Submit Yourselves to God

IIT UBF - University Bible Fellowship at IIT

Submit Yourselves to God

Date: Sep. 22, 2022

Passage

James 4:1-10 (ESV)

1 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

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Daily Bread

Key Verse: 4:7

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

People fight and quarrel. It is a fact of life. But why does it happen? We fight and quarrel because we think we are right and the other person is wrong. But in truth, we fight and quarrel because of evil desires that are within us. Our evil, covetous desires cause us to envy, quarrel and even kill each other. Evil desires cause the hoarding of wealth. We want because we do not come to God and seek him. But when we do come to God and ask we must have right motives, or we will not receive. Wrong motives mean friendship with the world. If we want to spend what we have on ourselves, that is wrong motives. Right motives mean friendship with God. It is using our wealth for Godly means.

Even though we do not seek God, he is gracious to us. He opposes the proud but shows favor to those who humble themselves. So, what should we do? We should submit to God and not to the devil. When we submit to God, he will come near to us and lift us up and show us his grace.

Prayer: Prayer: Father, thank you for your grace. Help me to repent my selfish desires and humble myself and seek you wholeheartedly.

One Word: One Word: Submit yourself to God

Hezekiah’s Prayer

2 Kings 19:1-19

Key Verse: 19:19

So now, O LORD our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God alone.”

Today's Question

By what sin did our first parents fall from their original condition?

See answer and references