by Don Hatfield
argument over such a small matter. James replied, “From whence comes fighting and wars among you? Come they not hence even of your own lusts that war in your members?” James then asked us a question, “Who then are you at war with?” We all sat there in silence none us wanting to admit to the truth that had just been shown to us. James again ask, “Who then are you at war with?” Jacob finally spoke up and said, “Myself, I am at war with myself and most of the time I do not even realize that I am my own worst enemy.” We all nodded in agreement and James ask Levi, “What is lust?” Levi thought for a moment and then said, “I must have it and I must have it now. “James then said, “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. Lust is the beginning and death is the end. As it was with Adam and Eve so it is with us. When we lust we kill the Spirit’s peace within ourselves. Levi and Jacob you were only arguing over dinner. But your desire to satisfy your lust and have your own way in the heat of the moment could actually lead to physical death brought on by your anger. Yet neither of you thought to ask guidance from the Spirit who resides within you.” At this James became silent. We all set there as we realized how far we had to go as believers. I finally said to James, “Please go on for we desperately need these words of wisdom from our Savior.” James then continued, “Ye ask and receive not because ye ask amiss that ye may consume it upon your own lusts. We have so much to learn about talking to our Father. So much of the time we ask for more of what we already have. If we have houses we ask for bigger houses. If we have an overabundance of food we ask for more expensive food. Ye adulterers and adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. We are like unfaithful husbands and wives who want to lay with their lovers and stay married to the one who provides for them. Not only do we want to do that but we expect there to be no consequences for our actions. We cannot have it both ways. Do you think that the scripture says in vain, the spirit that dwells in us lust to envy? My young believers this spirit that we are born with is the wrong spirit. It is a spirit born in the flesh. A spirit born in sin with a nature that opposes God. We must realize that even though we have been born again from above and given a new nature the old flesh still remains. It still opposes God and will until we are given a new body in resurrection.” I then said to James, “Then what are we to do for I do want to please my Savior and Father?” James replied,"But He gives more grace, wherefore he says God resists the proud but gives grace unto the humble. Let me ask you something Mark. What do you think being proud is and what do you think being humble is? Tell me your definition of those two words." I sat there a few moments and then answered in this way, "Being proud is to have unreal view of yourself and others. You think that you are better, or smarter than others. For some reason you take an unrealistic view of your humanness and elevate it above others. When you do that you began to despise others and look down on them." Then Levi spoke up and said, "Then being humble is just looking at yourself in an honest fashion. Not putting yourself down but not raising yourself up either. It is just admitting your own humanness with all of its flaws. It is knowing that God also sees them and accepts you because of Jesus." Jacob chimed in and said, "How glorious is that!" We all began to praise God and thank Him for His grace and mercy to us. James then said, "So submit yourselves therefore unto God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. The trouble with most of us is that we do not yield to God's admonition or His advice. If we did Satan would have no ground to stand on and would soon flee from us. He would be the one seeking safety away from us. Draw night to God and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands ye sinners and purify your hearts ye double minded. Mark how can we cleanse our hands as God tells us to do?" I responded in this way, "We can make ourselves clean by confessing and forsaking our sins. When we do that and keep ourselves from defilement God in His holiness draws near to us. He really ask very little from us for He promises to do mighty works in our hearts if we will only come to Him." Well put my young brother James responded and then he continued, "Be afflicted and mourn and weep let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to heaviness." Levi said, "I think I understand for our sins and pride keep us away from our Father. We should be weeping over them instead of participating in them." Jacob then said, "Yes, we should also be mourning for those who reject our Savior. Our hearts should be filled with a continual sorrow because we know the fate of those who do so." James then said, "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He shall lift you up. Just have an honest and modest opinion of yourselves and your Savior will give you the honor, dignity and happiness that can only be found in Him. Speak no evil one of another brethren. He that speaks evil of his brother and judges his brother speaks evil of the law and judges the law but if thou judges the law thou art not a doer of the law but a judge.” One by one we all began to confess how often we were judgmental of others. When in actuality we were only comparing them to ourselves and mentality placing ourselves above them. James said that we could never really judge until we knew the whole story and that most of us judge based on appearance and things that we had heard instead of things that we knew. We all bowed our heads and ask the Lord to forgive us and to let us yield to Him in prayer for others instead of judging them. James then added, “There is one lawgiver who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judges another?” I think that in that moment I realized just how full of pride I was. Even in my humblest moments it still was there lurking to assert itself in judgement upon others. Others who were made of the same flesh and blood as I. Others who just as I, were created beings. Others who bodies would turn to dust just as the animals bodies do. Others who would step out into eternity with only one thing in their hands and that would be the grace of God and the saving sacrifice of Jesus. Or they would step out with nothing to cover their sin and face the judgement from the one who offered them escape from it. James seemed to have read my mind as he spoke his next words, “Go to now ye that say, that to day or tomorrow we will go into such a city and continue there a year and buy and sell and get gain. Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. How foolish the world is and even many believers for they toil all the day. They plan and they scheme to get gain only to watch it slip through their fingers as eternity approaches them. They are to busy to watch the sun rise or the moon in all of its splendor. Too busy to watch any of Gods wonderful creation blooming and living all around them. Take notice my dear brothers of Gods wonders.” At that James got up and walked outside. We all followed. He opened up his hand with his arm made a half circling gesture as if to say behold your Creator’s mighty works. I stared in amazement, not at James but at all that was going on around me. The clouds were sailing by in their beauty. I could feel the warm afternoon sun on my skin as a gentle breeze caressed my face. Over on my right a mother duck was leading her chicks down to a pond. Birds sat on a fence post conversing with one another. The fruit trees were blooming and I laughed as I saw that a rabbit had got under Levi and Jacob’s fence and was feasting in their garden. Then tears welled up in my eyes as I realized that my Father had given me all of this to enjoy and how little notice I took of it. I ask His forgiveness. James brought me back out of my thoughts as he said, “For that ye ought to say if the Lord will we shall live and do this or that. Mark, Jacob, Levi everything that we use is just lent to us by our heavenly Father. Every breath we take is given to us by the grace of Jesus. But now ye rejoice in your boastings all such rejoicing is evil.” Levi ask, “What do you mean when you say that we rejoice in our boastings?” James answered, “It is when we trust in our own power and resources. It is when it when we ignore the divine laws that God has given us. It is when we trust in the stability of earthly things. Therefore to him that knows to do good and does it not to him it is sin.”
Just as James finished speak
ing a wagon pulled up on the road. A little slave girl approached and spoke saying, “My master would like some water for himself and the horses.” Levi started to go get the water when James spoke up and said, “Aren’t you the same wagon that was pulled off the road when Mark and I were resting earlier. Was it not your master who called us fools?” The young lass blushed and replied and said, “Yes, but I am a believer and although he is not I still must do his bidding We were called back to Jericho because there was some problem with one of his business.” James approached the wagon and spoke to the rich man saying, “We will give you water for your horses and your slaves. We will even give water to you. We fools do that kind of thing for people. But before we do I must say this to you. Go to now ye rich men and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted and your garments are moth eaten. Your gold and silver are cankered and the rust of them shall be a