”Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.“
James 4:8 NASB1995
Sometimes we feel that God is distant from us. We know that’s not the case, but it feels as if He isn’t listening to our prayers or showing His love to us. In this verse from Chapter 4 of his letter to dispersed Jewish Christians, James proclaims an invitation and a promise — if believers draw near to God, He will draw near to them.
What is meant by “drawing near to God”? Charles Spurgeon felt that it meant to get closer to God in worship, praise, and in prayer; to ask God’s counsel (advice); to enjoy communion with God; and to get closer to Him in the general course and tenor of your life.
This is so different from the way that God treated worshipers in the Old Testament. For example, God didn’t want Moses to come too close to the burning bush and told him to take off his sandals. Under the new covenant, the blood of Jesus has sanctified the ground between God and sinners, and He tells us to “Draw near to Me and I will draw near to you.”
God really wants to be near us, establishing a close personal relationship and fellowship with those who worship Him. The remainder of this Chapter of James tells us what benefits we’ll receive from drawing near to God. He’ll help us to resist the devil, become pure, mourn sin, speak well of other people, and think of eternal things.
By drawing near to God, we are convicted of our sin. James uses the Greek word ἁμαρτωλός (hamartōlos) for sinner in this verse. Translated, the word means “pre-eminently sinful, especially wicked”, “specifically of men stained with certain definite vices or crimes - tax collectors, heathens.” We may not think of ourselves as “preeminently sinful,” but any sin is an affront to God.
James reminds his readers about the need for repentance in his statement to cleanse your hands and purify your hearts. It is a duty for all believers, rewarding us with God’s blessings.
If you’re personally feeling that God is distant from you at this time, pay attention to this verse, an invitation from God to get closer to Him. Spend more time in prayer, repent of your sins, and ask for forgiveness. Ask God for His advice and enjoy His company in your daily walk with Him. Follow Jesus’s commandment to “love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength” (Mark 12:30). This invitation might not be easy to accept, but God will draw near!
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Heavenly Father, teach me to think only of You as I go through my days, to repent of my sin so that my heart is purified and my hands are clean, so I may draw closer to my Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. Open my ears to Your voice, my eyes to Your truth, and my heart to You alone. In the name of Jesus I pray, AMEN.