“Submit yourselves, then, to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  Come near to God and he will come near to you.  Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

~James 4:7-8 (NIV)

Let me begin this devotional by being honest with you.  I really enjoy the beginning of this passage and I have quite a bit I would like to share with you about it, but the last sentence I didn’t want to put in here.  I like to be light hearted most of the time and encouraging to those who read these devotionals.  But in this passage there are obviously four parts:  (1) Submitting to God (2) Resisting the devil (3) Drawing near to God, but all of this is made possible through number (4) cleansing our hearts and making our way right with the Lord.  It’s time to dive in deeper to all that God has for us.

“Submit yourselves, then, to God.”

Some people do not like to hear the word submit.  They want control over their own lives because somehow they think they can do better than God can.  I know I can’t.  I see the beginning of this passage and I recognize my complete need to surrender my life before the Lord.  He is the One with the answers, the One who knows the plans He has for my life, and He alone will be my strength through all things I face.  It is my true delight to simply surrender to the One who gives me life.

“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

Do not and I repeat “DO NOT” let the devil continue to pester you!  God is the authority over your life and you don’t ever have to take what satan tries to dish out.  Do exactly what the scripture says, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”  Do not entertain thoughts that satan may bring saying, “you’re not good enough,” “you should have done this better,” “if you were only like so and so,” “you need to be a better Christian,” etc.  Don’t let satan beat you up, instead let God build you up!

“Come near to God and he will come near to you.”

This is some great news!  I hope you are reading this verse in sequence.  You have just resisted the devil and now God is saying come near and I will come near to you.  There is nothing standing in the way.  You see satan wants to be a roadblock between you and God and he will say and do whatever it takes to keep you from having a vibrant relationship with God.  This is why you have to resist Satan.  Make him flee, so you can draw near to God.  God wants to be as near to you as possible.  Will you draw near to Him?  It’s a direct path.  You don’t have to cut any corners.  It’s not a maze you have to find your way through.  God wants you to just come near and He will be right there to come near to you.  Yes, you can sit in this moment and enjoy it!

“Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

God desires our submission, He wants us to resist the devil, so we can draw near to Him.  Then comes this portion of scripture that reminds us we struggle daily with sin.  We can never take sin lightly.  We must stay on guard and wash our hands of the sin that creeps into our lives.  We must purify our hearts before the Lord daily.  God doesn’t want us to say we desire to live for Him, but turn around and live for the world.  He wants all or nothing!  Choose to give Him your all today!

Dear Father God, I submit my life to You.  I continue to resist the devil and all his schemes.  May I draw near to You daily and enjoy the nearness of You in my life.  Please help me to see if there is anything unclean in my heart and help me to purify myself before You.

Drawing Near to God,
Sarah