Pathway to Victory

Speaker 1

Hey podcast listeners. Thanks for streaming today's podcast from Pathway to Victory and Dr. Robert Jeffress.

We're dedicated to bringing you bold biblical teaching that transforms your life and strengthens your walk with God.

And you can study God's word alongside Dr. Jeffress in person on the 2026 Pathway to Victory Cruise to Alaska.

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Have you ever witnessed the breathtaking majesty of massive glaciers rising from crystal blue waters or stood in awe as bald eagles soar over snow-capped mountains?

I want you to experience these unforgettable moments with me on the Pathway to Victory Cruise to Alaska, June 13th through 20th, 2026.

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Join Dr. Jeffress and the Pathway to Victory family for a spectacular seven-day adventure aboard Holland America's luxurious Koningsdam.

Indulge in elegant staterooms, world-class dining, and expansive decks perfect for breathtaking views.

Visit historic ports like Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan, where wilderness and frontier history await.

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There's something powerful about connecting with God and fellow believers in the majesty of his untamed wilderness. I truly believe this journey will refresh you spiritually, physically and emotionally.

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Cabins are filling quickly, so reserve yours today. To book your spot on the 2026 Pathway to Victory cruise to Alaska, call 888-280-6747 or go to ptv.org now here's today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.

Speaker 2

Hi, this is Robert Jeffress and I'm glad to study God's Word with you every day on this Bible teaching program.

On today's edition of Pathway to Victory, James, you've given us a checklist for godliness. How do we develop this kind of godliness in our life?

Well, James doesn't leave us hanging because beginning in verse seven of chapter four, he gives us three simple commands to develop the godly life that honors God.

Speaker 1

Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr. Robert Jeffress. Many Christians have a distorted view of what it means to live a godly life. They think godliness is about what you avoid rather than what you do.

But the Bible gives us a much clearer picture of authentic godliness. Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffress shares what it really means to be a godly person.

But first, let's take a minute to hear some important ministry updates.

Speaker 2

Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory. Just before we begin with today's message, I want to tell you about one of our best-kept secrets, Pathway Magazine. This daily devotional has become a true favorite among readers, and I want you to benefit from this publication too. Each issue features my daily devotionals alongside practical articles that address real-life Christian living in our digital world. There's something special about turning actual pages and taking personal notes. And right now, to get you started, we're offering three complimentary editions. Just follow the simple instructions at ptv.org.

It's been said that James is one of the most practical and accessible books in the Bible, and I've devoted the entire month of August to this wonderful section of Scripture. I've written a brand new book called "How to Know if You're Really Saved," and it may be the most important book you read this year because the timeless principles will bring purpose to your trials and, in the end, even blessings. I'll be sure to send you my book on James when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory. We'll say more about my book and other resources just after today's study, but right now, let's turn to James Chapter 3 together.

I titled today's message "A Checklist for Godliness." Years ago, there was a popular television commercial for an antacid that some of you may remember. An off-screen announcer would ask people on the street this penetrating question: How do you spell relief? Do you remember the answer? R-O-L-A-I-D-S. Just imagine for a moment that some off-screen announcer would ask you, as you were walking down the street, how do you define godliness? What does it really mean to be a godly person? What images come to mind? Do you imagine monks cloistered in a monastery somewhere or people wearing hair shirts?

Let me probe your thinking just a little bit more by asking you some questions. Can you be godly and prefer reading Sports Illustrated instead of Christianity Today? Can you be a godly person and vote for a Democrat or a Republican based on your particular political persuasions? Can you be godly and drink a glass of wine with your dinner every evening? Can you be a godly person and choose to stay home on Sunday afternoon and watch a football game rather than go to Discipleship University? Now, I'm not suggesting a right or wrong answer to any of those questions, but my real question is: where do you get your idea of what it means to be godly?

Well, today we're going to look at a simple checklist that James, the half-brother of Jesus, gives us for godliness. If you have your Bibles, turn to James chapter 3. He begins by asking a question in verse 13 of James 3. He says, "Who among you is wise and understanding?" Do you want to be a person of great wisdom and understanding? He says, "Then here's how to do it. Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom." If you're really wise, it will show itself in your behavior.

Now wait a minute. What's the relationship between wisdom and behavior? The simple answer is everything you see. Wisdom is not just the accumulation of knowledge; it's accumulating knowledge for a purpose. And in the spiritual realm, it's for the purpose of obedience. Wisdom is the skill, the determination to live life according to God's plan. Now, how do you know if you're doing that? Well, James gives us three enemies of godliness.

First of all, he begins with envy. Look at verse 14. "If you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth." What does he mean by bitter jealousy? The Greek word for jealousy is "zelon." We get our word "zealot" from it. Interestingly, jealousy is not automatically a negative quality. Jealousy is not inherently wrong. In fact, there's a good kind of jealousy. In 2 Corinthians 11:2, Paul said he had a godly jealousy toward the Corinthian believers. In John 17:2, it said that Jesus had a zealousness, a jealousy for the house of God, and God has a jealous love for us. Somebody has said, to love and not be jealous is really not to love at all.

But it can take another turn. Jealousy can be wrong when it's bitter. A good synonym for that is envy. The results of jealousy, of envy, are devastating. He says in verse 16, "Where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing." People are envious, and they cause chaos in their pursuit of what they don't have. You see that in the business world. But James isn't referring mainly to businesses or chaos in families; he's referring to churches. That word, translated "selfish ambition," "epheon," is a word that means factions, divisions that you find in the church. Many churches are divided. They're fighting; they have factions and are destroying their witness for Christ because of it.

And that's why James says in verse 15, without apology, "This wisdom is not that which comes down from above." This isn't a heavenly kind of wisdom. Behavior that causes factions and divisions, especially among believers, is earthly, natural, and demonic. You're doing Satan's work when you allow your life to be controlled by envy, which results in divisions. The wisdom that comes from above, James goes on to say, is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits.

But there's an underlying cause, a more basic cause for envy, and that is lust. Now remember, in the original language, in the original text, there was no chapter division. Those came later on; they were added by editors. And so this conversation continues in chapter four, verses one to two. Look at this: "What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask."

What is lust? If you look it up in Webster's, lust is defined as a craving. But in the Bible, lust is more than just a craving for something. Lust is a craving for that which is outside of God's will for our life. And that lust, that hunger for things that aren't a part of God's plan for our life, is insatiable and is actually at war with what God wants for us. In 1 Peter 2:11, Peter says, "Abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul." There is a war, a civil war going on in the life of every Christian between what God wants for us and what Satan wants for us.

The truth about lust that Satan will do everything he can to keep hidden from you is that lust can never be satisfied. It is an insatiable hunger, an insatiable thirst. That's the way it is with sin. Lusting, craving for those things outside of God's will can never be satisfied. You know, one of the most vivid illustrations of the conquering power of lust is found in the story of Samson in Judges 14. Remember, Samson was born of godly parents. He was set aside as a Nazirite. He became a judge of Israel, but he was ultimately defeated because of his lust. In fact, in Judges 14:2-3, the very first words recorded that Samson uttered were, "I saw a woman, go get her for me, for she looks good to me." Even though God's law forbade his marriage to a Philistine, Samson didn't care. He was blinded, pardon the pun, by his own lust.

And he actually ended up, because of that, having his own eyes gouged out, being condemned as a prisoner in a Philistine jail, and being sentenced to be a grinder in the jail. Somebody wrote about that lust: "The jailer binds, blinds, and it grinds." That's the power of lust. I think probably Solomon had Samson in mind when he wrote these words in Proverbs 5:22-23: "The wicked man is doomed by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him. He shall die because he will not listen to the truth. He has let himself be led away into incredible folly."

If you're going to be a godly person, you need to eliminate envy that leads to factions and divisions. You need to guard against lust, that insatiable thirst for those things that are outside of God's will. But the bottom line cause of envy and lust has to do with a worldly value system. A worldly value system. Look at what he says in verses 2-4 of James 4: "You lust and you do not have, so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and you do not receive because you ask with the wrong motives, so that you may spend what you request on your pleasures."

Now get this: verse 4. "You adulteresses. Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." Now, when James is talking about the world, he's not talking about location, planet Earth. He talks about the world system, a value system. If you adopt that, you'll be completely at odds with God's plan and purpose for your life. The world's value system is diametrically opposed to God's value system. The world's value system is one that equates money with success. It equates sex with love. It equates power with position instead of purpose. That is totally opposite of God's value system. And if you adopt that world system, you will never find contentment and satisfaction.

Remember the billionaire John D. Rockefeller was asked one time, "How much money does a man need to be satisfied?" His answer: "Just a little bit more." That's the way it is with everyone. Jesus says just the opposite. You obtain success not through money, but by pursuing the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). You obtain love not by getting, but by giving (John 15:15). God says we obtain status not by position, but by becoming a servant (Matthew 20:26). The apostle John said it this way: "Do not love the world, the world system. Do not love the world system or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father; it comes from the world. And the world is passing away, and also its lusts; but he who does the will of God shall abide forever."

Well, James, you've given us a checklist for godliness. How do we develop this kind of godliness in our life? Well, James doesn't leave us hanging because beginning in verse 7 of chapter 4, he gives us three simple commands to develop the godly life that honors God. First of all, he says, "Submit therefore to God." Verse 7. "Submit therefore to God." What does that mean? He's not talking about some mystical experience. He's not talking about some second blessing of the Holy Spirit. He clarifies what he means in the next sentence: "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." If you're going to submit to God, you say no to the devil. You resist the devil.

How do we do that? Let me give you a simple way to resist the devil: four things. Number one, place your life on God's spiritual altar. Daily and every day, we ought to wake up with the realization that we are here to serve God. Our bodies are instruments by which we do the will of God. Now, here's the problem with living sacrifices: they have a way of crawling off the altar from time to time. So every day, sometimes every hour of every day, we have to climb back up on that altar and remind ourselves we are here to fulfill God's purpose. Place yourself on God's spiritual altar.

Another way we resist the devil is by fleeing tempting situations. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is run. That was true for Joseph. Remember when Mrs. Potiphar started putting the moves on him? He felt those hot Hebrew hormones raging inside of him. He didn't stay and have a prayer meeting with Mrs. Potiphar; he ran as quickly as he could, leaving a portion of his garment in her hand. Flee tempting situations.

Thirdly, visualize the consequences of our sin. Satan wants to deceive you. He wants to paint a rosy picture of everything that's going to be yours if you will just submit to him. That's what he did with Jesus in the wilderness. But we need to see through that fog of lies and understand there are real painful consequences for disobedience. That's what Moses did. There came a time in Moses' life when he had to choose whether he was going to stay in Pharaoh's house or was he going to identify with God's people. He knew that identifying with God's people would cause some short-term pain. But it was short-term pain that would lead to long-term gain. He looked at the big picture and did the calculation in his mind, and he said, "You know, a little bit of pain is okay because it's going to lead to a greater reward."

Before you give in to lust, view the consequences—what it's really going to cost you in your relationships, in your family, perhaps in your business, in your own relationship with God. Visualize those consequences of sin. And fourthly, we resist Satan by meditating on God's word. Your word, Psalm 119:11 says, "Your word have I treasured in my heart that I might not sin against God."

How do you develop godliness? You submit to God. Secondly, draw near to God. Look at verse 8. "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you." As a Christian, we've been forgiven. Positionally, we have God's eternal love. But even though we're Christians, we get dirty every day by living in this world. We get contaminated, and we have to wash off the dirt. How do we do it? We do it again through God's word. Go back to Psalm 119:9-11. We all memorize that verse, but we forget verse 9 that leads to it. The psalmist said, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to your word. Your word have I treasured in my heart that I might not sin against you."

Submit yourself to God. Draw near to God. And the third key to godliness is humble yourself before God. Look at verse 10. "Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and he will exalt you." What does it mean to humble yourself before God? We're going to get into that more next time, but I was thinking of a way to illustrate it to you. I thought of the TV show Saturday Night Live. Now, I know some of you are too spiritual to watch Saturday Night Live; you watch the YouTube clips the next day, but you don't watch it on Saturday night. But if you remember, those of you who do remember Saturday Night Live, remember there was a comedian named Chevy Chase. He was in the first season, and he did these Weekend Update segments. He always began the same way: "Good evening, I'm Chevy Chase, and you're not."

I thought of that this week as I was preparing this sermon. You know what it means to humble yourself before God? It means to say to God, "God, you're God, and I'm not." And when we get that straight in our minds that God is God and we're not, it leads to that conclusion Jesus came to in the garden when he said, "Not my will, but your will be done." That's the essence of what it means to humble yourself before God.

In another context, King Tutankhamun, the boy king, ascended the throne at age nine and died at age 18. Yet, for centuries after his death, archaeologists around the world looked for the treasure of King Tutankhamun that would be found at his burial site. One of those men was named Howard Carter. For six years of his life, he would claw through the hot Egyptian sand trying to find that elusive treasure. One day in 1922, his mouth dropped when he discovered the treasure of King Tut. He would spend the next 10 years of his life cataloging over 5,000 objects of great value.

There's another king, a very wealthy king, who went on another kind of search, and he found something more valuable than the treasure of King Tut. He discovered wisdom. Remember what Solomon said about wisdom, the value of it in Proverbs 2:1-5: "My son, if you will receive my words and treasure my commandments within you, make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to understanding. For if you cry for discernment, lift up your voice for understanding. If you seek wisdom as silver and search for her as for hidden treasures, then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God."

Listen to me. Wisdom, the desire, the determination, the skill to live your life according to God's plan for you, is the treasure map that will lead you to everything you truly want in your family, in your friendships, in your career, and most of all, in your relationship to God.

Earlier, I mentioned a book I've written for this teaching series on James, and there's still time to request a copy. The deadline is Friday. In my book on James, I explain what it means to become a godly person. Genuine godliness begins with following God's plan for your life, and James gives us a simple checklist. He warns us about three enemies that destroy spiritual fruit: first, envy that causes divisions; second, lust that can never be satisfied; and third, worldly values that oppose God's system. My book is titled "How to Know if You're Really Saved," and I'm pleased to send it to your home with my profound thanks when you support the ministry of Pathway to Victory with a generous gift.

In a moment, David will describe how to receive audio CDs and video DVDs for this teaching series. There's even a discussion guide that complements my book. In any case, we're eager to equip you with resources that you can use in your private study. Let me close today's message by thanking those who lend their generous support to Pathway to Victory. Yes, I'm the voice you hear every day on this program, but in many respects, the impact that Pathway to Victory has around the world can be traced back to you who give. So thank you for joining forces with Pathway to Victory so that together we not only sustain this ministry, but we gain new territory in bringing light where there's darkness and hope where there's hopelessness. It wouldn't be possible without friends like you. Here's David with all the details.

Speaker 1

When you support the ministry of Pathway to Victory by giving a generous gift, you're invited to request how to know if you're really saved. That's the brand new book by Dr. Robert Jeffress. To request your copy, call 866-999-2965 or go to ptv.org. When your gift is $75 or more, we'll also send you the complete collection of DVD, video, and MP3 format audio discs for this study in James, "How to Know if You're Really Saved." It comes with a personal and group study guide, but this special offer ends this week, so get in touch right away. One more time, call 866-999-2965 or visit ptv.org. You could also send your donation by mail. Write to P.O. Box 223609, Dallas, Texas 75222. That's P.O. Box 223609, Dallas, TX 75222.

I'm David J. Mullins. Our human nature constantly pushes us to be in control, but the Bible teaches that true godliness requires us to remember a fundamental truth: learn why He's God and you're not. That's Tuesday on Pathway to Victory.

Pathway to Victory with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. Experience the breathtaking majesty of America's last frontier on the 2026 Pathway to Victory Cruise to Alaska.

Speaker 2

Board Holland America's luxurious Koningsdam ship with Amy and me for a journey that will refresh your soul and renew your spirit.

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Experience the unforgettable adventure June 13th through 20th, 2026. To book your cabin, call 888-280-6747 or go to ptv.org.

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To become a Pathway Partner, go to ptv.org/donate or follow the link in our show notes. We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.