Title: With the Lord! (March 29, 2009)
Contents
Topic: With the Lord!
Word: James 4:6-10
6 But he gives more grace, therefore it is said, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
7 Therefore submit yourselves to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
9 Mourn and mourn and weep; turn your laughter into mourning, and your joy into sorrow.
10 Humble yourself before the Lord, and the Lord will exalt you.
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The life of faith refers to the whole process of living in fellowship with God, following His Word, and obeying Him.
In the case of Israel, too, they enjoyed their heyday when they drew near to God and obeyed the Word, but fell apart when they distanced themselves from God and walked the path of disobedience and idolatry.
The apostle James writes, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” Here, 'close' means 'be on good terms'.
We have experienced many fights and quarrels in our lives and we have seen wars. Wars with humans are bound to end in tragedy. Because the value of life and the meaning of life have changed. But there is a greater misfortune and tragedy than this. It is fighting, quarreling, arguing, and disobeying God. God created the heavens and the earth with His Word, and everything is moving according to that order. Man, as a creature of God, must not depart from God's orbit. Even airplanes flying in the wide sky have a set route, and ships sailing in the open sea have a set route. Similarly, high-speed rail overturns when it leaves the track. Even if a person has a position as high as the sky and wide knowledge as the sea, if they distance themselves from God and deviate from God, they will be derailed, stranded, and sunk.
Everyone wants everyone to be happy. But no one can guarantee that happiness. And even I cannot guarantee that happiness. But believers in Jesus need not fear or worry. God guarantees, guarantees, and promises our happiness. We must look to it with faith.
The text suggests ways to draw closer to God.
First, you must be humble.
Verse 6 says, “God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble.” -
Pride can be a pillar on which you can support yourself, but if you overdo it, it becomes arrogance. And pride makes us rebellious against God.
Second, it must be clean.
Verse 8: “Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”-
Here, when the Apostle James said, “Be clean,” it means to be clean in your conduct. To ‘purify your heart’ means to purify your soul. Therefore, it is to have unity in words and deeds, that is, to have a whole personal faith. There are many people who pretend to believe in Jesus at church, but lose all of their faith when they go to church. In the religious life, attitude is important. If your posture is wrong, you will have problems with your spiritual health. In the Old Testament times, in order to be cleansed from sins, you had to offer a blood sacrifice. In Hebrews 9:28 it is written, “In the same way, Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many, and will appear a second time, not to mention sin, to those who wait for him for salvation.” In order to bear the blood of many people, Jesus was put to death without regard to sins and accomplished the forgiveness of sins. Our hands and feet can be cleansed with water, but our hearts and souls cannot be cleansed with water. It is only possible by believing in Jesus. We must be washed with the blood of Jesus.
Dear Sandolseong, everyone~
We must always live a life of abiding in the Lord. When we do that, the Lord promises to be with us as well. When we truly abide in the Lord, our lives can be changed. I pray that you will live with the faith of Immanuel, who walks with the Lord for a week.