Read or listen Epistle of James, chapter 4 online (ESV, YouVersion)

Selfishness sows the seed of quarrels – James 4:1–6

Scholars have not reached a consensus on whether James is referring to a specific dispute in verse 1 or whether it is mainly a rhetorical question. In either case, James describes the situation in the congregation at that time as quite dark. Unfortunately, in many churches the situation is precisely this problematic.

James sees selfishness as the root cause of the problems. We only want what is beneficial to ourselves, and we don't want to think about the benefit of the church. And it's not enough that I get something, I have to get more than others.

One Christian once prayed: ”Give us the ability to rejoice over the blessings of others, and let us understand that the success of another is not our loss." We need more of this attitude in churches.

James speaks about the problem of “unanswered prayers” in verse 3. Apparently, this discussion is based on the promise of Jesus:

“For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds”
(Matt 7:7–8).

Does God not answer all prayers? Or why is it that all who ask do not get what they asked for?

James answers: if you ask for something in prayer just to satisfy your lusts, God in his goodness will not grant it. Accordingly, Jesus taught in Luke 11:9–13 that a good father doesn’t give his son a stone instead of bread or a snake instead of a fish. Sometimes we ask for something in prayer that would only harm us, so it is good that God does not give us that. Therefore, prayer is not a tool for seeking pleasures and desires. True prayer always includes the request: ”Your will be done!”

In conclusion, there are no unanswered prayers. God hears every prayer and answers, although the answer is not always what we expect and hope. Sometimes God answers “yes”, at times ”no”, ”not yet”, or “wait”. At least for me, the most difficult answer is: "wait". Even a negative answer would feel more pleasing, because then I can leave that issue behind.

The expression ”adulterous people” in verse 4 originates from the Old Testament. Already the prophets of the Old Testament rebuked Israel for being adulterous against God – they had broken the covenant which God had made between him and his people (Hosea 13; Jer 3:1). Israel had allied with different kingdoms at different times and forsaken the Lord.

Also, Jesus uses a similar expression when talking about “an adulterous generation” (Mark 8:38). The issue was not that there was a particularly high rate of adultery and divorce in Jesus' time, but that the people had rejected God's covenant. Forsaking the covenant of God lead also to forsake the Messiah whom God had sent.

James speaks of the same problem. Also, Christians were and are continuously tempted to join the forces that oppose God, whether it is the world or the Devil itself. A Christian can never serve two lords (Matt 6:24). Still, there are many who try to do so.

Which spirit does God yearn over in verse 5?

“He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”
(James 4:5)

It is either the Holy Spirit or the “spirit of life”, which God gave man in Genesis 2:7.

"then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature."
(Genesis 2:7)

Even Jewish commentators of the Old Testament taught that after death, a person's spirit returns to God, who gave it. According to this option James speaks of God yearning over the spirit of every human. God would not want to lose even one person to the Devil.

If we think that James means the Holy Spirit, then the verse emphasizes that God wants Christians to be faithful to their Savior.

In verse 6 there is a reference to Proverbs 3:34:

“Toward the scorners he is scornful,
but to the humble he gives favor.”
(Proverbs 3:34)

Submit Yourselves to God – James 4:7–10

Some may perceive these verses as an impossible list of demands, as there are as many as ten exhortations in these four verses. However, James' basic premise is that following these exhortations can only happen through God's grace and power (verse 7).

Humbling oneself under the will of God is the absolute starting point of all sanctification (verse 10, compare also Luke 14:11). It is odd that although we accept that top results in sports require a lot of work, practice and commitment, the same time we expect that we would live a holy life without any attempt of doing so.

Of course, we must remember that sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit in us, but at the same time we must remember that God has given us certain "tools" for the care of our faith life - the Bible, prayer, communion, Christian fellowship, etc. - which we can refuse to use or use in abundance. If we do not pray, do not read the Bible, do not go to church, etc., is it any wonder that sanctification does not occur?

Justification and sanctification (in here: to live a holy life) must be separated in terms of cause and effect.

• When we are justified before God, there is no space or merit for our good deeds, but it is based on Jesus Christ alone. We are only saved by grace through faith and not according to our deeds (Eph 2:8).

• Instead, our sanctification and walk as a Christian also depends on how willing we are to submit to God's will. One could say that because sanctification is a lifelong process, we also have plenty of opportunities to resist God's will in it!

You Are Not Above the Law! – James 4:11–12

"Do not speak evil against one another, brothers."
(James 4:11)

What does James mean when he says that “The one who speaks against a brother…judges the law”?
The requirement of the law in human relationships is neighbourly love (Lev 19:18; Matt 22:34–40). The one who chooses to disregard this law makes himself to be above the law, a judge who thinks he knows better. Opposing the law is also opposing God, because rejecting the law also means rejecting its giver.

A Christian should not, therefore, push his neighbor down, but try to lift him up, to support him.

Then, is it so that we cannot rebuke each other or say anything negative of them at all? Must we always pretend everything to be alright? This is not James’ intention. We can and we must evaluate our own and our neighbours’ lives in the light of God’s law.

First of all, James means that we should not judge people according to our own desires. Secondly, he wants to remind us of the sense and purpose in which judgment is made. God's law can be used negatively – merely to point out the faults of others – but it can also be used positively – to guide a person to repentance and forgiveness of sins.

God’s law is sometimes misused even in Christian preaching. On the one hand, there is a danger of speaking only about “you sinners”, which does not admit that even the preacher is a sinner before God. On the other hand, there is a danger of leaving the listeners to struggle alone with their sins without preaching the grace in Jesus Christ.The third danger is to classify sins into "serious" and "light", whereby the sins of those outside our church are serious and the sins of those within the church are light.

But it is worth remembering that misuse must not prevent proper use. The law and its proclamation certainly have their place in Christian proclamation. There cannot be a true and deep understanding of the Gospel without understanding the requirements of the law.

The Bible always says that the law applies to all people. It follows that all people are sinners, lawbreakers (Romans 3:23), because no one other than Jesus has been able to fulfill the law. So we must speak of "us sinners" and not "you sinners" (compare also Isaiah's calling as a prophet, Isaiah 6:1-7).

The law and the Gospel must be separated, and both of them must be preached.

If we just declare the law, people will never find God's grace in Jesus.

On the other hand, we cannot preach “cheap grace” either, that is the Gospel without saying anything about the law. Jesus gave his disciples a commandment both to loose and to bind sins (Matt 18:15–18). Absolution of sins should be pronounced to penitent sinners. Binding - that is denying absolution - should be pronounced to those who continue in sin without repentance, so that they might come to repentance. God does not forgive sins in order to encourage us to do more sin (Romans 6:1-4).

Boasting – James 4:13–17

In this passage James does not forbid making any plans. James does approve good planning – it becomes clear in verse 15: “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” Instead, James wants to remind his readers that God should not be forgotten even when making plans. Plans should not be made as if God did not exist.

This comes clear also from many old Christian proverbs like “Pray and work!” (Lat. Ora et labora!) and “Pray hard as if your work would do no good and work hard like your prayer would do no good.”

The idea of ​​God's ultimate control over human life is also found in the Old Testament (in Proverbs 27:11), Jesus (Luke 12:16–20; John 15:5), and Paul (1 Cor 16:7). A person can make plans even years ahead of them (see verse 13) and still they will not even know what tomorrow brings (verse 14). Therefore, our life and our deeds depend on what God allows for us (verse 15).

Pride is not suitable for a Christian (verse 16):

"Pride goes before destruction"
(Proverbs 16:18)

Verse 17 makes it clearer than ever that it is impossible to live without sin.

"So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin."
(James 4:17)

Even if you could avoid doing any evil, at least you can never do good on every occasion where God gives you a chance. Sin is not only committing an evil deed, but even failing to do good is sin.

I once heard someone say that the Christian moral does not fit into the business world. Beware, for this is another attempt to leave God only as "the Lord of Sunday" and keep all other days from Monday to Saturday in the hands of man. But it should be reminded, what a top-class businessman said: “You can prosper in business only with honesty!” Often, we think things are in a certain way, even though in the true sense they are quite differently. So yes, God is also the Lord of the business world.