06/24/2026
The Miracle of God’s Word
James 4:2
Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
The message here is to us as believers who at times have allowed selfish desires to govern our hearts. In the immediate context, he has just asked where wars and fightings come from, and he answers that they come from lusts warring within our own members (James 4:1). You see, it is always a heart issue. Their desires for position, recognition, influence, and personal gain were producing strife among them. Instead of humbly seeking God’s will, they were pursuing their own ambitions. Their covetous hearts caused conflict because fleshly desires can never be satisfied by obtaining earthly things. There’s one thing that satisfied God and if we do not live in that satisfaction, we will never be satisfied internally (Isaiah 53:11). The words “ye kill, and desire to have” reveal how destructive unchecked lust becomes. Whether James is speaking literally or of the murderous hatred that Christ condemned (Matthew 5:21-22; 1 John 3:15), the point remains the same: selfish desire produces actions that are contrary to the character of God. Yet even after all their striving, fighting, and contention, they still could not obtain what they sought. The flesh can never produce the blessings that only God can give.
James then exposes the root issue: “because ye ask not.” Instead of depending upon God, they were depending upon themselves. This is the great temptation of the fallen flesh, which is to seek God through self effort for for those things that can only come through Faith. God desires His people to come to Him in humble dependence, acknowledging that every good gift comes from Him (James 1:17). Viewed through the light of Christ and His Cross, this verse reveals the contrast between trusting in self and trusting in God. At the Cross, Christ condemned the Sin Nature (Romans 8:3) and ended the believer’s confidence in the flesh (Romans 6:6; Philippians 3:3). The Cross teaches us that we cannot obtain spiritual blessings through human effort, fleshly striving, or personal ambition. Everything God provides comes through Faith in Christ and His Sacrificial death. When our Faith remains in the Cross, the Holy Spirit is able to work in us, replacing selfish desires with the desires of Christ, and teaching us to receive from God through humble dependence rather than fleshly striving (Galatians 2:20; 5:24-25). Our striving is to be together for the Faith of the Gospel (Philippians 1:27), for all other striving is the work of the flesh.
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6/24/2026