saying that there are two kinds of wisdom — the wisdom from above and the wisdom that is earthly. There is wisdom that is supernatural and wisdom that is natural. There is wisdom that is godly and wisdom that is demonic.
He is coming to these people and challenging them. He has been dealing with the problems they are having. Again, they are hearers and not doers. Apparently they are showing favoritism toward certain people, they are ignoring the weakest among them, and there may be a problem with the way they are speaking to one another. So he talks about the tongue, and then he talks about these two types of wisdom.
Look with me at chapter 3, verse 14: *"If you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, don't be ignorant and so lie against the truth."* In other words, he is saying that if you have selfish ambition and bitter jealousy, you are making a mockery of what God says we are to be and how we are to live. *"This wisdom does not come down from above, but it is earthly, natural, and demonic."*
Then he says, here is the evidence of that: *"For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder in every evil thing."* When someone is looking out only for themselves, concerned about their own agenda, with a vocabulary dominated by singular personal pronouns — that way of thinking produces visible results. Where jealousy and selfish ambition are at play, there is disorder in every evil thing. There is chaos. It makes living hard.
The Source of Quarrels and Conflicts
Now jump down to where we are today. Chapter 4, verse 1: *"What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you?"* See how this connects? Apparently, within the church, there are quarrels and conflicts. As I look at verses 2 and 3 of chapter 4, I count eight times that James uses either the word "you" or "your." He is making this personal.
The word translated "quarrels" comes from the Greek word from which we get the English word *polemic* — a general, prolonged, serious dispute or combat. "Conflicts" refers to specific battles. So what he is saying is that you are surrounded by war on a broad level, but you also have these specific battles all around you. I will assume these exist both inside the church and in their lives outside it as well.
So what is causing all of that? He says the answer is right there: *"Is not the source your pleasures that wage war within you, within your members?"* That is the problem. They have this earthly, natural, demonic mindset — and when you think that way and apply it to the world around you, you cannot live well.
This is what we have tried to do in all of these lessons. We have tried to hold this up and say: this is a mirror. Look at it.
Quarrels and Their Source
If you have quarrels, conflicts, disagreements, arguments, and tension in relationships around you — maybe at home, maybe in the family, maybe at work, maybe with your homeowner's association, maybe at little league, maybe at the gym — you need to be very careful. In all those areas, the only connection is you. What James is saying is that in this church, and in the lives of the people in it, there are quarrels and conflicts, and he asks: what is causing them? His answer is essentially this: you want to satisfy yourself, you want to do it your way, you are selfish, you have selfish ambition and bitter jealousy.
I was talking to a couple, and the husband said, "I know what I'm supposed to do. I don't know why you keep telling me what to do. I know what I'm supposed to do, I just don't want to do it." You see this all the time in marriages. One person will clearly be wrong, and here is a fundamental principle: when I am sinned against, I tend to respond sinfully. So one party offends the other, and the offended party, after a period of time, will say, "I know what I'm supposed to do, and I'm not going to do it." How do you fix that?
In every quarrel — at the homeowner's association, at the little league game, wherever it is — one or both parties are motivated by bitter jealousy and selfish ambition. They are operating totally in the flesh, and the world feeds into that.
The World's Message: It's All About You
He says if you are a friend of the world, you are an enemy of God. The whole world fits into this pattern. No one understands human nature any better than those who are in marketing. Consider how they market. For a long time, McDonald's said, "You deserve a break today." Burger King says, "Have it your way." And one local news channel's motto right now is, "It's all about you." That is exactly what James is talking about. That is natural, earthly, demonic thinking — when I say it's all about me, what about my rights, what about me?
When he gets to verses 2 and 3, he begins to address this directly. He says you lust and do not have. The word "lust" is not exclusively sexual — he is talking about these human, natural desires. You have these desires, you do not get what you want, and so you commit murder. He is not talking about actual murder; he is talking about hateful, destructive behavior. You are concerned about reputation, prestige, and gratification, and so you will do anything, even if it is destructive, to get them. You want relief, you want to feel good, you are thinking about today, right now, immediate.
A Preview: The Temporariness of Life
Next week is when James really gets into the idea of thinking ahead. He says, "Come now, you say, tomorrow we will go to such and such a city and engage in business there for a year and make a profit." But you do not know what life will be like tomorrow — you are just a vapor. It is as if you are sitting on the beach thinking everything is wonderful, and all of a sudden you see a thirty-foot wave coming at you. That is the temporariness of life.
We tend to think, what about me? And what James is going to say to us is that this is a complete anti-God state of mind. You have these things you desire, but you do not get them, so you commit murder, you are envious, you cannot obtain, and so you fight and quarrel. Your response is to create a problem — to pout until you get what you want. Children are perfect examples of that. You pout, you moan, you walk around making everyone miserable. And the church is an amazing place to see it, because it seems like people forget they can be seen.
Pride, Conflict, and Motive
You can see it all over. You see a wife, you can just see a bitterness. I walked into a women's ministry about a year ago and I said, "Do you know that woman over there?" They said, "Yeah." I said, "What's her problem?" She said, "Why do you think she has a problem?" I said, "She screams 'stay away from me.'" And sure enough, she had a problem. It is all about you, and your offense, and how you have been hurt. Sometimes that is true and legitimate, but often it is simply that your pride or your ego got in the way.
So he says you fight and you quarrel, you pout, you argue, you do whatever you are going to do to get your way. And if you cannot get your way, you are going to make sure everybody else is miserable.
Two Groups: Those Who Don't Ask and Those Who Ask Wrongly
Then he says something really interesting. At the end of verse 2 he seems to reverse himself in verse 3. He says, "You do not have because you do not ask." Verse 3: "You ask and you do not receive." So apparently there are two groups of people. There are some who have these desires but have never taken them to God. Maybe they think God is not interested, or that it is not worthy of His time. For whatever reason, they do not pray about it. He says, well, pray — pray about everything. There is nothing wrong with praying.
Then there are those who are praying and do not receive. The reason is that their motives are wrong. They ask for themselves. They ask to have something so they can spend it on themselves. They ask that a situation will be remedied for their own benefit. There are people I know who genuinely pray, "God, save my husband, God, save my wife, God, save my kids." But when you probe a little, they want them saved so their life will be easier. Save my kid so he won't be a hassle. Save my husband so he'll get off my back. Save my wife so maybe I'll get through to her somehow. Even good things we ask for are so immersed in pride and ego and selfishness that it is almost impossible to get that out.
Ministering or Manipulating
In every situation, at every moment, with every person, you are either ministering to them or manipulating them. You are either trying to serve them, edify them, and encourage them, or you are trying to manipulate them into doing something you want. It is very hard to see yourself accurately.
I do not know any golfer who plays regularly who does not think they are better than they really are. I will use myself. I have not touched a club since August, so if you took me out now I do not know what I would shoot. I would typically be a 12, maybe a 10, some days a 14. But in my head, I am a 2. I am a scratch. If putts go in, I am a scratch. If I get a break, I am a scratch. That is how I see it. In life, we see everybody else's sin and problems, but we have the toughest time seeing our own.
The Same Lesson, Every Week
Starting after Easter, Gateway will join us in this, but right now Arcadia, Tempe, and Gilbert all teach the same passage of Scripture every week. What happened when we began doing this is that every Wednesday, the pastors who will be teaching on Sunday and the rest of the pastoral team are invited in, and we spend a couple of hours working through the passage. What do you see? What does that mean to you? How does that look? What is the Greek? What does it say? What are the intentions? What are the applications?
I led the one for today, and we just kept coming back to the same conclusion: it is always pride. That is your besetting sin. Your pride, your ego, your "what about me," gets in the way.
Ambition Is Not the Problem
Let me say it clearly: there is nothing wrong with ambition. Turn to Philippians chapter 3. Paul is a pretty ambitious man. He is talking about himself, his qualifications, being — and I mean this in no pejorative way — a super Jew, talking about all that he has done. Then he says he counts all of it as dung compared to the surpassing knowledge of knowing Christ.
He says in chapter 3, verse 12: "Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus." In other words, God grabbed me for a reason, and I want to pursue His reason. Verse 13: "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
Listen to those words: I press on, I have not obtained it yet, this one thing I do. The idea there is of reaching, stretching — to be the man, or woman, or student, or boy or girl, that God has called you to be. At the end of Romans, Paul says, "Therefore, when I finish this work and have put my seal on the fruit of theirs, I will go on my way to Spain." Paul is a very ambitious person. There is nothing wrong with being ambitious. The problem is —
Selfish Ambition vs. God's Call
The issue is selfish ambition. Paul is saying, "I want to do this work because I know it is what God wants me to do, called me to do, and it is best for you." But these people are saying, "I want what I want because I want it." Therein lies the problem — that is the collision course. Paul is very ambitious: "I press on, I take hold, I forget what lies behind." There is nothing wrong with being ambitious. It is selfish ambition that is the problem.
Three Problems from the Passage
Now, returning to the passage, James begins to illustrate the point. He identifies three problems in verses 4, 5, and 6. Verse 4 says, "You adulterous, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." That is problem number one: hostility toward God.
Problem number two is in verse 5: "Or do you think that the scripture speaks to no person? He jealously desires the spirit which he has made to dwell in us." The second problem is that they are ignoring what the scripture says. The third problem appears in verse 6: "But he gives a greater grace. Therefore, it says, God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble." The third problem is pride.
So get the context: what is the source of the quarrels, conflicts, difficulties, and challenges among them? The problem is that they are acting in a way that is hostile toward God, ignoring scripture, and filled with pride. With that framework in place, we can now break each problem apart.
Hostility Toward God
James uses very strong imagery here: "You adulterous." It helps to frame the audience he is addressing. There are some who are Christians, some who are not, some who think they are but are not, and some who are Christians but are not acting like it. Apply this wherever it fits. If you are truly an enemy of God — fighting against Him and living in that state — what you need is salvation. You need to come to Christ in repentance and faith, acknowledge your sin, recognize that it has separated you from God, and trust in Him.
For those of us who are Christians, James is saying that when we act this way, we are actually acting like atheists — we are hostile toward God. Paul tells us we are the bride of Christ, yet James says we are committing adultery with the world. The word translated "friendship" is the Greek word *phileia*, which is rendered as "love" everywhere else in scripture. It speaks of a deep, intimate connection. So James is saying: your deep, intimate friendship with the world is hostility toward God.
What "the World" Means
When James speaks of "the world," he is not talking about the planet or the universe. As one author puts it, he is talking about the spiritual reality of a man-centered, Satan-directed system of this present age, which is hostile to God and God's people. It refers to the self-centered, godless value systems and moral standards of fallen mankind.
The goal of the world is self-glory, self-fulfillment, self-indulgence, self-satisfaction, and every other form of self-serving — all of which amounts to hostility toward God. This is not complicated. The problem is that you are at war with God. Self, self, self — self-centered, self-satisfaction, consumed with what I want and what is about me, with no concern for God, His creation, or His agenda.
God created this beautiful world, and when we act this way, we bring sin into it. Rodney Dangerfield once said, "I'm so busy looking out for number one, I stepped in number two." That is exactly the point. When all you do is look out for number one, you end up in trouble.
At War With God and With One Another
"Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." It is that simple. You cannot serve two masters. Scripture always paints this as black and white — either this or that, for God or against Him. When you cozy up to the world, wanting the same things the world wants and embracing its values and system, you pit yourself against God. You are at war with Him.
And here is the application: you are at war with everyone around you because you have a war within yourself. There was a day this past week where everything made me angry and frustrated inside — and I knew it was all coming from me. At the end of the day I said, "God, I just did not do well today." The reason was that I was worried about myself. And worrying about me is God's job, not mine. Friendship with the world puts me at war with God.
So their first problem is hostility with God. Their second problem —
God's Jealousy and the Problem of Idols
The fifth error is that they ignore the Scripture. James asks, "Or don't you think the Scripture speaks with no purpose?" and then quotes: "He jealously desires the spirit which He has made to dwell in you."
If we were to open a discussion about God and do a word association exercise, most people would say He is loving, kind, gentle, and long-suffering. They would list all these attributes. But one attribute that rarely gets spoken of is that He is a jealous God.
In Exodus chapter 20, God is about to deliver the Ten Commandments, and here is how it begins: "I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God."
For some of us, that word presents problems because we think of human relationships. When I was dating Susan, unbeknownst to me but then revealed, she was dating another guy at the same time. We were both courting her, and I was incapable of handling it. I said to her, "You've got to decide — you're either going to date me or you're going to date this guy, you can't do both." She said, "Don't make me decide," and I should have known at that point that was a problem. I could feel I was finishing second in a two-man race.
Now, I was terribly jealous in that situation. But here is the difference: I was jealous because I wanted Susan for my own sake. God is jealous because He wants what is best for you, which is to have the right relationship with Him. That is the jealous God He is, and He does not want any idols in your life.
The Idol We Expect to Complete Us
Susan and I met while we were both living in apartments at 68th and Osborne. Down the street there was a school with a ball field, and we sat on the bleachers one night talking — back when people used to go for a walk and actually talk. I was attracted to her for a couple of reasons. Physically, she was exactly the kind of girl I liked. Then I started talking to her and discovered she could talk, which I thought was a bonus. But when I got to know her, I had to have her — because I thought if I had her, it would make me happy.
She was exactly the opposite of me. I was cynical, and she was this sweet girl. I remember walking down that aisle thinking I had finally found it. Then, literally three months into the marriage, I came to her and said, "This isn't working. I'm not happy. I've given this the best 90 days of my life and it isn't working." She came back with her own perspective — something along the lines of, "Hey, you're no bargain either."
I did not realize it then, but I realize it now: I was asking her to do what only God can do. The problem was not her. What I have learned over 33 years is that she is an amazing wife, an unbelievable mother, a person of raw courage and remarkable strength. The problem was that I was asking her to do something only God can do.
Counterfeit Gods
In his book *Counterfeit Gods*, Tim Keller writes: "A counterfeit God is anything so central or essential to your life that should you lose it, you would feel your life is not worth living. An idol has such a controlling position in your heart that you can spend most of your passion and your energy, your emotional and financial resources on it without giving it a second thought. An idol is whatever you look to and say in your heart, 'If I had that, then I'll feel my life has meaning, then I'll know I have value, then I'll feel significant and secure.' There are many ways to describe this kind of relationship, but perhaps the best way is worship."
What Keller is saying is that you are looking to a person, place, or thing other than Christ to fulfill you. We all do it. You have to examine your own life and ask what the idols are and whether they are dominating you.
Right now you might be sitting there without a job, thinking, "If I had a job, then I'd be happy." Do you remember when you had one and you were miserable? Or perhaps it is, "If I get that person to date me, I'll be happy. If I get that person to marry me, I'll be happy. If I get that house, that car, that scholarship, if I start on the team." We look to all of these things, expecting them to deliver what only God can provide.
We are out doing T-ball now — Tyler got himself into it and asked me to help. I said something the other day I never thought I would say on a baseball diamond: "Nice throw, Zoe." We have three girls on the team. And I am out there watching two of these dads in particular —
said, you know, it's doing great. And that was a lie. So she said, can I see the statements? And I said, well, they don't really send statements. And she said, what do you mean they don't send statements? Every investment sends statements. I said, well, this one doesn't really work that way. And she said, Tom, how much did we lose? And I said, well, I haven't lost it all yet. And she said, how much is left? And I said, not much. And she never said, I told you so. Never. That's submission. Not as a behavior, but as an attitude. She could've. She had every right to. And she never did.
Submit to God
So that's the picture. Submit to God. Line up under Him. Rank under Him. Voluntarily place yourself under His authority, His commands, His directives. And here's the thing — when we won't do that with the people around us, it reveals that we're not really doing it with God either. Because submission to God will show up in submission to the people God has placed over us and around us.
The second command is resist the devil and he will flee from you. This is not a passive word. You don't just sit there and hope the devil goes away. You actively resist. You push back. You stand firm. And the promise is that he will flee. He's not all-powerful. He's not God. He has limits. And when you resist him, he goes.
Then draw near to God and He will draw near to you. That's a promise. It's conditional, but it's a promise. You move toward Him, He moves toward you. You don't wait for the feeling. You don't wait until you feel close to God before you draw near. You draw near, and then the closeness follows.
The Process of Cleansing
Then James gets very direct. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. The hands represent behavior — the external, the visible, what people can see you doing. The heart represents the internal — your motives, your desires, your loyalties. And the double-minded person is the one who is trying to live in both worlds at the same time. One foot in, one foot out. Friendly with the world, friendly with God. James says that doesn't work. You can't have both.
And then he says be miserable and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. This sounds strange to us. We live in a culture that says feel good, be happy, pursue comfort. But James is saying there is a grief that is appropriate when you see your own sin clearly. There is a mourning that is right and necessary. Not a permanent state, but a real one. You have to feel the weight of what you've been doing before you'll be motivated to change.
Jealousy and Opposition
And this all comes back to what James said about God being a jealous God. He's not messing around. He is jealous for your full devotion. And if you remember the illustration — the father at the Little League game, yelling at his kid, convinced that if his son can just become a major league player, his life will be complete — that's the deception. The father has placed his hope, his identity, his happiness into something that can't bear the weight of it. And God looks at that and says, that is My place. I am a jealous God.
The ten commands in verses 7 through 9 are the antidote to that kind of worldliness. And they all flow from the first one: submit to God. Everything else follows from that. Resist the devil. Draw near to God. Cleanse your hands. Purify your hearts. Mourn over your sin. These are not suggestions. They are commands. And they are given to people who claim to follow God but have drifted toward the world.
Humility and Grace
And then there's this contrast that cuts right to the heart of it. He is opposed to the proud and gives grace to the humble. The word opposed is not mild. It means full armament, battle-ready. God is not neutral toward the proud person. He is actively opposed. If you are living for yourself, finding your value in your career, your kids' achievements, your status, your appearance — God is not on the sidelines watching. He is opposed to that.
But to the humble, He gives grace. God speaking to the nation of Israel in Isaiah 66, verse 2, He says this: "To this one I look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, who trembles at My word." That is the person God looks toward. Not the impressive, not the successful, not the one with the most followers or the best stats. The one who is humble, contrite, and trembles at His word. That is the antidote to worldliness.
Submitting to God and Resisting the Devil
I submit to God. That is what I am doing — I submit to Him. And then I resist the devil. You have a real enemy: angel of light, roaring lion, subtle serpent. He is out to destroy you.
You resist him by praying, reading God's Word, spending time with God's people, getting into a redemption community, serving, giving, and being the person God calls you to be. That is how it is done. It is a battle. It is a warfare. That is what Ephesians 6 is about — put on the full armor of God. You are at war, and this is very, very difficult.
So I submit to Him and I resist the devil, and in this process he begins to flee. I find it to be only a temporary retreat, however. And then God says, "Draw near to Me, and He will draw near to you."
Drawing Near Through Repentance and Faith
This drawing near happens through a process, through a prescription. It is relatively simple: cleanse yourself, purify yourself. How do you do that? You come to Him in repentance and faith. You confess your sin, read His Word, meditate on His Word, and love Him. And if you love Him, you obey Him. You become the man, the woman, God calls you to be.
Then He says something in verse 9 that you will never see on a screensaver: "Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into gloom." He is not saying there is something wrong with laughing. He is saying that you are laughing at trivial things — amusing yourselves to death, so engaged in the flesh and fleshly desires. The misery here is the brokenness over our sin.
This is the same truth as "Blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are those who mourn." It is Isaiah 6 again, coming back around: see God as He really is, then see yourself for who you really are, and respond accordingly. You draw near to Him, you begin to love Him, He draws near to you, and you begin to feel His love. Now your life begins to change. "If you love Me, you will obey My commandments." Not complicated, is it?
Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord and He will exalt you — at just the proper time.
The Contrast Between Double-Mindedness and Peace
So James describes these people who are double-minded and unstable, living earthly, natural, demonic lives. That is the mindset. The result of it is bitterness, jealousy, and strife — there is discord all around them and they are torn.
On the other side is someone who — and let us be clear, this does not mean all the discord goes away — but as far as it depends upon them, they live at peace with one another. In the midst of discord, they find their peace, because they are not going to war over some finite thing they think will make them happy. They are saying, "I do not find my happiness there. That is not worth fighting over. I find my happiness with God."
Do Not Judge One Another
He rounds this out in verses 11 and 12. He says do not speak against one another, do not treat one another that way, because when you do, you are mocking the Word of God. "He who speaks against a brother judges his brother, judges the law, and the law judges him. If you judge the law, you are not a doer of the word but a judge of it."
Here is God's law, and you are not the judge and arbiter of it — He is. And so in verse 12 he says, "There is only one lawgiver and judge, the one who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?" He is not saying we cannot judge sin — we know that. But he is saying, here you are running around in judgment, with discord and hostility all around you.
Examining Yourself Honestly
Here is the practical side of this, and it ties together where we started, where we were in the middle, and where we are now at the end: take a look at your life. The other day I was saying to somebody, "I feel like it is a no-win. This group is hostile against it and that group is hostile against the idea." And they said, "Oh, you must be right, because they are angry on both sides." I have always rejected that, because it overlooks the possibility that I am the problem and that everybody is upset because of me.
So if you are in the middle of a situation and there is discord all around you, I am almost positive you are the problem. And that would be pride and selfishness — bitter jealousy and selfish ambition. You will never solve it on your own. Left to yourself, you will act earthly, natural, and demonic, because that is exactly who we are by nature.
The Life-Changing Encounter with Jesus
But then something life-changing happens. It is called Jesus. He is the one. He is the one who can provide what you really want. What do you want in this world more than anything else? To love and to be loved. To be happy. To find peace.
Here you go — the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace. Think about how you want to act with your wife, your kids, your employees, your employer, the people around you. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control. You cannot do it on your own. But it comes from the Spirit. It comes from knowing Christ. It comes from that encounter with the living God.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for Your love and grace and mercy for us. There is a battle. We want what we want when we want it. We want it our way.
God, change our hearts and our minds. Draw us to Yourself. God, help us submit to You. Resist the devil. Help us draw near to You — You'll draw near to us. God, let us be broken and sorrowful over our sin, so we can rejoice and be filled with Your Spirit. God, we pray You would do these things. We ask them in Christ's name. Amen.