Question 1

What does James mean by wars and fightings among you?

Accepted Answer

When James talks about “wars and fightings,” he is not mainly describing national battles, but the arguments, rivalries, and divisions inside the group of believers. He says these do not come from righteousness or from defending truth, but from “lusts that war in your members” – selfish desires, envy, and craving for more. These inner desires stir up anger, competition, and harm to others. James wants his readers to see that the real battle is inside their own hearts, and that peace starts with dealing with these desires before God.

Question 2

Why does James say you ask and receive not because you ask amiss?

Accepted Answer

James explains that some of their prayers go unanswered because they “ask amiss,” meaning they ask with wrong motives. They want God to give them things to satisfy their own pleasures, not to honor Him or help others. In that case they are trying to make God serve their desires. James is not saying God never gives good gifts, but that prayer must be honest and in step with God’s will. This invites us to check why we are asking for something, not just what we are asking for.

Question 3

What is friendship of the world and why is it called enmity with God?

Accepted Answer

Friendship with the world means loving the values, pleasures, and honors of this present world in a way that pulls the heart away from God. James calls this spiritual adultery, like being unfaithful in a marriage. To choose the world’s ways as your main love is to stand against God, because the world’s system is shaped by pride, envy, and self-seeking. James says whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself God’s enemy. He is urging believers to have an undivided heart toward God, not a split loyalty.

Question 4

What does the spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy mean?

Accepted Answer

This line has been understood in more than one way, and the wording is difficult. One common reading is that our human spirit tends toward envy and jealousy, showing how strong our sinful desires can be. Another reading sees it as pointing to God’s Spirit in believers, who strongly desires our faithful love. In either case, James immediately adds that God gives more grace and that He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. The point is that, though our hearts are prone to envy, God’s grace is greater when we humble ourselves.

Question 5

How do you submit to God and resist the devil in daily life?

Accepted Answer

To submit to God means to place yourself under His rule, accept His commands as good, and stop fighting for your own way. It shows in obeying Scripture, turning from sin, and trusting His wisdom. Resisting the devil means refusing his temptations and lies, instead of giving in to them. James connects this with drawing near to God, cleansing your hands, and purifying your heart. As you turn from sin, seek God in prayer, and walk humbly, you are actively resisting the devil, and James promises that he will flee from such resistance.

Question 6

Why does James tell believers to mourn and weep instead of laugh?

Accepted Answer

James is not against all joy. Here he is speaking to people who were light about their sin, proud and worldly, while acting as if everything was fine. He tells them, “Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep,” and to turn their laughter into mourning. He is calling for real sorrow over sin, not shallow happiness while living in pride and conflict. This kind of mourning goes with repentance: seeing how serious sin is, feeling its weight, and turning back to God. He then adds that those who humble themselves before the Lord will be lifted up by Him.

Question 7

What does James teach about speaking evil and judging a brother?

Accepted Answer

James warns, “Speak not evil one of another, brethren.” To speak evil and set yourself up as judge over a brother is, he says, to speak against the law and judge the law. The law he has in mind includes God’s command to love your neighbor. If you act as if your own opinion is the standard, you stop being a doer of the law and act like a judge over it. James reminds his readers there is only one Lawgiver who is able to save and destroy. His point is that harsh, condemning speech usurps God’s place and has no place among believers.

Question 8

What does it mean to say If the Lord will when making plans?

Accepted Answer

James speaks to people who confidently say they will travel, trade, and make a profit, as if their future is in their own hands. He reminds them that they do not know what tomorrow will bring and that their life is “a vapour” that appears briefly and then vanishes. Instead of proud boasting, they ought to say, “If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” This is not just a phrase to tack on, but an attitude of heart that recognizes God’s control over life, time, and success, and keeps human plans humble and dependent.

Question 9

What does life is even a vapour teach about how we live?

Accepted Answer

When James says life is “even a vapour,” he is stressing how short and uncertain our time on earth is. A mist appears for a little while and then disappears, and human life is like that compared to God’s eternal rule. This picture is meant to humble proud boasting about the future. Knowing that life is a vapour should lead us to stop trusting in our own plans, to submit our days to God’s will, and to use the time we have to do the good we already know we should do, instead of putting it off.

Question 10

Why does James say knowing to do good and not doing it is sin?

Accepted Answer

James ends this section by saying that for the person who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, that failure is sin. He is showing that sin is not only doing what is clearly wrong, but also refusing to act when you already know what God wants. In the context, he has spoken about pride, slander, planning without God, and lack of repentance. If someone understands these warnings but carries on as before, that knowledge makes their guilt heavier. It is a call to match what we know with how we live, in humble obedience.

James 4:1

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

A Warning against Pride

Drawing Near to God

Do Not Boast about Tomorrow

A Warning against Pride

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James 4:1

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

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A Warning against Pride

Drawing Near to God

Do Not Boast about Tomorrow

A Warning against Pride

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