Guest Blog – James 3:18-4:1

Guest Blog – James 3:18-4:1

“And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who cultivate peace. What is the source of wars and fights among you? Don’t they come from your passions that wage war within you?” – James 3:18-4:1

Some of us in the Rock just started a study on conflict resolution from the Peacemaker Ministries. The goal of the study is essentially to be one who cultivates peace- what James 3:18 talks about. James 4:1-2 was brought up in the first week of the study with a question geared to look at what causes quarrels and fights between people. The answer is in the passage, yet I admit that I often overlooked it and thought that James’ answer was at the end of verse two. However, the answer is directly after the question- “Don’t they come from your passions that wage war within you?”

When I thought about this more, especially with James 4:1 coming after 3:18, it’s very similar to asking the question of “why isn’t there peace with others?” James says it’s because of what’s going on within ourselves. This is completely counter-culture, because the thought we naturally lean towards, especially in the heat of the moment, is that the problem is with the other person, not me. According to James, the real problem of the conflict starts with what’s going on in our hearts. For how can you have peace with others if there is conflict within?

This has been a very important, hard lesson God has taught me over the last couple years. I was someone that would tend to think the problem was with someone else, and that I was completely right in being frustrated with them. What’s changed in the last couple years is that God has shown me the importance of looking at what’s going on in my heart. This has helped me to realize that often times when I am causing conflict rather than sowing peace, it’s because in my heart I’m not actually believing God’s truth. Thus, things are out-of-whack in my heart. At that point, there is essentially a war being waged within my heart between what I’m really believing, which is a lie, and what is true. Until I face that war waging within me, and fight for God’s truth to take hold of my heart and defeat the lie, I’m incapable of being one who cultivates peace. For all I have to give will be what’s within, which is conflict. The great thing about this is that God wants to help us have peace within. All we have to do is ask Him, and allow Him to speak into the depths of our hearts, even if deep down you are believing something that is contrary to God’s truth.

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