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James 3:16
16 For [gar] where [hopou] envying [zelos] and [kai] strife [eritheia] is, there [ekei] is confusion [akatastasia] and [kai] every [pas] evil [phaulos] work [pragma]. KJV-Interlinear
16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. NASB
The granddaddy of all sins is arrogance. Out of it, all evil and corruption flow. Envy is one of the worst of the sins, Prov. 6:16-19.
Out of it comes jealousy, greed, desire, resentment, and sooner or later, strife, trouble, conflict, discord, contention, dissension, opposition and rebellion.
These are the products of worldly wisdom. Nothing good ever comes from those who present themselves as wise in the world, when in fact they are not wise at all.
Worldly wisdom is what is left over when spiritual wisdom is disregarded.
We have, every four years in our country, national elections. These almost always make for great examples of worldly wisdom and its repercussions. Public opinion this year is saturated with worldy wisdom.
When doctrine is ignored, then people flock to the only thing that is left - worldly wisdom, and as we have read, the result will always be disaster if worldly wisdom prevails. Fortunately we have many elected officials, many governments (local, state, and federal) so the impact frrom any given region can be mitigated somewhat.
But when the consensus of an entire nation moves toward the wisdom of the world, then the real trouble will become apparent, sooner than later.
But God is gracious, and He has given us such a vast economy and complex system of society, that problems can be slowed down to some degree.
But, James paints the picture of the worst possible result of a society pursuing worldly wisdom. The hope of a society, in false wisdom, will turn to blame when things do not occur as they are expected to. The blame will turn into an even greater resolve to force worldly wisdom to work. Those failures will turn into greater problems, then disillusionment, and anger, and hate, and so forth.
And, as James states here very clearly, every evil thing will result. That is the worst possible situation that a person, group, or nation can find themselves in.
There are two opinions in existence - truth and evil. Truth comes from God, and evil comes from Satan.
For every principle of truth, Satan has invented a counter argument. And as evil takes hold of a society, the attacks against the principles of truth, increase dramatically, even to the point of the absurd. Evil will try with all of its might to destroy truth principles and all that they stand for, and with that destruction, society itself is destroyed.
