Through the Bible in 2021
Bible Readings: Daniel 11-12, James 4, Psalm 132:13–18, Proverbs 29:4–6
Daily Devotional: An Adulterous Bride
On August 27, 1978, I stood in front of a preacher (who doubled as my father) and made promises to God and to the woman standing next to me. I promised to stick with her for better and worse, richer and poorer, in sickness and in health. But along with those positive promises I also made a negative commitment.
"Forsaking all others."
Marrying one woman meant that I had to give up all the others. Saying yes to Jenni meant saying no to every other woman in the world. A positive commitment to one woman implies a negative commitment to all others.
We sometimes forget that as the "Bride of Christ" a similar commitment is required of all of us. We are to declare our love and commitment to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. He is to be the primary passion of our lives. What we sometimes forget is that our positive commitment to Christ also requires a negative commitment to all others.
James spells this out in chapter 4, verses 4-5.
There is an old saw, "we are in this world but not of this world." It is true, but it is also the greatest challenge ever. We are not called to live as hermits, to separate completely from this world. We live our lives here and are even allowed to enjoy that life. But we are never to love this world or the things in the world. Our hearts must belong to God as a husband's must belong solely to his wife.
We must seek that balance every day as we live in this wicked world. We live, love, eat, drink, work and play in this world, but our heart must belong to Christ. He must be the one we love, the one we seek to please, and the one whose interests we serve. We must be loyal to Christ above all.
Forsaking all others, I must keep me only unto him, so long as I shall live!
"Forsaking all others."
Marrying one woman meant that I had to give up all the others. Saying yes to Jenni meant saying no to every other woman in the world. A positive commitment to one woman implies a negative commitment to all others.
We sometimes forget that as the "Bride of Christ" a similar commitment is required of all of us. We are to declare our love and commitment to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. He is to be the primary passion of our lives. What we sometimes forget is that our positive commitment to Christ also requires a negative commitment to all others.
James spells this out in chapter 4, verses 4-5.
You adulterous people! Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? So whoever wants to be the friend of the world becomes the enemy of God. Or do you think it’s without reason that the Scripture says: The spirit he made to dwell in us envies intensely?Verse 4 starts with a harsh accusation, "Adulteresses!" The Bride of Christ is cheating on the Savior, refusing to be faithful to its marriage vows. Then, verse 4 identifies the other man, the one with whom the church was committing adultery. They were engaged in a "friendship with the world" and friendship with the world is by definition hostility toward God. When you cheat on the Savior with this world - its pleasures and passions - it makes us enemies of God. In verse 5 we see that it even arouses jealousy.
There is an old saw, "we are in this world but not of this world." It is true, but it is also the greatest challenge ever. We are not called to live as hermits, to separate completely from this world. We live our lives here and are even allowed to enjoy that life. But we are never to love this world or the things in the world. Our hearts must belong to God as a husband's must belong solely to his wife.
We must seek that balance every day as we live in this wicked world. We live, love, eat, drink, work and play in this world, but our heart must belong to Christ. He must be the one we love, the one we seek to please, and the one whose interests we serve. We must be loyal to Christ above all.
Forsaking all others, I must keep me only unto him, so long as I shall live!
Father, help me to be faithful, to keep my heart set on Christ above all things.
Consider God's Word:
Which of the readings spoke most powerfully to you today?
Is the Spirit of God moving you to repent of something you are doing, to begin something new, or to change something about your life as a result of your readings? What?
Is the Spirit of God moving you to repent of something you are doing, to begin something new, or to change something about your life as a result of your readings? What?
If you gave your husband or wife the same level of fidelity that you give to Christ, what would be the state of your marriage?
Do you struggle with being too much a friend of the world, forgetting that we must love Christ and not this sinful world?
When James says that God's Spirit is jealous, what does that mean?
Do you struggle with being too much a friend of the world, forgetting that we must love Christ and not this sinful world?
When James says that God's Spirit is jealous, what does that mean?
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