Editor's Note: This post is excerpts for a sermon preached at Christ Church Los Angeles December 29, 2019 titled "Six Ways to Jump-start Your Spiritual Life for the New Decade". These same six ways will jump-start your spiritual life for this and every new year.
As we come to the end of 2023 we are coming to the end of one year, and entering a new one the year 2024. Pay attention to this passage because it will help you jump start your spiritual life in 2024.
James 4:6-10 ESV But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 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. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. (emphasis mine)
Notice that the writer James, uses the word humble twice. He talks about what it means to humble yourself in the eyes of the Lord. In this scripture we discover six steps that unlock the path of humility and God’s blessing for his children.
# 1: Stop Taking Credit
James 4:6-7 ESV But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Humility doesn’t come naturally to most of us. If you think you have it, you probably don’t. D. L. Moody used to pray, “Lord, make me humble, but don’t let me know it.”
No one likes being told what to do. We would rather be in charge of our own affairs, and that’s why the whole notion of surrendering our pride to the Lord sounds strange at first. But there is no other way to get better. There is no other way to be healed. There is no other way to be forgiven. There is no other way to find a new life. We can fight the Lord, or we can surrender everything to his control. When we fight the Lord, we lose. When we surrender in faith, we win.
A proud person constantly reminds you how great they are. They brag because they want you to praise them. But if you have to tell me how great I am how great could I possibly be? The braggart brags because they're trying to convince you (and themselves) of how great they are. The humble person doesn’t brag because the truth speaks for itself. They leave their reputation in the Lord’s hands because it doesn’t matter to them what others think. They want God’s reputation to become great. What happens to them doesn’t matter as long as the Lord’s will is done.
Walking in humility means you confess your sins, you forgive your enemies, you admit your mistakes, and you don’t brag about how great you are. It also means you serve others with a smile, not with a frown.
# 2: Fight Back
James 4:7 ESV Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
This is both a command and a promise. If we submit to God, we can be sure that when we resist the devil, he will flee from us. We have no power in ourselves against the devil, but he has no power to use against us when we fight with God’s power. By ourselves, we can’t win; with God’s help, we can’t lose.
The word “resist”, in this verse, is a military term. It means you stand and fight. You don’t run away. That means taking up the armor of God and standing.
Ephesians 6:10-17 ESV Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
Satan knows our weaknesses and our strengths, and he uses what he knows against us. If he can get you discouraged, he’s already won the battle.. Satan isn’t equal to God, but he’s a lot smarter than you or me.
He knows when you lose your temper so when that happens, Fight back! Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
# 3: Draw Near
James 4:8 ESV Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
The question is not, how near is God to us, but rather how near are we to him? Proximity is one thing, but intimacy is something else. A couple may be seated on the same couch but be miles apart from each other.
Drawing near to God starts in the heart. If we come to God with a sincere desire to know him, he will draw near to us. You do not need to be super Christian or a super-saint or a deep Bible student. The newest saint and the weakest believer can know and feel God’s presence.
We can know and feel his presence if we really want it. He will draw near to you if you draw near to him.
God’s presence is recognizable.
1 John 3:24 ESV Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
1 John 4:13 ESV By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.
Both of these verses imply that Christians are able to recognize the Holy Spirit’s presence in their lives. It's not something we simply take by faith rather, there are recognizable indicators of the Holy Spirit’s presence.
# 4: Clean Up
James 4:8 ESV Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
We need make sure that we confess our sins constantly. We must purify our hearts because we are distracted.
This means we need to stop making excuses for our bad attitudes, for our unkindness, for clever put-downs, for dabbling in pornography, for bragging about our accomplishments, for envying others, for bitterness, for a critical spirit, for our not praying, for our need to be in control, for giving in to despair, for hating our enemies instead of loving them, and for our failure to do what we ought to do.
Pray this simple prayer: “Lord, show me the truth about myself.” When God reveals things by the Holy Spirit then confess, repent and ask forgiveness. Some things may come from that experience may not be pleasant. but if we by God’s grace do the hard things, the Lord promises to forgive and cleanse.
1 John 1:8-9 ESV If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
# 5: The fifth step in unlocking the path of humility and God’s blessing is to Get Serious
James 4:9 ESV Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
This verse runs counter to the “I want to be happy all the time” version of Christianity that is very popular today. In fact this verse is a real downer.
But let’s step back and ask ourselves what James means by all this. Here's the point he is trying to make. We are more sinful than we think and he wants us to get serious about our relationship with God. Most people, even those who don’t go to church, would agree they are sinners. No one’s perfect, we all make mistakes. It’s not hard to get people to agree with that concept. But the Bible goes much further. It tells us that sin has infected every part of human life, that we are spiritually dead, spiritually blind, lost, separated from God, and without hope in the world.
Romans 3:23 ESV for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Once we see our sin as it really is, we will be wretched and mourn and weep. We’ll stop laughing and start crying. We’ll let our joy be turned to mourning. And that opens the door to the abundant life we all seek.
Psalms 30:5 ESV For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.
This promise comes true whenever we decide to take God seriously.
Romans 6:20-23 ESV For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
# 6: Lift Up Christ
James 4:10 ESV Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Exalt Christ not yourself. We can brag on ourselves, or we can exalt Christ, but we can’t do both at the same time. When we decide to exalt Christ, there is no limit to what the Lord may choose to do through us.
As we approach a new year, many of us are thinking about how we can get a fresh start and make a new beginning. James 4:6-10 shows us the path that will jump start your spiritual life:
Stop Taking Credit
Fight Back.
Draw Near.
Clean Up.
Get Serious.
Lift Up Christ
In the Kingdom of God, the way up is down. Verse 6 reminds us that God “opposes” the proud.
James 4:6 ESV But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
It’s like those old commercials where the mechanic says, “You can pay me now or you can pay me later.” If you humble yourself now, God won’t have to do it later. We put off dealing with our issues because we think it will cost too much to deal with them now. But that’s a huge mistake. Sin left untouched always grows. It’s like a deadly cancer you leave untreated.
“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”
Every blessing awaits those who will humble themselves before the Lord.
This is the promise of God, and it is good news indeed.
As we come to the end of 2023 we are coming to the end of one year, and entering a new one the year 2024. Pay attention to this passage because it will help you jump start your spiritual life in 2024.
James 4:6-10 ESV But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 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. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. (emphasis mine)
Notice that the writer James, uses the word humble twice. He talks about what it means to humble yourself in the eyes of the Lord. In this scripture we discover six steps that unlock the path of humility and God’s blessing for his children.
# 1: Stop Taking Credit
James 4:6-7 ESV But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Humility doesn’t come naturally to most of us. If you think you have it, you probably don’t. D. L. Moody used to pray, “Lord, make me humble, but don’t let me know it.”
No one likes being told what to do. We would rather be in charge of our own affairs, and that’s why the whole notion of surrendering our pride to the Lord sounds strange at first. But there is no other way to get better. There is no other way to be healed. There is no other way to be forgiven. There is no other way to find a new life. We can fight the Lord, or we can surrender everything to his control. When we fight the Lord, we lose. When we surrender in faith, we win.
A proud person constantly reminds you how great they are. They brag because they want you to praise them. But if you have to tell me how great I am how great could I possibly be? The braggart brags because they're trying to convince you (and themselves) of how great they are. The humble person doesn’t brag because the truth speaks for itself. They leave their reputation in the Lord’s hands because it doesn’t matter to them what others think. They want God’s reputation to become great. What happens to them doesn’t matter as long as the Lord’s will is done.
Walking in humility means you confess your sins, you forgive your enemies, you admit your mistakes, and you don’t brag about how great you are. It also means you serve others with a smile, not with a frown.
# 2: Fight Back
James 4:7 ESV Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
This is both a command and a promise. If we submit to God, we can be sure that when we resist the devil, he will flee from us. We have no power in ourselves against the devil, but he has no power to use against us when we fight with God’s power. By ourselves, we can’t win; with God’s help, we can’t lose.
The word “resist”, in this verse, is a military term. It means you stand and fight. You don’t run away. That means taking up the armor of God and standing.
Ephesians 6:10-17 ESV Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
Satan knows our weaknesses and our strengths, and he uses what he knows against us. If he can get you discouraged, he’s already won the battle.. Satan isn’t equal to God, but he’s a lot smarter than you or me.
He knows when you lose your temper so when that happens, Fight back! Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
# 3: Draw Near
James 4:8 ESV Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
The question is not, how near is God to us, but rather how near are we to him? Proximity is one thing, but intimacy is something else. A couple may be seated on the same couch but be miles apart from each other.
Drawing near to God starts in the heart. If we come to God with a sincere desire to know him, he will draw near to us. You do not need to be super Christian or a super-saint or a deep Bible student. The newest saint and the weakest believer can know and feel God’s presence.
We can know and feel his presence if we really want it. He will draw near to you if you draw near to him.
God’s presence is recognizable.
1 John 3:24 ESV Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
1 John 4:13 ESV By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.
Both of these verses imply that Christians are able to recognize the Holy Spirit’s presence in their lives. It's not something we simply take by faith rather, there are recognizable indicators of the Holy Spirit’s presence.
# 4: Clean Up
James 4:8 ESV Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
We need make sure that we confess our sins constantly. We must purify our hearts because we are distracted.
This means we need to stop making excuses for our bad attitudes, for our unkindness, for clever put-downs, for dabbling in pornography, for bragging about our accomplishments, for envying others, for bitterness, for a critical spirit, for our not praying, for our need to be in control, for giving in to despair, for hating our enemies instead of loving them, and for our failure to do what we ought to do.
Pray this simple prayer: “Lord, show me the truth about myself.” When God reveals things by the Holy Spirit then confess, repent and ask forgiveness. Some things may come from that experience may not be pleasant. but if we by God’s grace do the hard things, the Lord promises to forgive and cleanse.
1 John 1:8-9 ESV If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
# 5: The fifth step in unlocking the path of humility and God’s blessing is to Get Serious
James 4:9 ESV Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
This verse runs counter to the “I want to be happy all the time” version of Christianity that is very popular today. In fact this verse is a real downer.
But let’s step back and ask ourselves what James means by all this. Here's the point he is trying to make. We are more sinful than we think and he wants us to get serious about our relationship with God. Most people, even those who don’t go to church, would agree they are sinners. No one’s perfect, we all make mistakes. It’s not hard to get people to agree with that concept. But the Bible goes much further. It tells us that sin has infected every part of human life, that we are spiritually dead, spiritually blind, lost, separated from God, and without hope in the world.
Romans 3:23 ESV for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Once we see our sin as it really is, we will be wretched and mourn and weep. We’ll stop laughing and start crying. We’ll let our joy be turned to mourning. And that opens the door to the abundant life we all seek.
Psalms 30:5 ESV For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.
This promise comes true whenever we decide to take God seriously.
Romans 6:20-23 ESV For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
# 6: Lift Up Christ
James 4:10 ESV Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Exalt Christ not yourself. We can brag on ourselves, or we can exalt Christ, but we can’t do both at the same time. When we decide to exalt Christ, there is no limit to what the Lord may choose to do through us.
As we approach a new year, many of us are thinking about how we can get a fresh start and make a new beginning. James 4:6-10 shows us the path that will jump start your spiritual life:
Stop Taking Credit
Fight Back.
Draw Near.
Clean Up.
Get Serious.
Lift Up Christ
In the Kingdom of God, the way up is down. Verse 6 reminds us that God “opposes” the proud.
James 4:6 ESV But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
It’s like those old commercials where the mechanic says, “You can pay me now or you can pay me later.” If you humble yourself now, God won’t have to do it later. We put off dealing with our issues because we think it will cost too much to deal with them now. But that’s a huge mistake. Sin left untouched always grows. It’s like a deadly cancer you leave untreated.
“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”
Every blessing awaits those who will humble themselves before the Lord.
This is the promise of God, and it is good news indeed.
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