James
doesn’t mince words.  He knew the
problems churches were facing.  It was
a problem of the heart.  The Holy Spirit
knows we have the same problem today.  He
writes:

 

7Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will
flee from you.

8Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands,
you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

9Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and
your joy to gloom.

10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

James 4:7–10


 

We’re told
in verses seven and eight to RELINQUISH our control.   James tells us to “submit” to God.  We are called to put ourselves in a
subordinate position to God.  We are not
in control—at least, we shouldn’t be!  When
we submit to God, we are putting Him in the driver’s seat.  We are putting ourselves under His
Lordship.  Remember what Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commands” (John
14:15).

 

We
relinquish our control to God and that results in our ability to “resist the
devil”.  In our own strength, we will
fail.  Count on it.  I have; you have; we will.  Resisting the devil AFTER we have given the
steering wheel to the Lord causes Satan to flee.

 

We are
called to draw close to the Lord.  He
wants our attention.  Jesus reminds us
the Father is seeking worshipers: people who want to love Him and allow Him to
love them back (cf. John 4:23-24).  One
of the first requirements of worship is relinquishing our will and dominance to
the Lord and allowing Him to clean us and purify our hearts.

 

James
proceeds to tell us in verses nine and ten to REPENT.

9Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and
your joy to gloom.

10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

 

When was the
last time you actually agreed with the Lord and said, “you’re right.  I’m wrong”? 
It’s interesting James says to turn laughter and joy into mourning and
gloom.  That’s the opposite of what we
hear most of the time, huh?  James was
speaking to people who didn’t even know that they were in sin.  Have you ever been around someone like that?  Have you ever been someone like that?

 

James
concludes in verse ten “humble yourselves
before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”   This is very
similar to where he started.  He tells us
to lower ourselves in the Lord’s presence (and the Lord is everywhere!), then
He will lift you up.

 

When we try
to exalt ourselves (what James has spent a great deal of time talking about in
previous sections), God humbles us (cf. Proverbs 3:34).  When we, instead, exalt God and put Him in
His proper space in our lives and hearts, He exalts us and give us a humbling
lift.