Living Out Our Faith Skillfully - James 3:16
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Introduction
Introduction
Tonight we continue with our study of James 3. Our verse for tonight is verse 16. Let’s read the paragraph, and then we will look closely at verse 16.
13 Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. 14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. 15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
Now once again, let’s read verse 16.
16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
GRAMMAR STUDY
GRAMMAR STUDY
This verse is a straightforward. There are four nouns listed in this verse. They are:
envying [a greedy and prideful longing for something that belongs to another; even something tangible, such as a skill]
strife [a strong drive for personal success without moral inhibitions]
confusion [a state of violent group disturbance and disorder; especially as in politics or social conditions generally]
work [any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted]
The words envying and strife take us back to verse 14, where the Holy Spirit stated the following.
14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
He now brings us back to the subjects of envy and strife. Both words are the same in English and Greek as in verse 14. Envying means a greedy and prideful longing for something that belongs to someone else. Strife is a strong drive for personal success without any moral inhibitions. Essentially we are talking about a person who absolutely wants what another has and will do anything to get it. We will come back to that thought in a few minutes.
The other two nouns are the result of envy and strife. Both vices result in confusion and work. Work is qualified by the adjective “evil.” We understand work as any amount of effort taken or attempted to accomplish a particular task. Confusion is a state of violent group disturbance and disorder. It is basically anarchy. Thus, people whose life is consumed with envy and strive to get what they want at any cost cause confusion (create disorder) by their work or attempt to fulfill their selfish desires.
We also have two adjectives that we must note. They are:
every [every one considered individually]
evil [not adhering to ethical or moral principles]
Both words modify the word “work.” The word “every” means each work considered individually. “Evil” means not adhering to any ethical or moral principles. Thus, an envious person striving to get only what they want is doing each work with evil intent.
Now notice one other thing of importance in this verse. Note that it says “FOR WHERE,” there is. It is a fact that wherever there is envy and strife, then confusion and evil works will also be there.
SPIRITUAL APPLICATION
SPIRITUAL APPLICATION
What is the Holy Spirit talking about?
What is the Holy Spirit talking about?
Remember that wisdom is the current topic. However, wisdom is part of the overall context of the entire chapter. The context of the whole chapter deals with those who desire to teach. Teaching must be done skillfully according to God’s Word. Thus, the warning is about our words and our wisdom. Words are what we use to teach. Wisdom is the foundation of our teaching. Thus, the Holy Spirit is warning us about the dangers of both. Our words are driven by our source of wisdom. If we are using our own wisdom, then our words betray us by lifting ourselves up and destroying others. However, as the Holy Spirit is admonishing us to do, we must, as God’s people, make His Wisdom the foundation of what we speak, including teaching others. In doing so, we rightly lift Him up and allow Him the opportunity to work through us.
In this verse, what is the Holy Spirit saying about wisdom?
In this verse, what is the Holy Spirit saying about wisdom?
This verse is a continuation of verses 14 and 15. Remember the warning of verse 14. We need to some self-confrontation. Do we have in our hearts bitter envying and strife? If we do, then as we learned in verse 15, those things do not come from God. Instead, they come from within; they come from earthly men. For that reason, it is sensual and devilish. In our verse, the Holy Spirit exposes the end result of envy and strife. It always leads to confusion and is the result of evil work.
Here are some points from this verse.
WARNING ABOUT FALSE WISDOM
WARNING ABOUT FALSE WISDOM
There is no doubt that the Holy Spirit is warning us about the effects of carnal wisdom and teaching. Wherever there is envy and strife, there is confusion and every evil work.
This is easily illustrated by our study of 1 Corinthians. Remember early in our study that the Corinthian believers were spiritually immature.
1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. 2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. 3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? 4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? 5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?
The word “carnal” means they were still relying upon their old sinful flesh instead of growing into the spiritual people that God intended them to be. The Holy Spirit describes them as “babes” who were still feeding on the simple milk of the Word. What was the result? They remained carnal. There was no spiritual growth. The outward demonstration was envy and strife, which led to confusion and evil works. Thus, they constantly relied on their own wisdom instead of living in obedience to God’s wisdom found in His Word. Listen to some of the Holy Spirit’s other descriptions of these believers.
11 For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. 12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.
18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.
Obviously, there was confusion in the local church of Corinth because of envy and strife. There were also evil works. They were not dealing with a significant issue of immorality. One of the men in their church was sleeping with his father’s wife - his stepmother. Additionally, they were apathetic to God’s table by throwing lavish parties. We could give many other examples this evening, but I think the point is clear. Anytime envy and strife are allowed into a believer’s life, it can lead to much confusion and evil works.
Herein lies the problem. Envy is all about self. It is wholly focused on seeking high positions, receiving great recognition, obtaining the wealth of this world, and having authority over others. Too often, a believer concentrating on such things will see the avenue of teaching as the means to achieve what they desire. Soon they begin to enjoy the attention they are receiving. Attention leads them to a point where they feel they are the only ones to honestly know and understand God’s Word. And, with time, they start to feel they have received some new revelation from God, drawing others to follow them. As they do, they sowed seeds of distrust and contempt against those who threatened their status. Eventually, confusion and the evil work of causing division to begin to develop in a church. Oh, by the way, this happens not just in churches but also in marriages, families, and even work relationships. The end result is the weak believers return to the world forsaking God and His Word.
That last statement is why this is such essential teaching from God. The Devil loves when God’s people rely upon their own wisdom instead of God’s. Remember, such wisdom is sensual and devilish. It provides an excellent opportunity to destroy weaker believers’ desire to serve the Lord and follow Him. Unfortunately, the stronger believers fall for the trap of envy.
One of my biggest concerns as a pastor is the overwhelming volume of so-called preachers and teachers in America today. I am especially concerned about the number of so-called Christian authors selling books that become bestsellers. My concern is why are they doing it? Are they writing books just to sell and profit from them? If so, are they leading and teaching people based on their wisdom and not God’s? This makes it dangerous because they often merge some of God’s teaching with their own deceiving people to believe that it is God’s wisdom. Then, along comes new believers who desire to grow, and they begin to read behind these notable authors leading them away from God as these authors make millions. In the end, they do nothing but bring harm to the cause of Christ. They lead believers to think they can have all the world offers while maintaining a close relationship with Christ. Something that Christ made clear could not happen. You must either choose the things of this world or the things of Heaven. You cannot have both.
There is one other problem that often results from these authors as well. They cause confusion and strife in local churches. Those believers reading, listening, and following these so-called Christian authors and pastors begin to feel that they are more intelligent and wiser than their own pastor. Or, they receive some advice that causes them to judge their pastor and other church leaders. Again, it all results in more confusion and strife.
Does this stuff really happen? The answer is yes. In the last month, I have known of two examples where false teaching based on false wisdom can lead to possible issues within our church. In one instance, someone in our church listened to an “unnamed” pastor teaching some profound false doctrine concerning end times. Praise the Lord; this man knew to bring this teaching to me and others in the church, asking if what the pastor was teaching was Biblical. We were able to show him from God’s Word the fallacies of such teaching. In the other example, a former member of our church has begun using the Apocrypha as a credible source of God’s Word. It is not. There are many reasons why the books of the Apocrypha were not included in the original canon of Scripture. I fear that others will follow this man in his departure from God’s Word. All of these are real and happening even now. Thus, what we are learning from the Holy Spirit in this verse is entirely relevant.
Is any of this of God? The answer is no.
33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
Each person who desires to teach God’s Word must have the same goal that the Holy Spirit placed in Paul.
4 But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts. 5 For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness; God is witness:
This leads me to this next point.
HUMILITY IS ENCOURAGED
HUMILITY IS ENCOURAGED
Humility is needed more than ever. We need people to turn back to God and His Word. For that to happen, we must humble ourselves before God. There are way too many teachers and authors who have abandoned God’s Word for their own thoughts and opinions. Thus, we need to make God and His Word the center of all that we do. It is one of the reasons why I place such a massive emphasis on studying God’s Word here at our church. Doing so exposes those who would put worshipping themselves above worshipping the Lord. God’s Word is the only thing that keeps man’s pride in check. It helps us see our pride and arrogance encouraging us to abandon it as we humbly submit to His authority. When we get to chapter 4, the Holy Spirit will emphasize this very thought when He says:
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
We have much confusion today due to man’s pride. It is time we give up our pride and simply submit to God. The only thing we should be concerned about is whether or not we please Him and not ourselves. He saved us, and He has called us to be witnesses for Him. We did not and cannot save ourselves. We have absolutely nothing of which we can boast concerning ourselves. Instead, we have every reason to lift Him up and proclaim His name to everyone.
Let me finish by giving you a few closing passages.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
16 For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!
1 Come, and let us return unto the Lord: For he hath torn, and he will heal us; He hath smitten, and he will bind us up.