Submit Yourself to God!

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. (James 4:7-10)

Although God and the devil are at war, we don't have to wait until the end to see who will win. God has already defeated Satan (Revelation 12:10-12), and when Christ returns, the devil and all he stands for will be eliminated forever (Revelation 20:10-15). Satan is here now, however, and he is trying to win us over to his evil cause. With the Holy Spirit's power, we can resist the devil, and he will flee from us.


We must follow in order the two commands in James 4:7. First we must submit to God by abandoning our selfish pride (James 4:1–6). Submitting to the Lord also involves putting on the whole armor of God, an image that includes everything from placing our faith in Him to immersing ourselves in the truth of God’s Word (Ephesians 6:11–18). Second, we must resist any temptation that the devil throws our way. Then the Evil One will have no choice but to flee, for we will belong to the army of the living God.


How can you come near to God? James gives five ways: (1) Submit to God (James 4:7). Yield to His authority and will, commit your life to Him and His control, and be willing to follow Him. (2) Resist the devil (James 4:7). Don't allow Satan to entice and tempt you. (3) Wash your hands...and purify your hearts by leading a pure life (James 4:8). Be cleansed from sin, replacing your desire to sin with your desire to experience God's purity. (4) Grieve and mourn and wail in sincere sorrow for your sins (James 4:9). Don't be afraid to express deep heartfelt sorrow for what you have done. (5) Humble yourself before the Lord and He will lift you up (James 4:10; 1 Peter 5:6).

When a believer who has fallen into sin responds to God’s call for repentance, they should place laughter and joy aside to reflect on the sin with genuine sorrow (2 Corinthians 7:9, 10). In this verse (James 4:9); laughter seems to refer to the loud revelry of pleasure-loving people. They immerse themselves in a celebration of their sins in an effort to forget God’s judgment. A Christian should never laugh at sin. However, Christian sorrow leads to repentance; repentance leads to forgiveness; and forgiveness leads to true joy over one’s reconciliation with God (Psalms 32:1; 126:2; Proverbs 15:13).

Humbling ourselves means recognizing that our worth comes from God alone. To be humble involves working with His power according to His guidance, not with our own independent effort. Although we do not deserve God's favor, He reaches out to us in love and gives us worth and dignity, despite our human shortcomings.

Father God, it is my prayer this morning that I fully submit myself too You and to You alone. Search my heart and cleanse me of any evil that is there. Give me the wisdom and courage to resist the devil and to recognize sin for what it really is. Thank you my Lord and Savior for saving my soul and setting me free. I pray this all in Jesus name. Amen.

References: NKJV Holy Bible, Life Application Bible (NIV), the Nelson Study Bible.