Stewardship & Responsibility - Reflections from Eden | A Sermon on Genesis 2:15-20 & Matthew 25:15-30

Introduction
Last week in our message, we explored the importance of relationships that the creation story in Genesis 2 emphasizes.  There are so many interesting ideas and themes to explore in the creation story, but today I want to focus on the idea of stewardship and responsibility.  Let’s start by reading part of the Garden of Eden story and consider what it may teach us about stewardship and then we’re going to look at what Jesus said about stewardship.

Genesis 2:15-20
¹⁵ The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. ¹⁶ But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden— ¹⁷ except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

¹⁸ Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.” ¹⁹ So the Lord God formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one. ²⁰ He gave names to all the livestock, all the birds of the sky, and all the wild animals. But still there was no helper just right for him.

God Created Us to Be Stewards
God places Adam in the Garden of Eden and instructs him to work and take care of it, showing humanity’s role as caretakers of creation.  God also has Adam name all the animals.  In ancient Middle Eastern culture, knowing someone’s name often meant having power or authority over them.  Adam’s job of naming the animals shows his responsibility and authority over nature.  This story reveals part of our purpose in life is to watch over and manage God’s creation.  We are to be stewards.  That is why we can use the resources of creation to help sustain us.  But, that doesn’t mean we abuse creation, because it belongs to God.

A steward, from a biblical Christian perspective, is someone entrusted by God to manage and care for His creation and resources. This includes everything from the environment to personal relationships to our talents and our finances. A steward is called to faithfully use these gifts with responsibility, wisdom, and obedience, reflecting God’s will and purpose. Ultimately, a steward’s role is to honor God by fostering growth, serving others, and making choices that align with God’s plan.  Jesus told a parable to remind us of our purpose as God’s stewards.  The parable is found in Matthew 25:15-30.

Matthew 25:14-18
¹⁴ “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. ¹⁵ He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.

¹⁶ “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. ¹⁷ The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. ¹⁸ But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.

The Effect of Inflation on Money
I want to point out a basic financial principle about “interest” here, because it answers a question people often have about this parable.  Money doesn’t hold its value.  If someone gave you $100 50 years ago and you put it in a mason jar and buried it in the ground, and then dug today, how much would it be worth?  Still $100, right?  But $100 today doesn’t go as far as it did 50 years ago, right?  Because of inflation, you would need at least $634 today to have as much buying power as $100 had 50 years ago.  So, the two servants who invested their master’s money ensured the money didn’t lose value.  But the money the third fearful servant buried has lost value.

Matthew 25:19-30
¹⁹ “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. ²⁰ The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’

²¹ “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’

²² “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’

²³ “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’

²⁴ “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. ²⁵ I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’

²⁶ “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, ²⁷ why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’

²⁸ “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. ²⁹ To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. ³⁰ Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Which Servant Do You Want To Be?
Jesus’ Parable teaches us the importance of being good stewards and managing the resources God has given us. In the story, a master gives his servants different amounts of money and expects them to use it wisely while he is away.  But this is a story about us.  We are the servants in the story.  God is the Master.  He made us.  He placed us on this earth.  He entrusted to us all the talents and resources we have.  We are responsible for using what God gives us and God expects us to use it all for His glory, not just for our own selfish desires.  And we are to be fruitful with God’s resources.

Jesus’ parable also gives us a warning.  One day, the Master is going to return and ask each and everyone of us to give an account on how we managed God’s resources.  Were we fruitful?
Now which one of the servants do you want to be when the God asks you to give an account?

Stewardship involves every aspect of our lives, because everything we have and all that we are is a gift from God.  Jesus came to call us back to this way of living.  A life where we fulfill our God given purpose to be good stewards who view everything in our lives as a way to honor and glorify God.  Glorify Him with the work you do.  Glorify Him with the money you have.  Glorify Him by the way you lead your family.  Glorify Him by the way you treat you friends, raise your children, serve in your church…  Honor and glorify God as a good steward in every part of your life.

Stewardship Challenge
In my church, we did a special activity to practice what it means to be a good steward.  Each person who came to worship that day received a $5 bill as part of a stewardship challenge. Their task was to pray and ask God how they could use the $5 to bless someone that week. They were free to spend the money however they felt led, but the goal was to make a positive impact in someone else’s life. I encouraged them to be creative, thoughtful, and prayerful in how they choose to use this gift.

What would you do if you received $5?  Would you:
Buy a meal or a coffee for someone in need or surprise a stranger by paying for their order.
Purchase a small gift to give someone (like a greeting card or flowers).
Buy supplies (such as snacks, bottled water, or hygiene products) to give to someone in needs.
Combine your $5 with others to make a larger impact, such as buying groceries for a struggling family.  

Part of the point of this exercise is to make it plain to everyone that the money is not theirs.  It was given to them to be used for a purpose:  to be a blessing to others.  When we think of our own resources--our money, our talents, our time--these also are not our own.  They were given to us by God.  And we are to use them in ways that align with God's values and purposes for our world.  We are to be good steward who use God's resources in ways that honor and glorify Him.  Are you being a goof steward?  How do you need to change to do better?

Life is a Mist | A Sermon on James 4:13-17

Introduction
I woke up early this morning and decided to get on up and come to church and finish up my sermon on James 4:13-17.  As I drove in through the dark morning air around 5:30, there were a few fingers of thin fog crossing the road in the dips and depressions along the way.  It was pretty.  But it’s so dry, I knew the mist would evaporate before you got up to make your way here. 

But the mist brought to mind this morning’s passage from the Epistle of James for it says our lives are like a morning mist that is here for a short time and then vanishes.

 

James 4:13-17
¹³ Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”  ¹⁴ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  ¹⁵ Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”  ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes.  All such boasting is evil.  ¹⁷ If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.

 

Proverbs 16:9
It is said, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.  I believe that whole heartedly.  I’ve always been a planner.  It’s something my Mom instilled in me at a young age.  

When I was in the 3^rd or 4^th grade.  I was always pestering my mom to buy me those little toy airplanes with the windup propellers powered by a rubber band.  So she said, "I think you can build one of those yourself."  She started saving the Styrofoam trays that came in the meat packages from the grocery store.  She would wash them and then give them to me and I would build airplanes out of them.  I got creative and made all different designs.  It was a lot of fun.

My mom said, “You know, you like building those so much you might like to be an engineer who designs airplanes.”  And I thought she was probably right so I started planning how I could be an engineer one day.  And my mom in her wisdom said, "You know if you want to be an engineer, you'll need to make good grades in school so you can go to college."  And that encouraged me to do beter in school.  So from the time I was only 8 or 9 years old, I was already planning ahead for my future.  I planned to grow up and design airplanes for a living.

 

But God had other plans.  Proverbs 16:9 says, “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.”  When I graduated high school, I didn't have enough money to attend college to be an aerospace engineer.  But a college in Marietta offered a  full scholarship to be a textile engineer.  So, my plans changed.  And as I neared the end of my college degree, God changed my plans again.  I started to feel God calling me to be a pastor instead of an engineer.  Jesus told the fisherman Peter, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”  To me, Jesus said, “Follow me and I will make you an engineer of me, discipling them to grow closer to God."  So my plans changed again and I started pursuing a life of ministry as a Methodist pastor.

James says very bluntly, it is arrogant, sinful, and presumptuous to make plans without considering the Lord’s will.  More than that, if Jesus is truly our Lord (as Christians say He is), then we ought to be 100% sold out to Lord’s will (as opposed to our own).   So we ought to seek to do the Lord’s will and not just ask Him to bless our own plans. 

I’m still a planner, but I’ve learned some new principles about planning from Jesus over the last 30 years that I want to pass along:

Godly Planning

First – Acknowledge God's Sovereignty.

God is sovereign.  That means God is in control of everything and has the power and the right  to decide what happens.  James 4:15 says, "Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’"

When making plans, consistently acknowledge that God is in control and that His will should take precedence over your own.  Of course, this is an attitude and a state of mind, but it can help become our state of mind when we actually say things like "if it is the Lord’s will" and genuinely mean it.

Second – Seek God's Guidance Through Prayer.
Rather than coming up with your own plans and then asking God to bless them, start by seeking God will from the get-go.  Not only is it more efficient, it actually helps you grow closer to the Lord and practice being in-tune with His Holy Spirit. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 - "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."

Prayer is essential to Christian living.  Regularly pray for wisdom and guidance when making plans.  Ask God to reveal His will for your life and to direct your steps.  And then follow Him in faith.

Third – Be Open to God’s Redirection.
Make your plans with great humility.  Don’t be so set on your plans that you cling to them if God wants to change them.  And God might change your plans for any number of reasons.  
Your plans might not be His plans.  Which plans do you really want to follow?
Your plans might only align partially with God’s plans.  For me, going to college was only partially God's plan.  I needed to go to college to fulfill my calling to be a Methodist minister (Methodist pastors must first get a bachelors degree and then go on to seminary for a masters degree).  Any bachelor's degree would do.  But God had to alter my initial educational plans and I had to be willing to obey and adapt.  

God may change His plans based on something you don’t know about.  He always knows better.  Do you remember what you were doing on the morning of March 12^th, 2020?   I do.  It was a thursday morning and I was preparing to serve as a chaplain (spiritual director) on a Walk to Emmaus spiritual retreat.  We had all heard of COVID-19, but it wasn't something that was really effecting our lives much on Thursday morning, March 12th.  But by the evening that day, my retreat and the whole world was shut down.  Even church that coming Sunday, March 15, was canceled.  Not just my church, but almost every church in the country.  No one was supposed to gather in the sanctuary.  What were we going to do?  But God, in His wisdom, had helped us plan for it without our even knowing it.

Three years earlier (back in 2017), I had had a casual conversation with another pastor in another town who said they had started livestreaming their service on Facebook.  "Yeah, we iust have someone hold up their smart phone and lives stream it."  I though, "Hmmm...  We could do that." So we started doing it in our church.  I got a few volunteers and we had people stream very bad quality recordings of the service.  By January of 2020, we decided if we were going to keep live streaming, we really needed to up our game.  So we installed our first real camera in the church balcony for the purpose. We thought it would be easy--just add the camera, but it caused all kinds of technical problems.  And we experimented through January and February and by March we had all the bugs worked out.  So when March 15th rolled around and we couldn't have in-person church, God had already helped us get everything ready for a full livestream service without our even knowing what He was planning!  God is good!  He sees things you do not.  So stay in touch with His plans.

Proverbs 19:21 – "You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail. "  When it comes to planning, remain flexible and be open to changes in your plans, understanding that God may have different and better plans for you.  Be willing to adapt when circumstances change, trusting that God is guiding you.

Fourth, Involve Wise Counsel.  Proverbs 15:22 says, "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed."  Christians live in community.  We don’t practice our faith alone.  I don’t care what anyone says, your faith in God is not a private matter.  It is not just something between you and God. Don’t believe that lie.  Faith in Jesus Christ has never been something that was a private thing.

Jesus called 12 disciples and they lived out their faith together.  Christianity in the New Testament was always an interaction between people living together.  Even before God created people or the world, He was not alone because God is a Trinity.  God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit live together in a perfectly harmonious relationship.  And we are made in God's image.  Therefore, we are to live in community.

So, when you make plans, you ought to seek the wise counsel of your brothers and sisters in Christ.
One of the biggest mistakes when I answered the call to ministry was trying to figure it out all on my own.  I didn't talk to anyone about it.  I didn't even talk to my wife.  How sad.  It caused unnecessary strife in our marriage and even delayed my calling by three years.  All I had to do was talk to her.  

Humility involves recognizing that you don't have all the answers.  When you plan, seek advice from trusted, godly friends, mentors, or leaders who can provide wisdom and perspective.

 

Life is a Mist
I hope you take to heart James’ sobering reminder that our lives are like a morning mist—brief and fleeting.  Just as the mist evaporates with the rising sun, our time on this earth is short and uncertain.

As I drove to church early this morning and noticed the drifting mist, I thought of the many people I have known—people my own age or even younger—who have already passed on.  I’ve been thinking about that lately.

My youngest daughter will be a senior in high school this coming school year.  Then, Kelly and I will enter a new stage of life.  I sometimes wonder what it will hold.  Will we continue to be happy and healthy?  Will there be a diagnosis of cancer or something worse?  I don’t know.  I hope for the best.  But I also know there are no guarantees.  Life is a mist.  We do not know what tomorrow holds, and we cannot control the future.  But we do know who holds the future, and that is God.

James urges us to live with humility, acknowledging God's sovereignty in all our plans.  We must recognize that while we can make plans, it is the Lord who directs our steps.  This means being open to His guidance and redirection, seeking His will through prayer, involving wise counsel, and being flexible enough to adapt when circumstances change.

Now, in light of the brevity of life, I want to challenge you to respond to this message today.  If you have not yet given your life to Jesus Christ, do not delay.  Accept Him as your Lord and Savior right now.  Don’t put off the most important decision of your life.

For those of you who are already Christians, consider if there is something God is calling you to do that you have been postponing.  Maybe it’s reconciling with a loved one, stepping into a new ministry, or making a significant life change.  Whatever it is, don’t wait.  Take action today.  Remember, James said “it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.”

Our lives are but a mist, and we must make the most of the time God has given us.  Let's choose to live each day with purpose, seeking God's will, and trusting in His perfect plan for our lives.

Closing Prayer
Sovereign God, we come with humble hearts, acknowledging Your rightful rule over our lives.  Help us to live with the awareness that our time here is short and to make the most of every moment by seeking Your will.  For those who need to make a decision today, give them the courage to act now.  For those who need to take a step of faith, provide them with Your guidance and strength.  Thank You for being our constant guide and support.  In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

 

Warning! Do Not Judge! | A Sermon on James 4:11-12

Introduction
Today, we continue our series on the book of James.  Last week, we learned about choosing God's way over our own selfish desires.  Today, we'll look at James 4:11-12 and talk about the power of our words.  James says a lot in this short passage about how we speak to and about others.  Let's see what we can learn. 

James 4:11-12
¹¹ Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. ¹² There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?

Don’t Slander One Another (James 4:11)
James starts out by telling us not to slander one another.  Slander means speaking falsely or maliciously about someone, damaging their reputation.  When we talk badly about others, we hurt them and ourselves.  We are all part of God's family, and He calls us to love and support one another, not tear each other down.

Let me give you an illustration.  If you are on a baseball team, it's important for everyone on the team to support each other and work together to win.  But if someone is spreading rumors about their team mates, it creates division and distrust in the team and makes it much harder to work together and succeed.  Well, as Christians, who is on our team?  Everyone in our church is on our team.  We aren't competing against eachother, but against the powers of darkness among us.  So we should not slander and spread rumors because it creates distrust and makes it harder to work together and succeed in bringing God's Kingdom on earth.  

And if you think about it, there are other people on our team even outside our congregation.  Everyone in a Bible believing church is also trying to make disciples of Jesus and bring God's Kingdom on earth.  So, we are not competing against other churches in our community.  We all have the same goal.  If they succeed, we succeed.  If we succeed, they succeed.  So let us not bring division in God's universal church or spread rumors and slander.  Let us root for each other and pray for each other to all succeed.

And if we have a broader definition of success, we could include our whole community and our country as being on our team.  Don't we want our community and country to succeed?  Then let us not tear each other down, but build ach other up as much as it is in our power to do so.

What are some ways Christians may be guilty of slander?
Gossip – Sharing unverified or private information about someone else's personal life.  Talking behind their back about their mistakes or failures.

Spreading Rumors – Passing along information that may not be true or is exaggerated, which can harm someone's reputation.  Speculating about someone's actions or intentions without knowing the full story.

Criticizing Leadership – Speaking negatively about church leaders or decisions they make without understanding the full context or offering constructive feedback.  Undermining authority by questioning leaders' integrity or abilities.

Judging Appearances or Behavior – Making negative comments about someone's clothing, appearance, or lifestyle choices.  Criticizing how others raise their children, manage their finances, or conduct their marriages.

Undermining People’s Faith – Questioning the sincerity of someone's faith or relationship with God based on their actions or struggles.  Making disparaging remarks about someone's participation or lack thereof in church activities.

Complaining About Others – Expressing frustration about the behavior or habits of fellow church members in a way that is unkind or unfair.  Creating division by speaking negatively about different groups or cliques within the church.

James says, "Don't Slander!"

Judging Others (James 4:11-12)
James goes on to talk about judging others.  He says when we judge others, we put ourselves above God's law.  "The law" is the moral and ethical teachings given by God, particularly the command to love one another.  Remember, Jesus said the greatest commandment (law) is to love the Lord your God.  And the second is like it:  Love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39). 

 James 2:8 mentions this "royal law" found in Scripture: "Love your neighbor as yourself."  When we speak against or judge others, we are not acting in accordance with this law of love.  Rather, we act as though we are above than the law.  In essence, we are saying God's law of love does not apply to us, or that we know better than God.  We put ourselves in a position to judge the holy law of God itself, which is both presumptuous and wrong.

Judging vs. Discerning
Now, whenever I talk about not being judgmental, I need to remind us of the difference between judging and discerning (or between being judgmental and making good judgments). 

There’s a difference.  For example:  We are currently searching for a new children’s minister for our church.  We are taking applications and trying to choose the best candidate.  How can we hire the right person unless we interview and “judge” the candidates? 

The kind of judgment James speaks against is a condemning, self-righteous attitude that looks down on others and assumes a position of moral superiority.  This leads to thinking or speaking negatively about others, spreading rumors, and causes division.

This is not the same as discernment, which provides constructive guidance with love and humility.  When we interview people we exercise discernment and wisdom.  This includes evaluating a person's character, qualifications, and behavior.  But the goal is to find the right person for the job, not to tear anyone down.

But what is someone is not acting right?  What if their behavior is clearly wrong?  What then?

If we have someone in our church whose behavior is unacceptable, we go to them in love to hold them accountable to build them up and help them be more like Christ.  Jesus even gave instructions for addressing sin among believers in Matthew 18:15-7.  He taught us to:

• Go to the person privately and gently and respectfully point out their fault.
• If the person doesn't listen, take one or two others with you to help mediate and confirm the issue.
• If the person still refuses to listen, bring the matter before the church. The goal is always restoration and reconciliation (not proving you are right by tearing someone else down).

So there is a clear difference between being judgmental and making good judgments.

Humility is Key (James 4:12)
Remember, there is only one true Judge.  Our role is to love and serve one another with humility.  Humility is the key.  It reminds us we have our own faults and need God's grace too.  When we speak with humility, we build others up instead of tearing them down. 

How we speak to and about one another is important.  We are called not to slander or judge,
but to speak with love and humility. By doing this, we honor God and build a stronger, more united community. 

It’s Our Job to Build a Better Future
It breaks my heart to see so much division and slander being thrown around in society.  The ignorance, disrespect, and vitriol that characterizes our public discourse is troubling.  It is ungodly, unholy, and unhealthy.  What kind of world we are leaving for our children and grandchildren?

If it concerns you too, then I invite you to be part of the solution and not part of the problem.  Christians are called to be different than the world.  We are called to be salt and light—to be a positive influence on our broken world.  And we can, because we have the power of God’s Holy Spirit living inside us.

The way we make a difference is to live differently, to speak differently.  We are called to be holy as God is holy, to love as God loves, to act with humility and to treat people with dignity and respect.  The way to change the world is not to gripe about it, but to be the change we want to see.

Baptism of Joshua Kirk Ikerd
In just a moment, we are going to baptize baby Joshua, the son of Kelsey and Chad Ikerd.  Whenever we baptize our children, we promise to do all in our power to support their life of faith.  It occurs to me today this includes doing all we can to make the world they inherit a better one.  One of the chief ways we can do that right now is to act with humility and to treat people with dignity so the world becomes a more positive and loving place to live.  Will you do that?

Submit to God, Flee from the Devil | A Sermon from James 4:1-10

Introduction
We’ve been working our way through the Epistle of James.  Let me review a few important points to remember about this letter.

James is Jesus’ biological half-brother; Mary was mother to both James and Jesus.

James wrote his letter to people who were already Christians, who had been driven out of Jerusalem and scattered abroad by persecution. These were committed Christians who had already suffered for their faith.

The vast majority of Christians at this time were Jewish. They knew the Jewish faith and the Old Testament of the Bible. (The New Testament was not formed yet.)

Our Scripture today is James 4:1-10, but we will take it in three sections.

James 4:1-3
¹ What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  ² You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.  ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

I am a Christian, but I Still Struggle
The first thing that strikes me from this section is how Christians still struggle with sin and envy.  Remember, James is writing to Christians, not unbelievers, and these were hardcore Christians whose faith had been tested by persecution and they remained faithful.  And Christians still struggle with sin—both in Bible times and today.

People often mock Christians because we don’t always live up to our own standards—we struggle with sin just like everyone else and sometimes we have bad attitudes and even do horrible things.  Just because we are forgiven and saved from Hell doesn’t mean God has fully healed our sinful nature yet.  That takes time.

But that doesn’t mean we get a pass to just live however we want.  We need to let the Holy Spirit reform our character.  And we should be getting better and better, day by day.  James is very blunt—calling out the jealousy and selfish motivations of Christian and naming the evil it leads to:  quarrels and fighting, even killing in order to get what we want.

I cannot help but wonder if James was thinking of a Jewish story from the Old Testament all of his readers would have known:  the story of Joseph and his brothers.  Do you remember the story?  Jacob gave his son, Joseph, a beautiful coat of many colors.  But Joseph's brothers were jealous when they say it because it reminded them their father loves Joseph more than them.  So they planned to kill Joseph, but his brother Reuben convinced them to sell Joseph into slavery instead.  That's how Joseph ended up in Egypt where he eventually rose to power as second in command to Pharaoh.  God used the brother's terribly evil plan to save Egypt and the whole middle east from famine.  Now the Jewish readers to whom James wrote would have known the Joseph story like the back of their hand.

The Joseph story is the story of humanity—jealousy, envy, and using power to take want we want.  Why does one nation attack another nation?  Because they have something we want and if we have the power, we will take it—by force if necessary.  And even so-called “Christian” nations throughout history have acted this way.  Even though they claimed to act in Christ's name, they were doing thing s Christ would have called despicable.  This is not God’s way.  And Christians must give up our love for the things of this world. 

James 4:4-6
⁴ You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God?  Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.  ⁵ Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us?  ⁶ But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

Friend with the World or Friends with God?
James says being friends with the world means being enemies with God.  What does that mean?  It means if we love the things of this world more than we love God, we're not choosing God's way.  God wants us to be faithful to Him.  He gives us grace to turn away from our selfish ways. 

Think about Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus' twelve disciples.  Judas was close to Jesus, saw His miracles, and heard His teachings.  But Judas loved money more than he loved Jesus.  He chose to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.  In doing this, Judas chose friendship with the world over friendship with God.  His love for money led him away from Jesus, showing us the danger of putting worldly things above our relationship with God.  Do you see how dangerous it is to flirt with worldly desires?

Now, you may say, “I would never do what Judas did.  I would never betray Jesus.”  Listen, if you love the things of this world, your desires will drive a wedge between you & God.  A wedge starts out small, but it gets wider and wider.  Who knows what evil you might be willing to do if you let those dark desires grow inside you.

That’s why James bluntly calls out our sin with strong language in verse 4, “You adulterous people…”  “…anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”  James doesn’t pull any punches, because he wants you to know what you must do.

James 4:7-10
⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.  ⁹ Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.  ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.  And remember, Jesus is talking to Christians.

Make A U-Turn
James says, “Submit yourself to God.”  Submission doesn’t sound fun—especially to Americans.  We Americans are a proud people.  We are proud of our independence.  We founded our whole nation on the idea of not being subservient to a king!  And we proud Americans want to hold our heads up high and not submit to anyone.  So, it can be a foreign concept to be submissive to God.  We just don’t like to do it.

Imagine you're driving to a new place and you make a wrong turn.  Soon, you realize you're lost.  You have a choice:  you can keep going in the wrong direction, hoping it will somehow lead you to your destination, or you can admit you made a mistake, turn around, and go back to where you messed up. 

I do that sometimes—make a wrong turn.  I hate turning around and going back.  Maybe that’s a sign I have too much pride.  I will often let the GPS re-route me so I don’t have to turn around.  Usually, it only adds a few minutes to my commute.  I can deal with that.  But even as much as I hate to turn around, if my GPS says it’s going to take an extra 30 minutes or an hour if I don’t turn around, then even a stubborn old man like me is willing to humble himself and turn around.

Submitting to God is like admitting you made a wrong turn.  It's recognizing that going your own way isn't working and deciding to turn back to God.  When you submit to God, you let Him guide you.  Just like turning around and getting back on the right road will help you reach your destination, submitting to God and following His ways will lead you to a better life, a more holy, Christ-like life.

James also says, “Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.”  That doesn't mean we have to fight the Devil ourselves (we could never win).  No, we resist the Devil by drawing near to God.  We recognize that the evil, selfish desires in us--the way we “love the world”--are actually attacks from the Devil.  So don’t indulge those desires.  Turn away from your love of the world and you are turning away from the Devil.  “Come close to God, and God will come close to you.”  And this makes the Devil flee.  

Repent of your sin.  Mourn for the ways you have turned your back on God and God will forgive you. 
You don’t have to live in sin and you don’t have to be overwhelmed with shame.  Our God is a God of grace.  He never gives up on us.  We can never sin one too many times.  God always welcomes us back when we turn around and come back to him.  Therefore, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.”

Conclusion & Challenge
James teaches us the importance of turning from our selfish desires, choosing God's way, and submitting to Him.  We've seen how fights and quarrels come from our desires, how loving the world more than God makes us His enemy, and how we need to humble ourselves, resist the Devil, and draw near to God.  Now, I want to challenge each of you to take a tangible step this week to put this message into practice.  Here's what you can do:

Practical Steps This Week

1.     Identify a Struggle:  Think about an area in your life where you are struggling with selfish desires or where you feel tempted to go against God's will.  It could be a relationship, a habit, or a personal goal that is leading you away from God.

2.     Pray for Strength:  Take time each day to pray about this specific struggle.  Ask God for the strength to resist the Devil and the wisdom to make choices that honor Him.

3.     Seek Accountability: Share your struggle with a trusted friend, family member, or someone from our church. Ask them to pray for you and to help keep you accountable. Sometimes, just knowing that someone else is there to support you can make a big difference.

4.     Actively Resist: When you feel tempted, remember James' words: "Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you." Take practical steps to avoid situations where you might be tempted and make conscious decisions that align with God's will.

5.     Draw Near to God: Spend time each day reading the Bible, praying, and worshiping. The closer you are to God, the stronger you will be in resisting temptation and living according to His ways.

Closing Prayer:
Dear God, thank You for Your Word and the wisdom we have learned from James.  Help us to turn away from our selfish desires and to choose Your way in every area of our lives.  Give us the strength to resist the Devil and the wisdom to draw near to You.  Guide us, Lord, and help us to support one another as we strive to live in a way that pleases You.  In Jesus' name, Amen.