James
questioned the people within the “twelve tribes scattered
abroad” from where their “wars and fightings” came.
He noted that it was their “lusts” that warred in their
“members”, and though they desired to have, they could not
“obtain”. Though they “fight and war”, they did
not have because they “ask not”. In chapter four and verse
three of his letter, James continued his discourse on asking and not
receiving where we read:
The
verse begins, “You ask, and receive not, because you ask
amiss,...” James began with
the words, “You ask”
or “beg, call for, crave, desire and require”
“and receive not”
which means “do not take with the hand, lay hold of, claim or
procure any person or thing in order to use it”, “because”
or “on account of and for” “you ask amiss”
which means “James' readers beg, call for, crave, desire and
require in a miserable, ill, improper, wrong and reviling way”. The
reason James' readers were not laying hold of what they “asked”
was because they asked for things in an “improper, ill and
reviling” manner.
The verse goes on to say,
“...that you may
consume it
upon your lusts.” James continued, “that
you may consume it” which means “incur
expense, expend, spend, waste and squander” “upon
your lusts” which refers to “in, by and
with James' readers' desires for pleasure and sensual delight”. The
improper manner in which they asked was to fulfill their own “desires
for pleasure and sensual delight”.
When
we consider these words of James, we begin to understand how prayer
is never to get our own “desires” filled, but rather to
accomplish the will of the Lord. Many times God does not answer our
prayers in the affirmative because we ask for things in a selfish way
which is “improper, ill, wrong and reviling”. If we are to
receive that for which we ask, then we must align ourselves with the
will of God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. It is to be His
will that is done and not our own. May we learn to seek the face of
the Lord, ask according to His will, and turn aside from any form of
prayer that is meant solely to “consume it upon our own lusts”.
Next
time James shares how “the
friendship of the world is enmity with God ”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
No comments:
Post a Comment