FriendshipSample

Wednesday: Red Flags

SOAP: James 4:4

Adulterers, do you not know that friendship with the world means hostility toward God? So whoever decides to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy. 

Devotion:

What does it mean to be friends with the world? Often in the New Testament, the world does not mean the literal earth that we live on (God said it was good when He made it!) but instead means something more along the lines of culture or human wisdom. God’s creation is good, but the world now operates according to sin and death. Friendship with the world means that we have become too comfortable with the fallen order of things when we should be expectantly awaiting the redemption of this world. 

In the case of friendship, the way of the world looks like anger, jealousy, and greed. That is the kind of worldly friendship that is incompatible with loving God. While we can certainly be friends with unbelievers, we also need to remember that we will be changed by the people we are closest to. We will pick up on their habits or be desensitized to the sin they justify. James’ powerful words remind us to evaluate our closest relationships and ask, “Am I getting closer to the way of the world, or am I getting closer to God?”

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for making me Your friend. Show me the places in my life where I am too comfortable with the way of the world and help me desire Your coming redemption. Amen.