Worldliness is rooted in earthly passions. When such things reign in the human heart, James previously warned it would produce disorder and every vile practice in one’s life and relationships with others (Jam 3:16). This way of life is to be expected in an unbeliever. Unfortunately, worldliness can also flourish in the life of a believer that wrestles against submission to the Spirit over their hearts and mind (Gal 5:16-17). Instead of life of peace, such person’s witness will be trail of frequent fights and quarrels wherever they go. This was an issue in the early church and remains so today. James challenges the church and explains why our prayers go unanswered by God.
What are the origins of divisiveness? James is not simply interested in addressing the symptoms, but strives to expose the source of the problem. He questions, “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you?” He then gives the answer: unfulfilled worldly affections that have lodged within our hearts, thus, “Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?” Selfish desires are the foundation of the “I have to have it my way“ attitude. This way of thinking is the root of much discord within the church, by which God is not pleased (cf., Prv 6:19). Selfish desires operate and labor outside the will of God and cause us to be unfruitful in life of God. Remember Jesus taught in the Parable of the Sower, “…the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful” (Mk 4:19). To live this way is to be in conflict with the Spirit, for earthly passions do not abide with the peace of God.
Earthly passions negatively impact our prayer life. When God no longer rules in the heart of man, all that is left is his own unquenched desires. Remember, a life outside the will of God does not satisfy us. James warns, “You desire, and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. (3) You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (v2-3). James highlights two ways selfish desires effects our prayer life:
- We will be less inclined to ask for what we want from God. Therefore, we ask not, we receive not (Mt 7:7-11).
- We will be more likely to ask with the wrong heart and therefore we receive not. Why? Because a heart ruled by selfish desires will ask for something primarily to fulfill our own purposes. Remember, God does not listen to men who eagerly pursue their own selfish pleasures. The only assurance we have that God will grant the petitions of our prayers, is if we ask in accordance with His will (1 Jn 5:14-15).
When worldliness becomes the prevailing element of our Christianity it will produce disunity which cause church splits within the community of faith. When we submit to the Spirit’s rule over our hearts, we shall desire the things of God and ask according to that disposition (cf., Mt 6:33). Godly affections quench the fires of quarrels and division among the saints. Godliness is the foundation of Biblical unity. It puts God before self. It illuminates the blessed truth of God’s Word that we may not be deceived by the desires for “other things” in this life. Remember, the Christian is in the world, but not of the world. We do well if we turn wholeheartedly towards God and flee from self. May the glory only be to God forever. Amen.
Blessings,
Dr. Jason S. Price, Th.D.
www.springoflivingwaters.com