More Grace

APRIL 1,2020 STUDY NOTES JAMES 4:5-6 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES MORE GRACE INTRODUCTION In the previous verse James presented to us a great problem found within the church today (James 4:4) The church is commissioned to go into the world with the “Good News” of salvation Too often today Satan is coming into the church with his worldly news of pleasure and sin Today’s church and modern Christianity need to pay attention to what James is telling us Too many churches and too often Christians are compromising with the present world system Satan’s world is an organized system of evil forces that is against God, God’s Word, and the church It is easy for Satan to attract attention through his sinful system because it fulfills sinful lusts In Satan’s world sinners find their satisfaction (1 John 2:16) John makes it clear, Satan’s way is not the way of God, it is the way of the world, and James agrees When Christians turn their attention to Satan’s way, James calls it “friendship with the world” As friends of the world you will find yourself going where God is not wanted and His Word is mocked Christians who turn to the world desiring to use its ways will discover that Satan is using them his way By the grace of God, we can turn from Satan and his ways, we can be victorious over Satan Thank God for His Grace, praise God for “more grace” Jas 4:5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? James is now going to show us that Scripture proves his point Scripture does not speak without meaning, without reason, or without purpose All scripture is truth, all scripture speaks truth, the Bible is living truth (Hebrews 4:12) God’s Word is God speaking truth unto us, we must read it, learn it, and live it James does not have one particular-verse in mind, the truth of all scripture is his point He means that truth is obvious as you read throughout scripture He is telling us that what he is telling us is exactly what the “Bible Teaches” In other words, the teaching of scripture is clear and understandable James does pinpoint certain Biblical Truth in these verses, exactly what truth does James have in mind? James is showing us through scripture that “worldliness” and “Godliness” cannot work together Do not think that you can be a friend of the world and a friend of God at the same time, you can’t Scripture does not present or allow worldliness and Godliness to work together, it is impossible But in what way, does he now explain his point? There are different views concerning what James says in this verse Bible scholars agree that James 4:5 is the most difficult verse in James to translate A study of commentaries identify that the verse is one of the most difficult in the Bible to interpret But regardless of how the verse is interpreted, the same truth remains Christians who are in love with the world are committing spiritual adultery and are an enemy of God The Amazing Grace of God is waiting to forgive us of sin and to restore our fellowship with God The spirit that dwelleth in us Verse 5 must be interpreted with an understanding of what James has previously said He wants us to think about what he said in verse 4 and apply verse 5 to it But does “the spirit” refer to the spirit of natural man or the Spirit of God that dwells in us? If it refers to the “spirit” of natural man, it is translated with a small “s” (I agree with this view) If it refers to the “Spirit” that dwells within us, it is translated with a capital “S” Some Bible scholars accept one view and others accept the other view, all are conservative scholars One view says that it refers to the spirit of envy found in natural man Cain is an example (Genesis 4:6) Cain, why are you angry? God was pointing out to Cain why He did not accept Cain’s offering In the next verse, God not only speaks to Cain, He speaks to all of us, we are all sinners (Genesis 4:7) Sin is presented as a wild beast knocking on the door, literally a “demon” is at the door of your heart His desire is to overrule you, to overpower you, to destroy you, but you are to rule over him Literally, you are to rule over sin, which is only possible through the grace of God Abel had offered an acceptable sacrifice before God, which God must have revealed to Abel and Cain Cain followed his inner nature of sin instead of obeying what God had said Cain’s faith was to be in the promise of a sacrificial Lamb, the promise of the coming redeemer The truth of salvation by grace is found in the account of Cain and Abel and their sacrifices Salvation by grace through faith has always been the way of salvation (Ephesians 2:8) The state of fallen man before the Flood is another example of the inner sinful spirit of man (Genesis 6:5) Sinful man is wicked from the inside out, sin begins within the spirit, which is thinking sin (Genesis 8:21) Satan begins his work of evil within the spirit of man at birth Satan captures and dominates the inner spirit of man, the spirit of evil is continually tempting man The soul of evil man eagerly lusts after evil, wickedness within seeks to do evil acts (Proverbs 21:10) The sinful spirit within man overpowers the consideration of a right spirit toward God and man Nothing but the grace of God can intercede, overpower, and defeat the wicked inner spirit of man Within the spirit of inner man is the real man, his reasoning, his will, and sinful actions come from it (Jeremiah 17:9) “The heart” refers to the inner spirit of man, the spirit of fallen man is “deceitful” And “desperately wicked,” as dangerous as a deadly virus, compared to an incurable disease The cure is the Grace of God (Titus 2:11-12) All need the grace of God for salvation, all who are saved still need the grace of God to sustain us “This present world” is the same world system that James speaks of, Satan’s system of evil By the grace of God, we can “deny ungodliness,” anything that is unlike God Ungodliness does not just refer to the things that are wicked and harmful To be ungodly, a person does not have to be an outward wicked sinner Ungodliness is a lack of reverence toward God, same thing James is telling us The ungodly person is the one who is not making room for God in their daily life The one who fails to take God into account, living as though there were no God They live as if God was not around, they plan as if God was not alive Ungodliness is to focus your attention on self and the world instead of God and your spiritual life Which is the sinful inner spirit desiring “worldly lusts,” which Satan stands ready to fulfill Satan makes sure your worldly eyes have something to see and worldly ears have something to hear That your worldly mind has something to think about and your worldly hands have something to touch The grace of God is the answer to worldly ways, God’s grace teaches us how to “live soberly” The sober mind is a sound mind, a sensible mind, a mind that is in proper balance The mind that is set on God's Word and God's Will, a mind that has been set free from sin When the sinful inner nature is under control, when the sinful nature is not allowed to take over When you are-able to restrain yourself from worldly lusts When the desires of your heart conform to the Word of God and the will of God Grace tells you that you owe it to God and to yourself to “live soberly” You have a duty toward God to live soberly, you have a duty to yourself to live soberly God’s People are to live “righteously,” a right relationship with God, with self, and with others God’s people are to live “Godly” which is the opposite of ungodly God’s people are to live as God’s people in this present world, the world we now live in We must stop trying to live like the world around us, which James says is spiritual adultery Christians must stop living according to what the sinful inner nature desires We must live according to what the grace of God provides James tells us about the desire of the inner self nature of sin, he describes it as “lustful envy” lusteth to envy? “Lust” means to have a strong desire for something, to long for, to yearn for, to have a love for it Referring to something that someone has a continual desire for The inner spirit of man longs for the pleasures of this world, desiring friendship with the world “Envy” has the meaning of jealously which is often found associated with worldly ways The Greek word translated “envy” is never regarded in a favorable way in the NT It is always used with an evil meaning in the NT Paul uses the word “envy” in his description of a worldly lifestyle and a reprobate mind (Romans 1:29) Look close at the other sins listed along with the sin of “envy” Paul gives us another list which he describes as the “works of the flesh” (Galatians 5:19-21) This list of sins is characteristic of those who are lost and should not be seen in those who are saved Again, the sin of “envy” is listed Paul uses the same word in his description of false teachers to Timothy (1 Timothy 6:4) We find the same word listed among the sinful characteristics that God’s grace delivered us from (Titus 3:3) Peter uses the same word identifying sinful habits that Christians must get rid of (1 Peter 2:1) “Envy” should no longer be a part of the Christian life according to Paul, Peter, and James A description of “envy” fits well into the context of the teaching of James “Envy” speaks of jealousy or holding a grudge against another It comes because of who they are, what they have, or what they have attained, their success It is being resentful toward others because of their abilities, possessions, advantages, or prosperity Being displeased with the pleasure of another, being dissatisfied with the satisfaction of another You feel bad because someone else feels good, you are unhappy because someone else is happy Satan makes sure that it works its way into all groups, he aims at all who have a part in church Satan will take envy and use it to bring forth other sinful characteristics in a person’s life With Satan so powerful is there any hope for our Christian life and the life of the church? Yes, we can praise God for what James now tells us Pay attention to how the next verse begins, “But,” there is another way Jas 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. “But,” because of the grace of God Christians have a choice Instead of allowing Satan to take control of the spirit of our sinful nature We can accept the grace of God, listen to James, “God gives us more grace” Grace is not a one-time gift from God, God will continually bestow His grace upon us Satan wants us to think that God is out to “get us,” the truth is, God is out to “give us” God is continually pouring out His grace upon us, literally, more, and more, and more grace The Grace of God comes to us through Jesus (John 1:14) Paul often speaks of the “much more” grace of God in Romans (Romans 5:15) Grace has abounded toward us The much more grace of God in Jesus abounds, the saving grace of God is available to all sinners (Romans 5:17) The sins of our sinful spirit within us has never gone beyond the grace of God to forgive us (Rom. 5:20) We have been given grace in abundance, there is a song that says, “Grace that is greater than all my sin” Peter describes God’s grace as “manifold” (1 Peter 4:10) “Manifold” means a variety, of many different aspects, or diverse God’s “grace” is bestowed upon us many times and in many ways Peter uses the word “manifold” twice in this letter, putting the two together gives us a great truth (1 Peter 1:6) God has grace for every kind of trouble we face, so understand what Peter is telling us God has gifted His people with every kind of grace for every kind of trouble God has gifted someone with a Spiritual Gift to minister to you in your time of trial and trouble When Christians minister to others through their gift they manifest a facet of God’s grace There is always more grace waiting for us (Hebrews 4:16) God’s grace is greater than the influence of sin, greater than the power of Satan’s temptations Greater than any problem we face because we live in a sinful world Grace has already come and is still coming, grace brought Jesus to earth God’s grace sent Jesus to the cross, by grace Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit All that we have already received is by grace, all we will receive in the future will be by grace By the grace of God, we will see and experience the Second Coming of Jesus (1 Peter 1:13) The first step of the Christian life is in “Grace” The last step that we will take upon this earth will be in Grace” By the grace of God, we are waiting for the revelation of Christ (1 Corinthians 1:7) “Gift” refers to a “grace gift” James now gives us a warning concerning the truth of God’s grace Remember God wants to fill us with His grace but there can be a problem Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, The word “proud” is often found as a resistance to God or as a rejection of God James tells us that God stands opposed to the “proud” God sets Himself against the proud as an army lines up against the enemy The “proud” are those who set themselves up above God and others Those who will not surrender to God’s will because of their proud and haughty spirit They set themselves up against God and God sets Himself up against them Pride was the problem of Lucifer (Isaiah 14:12) Lucifer the “shining one” is the one who became Satan the opposer of God In Isaiah 14:12-14 we find that it is Satan who energized the king of Babylon The statements, terms, and characteristics in these verses cannot refer to a mere man They refer to Satan, the one who is behind the person of the king of Babylon Here we have an account of the entrance of sin into the universe by the fall of Lucifer The first sin to be committed in the universe was by none another than Satan, here called Lucifer There are five “I will’s” which outline his sin and fall These five statements are all from the root of one sin, the basic sin of Satan was “pride” He wanted to be greater than he was created to be He was created to bring glory to God, but he wanted all the glory for himself Five “I will’s” emphasize his arrogance and pride (Isaiah 14:13-14) A proud spirit puts self in the position that belongs to God, putting self before the Lord (Prov. 16:5) Pride is an abomination to the Lord the path of pride is a path of destruction (Proverbs 16:18) Pride leads to contention with others, strife and quarrels (Proverbs 13:10) The “well advised” are those who are humble, humility is the opposite of pride The proud will not listen to God or others, those with a spirit of humility will but giveth grace unto the humble. Humility does not earn the grace of God it puts us in position to receive God’s grace Through grace we are humble, and humility allows grace upon grace to flow through us Study the creation account and see what God made from “nothing” Do not come to God presenting to Him everything that you think you are and expect His blessings Come before God as you are apart from His grace and experience His workmanship through grace Humility is when you know that you are not, and Christ is Humility is your emptiness that allows the fullness of Christ to overflow in your life Humility recognizes that “I can’t,” grace is the experience of “I can” If you come to God with your cup full of selfish pride, you will not receive grace If you come before God with an empty cup of self, God will fill your cup with Grace There will be no spirit of humility apart from the experience of the grace of God The evidence of having experienced the grace of God is a submissive spirit (Philippians 2:3) “Vain glory” is pride that is worthless, “lowliness of mind” is humility before God In the next verse Paul gives us an example of humility before God (Philippians 2:4) Pride concentrates on self, humility is concerned about others Peter preaches the same message as Paul and James (1 Peter 5:5) (Same thing James says) “Be clothed with humility,” literally Peter says, “put on the apron of humility” He refers to an apron that a servant would wear To gird yourself with humility is to put on your apron and serve others Christians must keep in mind that we are all servants for Christ’s sake To be clothed with humility is the antidote to pride, it will conquer an arrogant spirit Everything we do in the name of Christ must be done in a spirit of humility (Colossians 3:12) Peter and James make the same statement, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” Then look at what Peter says next (1 Peter 5:6) We experience the grace of God when we humble ourselves before God We experience the “mighty hand of God” when we “submit to God” (James 4:7) CONCLUSION When we study what James is going to tell us in the following verses, we realize the need of grace Much grace will be required to follow what is known as the 10 commandments of James God says, here is my grace, receive it, He also says, here are my commandments, obey them If we are going to obey the commands of God, we need “Much More Grace”