James 4:1

 James 4:1 says, From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?  James asks where wars and fighting come from and gives us the answer.  They come from our lusts that war within us.  When we begin to believe that we are better than other people and desire to have or keep everything for ourselves based on physical or material things, we begin to lust for what they have.   Sometimes, we even lust for their death.  This is not what a Christian should do or even believe. 

Verse two adds, 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.  James then said when we lust after what someone else has and can't have it peaceably that we begin to fight with those who own whatever it is that they have and that we desire.  James said we don't have because we do not ask, and I believe this refers to asking God and being content with His answer, even if His answer is no.  

Verse three continues, Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.  James then clarifies that if we ask something of God out of lust instead of faith in His supplying for our needs, that we ask amiss.  If we are asking for things to satisfy our lusts instead of asking God to provide for our needs, then we should not expect God to give us what we desire out of envy or greed.

Verse four concludes, 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.  James then said that we are adulterers and adulteresses if we profess to believe in God but do not show this by how we live our lives.  He added that if we are friends of the world, or worldly beliefs instead of Godly faith, then we are enemies of God.     

James 3:13

 James 3:13 says, Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.  James asked that if anyone was endued with the knowledge of God, let his conversation show in his works with the meekness of wisdom, which comes from God.  Our words should show the wisdom that comes from God if we are followers of Christ, and what we say should be consistent with what we do, and it all should be done with meekness by the wisdom of God.

Verse fourteen adds, But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.  James then said that if we have bitter envy and strife in our heart that we should not glory in it and if we do that we are lying against the truth of God.  There is a lot of anger expressed in bitterness and hatred toward lost people by Christians today simply because of who they are, and this will never be God's will for His people. 

Verse fifteen continues, This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.  James said that wisdom that does not show God's love to people does not come from above. God's wisdom will never lead us to hate and feel superior to other people.  We are no more deserving of His forgiveness than anyone else. 

Verse sixteen states, For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.  James tells us that where we have envy and strife, there is confusion and every evil work.  We cannot proclaim the gospel and at the same time that we are better than other people based on who we are and who they are in the view of the world and still be obedient to God's word. 

Verse seventeen adds, But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.  James then tells us what wisdom from God is like.  It is pure, peaceable, gentle, full of mercy and good fruit, without partiality and hypocrisy.  This is the opposite of what many Christians seem to express today when we lash out at lost people with hatred for them. 

Verse eighteen continues, And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.  James said that the fruit of righteous is sown in peace by those who work for peace, out of God's love I believe.  Our goal as Christians should be to show the love of God to the lost people of the world and not to lash out against them in hatred for them.

James 3:9

James 3:9 says, Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.  Still speaking of the tongue, James said that we can both bless God and curse men with it. We cannot be a witness to God if we if we are always cursing people with our words at the same time.  As James said, all people are made in the likeness of God, even if they refuse to acknowledge Him, so we should be at work trying to present God's plan of salvation to them instead of cursing them. 

Verse ten adds, Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.  James said that out of the same mouth came blessings and cursings and this should not be true.  God has not changed His standards for us today.  We cannot speak of people out of hatred and profess the love of God at the same time. 

Verse eleven continues, Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?  James then uses the analogy of a fountain, asking if it can have both bitter and sweet water coming out of it.  Our words should be the same way.  We should not profess the love of God while at the same time professing hatred for other people.  Jesus Christ died for all people, and we should reach out to them with His love if we are His followers. 

Verse twelve concludes, Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.  James added to the question by asking if a fig tree could produce olives or if a vine could produce figs.  The answer was no, but that they could only bear the fruit that they were created to produce.  He then said that a fountain cannot produce both salt water and fresh water.  The lesson is that we cannot use our tongue to both glorify God and curse people if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.

James 3:5

James 3:5 says, Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!  After referring to the bit in the horse's mouth and the rudder of a ship controlling them, James then equated them to the tongue of a person.  It is small compared to other parts of the body, but it can boast of great things, and when it does, it can also control how others see us and often even how we react to others.  James then says that like a little kindling being able to start a large fire, the things that we say can start a fire of iniquity in our relationship with other people.   

Verse six continues, And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.  James expanded on the power of the tongue, or what we say, as a powerful instrument of iniquity.  He said that what we say can defile the whole body, I believe because what we say reflects what we believe.  The tongue can start fires of sin between other people and us. 

Verse seven continues. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind:  James said that all the beasts, birds, servants and things of the sea could be tamed by mankind.  We might say that not all can, but people will always have power over them, even if they are not controlled. 

Verse eight concludes, But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.   James then stated that unlike all the things mentioned in the previous verse that the tongue cannot be tamed.  The tongue is going to speak what we believe, even if we often attempt to control our words.  We will not be able to prevent what we believe from being expressed by what we say, so if we don't want our tongue to speak evil, then we need to have our mind set on truth of God.  If we do, then we need not worry about what we may say.