We face decisions every day that put us on one side of something or another. In many situations, we don't have a choice. Thankfully few of them create intense animosity. James tells us there is a decision that we can foolishly make that creates very intense animosity with God.
James 4:4 "Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God?"
Wow! Now that's pretty intense. What is James talking about? When he talks about "friendship" the Greek implies that this person was once in fellowship with God but has chosen instead to be in love with the things of this world. They have given up their love of God and chosen instead to follow their old lifestyle. Maybe it was something as damaging as an addiction or seemingly as unimportant as bitterness, fear, or pride. Regardless of what it is, anything that pulls us from the love, grace, mercy, and the presence of God, causes us not to simply be in sin but makes us an enemy of God.
What is James saying by calling people in such a predicament, "enemies of God"? We have chosen to leave a relationship with God to follow our desire, like Satan, choosing our wants above the desires, plans, and blessings of a loving Father. This choice is not something that happens overnight. It takes time for your desires to grow cold toward God and to draw back into the pit from where we have come. It happens little by little, with minor decisions, small compromises, tiny lapses in our daily disciplines for growth. How often I have seen people return to disastrous relationships because having been away from them for a while, they forget how bad it was.
How do we protect ourselves from this foolishness? Stay close to the Lord. Stay in the Word. Maintain an active prayer and church life. Serve the Lord through reaching out to people and using your gifts for Him. Every day you are choosing the "right" side, by choosing to follow Him. With that choice comes all of the blessing, joy, and power you can imagine and more.
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