Would you please stand with me for the reading of God's Holy Word? We begin this morning in Leviticus 26. We'll be reading verses 1-10. Again, Leviticus 26, verses 1-10. The Word of the Lord says, You shall not make idols for yourselves, Neither a carved image nor a sacred pillar shall you rear up for yourselves, nor shall you set up an engraved stone in your land to bow down to it. For I am the Lord your God. You shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary. I am the Lord. If you walk in my statutes and keep my commandments and perform them, Then I will give you rain in its season, and the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall last till the time of vintage, and the vintage shall last till the time of sowing. You shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land safely. I will give you peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid. I will rid the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land. You will chase your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight. Your enemies shall fall by the sword before you. for I will look on you favorably and make you fruitful, multiply you and confirm My covenant with you. You shall eat the old harvest and clear out the old because of the new." May God add a blessing to the reading of His Word. Our second passage is found in 2 Peter 2. We'll be reading verses 1 to 10, 2 Peter chapter 2, verses 1 to 10. Peter writes, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babies desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." Coming to Him as to a living stone rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is also contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on him will by no means be put to shame. Therefore, to you who believe he is precious, but to those who are disobedient, the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense. They stumble being disobedient to the word to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light, who once were not a people, but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. Amen. All flesh is like grass, and all its glory is like the flower of the grass. The grass withers and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord abides forever. and all of God's children said, Amen. Let us pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, I simply ask that You would help me to proclaim Your Word to these, Your people, that we might encourage, strengthen one another, We pray, Heavenly Father, that we would hear this difficult word that you have set before us with a teachable spirit. We ask that it would be to the praise of your glorious name. For it is in Christ's precious name we pray. Amen. I'd like to invite you to turn with me to James chapter 4. James chapter 4, verses 1 through 6. I have entitled this message, The Danger of Befriending the World, James chapter 4, verses 1 to 6. I'd like to take just a few moments to review with you what we have seen thus far in the epistle of James. The primary issue as we have looked at this letter is that we must do something in obedience to Christ by faith as a result of the Spirit's sanctifying work within us. In James chapter 1 verses 1 to 8, he introduces his reasoning for writing the letter. He writes to those who are scattered, who suffer with various trials. You'll remember that the various trials with which James writes about is any trial really that we face. But he tells us to count such trials that have been brought on by God's sovereignty with joy. In verses 9-11, we see that faith in Christ leads us to treat the rich and the poor within the church the same. We don't treat anyone any better than anyone else. In verses 12-20, we see that faith in Christ leads us to fight temptation. You remember there that James isn't describing a type of temptation, but that because we are in Christ and the Spirit of God has empowered us by faith, we persevere by His grace. We fight those temptations that we have. and the fight of faith, which is good, which is given by a good God who never changes. In other words, we can depend on God as we fight this fight because He's faithful to us and will give us all that we need to endure. Verses 21 to 27, still in chapter 1, we see that we are called not just to be hearers of the Word, but doers also. In verses 24 and 25, James compares those who hear the Word but don't do anything to someone who is like a person who looks at themselves in the mirror, who looks intently, and then walks away from that mirror and forgets what they saw. And then in verse 26, if a religious person who calls himself religious won't examine himself or herself, that they prove that they don't look at themselves, to examine themselves, in that they can't bridle their own tongue, that that person's religion is useless. Again, faith will lead us to truly examine ourselves, and we will, and over the course of our lives, we will grow in sanctification. In chapter 2, verses 1 to 13, James deals with the issue of showing favoritism. Again, the issue, verse 5, is that we, by faith, cannot show favoritism because whether we are very rich or poor, a person comes to faith in Christ by God's electing purposes. Or by God's electing purposes. that Christ purchases that person in salvation and the Spirit transforms them in the heart to cause us to believe. He awakens us. And then in our salvation, verses 12 to 13, we have been made free to obey Christ and love His people, our brethren, to the glory of God. In verses 14 to 26 of chapter 2, James again brings up the issue of faith being dead if that faith does not exhibit works. Again, James is not describing works righteousness, but he is talking about how like Abraham and Rahab, who both live out their faith practically, so the Christian will do in our everyday lives. In chapter 3, verses 1 to 12, James deals with the tongue. He asks a very interesting question in verses 11 to 12. He says, Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus, no spring yields both salt water and fresh. The idea being that if a person is in Christ, they cannot both honor the Lord our God and live and talk however they want. That faith in Christ must lead us to change the way we speak to each other. Finally, verses 13 through 18 for review, we see that faith in Christ leads us to a wisdom that treats our brothers and sisters with a genuine love. This morning, verses 1 through 6, James encourages us that friendship with the world leads us to conflict first with others, verse 1, to conflict with ourselves, verses 2 and 3. And finally, verses 4 to 6, friendship with the world leads us into conflict with God. Will you please follow along with me as I read chapter 4, verses 1 to 6. James writes, where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war, yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and you do not receive because you ask amiss that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealousy, but He gives more grace. Therefore He says, God resists the proud but gives grace. to the humble. We begin verse 1 with friendship with the world leads to conflict with others. Again, verse 1, he says, James points out rather practically, boldly, that one of the primary reasons that fights occur within the body of Christ has to do with a desire for pleasure. Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? The word pleasure, hedonon, which is the word that we get, the English word hedonism, That is, the passionate pursuit to fulfill the passion for satisfaction and enjoyment. In 2 Timothy 3, verses 1-5, Paul tells Timothy, but know this, that in the last days, perilous times will come. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power, and from such people turn away." Paul makes two points in that passage to Timothy. First of all, the people that he's talking about, the people who are in pursuit of this kind of worldliness that will at that point in the end be classified as some type of free Christianity, believes themselves to be of the faith. That's the first point that he makes. But the second thing that Paul is telling Timothy is that this type of pursuit, it is for no other reason than to gratify the self. And so what James is talking about here, similarly to what Paul wrote Timothy, is that when self-gratifying sin is the pursuit amongst the brethren, wars and fights will arise up amongst us. And I'll tell you why. Because the pursuit will not be for the singular worship and glorification of Jesus Christ, but of our own selfishness. He gives us two synonyms, wars and fights. The word wars, polemos, from which we get the word polemics. In this context, James is referring to prolonged disputing or some kind of combat against the brethren. He uses the word fight. Wars and fights are synonyms here, but the word fights, make, is to have a contentious conflict. So the point to these two synonyms, as either a small group of people of the brethren, or one person within the brethren pursues their selfish desires, that when their needs aren't met, and frustration begins to rise, that they begin to war and fight against the brethren. That it's going to happen quite contentiously, that it's going to be ugly, and it's going to be that it's going to be quick. Again, the idea is that when we take our eyes off of the author and the perfecter of our faith, our singular pursuit of Christlikeness, and we set our attention on the things of this world, and trying to fulfill the desires, the selfish gratification within our hearts, we will war and fight with one another. Again, he says, war within your members." The idea there is that there is a tension. We, because of the Spirit of God, understand that worldly pursuits, the self-gratification that some are going to struggle with, will be met with the Spirit of God who, if we are amongst the elect, will contend against our flesh. And if we don't put that tension to death, if we don't crucify our flesh, the desire will grow within us. In other words, we'll see the buildup of that frustration. The issue here is not that we don't have a God-given desire to be with our spouses. He isn't telling us to be celibate. He isn't telling us not to be married. In fact, one of the things that Adam is called upon by God to do at the very beginning is to be fruitful and multiply. Genesis 1, verse 28, that God blessed them, that is, Adam and Eve, and God said to them, be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it, have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. The issue within the context which James is writing is how the church loves and treats one another, but when someone or some group of people are pursuing what God has given to us in the context of marriage to be used to gratify the desires of the flesh, arguments and contentions are going to arise. Again, because our pursuit ought to be singular, it ought to be about Christ, it ought to be about glorifying Christ, but it becomes about us. Secondly, in verses 2-3, James talks about friendliness with the world will lead to conflict within ourselves. Beginning in verse 2, he says, James now leads us to what happens when these desires are being pursued but not met, in the manner that God had intended, and the problem that comes within us because of that pursuit. Notice what James says, the thing you lust for you do not have. He says you murder and covet and cannot obtain. murder and covet. We know from murder in Matthew chapter 5 verse 22, the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says, But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, Rachah, shall be in danger of the counsel. But whoever says, You fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. The point that we need to understand here is not a literal murder within the context of the church, but when someone makes the pursuit of gratifying the flesh, the one thing that they desire, we might murder or hate one another in our hearts. We may not murder each other physically, But because we pursue something that the Lord has designated for within the context of marriage, we misuse the gift that He has given to us. And when that frustration boils over, we murder one another. I noticed something very interesting that James says here, verse 3. You ask and do not receive because you ask amiss that you may spend it on your pleasures." What does that mean, you ask? It's that when, so he tells us, the end of verse two, he says, yet you do not have because you do not ask. So as we're struggling with these things, whatever the temptation is in this context of sexual immorality, but if we don't ask the Lord, He's not going to give it to us. If we're not pursuing what the Lord's will is, He's not going to give us that. But he adds something, and this is the interesting point. Verse 3, you ask and do not receive because you ask amiss that you may spend it on your pleasures. Again, if our intention is not to discover what the Lord's will is for us, if we're not asking the Lord to help us, He's not going to give it to us because we are asking for something that we're looking to have selfishly. In other words, the Lord knows why we ask the things that we ask for. God knows why we ask the things that we're asking for. The question is, do we desire to fulfill the desires of the flesh, or are we following after Him and what He has called us to have? And if need be, fight temptation as we fight it with what He has called us to do at this season of our life. Finally, in verses 4 to 6, when we pursue the desires of our flesh, we war against God. He says, "'Adulterers and adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, the spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously, but he gives more grace? Therefore, he says, God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Those who would pursue the sins of the flesh to gratify themselves become friends with the world, an enemy of God. The question is, why does James, under the inspiration of the Spirit, call them adulterers and adulteresses? The answer is found amongst other places, but Jeremiah 3, verses 6-7, the prophet says, The Lord said also to me in the days of Josiah the king, have you seen what backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot. And I said, after she had done all these things, return to me. but she did not return, and her treacherous sister Judah sought." The issue in the Old Testament that we see over and over again, that we are warned against here in James chapter 4, is that the people constantly sought after idols. And when they did, God forgave them anyway. He restored them, and yet they go back to worship that idol. And eventually, the Lord referred to them as adulterers. Did you know that when these people worshipped these idols, these false gods, that in order to worship the false god, they needed to sleep with the temple prostitutes, to commit sexual immorality, So the connection between what we see in the Old Testament and here in James chapter 4 is that very much like God calls His people Israel adulterers, when the people pursued worship of false god, So James calls those who would call themselves believers, who go after the idol of sexual immorality, James calls them adulterers when we leave our first love for immorality. Notice two things here in verse 4. He says, "...adulterers and adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?" This word friendship, translated word friendship, we see two times in verse 4, is the Greek word phileo. It's a word used to describe the father's love and affection for the son, and the son's affection and love for the elect. But here James uses it to describe someone who grows to have a greater love and affection for the world and for themselves than they do for the Lord. The second thing that I want you to see here, again in verse 4, is that the one who makes themselves friends with the world, it says, makes himself an enemy of God. It's a Greek phrase, the verb makes. It's an interesting Greek verb that indicates that it's not just something that happens over the course of time, but that it happens deliberately. In other words, the Word reflects this growing desire of wanting to pursue the things of the flesh and leaving the Lord who we supposedly believe in for that thing. He says, to appoint oneself. It's not that the person announces with their arm and fist clenched in the air, yelling to God, I want the world. It is the slow departure away from the things of God to the worldly endeavors and fleshly gratification deliberately. Verses 5 and 6, he says, or do you think that the scripture says in vain, the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously, but He gives more grace. Therefore, he says, God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. First of all, here in verse 5, the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealousy is not an Old Testament quote. Rather, it's a reminder that God has a claim on us by virtue of His work in our life. if we're truly His. This word jealousy is a word that reveals God's desire for His people. It relates to the point made in Jeremiah 3 that God does not want a mixed heart between the world and Himself. Rather, He wants all of us. The second thing though, verse 6, is that James gives us hope here in verse 6. but He gives us more grace. Therefore, He says, God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. The proud are those who in realizing they need help to overcome the sins of the flesh, but won't ask for it. In other words, the writing is on the wall. It's clear that there's a struggle within the heart And there's a yearning to gratify that sin, but there is no praying about it. There's no asking the Lord for help. There's no reaching out to our brothers. There's only giving in. He says that person, the proud, says God resists. You know that word resist is a military term. It is the depicting of a full army standing at the ready for battle. In other words, God is ready to oppose the proud. Stands against them. But, he says, gives grace to the humble. You remember what God asked Cain. Cain and his brother Abel are called upon by the Lord to offer sacrifices. And Abel's sacrifice pleased the Lord. But Cain's, you'll remember, was not accepted by God. And so in Genesis 4, verses 6 and 7, God tells Cain, So the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door and its desire is for you, but you should rule over it. James tells us what God told Cain. Be aware of your shortcomings and fight the flesh that sin may not overtake you." What is the point here to what James is describing to us? Although it's clear that when someone or some group looks to satisfy their sinful desires, a gift that God has given to us in the context of marriage, that you look to gratify yourself with. When that happens, and it happens and it's not repented of, we're not looking to change that. Or when we pursue it and that pursuit isn't met, then fights and quarrels are going to happen amongst us. But there's another thing that he points out to us. One day, a number of years ago, two friends of mine and I drove from Kansas City, Missouri to Louisville, Kentucky for a pastor's conference. We were looking to have a good time. We were looking forward to it. We each kind of saved up some money so that we could go and purchase some books. We saved up money so that we could you know, eat at various restaurants near the conference. And we were looking to get to know one another. We were looking forward to learning and praying and talking together and doing all of these things. And everything that we hoped this conference would be, it was. We had lots of laughs. We had lots of time of good conversation, edifying conversation. We enjoyed one another. I remember at the time I snored a lot. And I remember almost every night that we were there, I think it was three or four nights, I kept getting kicked by these guys. I hated that. When I snore and I wake up Rachel, she's always kind of gentle, and she pats me on the back, and she wakes me up with smoothness and love. But I didn't like that. But on our way home, we got a flat tire. As is the case. We're driving around, and it was my turn to drive, and let's face it, I enjoy going a little bit faster than the speed limit. I like when the windows are down, and then I had more hair, and I could felt the wind go through my hair, and it was wonderful. And then all of a sudden, we get a flat tire. Now we had always known that there was a spare tire in the back of our car. But because we never used it, we never thought of it, Never, never occurred to me to go back in the trunk of this car to look at that spare tire and to admire how it's made, how it's full of air, how it's perfectly, you know, rubbery and, you know, if we ever need it, we can slap it on one of the things and we can go. It just never even occurred to me. See, what James is trying to tell us about faith in Jesus Christ as we face various types of trials, whether it's sexual immorality or whatever it is, one of the things that should be marked about us is that we are in prayer about it. And not just by ourselves, but with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen? That one of the things that should be said of us is that prayer is something we are constantly thinking of, not like we think about or don't think about the spare tire in the trunk of our car. It needs to be said that it's all fine and good to come in and to greet one another with brotherly affection. say, hi, how was your week? Those things are good. But something needs to be said of us that we're not fighting these fights on our own. That we are, in fact, learning to trust one another with love and we pray and encourage for one another. Because these things that are happening that James is describing We don't want to see happen here. Amen? We don't want all of the sudden for tensions and arguments to grow up because someone is in pursuit of immorality. We want to help and encourage one another. We want to pray for one another. Let me show you something that is important that you see. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 6. 1 Corinthians chapter 6, we'll read verses 7 through 11. 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verses 7 through 11, and we'll finish here. Paul to the Corinthian church says, Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law, law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated? No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat. and you do these things to your brethren, do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, Covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God." Here's the point, verse 11, "...and such were some of you." Why aren't these people characterized by those sins anymore? He says, but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. What is the point that Paul is making that we need to examine in light of what James says in chapter 4? Some of these people were in bondage as they come into Christ and probably continue to struggle after being in Christ. But as they grow, because they've been washed, because they were sanctified, because they were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of God, at some point, those things that they struggled with, to the glory of God, they no longer struggled with. Is that our aim together? That whatever the struggle is, that we have to learn to talk about, to admit to, before it becomes this overwhelming problem in our life that then is met with genuine prayer and encouragement in this fight of faith, because we've been washed together to the glory of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who is the author and the perfecter of our faith. Again, there is no one better than anyone else, and all have fallen short of the glory of God. But James point, that when we humble ourselves together, we lift one another up in prayer, we fight this fight of faith together, we encourage one another, we love one another, we're transparent with people we trust. It says he gives grace. Is that our aim as a church? Amen? Let's pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you for Jesus Christ, our Lord. We thank you for our brothers and sisters. And I pray, Heavenly Father, that you would help us to fight this fight of faith together, that we might not be given over to wars and quarrels amongst us, but live at peace and harmony together through Christ our Lord. We ask these things in your precious, precious name. Amen.