A MATTER OF TIME......
I'm not sure I ever really read James before. Oh, I see notations in my bibles that I have 'gone through' James, and I remember particular phrases from the book. But I'm not sure I have ever really read it and thought about it. We are all so busy. Even since I retired, I am rushing from activity to activity, constantly thinking about how I am going to get everything to fit in. It's even worse than it was before! I think maybe Satan loves that about us.....the busier we are the less time we have to study the Word, talk with God, or simply praise Him for His mercy.
Even though we are sometimes too 'busy' to pursue Him,God pursues us through many avenues. The most important one is through His word, because there He can become VERY PERSONAL in His approach to us. All we have to do is to take the time to read it.Attending a bible study can sometimes 'force' you, if for no other reason than embarrassment, to get into the Word on a regular basis. Hence my study of James. Today my heart was caught on this verse:
"Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. -James 4:7
The two words that stand out to me are submit and resist. Two polar opposites in action. I have finally come to the conclusion that submission is not the "bad" word I always thought it was. I won't even go into the marriage relationship here, which is where our minds go when we talk about submission. I'll bet some of you, as I do, remember back in the 70's when women's lib was getting started. We weren't submitting to ANYBODY for ANYTHING. That word became an ugly one that seemed to make women less than human, a doormat for anyone and everyone to walk on. We became so caught up in the negative connotations of the word we never gave any thought to what the real meaning of the word could mean in relationship with Christ.
The Greek word for submit means to 'obey, be under obedience, be subject to.' Hmmmmm. "Be subject to." Any person under the rule of a leader should be subject to that leader's authority. Let's talk about our leader, God. If we really believe what He tells us, that He is FOR us, that He will protect us, that He loves us, that He wants the best for us, then submitting to His authority seems easier done. I think we have a hard time understanding leadership that thinks of the follower more than self because we don't see that in our relationships here on earth. But if we believe ONE WORD of the bible, we have to believe in His mercy, His love, and His care for us. Submitting, then, becomes an act with a bit of selfishness involved, because we know this submission will benefit us in the end.
Resist in this context means to "stand against". Standing against requires action. We have to DO something. We have to be proactive. If we are passive against the devil's actions toward us, we give him more power to move against us. More power to inch his way into our lives. More power to take that part of us which is not in submission to Christ and take control. And the scariest thing about it is, we sometimes don't realize something has been 'given over' to this jerk until it's already done.
I love 'The Message' version of this verse:
"So let God work His will in you. Yell a loud NO to the devil and watch him scamper."
I really like the picture this gives. Running with his tail between his legs. Scampering, or running hastily or quickly. Getting the heck "out of Dodge" so to speak. That picture makes me smile. This character has caused so much havoc in my life that his running away quickly is a pleasant sight to me.
Submit and resist. Two words with completely different meanings. Two words that can make all the difference in any life. Only two words. Yet, when we take the time to make these two words work in our lives the way scripture asks us to, what rewards follow! It's only a matter of time.
Even though we are sometimes too 'busy' to pursue Him,God pursues us through many avenues. The most important one is through His word, because there He can become VERY PERSONAL in His approach to us. All we have to do is to take the time to read it.Attending a bible study can sometimes 'force' you, if for no other reason than embarrassment, to get into the Word on a regular basis. Hence my study of James. Today my heart was caught on this verse:
"Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. -James 4:7
The two words that stand out to me are submit and resist. Two polar opposites in action. I have finally come to the conclusion that submission is not the "bad" word I always thought it was. I won't even go into the marriage relationship here, which is where our minds go when we talk about submission. I'll bet some of you, as I do, remember back in the 70's when women's lib was getting started. We weren't submitting to ANYBODY for ANYTHING. That word became an ugly one that seemed to make women less than human, a doormat for anyone and everyone to walk on. We became so caught up in the negative connotations of the word we never gave any thought to what the real meaning of the word could mean in relationship with Christ.
The Greek word for submit means to 'obey, be under obedience, be subject to.' Hmmmmm. "Be subject to." Any person under the rule of a leader should be subject to that leader's authority. Let's talk about our leader, God. If we really believe what He tells us, that He is FOR us, that He will protect us, that He loves us, that He wants the best for us, then submitting to His authority seems easier done. I think we have a hard time understanding leadership that thinks of the follower more than self because we don't see that in our relationships here on earth. But if we believe ONE WORD of the bible, we have to believe in His mercy, His love, and His care for us. Submitting, then, becomes an act with a bit of selfishness involved, because we know this submission will benefit us in the end.
Resist in this context means to "stand against". Standing against requires action. We have to DO something. We have to be proactive. If we are passive against the devil's actions toward us, we give him more power to move against us. More power to inch his way into our lives. More power to take that part of us which is not in submission to Christ and take control. And the scariest thing about it is, we sometimes don't realize something has been 'given over' to this jerk until it's already done.
I love 'The Message' version of this verse:
"So let God work His will in you. Yell a loud NO to the devil and watch him scamper."
I really like the picture this gives. Running with his tail between his legs. Scampering, or running hastily or quickly. Getting the heck "out of Dodge" so to speak. That picture makes me smile. This character has caused so much havoc in my life that his running away quickly is a pleasant sight to me.
Submit and resist. Two words with completely different meanings. Two words that can make all the difference in any life. Only two words. Yet, when we take the time to make these two words work in our lives the way scripture asks us to, what rewards follow! It's only a matter of time.
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