Living Out Our Faith Submissively - James 4:2

Introduction

We are on to verse 2 of James 4 this evening. Last week, we spent time considering verse 1. In that study, the Holy Spirit explained to us the source of all wars and fightings. Namely, they come from our own lusts.

James 4:1 KJV 1900

1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

The “lusts that war” in our members is the source of all human conflict both within and without. We also discovered how that these “lusts” are lurking within us ready to do battle at moment’s notice. They “war” in our members. The word “war” literally means an encamped army.

This evening, the Holy Spirit continues to expound upon our lusts as the source of conflict. Look at verse 2 with me.

James 4:2 KJV 1900

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.

Here are some grammatical notes to consider before we get into spiritual application.

GRAMMAR STUDY

Grammatically, this is a very interesting verse. There are no nouns and no adjectives. Essentially, the subject is “ye” or “you.” Therefore, we, as sinful people, are at the center of this verse. Note how many times we are mentioned.

James 4:2 (KJV 1900)

2 Ye [you] lust, and have not: ye [you] kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye [you] fight and war, yet ye [you] have not, because ye ask not.

Obviously we have a problem. As you may already know, the word “you” is a personal pronoun. No matter how we dissect this it comes down to one thing. Each person has a serious spiritual problem. Now, it would do us much good to remember that this letter (the book of James) is written to believers. Thus, the indication is that every believer has a problem.

What is our problem? There are several verbs that tell us.

Ye [you] lust & have not

Ye [you] kill &

Ye [you] desire to have & cannot obtain

Ye [you] fight &

Ye [you] war, yet

Ye [you] have not, because

Ye [you] ask not

The word “lust” is a different word in the Greek than the word “lust” in verse 1. We covered this last week. However, it would do us good to briefly cover it again. There are two main Greek words for our English word “lust.” In last week’s verse, the Greek word was “hedone” which simply means gratification of the natural desire or sinful desires or, as we might simply say, pleasures. However, in our text this evening, verse 2, it is the Greek word “epithumia” which is essentially an intensive passion to do something and can be used for both good and bad things based on the context. Obviously, the context here is that of having an intense passion for bad or sinful things.

The word “kill” simply means to murder and emphasizes an intentional as well pre-meditated killing.

“Desire” means to burn with jealousy.

The word “fight” is the verb form of the same word found in verse 1. It means to strive to fight, quarrel, or dispute.

Again, the word “war” is the verb form of the word “wars” found in verse 1. Its connotation is that of making war. It is not the same word as “war” in the latter part of verse 1 which means an encamped army ready to make war. The larger sense in our text is action of warring as it takes place.

The word “ask” is an interesting word here. Its connotation goes a little deeper then just making a request. The suggestion that goes with this word is that of a petition from one who is in a lesser position than the one to whom the petition is made. For example, it would be the case of a child requesting something from a parent or a simple peasant making a request of a king. In our context, we are simply men asking something of the Almighty God, Ruler of All Things.

Undoubtedly you have noted the use of the verb “have.” In the Greek, the understanding is more about ability than possession. It is equivalent to saying, “you have the means of” doing this or that. A good example of this would be 2 Corinthians 8:11

2 Corinthians 8:11 KJV 1900

11 Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.

Note the phrase “which ye have.” It is the same Greek word as “have” in our text. In other words, you have the means to do it so do it. That is essence of “have” in our text.

Then, lastly, there is the verb “obtain.” It simply means to obtain or achieve a certain goal.

As for the rest, there are two adverbs. They are the words “not” which is used four times and the word “can.” “Can” is also somewhat interesting. It is both a verb and an adverb. As verb, it means “to be able or is capable.” However, in the Greek, it is used to modify the verb “obtain.” Thus, the subject is completely incapable of achieving its goal.

SPIRITUAL APPLICATION

What is the Holy Spirit talking about?

This verse is continuation of the thought started in verse 1. What is the source of our wars and fightings? The source is the lusts that war in our members. So the focus is our lusts and the spiritual battle within which often translates to without.

What is the Holy Spirit saying about this spiritual struggle?

As we move into this paragraph and this study, let’s keep in mind the context. This entire letter was written to believers. And, again, the Holy Spirit is helping us understand the underlying issues of man’s conflicts. Conflicts that are both internal and external. We, as believes, are, in essence, a walking civil war. Within each of us there are two desires working against one another. I alluded to this in the morning worship service as well. A key verse describing that conflict is Galatians 5:17

Galatians 5:17 KJV 1900

17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

In our flesh, we desire to please ourselves, however, the Holy Spirit as He indwells us places a desire to please God. Thus, at the heart of the issue is which desire do we intensely or passionately go after. Unfortunately, we, more often than not, are most passionate about pleasing our fleshly desires.

I want you to note the last phrase of this verse for a second before we move on.

James 4:2 (KJV 1900)

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.

This is the root cause of everything. Basically, we don’t trust God. That is the real problem. If we truly trusted Him, we would call upon Him. Instead, we have more trust in ourselves than we do Him. Therefore, our distrust in Him and His Word is our basic problem.

Let’s consider three things from this verse this evening.

The first consideration is this.

LUST can be GOOD or BAD!

Remember our study of this word. The Greek word here in this verse simply means to have yearning desire or to be passionate about something. Our passion or desire can be good or bad depending on what the object of our desire or passion. For example, desiring food is good. In fact, we need food to survive. However, when we becomes so passionate about food that we consume more and more food, that is bad. We move from simply taking care of our basic needs to gluttony. That is the essence of “lust” in this verse.

By the way, as you consider this verse, there is nothing wrong with our basic desires. In fact, as you move forward, God encourages to come to Him as the source of meeting those desires. We must learn to rely upon Him as the Source and Provider of every good and perfect gift. Our issue is that we ignore, neglect, and deny God allowing our desires to run wild and out of control. Each time we place God aside, our fleshly desires rise up creating a greater passion for what we want to the point that we lie, cheat, fights, kill, and war so that we might be gratified.

This is a thought that brings us to the second consideration of this verse.

There a DIFFERENT LEVELS to which our LUST will TAKE US!

Note the progression.

James 4:2 (KJV 1900)

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.

Here is progression one.

James 4:2 (KJV 1900)

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.

This is the next level of progression.

James 4:2 (KJV 1900)

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.

This progression is the ultimate result.

Again, what are the three progressions.

“You lust, and have not” - Level 1

Level 1 begins was a desire. However, at this level, many do nothing about it. There is no planning or working to get what they desire. They have desire, but they have not because they are unwilling to do what is necessary to fulfill these desires. Tragically, for us as believers, we are even unwilling to call upon God to help us meet even the basic necessities of life. We desire [lust], be we have not not because we lack any initiative or because we simply do not trust God.

“You desire to have and kill for it” - Level 2

At this level, a person becomes more passionate about their desires. They have become passionate to the point they are willing to do things like lie, steal, cheat, and kill to gratify and posses their desires. Often, they are looking to obtain a great position, more recognition, some material possession such as land, power, or anything else you care to fill in the blank here. No matter what it is and no matter how much they may have already obtained, it is not enough. It does not completely satisfy their lust and desires. Their desire only grows as they crave more and more. A classic example of this is when someone asked John Rockefeller, the richest man on earth at the time, who much more did he need. He responded, “One dollar more.”

“You desire to have even to ultimate point of fighting and warring for it” - Level 3

This is the pinnacle of seeking gratification. At this level, a person is willing to wage open warfare to gratify their desires. They want something so much - such as power, land, position, vengeance - that they are willing to throw a whole family, church, community, or even a nation into an all out war just to satisfy their lust. It is one thing to kill and destroy a life to get what you want, but it is on a whole different level when you are willing to sacrifice millions of lives to get it.

What is the end result of each progression? You have not. It is an escalation of lust that achieves nothing. Lust is never satisfied and just wants more and more.

There is one last consideration from this verse.

A Person’s True Desires can NEVER BE SATISFIED APART FROM GOD!

Look again at the verse.

James 4:2 (KJV 1900)

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.

For a person to be truly satisfied in this life, they must turn to God and call upon Him. Why? There are three reasons.

Man was CREATED as a SPIRITUAL Being!

Man CANNOT Be SATISFIED by MATERIAL THINGS!

Man is UNABLE TO CONTROL His Desires!