Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God
James 4:4 - Giving up the worldly life may sound like an impossible task, but doing so gives us salvation and everlasting life with Jesus.
“You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”
James 4:4 NIV
If I were as hot-tempered and impetuous as I used to be, I would send this verse in an email to the pastor of our former church. That church — and the entire synod it is part of — is trying too hard to be a “friend of the world” and they apparently don’t understand the consequences.
This verse is very relevant in today’s world, especially when some mainstream Protestant denominations are choosing to ignore Scripture in an attempt to be “inclusive” to all to try to fill empty seats. At the same time they’re going out of their way to be “inclusive”, they’re refusing to preach about the need for their flocks to confess their sins, repent, and turn to Jesus. By accepting unrepentant sin, they’re turning themselves and their congregations into their own self-worshipping Gods; exactly what happened beginning with Adam and Eve.
But I digress… This verse is from the Epistle of James (the brother of Jesus, not the Apostle James) to the Jewish Christians dispersed outside Israel, and James starts off with a bang by calling his readers adulterous people. Contrary to what your first thought might be, this doesn’t mean that all of the Jewish Christians were committing adultery in the usual sense. Here’s a nice explanation from GotQuestions.org:
Scripture depicts God as the husband of His people (Isaiah 54:5; 2 Corinthians 11:2) and believers as His bride (Jeremiah 2:2; 2; Ephesians 5:22–33; Revelation 21:7, 9). So, when James calls his readers “adulterers and adulteresses” (James 4:4, NKJV), the implication is clear. To the God who has loved His people unsparingly and relentlessly, what could be more painful than their heartless betrayal?
James is challenging those people who love the world more than they love God. That world is full of people who have beliefs, values, and morals in direct opposition to God’s laws, with goals and objectives that contrast completely with God’s commands. By giving the world greater importance than God, one chooses enmity with God.
Wait, what does that mean? Enmity is defined as “a feeling or condition of hostility; hatred; ill will; animosity; antagonism”. James immediately reiterates his point in this verse by saying “anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”
I don’t know about you, but I really don’t want to be an enemy of God! Since “anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God”, followers of Jesus should do some self-examination, asking the question “Am I a friend of the world?”
GotQuestions.org had this to say about how to answer this question:
One clear indication that we have made friends with the world is our behavior. Are we acting like the people of the world? Do we quarrel, covet, and fight (James 4:1–2)? Do we “harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition” in our hearts? Do we “boast” and “deny the truth?” Do we “find disorder and every evil practice” in our lives? Or instead, do we display “deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom?” Are we “peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere” (James 3:13–18)? Friendship with the world rubs off on our character.
If anything or anyone takes a more important place in our lives than our relationship with God and Jesus Christ, we have probably entered into friendship with the world and enmity with God. One commentator writes, “Love for God and love for the world are mutually exclusive” (Dibelius, M., & Greeven, H., James: A Commentary on the Epistle of James, Fortress Press, 1976, p. 220). Jesus confirmed, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24).
What do we need to do to get right with God and remove the danger of relinquishing our souls? We need to give up our own old ways, take up our cross and follow Jesus — or as I put it in the second paragraph of this devotional, confess our sins, repent, and turn to Jesus. The benefits of getting rid of the old worldly way of life are everything: we get everything we need in this life and in the one to follow. In Mark 8:35, Jesus told us this: “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.”
Giving up the worldly life may sound like an impossible task, but doing so gives us salvation and everlasting life with Jesus.
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Father in Heaven, I confess that I often think and act in a worldly way that grieves the Holy Spirit. I pray that you help me to not be drawn into friendship with the world, but instead be become closer to You. May my focus be more and more on You each day, causing the attraction of this world to fade away. I pray this in Jesus’ name, AMEN.