Asking rightly in prayer, James 4:1-3

Good evening and welcome to Sunday night Bible study with Pastor Josiah Shipley of Witten Baptist Church. We are continuing our study on James. This is chapter 4 and this is mostly about prayer in these first three verses.

James 4:1-3 and the Source of Quarrels and Fights

Let's get started. James chapter 4 verse 1 through 3 what causes quarrels and causes fights among you. Is it not this that your passions are at war within you. You desire you do not have so you murder.

You covet and cannot obtain so you fight in quarrel. That's such a hard word to say, isn't it? You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly and spend it on your passions.

And just quickly verse 4 you adulterous people. Do you not know that? Friendship with the world is enmity with God. Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. We'll get to that more later on.

So let's start with the section in verses 1 through 3 and our reminder. Most of you that have listened for any number of time have known and have learned if you didn't already know. Remember the Bible was not originally written in chapter and verse format.

You can make an argument for the book of Psalms because it's written Musical lines or poetry but apart from those. Wasn't really originally written in chapter in verse 4 form. So, of course, we got to remember that chapter 4 is immediately preceded by chapter 3 about About righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace and then we have the opposite of making peace in chapter 4.

What causes quarrels and causes fights among you? Isn't not this that your Passions are at war within you. So in keeping With the teaching on jealousy and selfish ambition in previous section James teaches us that our inner passions pleasures and desires are the true cause of our infighting.

The fighting in this section is both physical and argumentative as it talks about even murder here. We must remember that not everyone in the congregation is a Christian. That certainly does not help the fighting because in that case there are some members of the congregation.

But you don't even have the same starting point of what our goal is supposed to be which is unity. But of course even amongst true Christians we can still have infighting but remember Disagreement does not have to be disunity.

Just because you disagree with someone doesn't mean you have to be disunified. We disagree in all types of things the best football team best food the best Movie or even some theological things non-definitional theological things.

You know I I have brothers and sisters in Christ disagree with me on Baptism and how we're supposed to administer it and what age is appropriate and all that stuff. That's okay. They're wrong, but they'll find out that later.

Just kidding. That's okay. We don't have to disagree on everything the pastors of this church do not agree on every single sub point of theological implications that come from every passage of the Word of God right.

You know on the point-taking podcast one of the questions we did was was Bathsheba raped. You know you can read that passage and say no she was totally complicit or you can read that passage and say David used his Kingly authority to Subdue her.

You can make an argument either way. We don't have to agree on that. That's fine however. Disagreement does not have to be disunity. What the text is teaching us is That this is caused by one side or even both sides of the argument arguing from the point of jealousy or selfishness.

Asking God with the Right Motives in Prayer

Now look in verse 3 you ask and do not see because you ask wrongly and spend it on your passions. What I want to talk to you about for a moment is prayer. What is asking wrongly. And the key here is that you're doing it to spend on your passions and not don or God.

But what does that look like asking wrongly and then obviously what is asking rightly look like yeah. So highlighting verse 3 for just a little bit. We're going to figure out the reason that you can ask God in prayer for something and not receive it Is because you ask wrongly with the wrong motives the wrong intentions to spend it on your passions not on God's.

So let's start by saying what is asking wrongly look like let's look at some other passages. How about Isaiah 1 15 through 17. Yeah, Isaiah 1 15 through 17 says this. When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you even though you make many prayers.

I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood. Wash them make yourselves clean. Remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes. Cease to do evil. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Correct depression.

Bring justice to the father's plead. The case of the widow. In other words One of the reasons God will not listen is because they have unconfessed sin they have guilt before them. The clearest example this in my mind is Isaiah chapter 59.

Now Isaiah 59 2 says. But your iniquities have Made a separation between you and your God and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear you. This verse I heard quoted to me one time as.

Your iniquities have built a barrier or separation between you and your God your sins have hidden his face from you. So that he cannot hear you. That is not what the text says. It doesn't say he cannot says he does not he chooses not to unconfessed sin.

May be part of the problem that if you have Unconfessed sin before God and you're asking him To bless you. Are you not fooling yourself? Proverbs chapter 28 verse 9 if one turns away his ear from hearing the law.

Even his prayer is an abomination. So if someone's not obeying the law of God his prayer is an abomination. And this one is for you gentlemen. This is one of those that hurts every time I read it. But it's in there.

So we have to deal with it. Likewise husbands live with your wives in an understanding way showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel. Since they are heirs with you of the grace of life. So that your prayers may not be hindered.

Gentlemen husbands, you see that your prayers will be hindered if you do not honor your wife as the weaker vessel. Okay, so removing unconfessed sin in your communication God is one way to ask wrongly.

Another way is to ask. With the right intention of the right mindset. Know that he hears you and he will answer in his time. Not yours his time not yours. Psalm 37 for says delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your Heart likewise John chapter 15.

Oops. Sorry about that guys. John chapter 15 Verse 7 says this if you abide in me and my words abide in you ask whatever you wish and it'll be done for you if. See that if You abide in me and my words Abide in you.

Ask for whatever you wish and it'll be done for you because your wish your will your fillet a your. Your will will be God's will if you abide in me and my words abide in you. You know first John Tells us this first.

John chapter 5 verse 13 15 says That God hears us even if. And look guys some of us need to wake up to the reality that sometimes his answer is no and we're not allowed to call that an unanswered prayer.

If Ava asked me for a piece of candy my four-year-old and I tell her no. She's not allowed to say but I didn't answer. I did the answers. No guys, sometimes the answer from God is no. And we have to accept that as his answer.

He'll answer it in his time that ours but sometimes the answer is no and we have to be willing to accept that his ways are higher than ours. Another way to pray and ask correctly Correctly is to be persistent in prayer.

Do not stop. That's exactly what Romans 12 12 says be persistent in prayer. Matthew 7 7 says keep asking. You'll be given. Keep knocking. The door will be open. Luke 18 talks about the the lady who wants justice from the judge and she Pleads with him day and night until he gives it.

There's a key about being persistent in prayer. Being completely persistent in Romans 12 12. I've cited a minute ago. Rejoice and hope be patient and tribulation be constant in prayer constant. So Asking correctly looks like removing unconfessed sin looks like Having the right intentions in the right mindset toward God getting the glory and knowing that he will answer in his time.

Not yours is to being persistent is three and then as I mentioned earlier recognizing the answer may be yes. Or no or wait. Just two examples of God answering a prayer no in Scripture. The first is 1st Corinthians.

Examples of God Saying No: Paul’s Thorn in the Flesh and Abraham’s Request for Ishmael

2nd Corinthians 12. Second, let's see if I can do this, right? 2nd Corinthians 12. Let's see verse 7 through 10. This is Paul speaking so to keep me from being conceited because of the surpassing greatness of revelations of all the stuff Paul had seen.

A Thorn was given to me a flesh a messenger of Satan to harass me to keep me from becoming conceited. Now what I'm gonna pay attention. A Thorn was given to me a flesh a messenger from Satan to arrest me.

No one might say see this is all from Satan. Uh-huh to keep me from being conceited. To keep me from being conceited. Satan doesn't want him to not be conceited. That's God's job. God allowed a messenger from Satan to be the thorn and Paul's flesh.

Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this that it should leave me. But he said to me my grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I'll boast all the more gladly in my weakness Henna, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me for the sake of Christ.

Then I am content with weakness insults hardships persecutions and calamities for when I am weak then I am strong. So to keep Paul from being conceited a thorn was giving him in the flesh. Now some people may say this is eyesight.

We don't exactly know a good argument can be made for that. That's fine. He asked God to get rid of it and God said no my grace Carice my grace is sufficient for you. Another example is Genesis 17. This is when Abraham Slept with Hagar to have a son when God said it would come through Abraham and Isaac.

Abraham and Sarah, excuse me and Ishmael was born and God said no. Ishmael is not the one. I said that your generations will be more numerous as the stars from and God said Sarah is your wife and She will be the one you get the Sun through not Ishmael.

Your son you had with the slave woman Hagar. Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself Shall child be born to a man who is a hundred years old. Shall Sarah who is nine years old bear child.

And Abraham said to God. Oh. That Ishmael might live before you that he would be acceptable that he could be the one to be the Sun. That God promised and God said what what's it say right here? God said no.

But Sarah your wife will bury your son you call his name eyes. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after. As for Ishmael, I've heard you but I have blessed him.

I'll make him fruitful multiply clearly. He'll be the father. He will father twelve princes and I'll make him into a great nation. But I will establish my covenant with Isaac whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year so There we have it.

Abraham asked that Ishmael would be accepted and God's answer was no because that's not what I said. So asking rightly is Removing unconfessed sin. It is having God's glory in mind not ours. It is being persistent and it's understanding that God could say yes or no.

That is his prerogative. Okay, so James 4 1 through 3 on Prayer we'll call that good for today and we'll pick up in verse 4 next week. Love you all very much as always like share subscribe, you know when you share other people get to see this not that I'm any great Preacher or teacher or whatever, but at least they get to see the Word of God.

And maybe can be encouraged. I love you guys very much.