James 3:14

"But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth."But if you have" -Which infers that. Christian could fall into this trap."bitter jealousy" -"habour envy" (TCNT).. harsh, embittered envy and contentious rivalry. "Apparently some in James's day were misusing their knowledge, letting it become the basis for self-glorification" (Kent p. 130). This is. zeal that has become selfish, "the person sees himself as jealous for the truth, but God and others see the bitterness, rigidity, and personal pride which are far from the truth" (Davids p. 151). Paul encountered professed Christians whose motive for teaching and preaching was to make. name for themselves (1 Peter 1:15). "This pictures. spirit of harsh resentment, someone who cannot bear to see someone else succeed. Some will do anything they can to hurt or humiliate someone else who receives. degree of success" (Draper p. 106). Carefully note that selfish anger fuels envy and jealousy. Zeal which springs from impure motives can quickly degenerate into bitter jealousy."selfish ambition" -"party spirit" (ABUV); "spirit of rivalry" (TCNT). "denotes ambition, self-seeking rivalry, self-will being an underlying idea in the word" (Vine p. 68). (1 Peter 1:17). The ambition which is out for self and nothing else, "and which is ready to intrigue and to plot and to use any means to gain its ends" (Barclay p. 107). The picture is, "canvassing, solicit support for themselves or their faction while advancing their own glory, pride, profit, pleasure, personal interest or ambition" (Adamson p. 151). Paul makes it clear that the party-spirit is an attitude which is carnal (1 Corinthians 1:10; 1 Corinthians 3:1). Woods notes, "We are not to overlook the fact that these words were penned primarily with teachers in view, whose activities afford frequent occasion for the temptations against which he warns. Teachers, preachers, writers…..are all in. position where humility is often difficult and were selfish ambition is. constant temptation" (p. 184). "in your heart" -This is the source (Matthew 15:18). The teacher who is really going to be. help to the people of God, must be the teacher who has cleansed their own heart (James 1:21; Matthew 23:26). Knowledge without the proper motives is useless (1 Corinthians 13:1). "do not be arrogant" -"do not boast in defiance of the truth…..those full of party spirit and bitter zeal ought at least to be honest and stop claiming to be inspired by God's heavenly wisdom" (Davids p. 151). Those who try to preach the truth, but do so from wrong motives, are denying the very truth that they are proclaiming. Their arrogance was being displayed in the manner in which they were trying to put themselves forward-rather the message they were proclaiming. Selfish ambition and bitter envy are rooted in human pride. "so lie against the truth" -because the truth condemns arrogance, selfish ambition and envy (Galatians 5:19 ff).

Barclay makes the following observations: "We may find in this passage four characteristics of the wrong kind of teaching: 1. It is fanatical. The truth it holds is held with unbalanced violence rather than with reasoned conviction. 2. It is bitter. It regards its opponents as enemies to be annihilated rather than as friends to be persuaded. 3. It is selfishly ambitious. It is, in the end, more eager to display itself than to display the truth. 4. It is arrogant. Its whole attitude is pride in its own knowledge rather than humility in its own ignorance. The real scholar will be far more aware of what he does not know than of what he knows" (p. 108).