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James 4:7–8a
“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.”
Practical religion, we have noted, is a special focus of the Apostle James in his epistle. Thus, we can count on him to tell us how we can make practical application of his teaching in our lives. His instruction in James 4:6 that God gives grace to the humble should encourage in us a desire to be humble people so that we will enjoy His gift of divine grace. In today’s passage, James begins to unfold for us what it means to be humble before God so that we put our desire for personal humility into practice.
Notably, James 4:6–10 has significant overlap with 1 Peter 5:5–9, leading many commentators to suggest that both letters might be including what was a common call to repentance and humility used throughout the early church. Regardless, the first thing that humble people do, James 4:7 says, is to submit themselves to God. The call to submission to the Lord is a call to willingly put ourselves comprehensively under His lordship. Elsewhere, Scripture tells us that the mind that is set on the sinful flesh and opposes God is the mind that will not submit to God and His righteous law. Therefore, humble people who submit to the Lord are people who seek to live their lives according to God’s law, who take the Scriptures as their only infallible rule of faith and practice. Humble people stand ready to hear and obey the commands of the Master.
Such submission entails also that we resist the devil (v. 7). We cannot have the law of God govern our lives if we yield ourselves to Satan’s evil. Resistance to the devil requires active standing against him, for he is on the prowl, looking for passive saints whom he can easily devour (1 Peter 5:8). We are to be alert, on the watch for his schemes, so that we may not become easy prey. In so doing, we can be confident that because we are on God’s side, Satan will flee as we resist him (James 4:7). Dr. R.C. Sproul observes that “Satan is not equal in power or authority to God. Though Satan is powerful, he is not invincible. He flees from saints wearing the armor of God who resist him.” Note that such resistance often includes escaping situations in which we are strongly tempted to sin (1 Cor. 10:13).
We must resist the devil but not the Lord. As we draw near to God, He will draw near to us (James 4:8). Drawing near, as we will see in our next study, involves drawing away from sin in repentance. Without repentance, we cannot enjoy warm fellowship with our Creator and the strength of His presence.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Ambrose of Milan, the preacher under whose ministry Augustine of Hippo was converted, writes that “God . . . does not drive away those who draw near to him.” This is an important truth to remember. No matter what we have done, the Lord will never reject us if we draw near to Him in faith and repentance. May we not allow the seriousness of our sin to keep us away from our loving Father in heaven. We may always draw near to Him through Christ.
For further study
- Isaiah 48:12–22
- Hosea 12:6
- Ephesians 6:10–20
- Hebrews 4:14–16
The bible in a year
- Deuteronomy 1–3
- Mark 11:15–33