You covet, and have not. Though God has promised that whosoever asks shall receive, (Matthew vii. 8.) yet no wonder you receive not, because you ask amiss, by asking such temporal things as would be prejudicial to your soul, or because you ask not with humility, devotion, and perseverance. (Witham) read more
1-10 Since all wars and fightings come from the corruptions of our own hearts, it is right to mortify those lusts that war in the members. Wordly and fleshly lusts are distempers, which will not allow content or satisfaction. Sinful desires and affections stop prayer, and the working of our desires toward God. And let us beware that we do not abuse or misuse the mercies received, by the disposition of the heart when prayers are granted When men ask of God prosperity, they often ask with wrong... read more
James 4 THE LAST NOTE struck, as we closed chapter 3 was that of peace. The first note of chapter 4 is the exact opposite, that of war. What lay behind the peace was the purity that is the first mark of the wisdom that is from above. So now we discover that what lies behind the wars and fightings, which are so common among the professed people of God, is the impure lust of the human heart, the lust connected with that wisdom which is earthly, sensual, devilish. You will notice that the... read more
Caution against Worldly-Mindedness and Its Consequences. Against a lustful, quarrelsome disposition: v. 1. From whence come wars and fightings among you? Come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? v. 2. Ye lust and have not; ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain; ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. v. 3. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. v. 4. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know... read more
VII. FIFTH ADMONITIONREFERENCE TO THE INFALLIBLE TOKEN OF AN UNSPIRITUAL (FANATICAL) MENTAL CONSTITUTION FOUNDED ON WORLDLY-MINDEDNESS, VIZ.: THE WARS AND FIGHTINGS IN THE JEWISH CHRISTIAN WORLD AND PARTICULARLY IN THE JEWISH WORLD BOTH INWARDLY AND OUTWARDLY.—THE CONSEQUENCE THERE-OF: FAILURE AND FRUSTRATION OF THEIR STRIVING, THEIR MURDEROUS ENVYING, THEIR WARRING AND EVEN OF THEIR PRAYINGJames 4:1-31 From whence come wars and1 fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts... read more
“Draw Nigh to God” James 4:1-10 The Apostle returns to “the jealousy and faction” of the previous chapter, James 3:14 , and says that these evils are traceable to lust , that is, to inordinate desire. The restless inward war is the prolific parent of failure in speech and act. If we would pray more and better, we should soon find the inner fires dying down. In James 4:5 , r.v., margin, we learn that God has placed His Spirit within us, and that He yearns for complete control over our... read more
The writer now dealt with the effect of faith on character. Everything depends on desire. To attempt to satisfy a natural desire without reference to God is futile, and issues in internal conflict and outward warfare and strife. The writer inquired, "Doth the Spirit which He made to dwell in us long unto envying?" It is self-evident that the Spirit of God does not create desire which issues in envying. The divine corrective of such a condition is, first, that God "giveth more grace . . . to... read more
In Contrast To Those Who Have Received The Wisdom That Is From Above Are Those Who Yield To The Desires Of The Flesh And Seek To Be Friends Of A World Which Ignores Christ (James 4:1-5 ). Having spoken of those who have received the wisdom from above, and through it have found peace, and a message of peace, James now turns to look at those who have refused the wisdom that is from above and are living by their own wisdom, following the endless search for pleasure. And he does it with powerful... read more
‘You desire, and have not. You kill, and envy, and cannot obtain. You fight and war; you have not, because you ask not.’ He then builds up a picture which reveals how they go about obtaining what they want, for it is clear that they will do anything rather than ask God for it and fulfil His conditions. And yet in the end they desire in vain because they do not get what they want. They will even ‘kill’, with the mind even if not in reality, because they are green with envy, with their covetous... read more
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Hawker's Poor Man's Commentary - James 4:1-6
From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? (2) Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. (3) Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. (4) Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy... read more