甚么导致争斗的出现？
雅各书四章1至10节
1你们中间的争战斗殴是从那里来的呢？不是从你们百体中战斗之私欲来的么？
2你们贪恋，还是得不着；你们杀害嫉妒，又斗殴争战，也不能得。你们得不着，是因为你们不求。
3你们求也得不着，是因为你们妄求，要浪费在你们的宴乐中。
4你们这些淫乱的人（原文是淫妇）哪，岂不知与世俗为友就是与神为敌么？所以凡想要与世俗为友的，就是与神为敌了。
5你们想经上所说是徒然的么？神所赐住在我们里面的灵，是恋爱至于嫉妒么？
6但他赐更多的恩典，所以经上说：神阻挡骄傲的人，赐恩给谦卑的人。
7故此，你们要顺服神。务要抵挡魔鬼，魔鬼就必离开你们逃跑了。
8你们亲近神，神就必亲近你们。有罪的人哪，要洁净你们的手！心怀二意的人哪，要清洁你们的心！
9你们要愁苦、悲哀、哭泣，将喜笑变作悲哀，欢乐变作愁闷。
10务要在主面前自卑，主就必叫你们升高。
信息分享
雅各在这段经文提出几个非常直接的问题。为甚么会出现争战和斗殴？教会里面为甚么会出现纷争？雅各认为，问题是在于信徒的心中还有很多私欲，既贪求世界的物质，又想保留基督给予的福分。
人性总喜欢追求享乐。换言之，信徒因为没有弃绝旧我，仍然追求满足肉体或自我的私欲，所以便出现彼此争斗。每当我们要按着自己的心意或喜好而行，而不顺服神的心意，我们的内心就充满各式各样的欲望，显得浮躁不安，结果便会很容易与别人发生冲突。
雅各却指出，只要我们把心中所想念的一切，专心向神祈求，我们就可以得到真正的满足和平安。当我们顺服神的时候，我们的心就会得着真正的平安。反之，我们的生命若被欲望所牵引，内心就永远得不到安宁。
有人可能说：「我已经向神祈求，可是祂却没有应允啊！」雅各的回应是：「是的，我们有时求也得不着，但是，你知道是何原因吗？」雅各说的原因，是因为我们只求满足自己，却不是求神得着荣耀。凡事都可求，但是，我们要知道自己是为了甚么向神求。
我们如果求而得不着，或是神没有按我们所求的赐给我们，那又如何？雅各说，神会赐下更多的恩典（6节）。但最首要的，是我们要有一颗顺服神的心（7节），当撒但前来攻击我们，叫我们质疑神的爱时，我们务必奋力抵挡。要记着，当我们愈亲近神，就会发觉神愈亲近我们。
反思：
神应许将平安赐给凡祈求的人，而不是那些好争斗的人。
WHAT CAUSES FIGHTING?
James 4: 1-10
1 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?
2 You lust and do not have.You murder and covet and cannot obtain.You fight and war.Yet you do not have because you do not ask.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
4 Adulterers and adulteresses!Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?
6 But He gives more grace.Therefore He says:
“ God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.”
7 Therefore submit to God.Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
9 Lament and mourn and weep!Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
Message
James asks some very direct questions in this section. Why do fights and wars occur? Why does trouble arise in a church? James says it all comes from within hearts that haven't learned to control the desires of the old nature. It comes from hearts that want to have all that the world offers while still keeping what Christ has already given them.
Human nature always wants what will give it pleasure. In other words it is the satisfying of self or the flesh that causes trouble. Whenever we seek our own will and desires instead of God's will, there will be unrest and unsatisfied longings. These will finally break out into strife with somebody else.
On the other hand, says James, you could have real satisfaction and rest by asking God for it. You will find rest in his will. As long as your life is governed by pleasure, rest will be beyond your reach.
Someone may say, 'I asked God for some of these things and he didn't answer my prayer'. 'Quite true', says James, 'but you know why, don't you? The only reason you asked for them was for your own pleasure and not for the glory of God. It is all right to ask for some of these things. But we need to have the right reasons for asking.
What if we don't have things we want, and what if God doesn't give them to us? Then God will give us the grace to go without them (v.6). We may have to come to a fresh place of submission to God (v.7). We may have to stand against Satan when he tempts us to doubt God's loving care. But the closer we come to God, the closer he will be to us.
A THOUGHT:
God promises peace to those who pray, not to those who fight.