James 3:17-18

The Fruits of Heavenly Wisdom

In contrast to the wisdom from the devil, James presents the wisdom from heaven. He begins his list of the fruits of heavenly wisdom with the word "pure." It might be described as being free from fault. To achieve freedom from fault, one must submit his life to the Savior. He must be willing to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus to receive remission from his sins (Acts 2:38)."Peaceable" describes a peace lover. Jesus said the peacemakers would be called children of God (Matthew 5:9). After all, God sent his Son to make peace between himself and sinful man (Romans 5:8-10; Ephesians 2:13-16). The wisdom which comes down from God is also "gentle." That is, fair in its treatment of others and mild mannered. "Willing to yield" describes one with an open mind who can be persuaded to change when the facts are laid before him.

The one with God's wisdom will likewise be full of compassion, or "mercy." (compare Matthew 6:14-15). Jesus repeatedly filled this role while on earth (Matthew 8:1-17; Matthew 9:1-8; Matthew 9:18-38; Matthew 14:13-21; Matthew 23:37). God's wisdom will cause a man to be full of "good fruits", too. Our Lord said, "A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them" (Matthew 7:18-20). The American Standard Version translates the next word by putting "variance." Roberts says, "here the word seems to mean 'not vacillating,' 'not acting one way in one circumstance and another in a different one.'" The man who is truly wise will not be doubtful or uncertain in his actions (Remember 1:8). Neither will he have "hypocrisy." This originally stood for an actor on a stage, thus one who was acting like someone other than himself. Jesus gave stern warnings to the scribes and Pharisees because of their hypocrisy (Matthew 23:1-39).

True wisdom will produce right living in the wise. That right living will be a fruit sown in the fertile ground of peace. This will in its own turn produce peace in the lives of the wise and those with whom they associate (James 3:17-18).

James 4:1

Fleshly Gratification

Having just talked about peace, it is natural that James would go on to discuss the origin of strife. The strife of which James speaks is that between brethren. He could also be describing the battle that goes on within a brother. No matter which of the two he had in mind, James discovered the true source of all war. "Wars" describes a state of conflict, while "fights" refers to individual battles. These conditions arise because of one's seeking for pleasure or gratification of fleshly desire (James 4:1).

Paul described to Titus the state of Christians before they were washed. "For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another" (Titus 3:3). Such desire arrays itself against the man (1 Peter 1:22; Luke 8:14). The pursuit of its fulfillment will cause one to fight against all in his way, including brethren (compare Romans 7:23). The results of such cause us to remember James' discussion of earthly wisdom in 3:14-16. Obviously, conflicts are born of such false wisdom. Though we do not rejoice in it, the early church had some of the same problems we see today (1 Corinthians 6:1-8; 1 Corinthians 14:23-40; Galatians 5:15; Ephesians 4:1-16; 1 Peter 4:1-3).