November 4, 2017
Welcome to Scripture Saturday!
Today we are memorizing James 4:7 …
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.
Here is the amplified version…
So submit to [the authority of] God. Resist the devil [stand firm against him] and he will flee from you. Come close to God [with a contrite heart] and He will come close to you.
James delivers these three instructions right from the Lord Jesus, each one to equip us for living a successful Christian life this very day, and every day that we choose to employ them.
~ Submit yourselves to God…living each day as He directs. I remember when I began to follow this instruction and it was pure joy to see God work in all the circumstances of my day - living those moments when God was in complete control.
~ Resist the devil, and he will flee from you…resisting the devil is an everyday, any moment tool that we employ as the devil attacks us in our wrong thoughts, fleshly desires, or ungodly attitudes. When Jesus was tempted in the desert, He fought back with the Word of God - SCRIPTURE. Studying the word, memorizing verses and storing them in our hearts can help us recognize wrongdoing in our behavior or thoughts.
~ Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you…how do we do this? By reading the Word of God daily and worshiping Him. Worship Him at church, worship Him in the night when you can’t sleep. Talk with Him throughout the day, pour out your heart to Him, call Him for whatever your need. Praise Him for the greatness of His character, for each precious gift He gives.
Dear Father, thank you for giving us Your Word - a book filled with love letters and words that encourage us and guides us in our walk with you. We pray that you give us wisdom and strength to live out this verse everyday. We pray that we will begin this very moment to submit ourselves completely to Jesus. We pray that you give us strength to resist the evil one whenever we recognize wrongdoing in our behavior and thoughts. We so desire to draw nearer to You each day, in every way!
Have a blessed and precious day everyone!