The story goes that a ship crossing the sea came across a man who had been stranded on a deserted island. Once the man had been rescued the captain sought him out and began to talk with him about the years he has spent on the island. The captain said that he had seen three dwellings—three huts on the island, and he asked what these were.
The man responded by saying, “The one on the hill, that’s where I go to church. The one down below, that’s where I lived.” And the captain asked about the third building. The man responded by saying, “O, that’s where I used to go to church.”
That’s a silly story, but it illustrates well how common it is for us to have disagreements and how often we clash with people in our life. What I really like about it too is that it shows us something of where the problem actually lies. The problem is not so much other people, the problem is me. The problems is us.
One pastor I heard this week told of a time when he was in seminary. He was taking a final exam, and he was in a room and the students were spaced out across the room. There were several feet in between himself and the guy next to him. But he said that midway through the exam he caught a waft of rather bad odor. He said it was pretty bad. As a matter of fact, it was so distracting that he got up and moved to another part of the room to get away from it. He of course started into the exam again, but soon noticed the odor again. His first thought was, “This guy over here stinks too!” It then dawned on him that the problem wasn’t everyone else, the stench was emanating from his own self.
This is essentially what James is talking about in this passage that is before us this morning. James is telling us that, when it comes to our relationships, the problem is not so much the people around us as it is ourselves. We end up being at odds with one another, not so much because of the others, but because the foulness resides right here in our own hearts.
James says that our own selfishness lies at the root of our problems. All of our problems can be boiled down to this: that we have selfish desires and we employ selfish tactics. And if we would simply come to terms with this, we’d enjoy so much more peace and harmony with the other people around us.
We’ve said before that The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart. And that’s exactly what we find in verses 1-2.
I. We have selfish desires [1-2]
These two verses tell us that all of our relational problems can be traced to one root cause: it is our self-centered desires. Look at them with me. Listen to how it focuses on desire as the root and cause of all fighting.
What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.
As you know, I’m not a historian. I’m actually skeptical of much of the history that was taught to me over the years. But I once heard something about Alexander the Great that has always stuck with me. One of my teachers said that he began his vast conquest of the world because of one thing: he loved Greek culture. He loved Greek culture and he wanted to spread it across the ends of the earth.
Again, I don’t know if that’s true. But if it is, it is a good illustration of what James is saying. All his armies, waring, fighting and mayhem of his conquest boils down to one thing: Desire.
I understand that things may be more complicated than that; there’s likely more to the story. But really, it isn’t more foundational than this. nation rises against nation because of desire – be it for power, or resources, or control.
And the same goes for every other relationship.
There are three words in these first two verses that all point to how our internal desires are all out of alignment. The first word is in verse 1. It is the world passion (ESV) / desire (NIV) / desire for pleasure (NKJV). In the original language it is the word hedone. We say someone is a hedonist. Their life is all about pleasure seeking, fulfilment of their every desire.
The truth is, we are all hedonists. We all have pleasures that we are seeking and that’s what is putting us in conflict with one another.
Here’s a man who has worked hard all day. He’s tired. It’s been hot. He’s looking forward to putting his feet up and turning on the TV. Meanwhile, his wife has been accumulating a list of things she needs done around the house. She’d really be happy if the garden got tilled. She’d really like the cabinet door fixed because its almost off the hinge. Not to mention the fact that she’d like some adult conversation after being involved in toddler talk all day.
What do you think is going to happen when the husband gets home? Things are going to explode because they both have different desires. Their focused on gratifying their own pleasure.
The second word is in verse 2, it is the word desire (ESV, NIV), lust (KJV, NKJV). The word here is epithumeo and it literally means to pant heavily after. You’ve all seen a dog or some crazed animal that wants a piece of meat or a toy. It is breathing is labored because it is so excited and it is drooling because it so desires that item in your hand. That’s exactly the kind of thing that is going on inside of us. We have this inordinate desire. Our desires are excited and we have this rabid internal craving for some object that we think will make us happy.
This is what happens in the nursery or living room between two kids. One kid has a desire for the toy truck. So he grabs it and starts playing with it. Along comes the brother or sister and he desires it too. So he grabs it from his sibling and he starts to play with it. And before you know it, the thing escalates into yelling, screaming, and fisticuffs.
It is all because of this lustful, inordinate desire.
The third word is again in verse 2, and it is the word covet. The Greek word here is the word Zelo, from whence we get the word zealous. And this word has a good word picture too. It means to boil or to become overly heated. That’s a description of our inward yearnings. They’ve become so hot and so inflamed that they are bubbling out of control. We feel that we got to have it.
So James here drives home the fact that it is our heart’s disposition. It is the fact that our desires are all askew. We don’t have relational harmony because our hearts are greedy and full of selfish desire.
And this is something that is really telling in our culture today. We have all kinds of problems in families and neighborhoods because we tell people to follow their hearts. The world is out there saying that if you do not follow your heart and you do not seek what you desire, then there is something wrong. They say that the problem is that you are not seeking you desires.
But what we find here is that this is exactly why we have so much disorder and crime. This is why we divorces and estranged family members. This is why nations cannot get along and have to start shooting at each other. It is because we let these passions drive us and we follow our worldly inclinations.
Now, I should mention that the problem is not that our passions are too heated or too strong. I do need to make this clarification. Our problem is not the intensity of our desire. But it is the focus of our desire. James is talking about the fact that our desires are focused on ourselves and the pleasure we derive from the world. It is covetous desire.
I would like to make the argument (and I think that James will do this later in the passage) that our passions are supposed to be on the Lord and what the Lord wills. That’s why he will call us adulterers, and say, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?”
If anything, our passions—when it comes for the Lord and his righteousness—are not strong enough. If we did have a passion for God, like we were supposed to, then we’d not have the problems that we do.
So the problem is not the level of passion, it is the focus of our passion. Conflicts are all around us because our passions are focused on worldly things, and not focused on God and what He wants.
The problem lies not outside of us or in our neighbor, it lies in us. It is our own evil desires and worldly disposition.
Our problems will likely be solved if we reign in our desires and get them fixed on what they ought to be fixated on.
This is the key: that our problems are mostly due to our inward disposition of our hearts. But, of course, what lies in the heart springs forth into lived, everyday action. And that’s another major reason why we struggle to maintain good relationships with people.
James not only talks about the desires we have, but he makes mention of the tactics we employ.
II. We employ worldly tactics [2-3]
In verses 2-3 James shows us that we the way we go about interacting with one another and fulfilling our desires seriously misguided. Because we are so selfish, we end up being abusive.
A. Abusive - Violent
Look at verse 2. He says, “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and you cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.”
He mentions here the tactic of brute force. In order to get what we want we resort to forms of violence.
Now, when he mentions murder, I think it is evident from the context that he’s using the word metaphorically. But we understand that murder—real homicide, is certainly something that arises out of wrong desire. And it is the ultimate expression of self centeredness and the worst case scenario when it comes to fulfilling our desires. We get this person out of our way by force.
But it is indicative of all of the other ways become combative and use force to get what we want. We engage in verbal violence, whereby we yell and scream to force someone to bend to our will. Some people can be passive aggressive. Others can be manipulative, using guilt or fear or deception.
All of these are forms of warfare to one degree or another. All of them are ways we are abusive to one another and try to force people to submit to our wills.
Selfish interest breeds self centered tactics. Exalts our own power. We have to exert that power upon someone else.
But our tactics are not just abusive, they are also atheistic.
B. Atheistic
You’ll notice that James goes on in the latter have of verse 2 to say, “You do not have, because you do not ask.”
Here, you may say, is the flip side of that coin. You are abusive and exerting your own power and you are failing to recognize the supreme power of God. This is an atheistic approach to life. When we do not pray we are saying that we have the power to achieve all. We are essentially saying, “I am the one who rules and governs all.”
But this is far from the way it really is. The truth is, all that we have comes from God. We are ever at the disposal of divine Providence. And when our desires arise, if we would only recognize that God does accomplish all His holy will: how much more would we have!
We should see here that James challenges us. He invites us to see just how generous God is. Earlier he said that if we lack wisdom, we should ask God who gives generously. Here he says, “You do not have, because you do not ask.” As if to say, “Go ahead and ask. See that you will receive.”
And this is exactly what Jesus said. “Ask, seek, knock. The one who asks, receives. The one who seeks will find. The one who knocks, to him the door will be opened.” There is a divine promise that if you do rely on the omnipotent power of God—if you do acknowledge that it is by His hand that all your desires are met, then you will find that there is a bountiful supply. Your prayers will be heard and the answers will come.
Unfortunately, this is not typically our mentality. We have not, because we ask not. We do not have, because our tactics—being selfishly centered—are essentially atheistic.
And in those times that we do get religious and we do pray, what then? Well, James answers that in verse 3. He says, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
This is the final tactic that we typically employ. James has said that we employ tactics that are abusive and atheistic. Here he says that sometimes, our ways are profane.
C. Profane
Since we are so intent on fulfilling our own desires, what happens is that we use prayer in a sacrilegious way. Instead of seeking God in prayer, instead of submitting ourselves to him and seeking His will, we try to use prayer as a means of personal gain.
We think we are being very spiritual, but we’re actually being quite blasphemous. We take that which is designed for a holy and God glorifying purpose—we use this means of communion with God—and use it as a tool for getting what we want. And that is an irreverent abuse of this gift.
The Bible is full of illustrations of times when people have misused or mishandled God’s ordinances. You may know the story of Nadab & Abihu. They thought they would take some of the incense and burn it. They wanted to play with it and have a little fun. You know what God did? He struck them down dead.
From time to time we read the passage in 1 Corinthians 11; about how the Corinthians were gorging themselves and not treating the Lord’s Table with the respect that it deserves. It was just a pleasure fest for them. As a result, they became sick and some died.
All this is to say, this is serious. To profane God’s worship and b
Prayer, you understand, has guidelines. You don’t just use prayer as a way of getting what you want. As if God is your slave who does your every beck and wish. God is not the Sanctified Santa who looks at your wish list and gives you everything you selfishly desire.
.
The man responded by saying, “The one on the hill, that’s where I go to church. The one down below, that’s where I lived.” And the captain asked about the third building. The man responded by saying, “O, that’s where I used to go to church.”
That’s a silly story, but it illustrates well how common it is for us to have disagreements and how often we clash with people in our life. What I really like about it too is that it shows us something of where the problem actually lies. The problem is not so much other people, the problem is me. The problems is us.
One pastor I heard this week told of a time when he was in seminary. He was taking a final exam, and he was in a room and the students were spaced out across the room. There were several feet in between himself and the guy next to him. But he said that midway through the exam he caught a waft of rather bad odor. He said it was pretty bad. As a matter of fact, it was so distracting that he got up and moved to another part of the room to get away from it. He of course started into the exam again, but soon noticed the odor again. His first thought was, “This guy over here stinks too!” It then dawned on him that the problem wasn’t everyone else, the stench was emanating from his own self.
This is essentially what James is talking about in this passage that is before us this morning. James is telling us that, when it comes to our relationships, the problem is not so much the people around us as it is ourselves. We end up being at odds with one another, not so much because of the others, but because the foulness resides right here in our own hearts.
James says that our own selfishness lies at the root of our problems. All of our problems can be boiled down to this: that we have selfish desires and we employ selfish tactics. And if we would simply come to terms with this, we’d enjoy so much more peace and harmony with the other people around us.
We’ve said before that The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart. And that’s exactly what we find in verses 1-2.
I. We have selfish desires [1-2]
These two verses tell us that all of our relational problems can be traced to one root cause: it is our self-centered desires. Look at them with me. Listen to how it focuses on desire as the root and cause of all fighting.
What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.
As you know, I’m not a historian. I’m actually skeptical of much of the history that was taught to me over the years. But I once heard something about Alexander the Great that has always stuck with me. One of my teachers said that he began his vast conquest of the world because of one thing: he loved Greek culture. He loved Greek culture and he wanted to spread it across the ends of the earth.
Again, I don’t know if that’s true. But if it is, it is a good illustration of what James is saying. All his armies, waring, fighting and mayhem of his conquest boils down to one thing: Desire.
I understand that things may be more complicated than that; there’s likely more to the story. But really, it isn’t more foundational than this. nation rises against nation because of desire – be it for power, or resources, or control.
And the same goes for every other relationship.
There are three words in these first two verses that all point to how our internal desires are all out of alignment. The first word is in verse 1. It is the world passion (ESV) / desire (NIV) / desire for pleasure (NKJV). In the original language it is the word hedone. We say someone is a hedonist. Their life is all about pleasure seeking, fulfilment of their every desire.
The truth is, we are all hedonists. We all have pleasures that we are seeking and that’s what is putting us in conflict with one another.
Here’s a man who has worked hard all day. He’s tired. It’s been hot. He’s looking forward to putting his feet up and turning on the TV. Meanwhile, his wife has been accumulating a list of things she needs done around the house. She’d really be happy if the garden got tilled. She’d really like the cabinet door fixed because its almost off the hinge. Not to mention the fact that she’d like some adult conversation after being involved in toddler talk all day.
What do you think is going to happen when the husband gets home? Things are going to explode because they both have different desires. Their focused on gratifying their own pleasure.
The second word is in verse 2, it is the word desire (ESV, NIV), lust (KJV, NKJV). The word here is epithumeo and it literally means to pant heavily after. You’ve all seen a dog or some crazed animal that wants a piece of meat or a toy. It is breathing is labored because it is so excited and it is drooling because it so desires that item in your hand. That’s exactly the kind of thing that is going on inside of us. We have this inordinate desire. Our desires are excited and we have this rabid internal craving for some object that we think will make us happy.
This is what happens in the nursery or living room between two kids. One kid has a desire for the toy truck. So he grabs it and starts playing with it. Along comes the brother or sister and he desires it too. So he grabs it from his sibling and he starts to play with it. And before you know it, the thing escalates into yelling, screaming, and fisticuffs.
It is all because of this lustful, inordinate desire.
The third word is again in verse 2, and it is the word covet. The Greek word here is the word Zelo, from whence we get the word zealous. And this word has a good word picture too. It means to boil or to become overly heated. That’s a description of our inward yearnings. They’ve become so hot and so inflamed that they are bubbling out of control. We feel that we got to have it.
So James here drives home the fact that it is our heart’s disposition. It is the fact that our desires are all askew. We don’t have relational harmony because our hearts are greedy and full of selfish desire.
And this is something that is really telling in our culture today. We have all kinds of problems in families and neighborhoods because we tell people to follow their hearts. The world is out there saying that if you do not follow your heart and you do not seek what you desire, then there is something wrong. They say that the problem is that you are not seeking you desires.
But what we find here is that this is exactly why we have so much disorder and crime. This is why we divorces and estranged family members. This is why nations cannot get along and have to start shooting at each other. It is because we let these passions drive us and we follow our worldly inclinations.
Now, I should mention that the problem is not that our passions are too heated or too strong. I do need to make this clarification. Our problem is not the intensity of our desire. But it is the focus of our desire. James is talking about the fact that our desires are focused on ourselves and the pleasure we derive from the world. It is covetous desire.
I would like to make the argument (and I think that James will do this later in the passage) that our passions are supposed to be on the Lord and what the Lord wills. That’s why he will call us adulterers, and say, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?”
If anything, our passions—when it comes for the Lord and his righteousness—are not strong enough. If we did have a passion for God, like we were supposed to, then we’d not have the problems that we do.
So the problem is not the level of passion, it is the focus of our passion. Conflicts are all around us because our passions are focused on worldly things, and not focused on God and what He wants.
The problem lies not outside of us or in our neighbor, it lies in us. It is our own evil desires and worldly disposition.
Our problems will likely be solved if we reign in our desires and get them fixed on what they ought to be fixated on.
This is the key: that our problems are mostly due to our inward disposition of our hearts. But, of course, what lies in the heart springs forth into lived, everyday action. And that’s another major reason why we struggle to maintain good relationships with people.
James not only talks about the desires we have, but he makes mention of the tactics we employ.
II. We employ worldly tactics [2-3]
In verses 2-3 James shows us that we the way we go about interacting with one another and fulfilling our desires seriously misguided. Because we are so selfish, we end up being abusive.
A. Abusive - Violent
Look at verse 2. He says, “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and you cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.”
He mentions here the tactic of brute force. In order to get what we want we resort to forms of violence.
Now, when he mentions murder, I think it is evident from the context that he’s using the word metaphorically. But we understand that murder—real homicide, is certainly something that arises out of wrong desire. And it is the ultimate expression of self centeredness and the worst case scenario when it comes to fulfilling our desires. We get this person out of our way by force.
But it is indicative of all of the other ways become combative and use force to get what we want. We engage in verbal violence, whereby we yell and scream to force someone to bend to our will. Some people can be passive aggressive. Others can be manipulative, using guilt or fear or deception.
All of these are forms of warfare to one degree or another. All of them are ways we are abusive to one another and try to force people to submit to our wills.
Selfish interest breeds self centered tactics. Exalts our own power. We have to exert that power upon someone else.
But our tactics are not just abusive, they are also atheistic.
B. Atheistic
You’ll notice that James goes on in the latter have of verse 2 to say, “You do not have, because you do not ask.”
Here, you may say, is the flip side of that coin. You are abusive and exerting your own power and you are failing to recognize the supreme power of God. This is an atheistic approach to life. When we do not pray we are saying that we have the power to achieve all. We are essentially saying, “I am the one who rules and governs all.”
But this is far from the way it really is. The truth is, all that we have comes from God. We are ever at the disposal of divine Providence. And when our desires arise, if we would only recognize that God does accomplish all His holy will: how much more would we have!
We should see here that James challenges us. He invites us to see just how generous God is. Earlier he said that if we lack wisdom, we should ask God who gives generously. Here he says, “You do not have, because you do not ask.” As if to say, “Go ahead and ask. See that you will receive.”
And this is exactly what Jesus said. “Ask, seek, knock. The one who asks, receives. The one who seeks will find. The one who knocks, to him the door will be opened.” There is a divine promise that if you do rely on the omnipotent power of God—if you do acknowledge that it is by His hand that all your desires are met, then you will find that there is a bountiful supply. Your prayers will be heard and the answers will come.
Unfortunately, this is not typically our mentality. We have not, because we ask not. We do not have, because our tactics—being selfishly centered—are essentially atheistic.
And in those times that we do get religious and we do pray, what then? Well, James answers that in verse 3. He says, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
This is the final tactic that we typically employ. James has said that we employ tactics that are abusive and atheistic. Here he says that sometimes, our ways are profane.
C. Profane
Since we are so intent on fulfilling our own desires, what happens is that we use prayer in a sacrilegious way. Instead of seeking God in prayer, instead of submitting ourselves to him and seeking His will, we try to use prayer as a means of personal gain.
We think we are being very spiritual, but we’re actually being quite blasphemous. We take that which is designed for a holy and God glorifying purpose—we use this means of communion with God—and use it as a tool for getting what we want. And that is an irreverent abuse of this gift.
The Bible is full of illustrations of times when people have misused or mishandled God’s ordinances. You may know the story of Nadab & Abihu. They thought they would take some of the incense and burn it. They wanted to play with it and have a little fun. You know what God did? He struck them down dead.
From time to time we read the passage in 1 Corinthians 11; about how the Corinthians were gorging themselves and not treating the Lord’s Table with the respect that it deserves. It was just a pleasure fest for them. As a result, they became sick and some died.
All this is to say, this is serious. To profane God’s worship and b
Prayer, you understand, has guidelines. You don’t just use prayer as a way of getting what you want. As if God is your slave who does your every beck and wish. God is not the Sanctified Santa who looks at your wish list and gives you everything you selfishly desire.
.