Close or not Close Enough?
It's easy to live life in mediocrity. The vast majority of people are satisfied with getting by in life and basically just "surviving.” I would say that is a recipe for little achievement and an even smaller impact upon one's environment. One of the greatest enemies of the soul is the mere satisfaction with the way things are........right now. However, if you desire for more and want to live a life that matters there must be a fundamental difference in the way you view the possibilities around you. For others, like those James is talking about here in his epistle, there is the danger of living by worldly wisdom and seeking success without God and without the Spirit's guidance. They had chosen man's ways over God's ways. The two are often diametrically opposed to each other. So what did James tell them to do that they might get on the right track?
James, the brother of Jesus, who likely didn't believe in his Messiah brother until after the resurrection, gave us a foundational package of truth for life in James 4:7-8, where he said,
Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Submit yourselves therefore to God, Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you."
As James writes to his Jewish brethren dispersed over the entire Roman Empire he admonishes them all to stop trying to live by the world's wisdom and carnal standards. They were living in mediocrity and not only failing God but falling far short of their calling as Christians. The high calling to live like Christ and become like Him was being forgotten. James faces this series of Spirit grieving issues with a direct and constructive strategy which not only was exactly what they needed to hear, it is what we need to hear as we live for Christ today.
They were proud and arrogant but spiritually empty. They were headed to heaven but living for the world. Those two don't mix, and the Lord wasn't going to allow them to ruin His testimony or their own! Their worldly compromise had, in fact, created a world of mediocrity for them and their unchristian neighbors. Their Christian impact had been watered down and had kept them in lockstep with the non-Christian populace. James gives three clear and direct commands to remedy their sinful approach to life which would revolutionize these Jewish believer's lives and make them the light that they were supposed to exhibit. It can do the same for our lives. First he commanded,
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Js 5:7a
It is meant to address the general disobedience of all the Hebrew Christians since persecution had broken and exiled the twelve tribes. They had basically relied on their own devices for success instead of yielding to God's plan. James commands them to submit which means to yield or surrender oneself entirely to God and the plans He had for them.
Secondly, they were to,
Resist the Devil and he will flee from you. Js 4:7b
Once a Christian fully submits to God, only then can they recognize Satan's direct temptations and counterfeit blessings. Immature Christians will seek to see how much of the world they can continue go enjoy while still remaining Christians. They don't want to fully submit to God because that would mean they would have to also submit to His plan for their lives. Any of us who have raised teenagers might get the idea better than others. A teen reacts against mom and dad purely on the basis of stretching their wings, having their own way, and deciding all things for themselves. They don't realize that they don't have the wisdom or understanding to do so, and so quite often they have to suffer the circumstances of their lack of information about life. Similarly, young Christians seldom learn this immediately upon trusting Christ as Savior and Lord. They will often get saved and rejoice in the Savior part of their relationship with God but the Lordship of Christ is another matter altogether.
Resisting Satan means to refuse his temptations, to stand opposed to what he offers in favor of what God has said in His Word. Jesus is the prime example of this because when He was tempted after His forty-day fast in the wilderness. Satan came and tempted Him three separate times. Each time Christ recited the Word of God when responding to Satans ploys. This is our example!
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. (Js 4:8a)
Getting close go God requires more than talking about it. It requires spiritual action aimed at two basic things. First draw close to God in prayer. Seeking Him, confessing sins, and asking for specific things in light of our needs, and the needs of others is necessary. Secondly, we need to draw near to the Lord through His Word. There really is no substitute for a well-done sermon once or twice a week. God's Word is our spiritual food and we crave it! But, we can also often find cheap substitutes for it! We must have a reliable feeding station where we get filled consistently. But even then, hearing must be mixed with a positive faith response.
Want to be more than a mediocre Christian? Submit yourself to God, resist Satan's efforts to tempt and try you, and then draw close to the Lord through His Word and prayer. And then, make it your battle about staying there!
James, the brother of Jesus, who likely didn't believe in his Messiah brother until after the resurrection, gave us a foundational package of truth for life in James 4:7-8, where he said,
Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Submit yourselves therefore to God, Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you."
As James writes to his Jewish brethren dispersed over the entire Roman Empire he admonishes them all to stop trying to live by the world's wisdom and carnal standards. They were living in mediocrity and not only failing God but falling far short of their calling as Christians. The high calling to live like Christ and become like Him was being forgotten. James faces this series of Spirit grieving issues with a direct and constructive strategy which not only was exactly what they needed to hear, it is what we need to hear as we live for Christ today.
They were proud and arrogant but spiritually empty. They were headed to heaven but living for the world. Those two don't mix, and the Lord wasn't going to allow them to ruin His testimony or their own! Their worldly compromise had, in fact, created a world of mediocrity for them and their unchristian neighbors. Their Christian impact had been watered down and had kept them in lockstep with the non-Christian populace. James gives three clear and direct commands to remedy their sinful approach to life which would revolutionize these Jewish believer's lives and make them the light that they were supposed to exhibit. It can do the same for our lives. First he commanded,
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Js 5:7a
It is meant to address the general disobedience of all the Hebrew Christians since persecution had broken and exiled the twelve tribes. They had basically relied on their own devices for success instead of yielding to God's plan. James commands them to submit which means to yield or surrender oneself entirely to God and the plans He had for them.
Secondly, they were to,
Resist the Devil and he will flee from you. Js 4:7b
Once a Christian fully submits to God, only then can they recognize Satan's direct temptations and counterfeit blessings. Immature Christians will seek to see how much of the world they can continue go enjoy while still remaining Christians. They don't want to fully submit to God because that would mean they would have to also submit to His plan for their lives. Any of us who have raised teenagers might get the idea better than others. A teen reacts against mom and dad purely on the basis of stretching their wings, having their own way, and deciding all things for themselves. They don't realize that they don't have the wisdom or understanding to do so, and so quite often they have to suffer the circumstances of their lack of information about life. Similarly, young Christians seldom learn this immediately upon trusting Christ as Savior and Lord. They will often get saved and rejoice in the Savior part of their relationship with God but the Lordship of Christ is another matter altogether.
Resisting Satan means to refuse his temptations, to stand opposed to what he offers in favor of what God has said in His Word. Jesus is the prime example of this because when He was tempted after His forty-day fast in the wilderness. Satan came and tempted Him three separate times. Each time Christ recited the Word of God when responding to Satans ploys. This is our example!
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. (Js 4:8a)
Getting close go God requires more than talking about it. It requires spiritual action aimed at two basic things. First draw close to God in prayer. Seeking Him, confessing sins, and asking for specific things in light of our needs, and the needs of others is necessary. Secondly, we need to draw near to the Lord through His Word. There really is no substitute for a well-done sermon once or twice a week. God's Word is our spiritual food and we crave it! But, we can also often find cheap substitutes for it! We must have a reliable feeding station where we get filled consistently. But even then, hearing must be mixed with a positive faith response.
Want to be more than a mediocre Christian? Submit yourself to God, resist Satan's efforts to tempt and try you, and then draw close to the Lord through His Word and prayer. And then, make it your battle about staying there!
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