James 4:4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Staying within the context of the previous verses, James added to the reasons why many do not receive what they ask for when they pray. The motivations behind the prayers are selfish and worldly. So how do we transition from praying selfishly to praying in a manner that is focused on God's will? It begins by "breaking up" with the world. Far too many of God's children are having a love affair with the world and all it offers, because it looks attractive and is offering everything that will allegedly satisfy our fleshly lusts. The problem is this...once the world takes off its makeup, "she ain't so pretty"; and once it lures us in and traps us, we find out that its promises are empty and bring no satisfaction. Instead, it brings heartache and pain. When we choose friendship with the world, God calls us adulterers and adulteresses; in essence we are idolaters. The world does not want us to just be its friend; it wants us to worship it and all it offers. The devils and the world system want us to have an adversarial relationship with our God. The devils want to convince us that God is purposely keeping things from us that "we really deserve". Does that sound familiar? Was that not the tactic the devil used when speaking to Eve in the Garden? He whispers in our ear so that we become ungrateful and dissatisfied with what God has already blessed us with, as we begin to put our eyes on what we do not have, and what God has chosen not to give us, at this moment, for our own good. The devils want to make us feel that God does not care. They want us to be disillusioned with our faith, and ultimately walk away from the Lord. However, just like in the Garden, this is just a bunch of lies. We must put on the armor of God each day, so that we can guard against the wiles of the devil. We must delight ourselves in Him, and make Him the center of our life, and only then will we begin to pray with the right motives, because only then will our desires begin to line up with His. God promises, in His Word, that when we trust in Him, do good, and delight in Him, He will give us the desires of our heart. We must commit our ways to Him and forsake the world and its ways (Psalms 37:3-5). If we are dabbling in the world, leading a double life, trying to satisfy the flesh with worldly gain and pleasures, and at the same time trying to "play" Christian...we need to just stop. Our churches today are a mess because too many of God's children are cheating on God with the world. The world does not really want our friendship. The world wants our loyalty so that it can enslave us and make us useless for the cause of Christ. It is time to break up with the world and make up with God; the only One who truly loves us and wants the best for us.
Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).
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