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Things to Avoid

¹ What leads to the unending ^(F1)quarrels and ^(C1)conflicts among you? Do they not come from your hedonistic desires that wage ^(C2)war in your bodily members fighting for control over you?² You are jealous and covet what others have and ^(F1)your lust goes unfulfilled; so you ^(F2)(C1)murder. You are envious and cannot obtain the object of your envy; so you fight and battle. You do not have because you do not ask it of God. ^(VR1)3 You ask God for something and ^(C1)do not receive it, because you ask ^(F1)with wrong motives out of selfishness or with an unrighteous agenda, so that when you get what you want you may spend it on your hedonistic desires.⁴ You ^(C1)adulteresses disloyal sinners—flirting with the world and breaking your vow to God! Do you not know that being ^(C2)the world's friend that is, loving the things of the world is ^(C3)being God's enemy? ^(C4)So whoever chooses to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.⁵ Or do you think that the Scripture ^(C1)says to no purpose ^(F1)(C2)that the human ^(F2)spirit which He has made to dwell in us lusts with envy? ^(VR1)6 But ^(C1)He gives us more and more grace through the power of the Holy Spirit to defy sin and live an obedient life that reflects both our faith and our gratitude for our salvation. Therefore, it says, "^(C2)GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD and HAUGHTY, BUT continually GIVES the gift of GRACE TO THE HUMBLE who turn away from self-righteousness." ^(VR1)7 So ^(C1)submit to the authority of God. ^(C2)Resist the devil stand firm against him and he will flee from you.^8 (C1)Come close to God with a contrite heart and He will come close to you. ^(C2)Wash your hands, you sinners; and ^(C3)purify your unfaithful hearts, you ^(C4)double-minded people.^9 (C1)Be miserable and grieve and weep over your sin. Let your foolish laughter be turned to mourning and your reckless joy to gloom.^10 (C1)Humble yourselves with an attitude of repentance and insignificance in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you He will lift you up, He will give you purpose.

^11 (C1)Believers, ^(C2)do not speak against or slander one another. He who speaks self-righteously against a brother or ^(F1)(C3)judges his brother hypocritically, speaks against ^(C4)the Law and judges the Law. If you judge the Law, you are not ^(C5)a doer of the Law but a judge of it.¹² There is only one ^(C1)Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is ^(C2)able to save and to destroy the one God who has the absolute power of life and death; but ^(C3)who are you to hypocritically or self-righteously pass judgment on your neighbor?

^13 (C1)Come now and pay attention to this, you who say, "^(C2)Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and carry on our business and make a profit."^14 (F1)Yet you do not know the least thing ^(F2)about what may happen in your life tomorrow. What is secure in your life? ^(C1)You are merely a vapor like a puff of smoke or a wisp of steam from a cooking pot that is visible for a little while and then vanishes into thin air.¹⁵ Instead ^(F1)you ought to say, "^(C1)If the Lord wills, we will live and we will do this or that."¹⁶ But as it is, you boast vainly in your pretension and arrogance. ^(C1)All such boasting is evil.¹⁷ So ^(C1)any person who knows what is right to do but does not do it, to him it is sin.