James 4 v. 7 – 12
‘7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
11 Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.
12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbour?’
NOTES
James has previously urged us to humble ourselves and to turn back to God and His ways – he now spells out for us what this looks like in everyday, 24/7, life.
Submitting to God recognises that He is not only our friend, but also our Creator and King; we submit our desires to Him – and resist the devil’s pull back into our self-centred motives and desires.
‘As we turn back to God, we find Him running to us to embrace us.’ (v. 7)
And putting God and self in their respective, rightful places should also impact on our relationship with others – not slandering, not standing in judgement over others.
PRAYER
Lord Jesus,
examine my life,
and reveal the truth
about who rules and reigns.
Help me submit
help me come near
help me wash and be washed
help me be purified
help me grieve and mourn
help me to humble myself
today
help me not to slander
help me not to sit in judgement – to take Your place
so that You may come near to me
and so that You may lift me up.
AMEN.