“What causes quarrels and fights among you?”

This is the divinely inspired question that greets us as we begin reading the fourth chapter of the Epistle of James. Upon encountering this rhetorical query in the first verse, one might initially think of those relational discombobulations that we experience in our homes. After all, each of us can easily relate to “quarrels” and “fights” with our family members. No home is without such tension and the constant reminder that we are not just sinful, but that our sinfulness is particularly revealed by our inherent selfishness. The same goes for our relationships with our extended families, friends, and our neighbors. On this side of the fall (Genesis 3), relationships have been tricky at best, and always polluted and devilishly influenced by the trouble we have with our Creator. Alienation from Him equals estrangement from other people.

But when James raises this pointed question he first has in mind our relationships within the body of Christ—our spiritual family. And with a surgeon’s skill, he is probing and prodding his readers in order to get them thinking about the true source of relational strife in the Church. Why do we argue? Why do we get angry with a brother or sister in Christ? Why do we allow our feelings to get hurt so easily? What causes so many local churches to split? Why isn’t there more love and harmony among those who have been made new in Christ, and are the recipients of God’s eternal love and soul-cleansing mercy?

Well, the answer he provides will drive us all to the mirror, much in the same way as when James addressed the source of temptation in chapter one (v. 14). Here he says that our relational problems stem from our “passions” (4:1), and the “war” these desires ignite “within” our own hearts. And then, with the fires of lust-driven warfare blazing away, the resulting damage is pretty ugly indeed (1:2-3).

On Sunday, we will begin our look at this most convicting passage from the little Epistle known for its down-to-earth practicality. As you prepare for worship and the preaching of God’s Word, you might begin your review of this section at James 3:13, and then read all the way to 4:12.