Since He is “opposed to the proud” (James 4:6), verse 7 infers, “Submit therefore to God.” It is the only sensible thing to do!īut because of the fall, as Paul explains (Rom. Of course, God is the ultimate and only sovereign authority in the universe, and it should be obvious to everyone that it is most unwise to rebel against His authority. 5:5) of mutual submission of husbands and wives to one another, and of wives to husbands, in marriage (Eph. It is used of the obligation to submit to government authorities (Rom. The word means “to put yourself in rank under” someone, implying a hierarchy of authority.
#1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ALL GOOD CHILDREN GO TO HEAVEN HOW TO#
You can go to seminars on how to be more assertive, but I’ve yet to see a seminar on how to learn to submit! It’s not a popular concept, but it is a biblical one. We can sum up three of James’ commands under this one head: Submit to God unconditionally (4:7) draw near to God (4:8) and, humble yourself before God (4:10). To resolve conflicts, submit to God (4:7, 8, 10).
First and foremost in any conflict, we must get right with God.ġ. Conflict with God is often behind conflicts with others. Here James zeroes in on God’s way of conflict resolution, which deals with our hearts before Him. Keep in mind that the overall context is about resolving conflicts in the church (or home). Our text is sandwiched between the quote from Proverbs 3:34, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (in 4:6) and the concluding command, “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you” (4:10). To resolve conflicts, submit to God, resist the devil, and repent of all sin. Today we come to the third section, where James says… To resolve conflicts, stop judging others and submit to God’s Word (4:11-12). To resolve conflicts, submit to God, resist the devil, and repent of all sin (4:7-10). To resolve conflicts, turn from all spiritual adultery and humbly entreat God’s grace (4:4-6). To resolve conflicts, judge your selfish motives (4:1-3). To resolve conflicts, repent of your sinful selfishness and humble yourself before God. In a section running through verse 12, he shows, In James 4:1, he asks, “What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you?” He goes on to show that the source is selfishness. When our ways please Him, then we have a foundation for resolving conflicts with others (Prov. Rather, God goes for the heart-primarily our heart relationship with Him. His way for resolving conflicts is not to give us surface techniques that achieve outward peace. If we want true and lasting peace in our relationships, then we need to resolve conflicts God’s way.
His ways are much higher than our ways, and often run counter to our ways. God tells us that His ways are not our ways (Isa. Then we will have peace.”Īs I said last week, the world has many ways to resolve conflict, but invariably, they leave God out. The ladies called the conductor, who didn’t know how to resolve the conflict. The other said she would expire of pneumonia if it was opened. One claimed that she would die of heatstroke if it stayed closed. A dour Englishman was seated on a train between two ladies arguing about the window.