James 4:1–6 (NIV)

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:

“God opposes the proud
    but shows favor to the humble.”

Having just explained how our sinful nature can turn even something as wonderful as wisdom into something demonic, James now zooms in on that sin.

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Covetousness. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight.

Good old commandment #10—the one no one talks about, the one you can’t see.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.” — Exodus 20:17 (NIV)

This is the hidden sin. Out of sight, out of mind, right?

Not really. The quarreling makes it obvious.

But then James digs down to the root cause. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

The lesson here is simple but subtle. We have to let our relationship with God be what it should be—the relationship between a created being and its creator. We need to quit the rat race and let God run His universe His way. Life is not a competition. The trick is to relax. Consider this.

When we pray, do we sound like we’re talking to the author of space, time, matter, and energy (not to mention ethics, mathematics, and love)? Or do we sound like we’re talking to Santa Claus?

We need to stop trying to shoulder the load of being God. That’s not our job. This is the point of:

“God opposes the proud
    but shows favor to the humble.”

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These weekday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay. Saturdays' by Matt Richardson. Subscribe here: https://www.ailbe.org/resources/community

The weekly study guides, which include questions for discussion or meditation, are here: https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies

cripture taken from the New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.