James 4:7-10
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. (Vs. 7-10)
To overcome the world and its desires, we have to submit to GOD. The submission to GOD makes us humble and helps us to submit to each other in Christian love; but, when we submit to the desires of the world, we nurture a quality of superiority complex within us- to overpower others, to control and to rule others. When we submit to GOD, we have to resist the devil as well. Resisting the devil is not always rebuking him in Jesus’ name. It also means to walk in the word of GOD. Jesus, when He was tested by the devil (Luke 4), He spoke words from the Scriptures and the devil fled. The discernment to rebuke and to use the word of GOD comes when we mature in His stature. Instead of arguments, speak the word of GOD when you are tempted. Resist the devil with discernment and with the power of GOD and he will flee.
Drawing near to GOD means we are having the heart to submit to GOD’s authority. Most of the believers fail to draw near to GOD after they resist the devil. Drawing near to GOD is not always about finding shelter, peace, and rest. But, it also includes:
- To check our lives with the standards of the divine nature;
- To ask for counsel from Him;
- To get direction from Him;
- To enjoy the warmth of the divine communion.
As we draw near to GOD, we get a clear picture of our lives as well. The flaws, the sins, and the transgression we have in our life. When GOD shows them, we have to get cleansing from His presence. The more you get closer to GOD, the holier you will become. There is no creature hidden from His sight but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him (Hebrew 13:4). If the presence of the LORD is not making us mourn and lament, it means we are resisting the presence of GOD, or in other words, we are not allowing GOD to intervene in our life. GOD is powerful and He knows the desires of every heart, but, for a drastic change in our lives, we need to submit to GOD and allow Him to work according to His will.
Mourning and lamenting in His presence is a sign of repentance.
So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish? Then God saw their works that they turned from their evil way, and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it. (Jonah 3:5-10).
They put on sackcloth and sat in ashes with fasting. Their laughter turned to mourn and joy turned to heaviness. They may have appointments, business tours, medical appointments, or other celebrations, but, no entertainments or material things are not a priority to repent and turn to GOD. When we put GOD over all our priorities, GOD will honor us. They cried mightily to GOD and He relented from the disaster and saved them.
The honor comes when we are ready to humble before GOD and His loving-kindness will lead us in the way perfect.
