Submitting To God's Will Series

INTRODUCTION

• How willing are you to follow the lead and direction of another person?

• Many of us would say it depends on who the other person is and whether they are or someone we trust and respect.

• Let's say the person in question is someone you trust and respect.

• Are you willing to be submissive to their leadership and direction?

• If you were listening, you would notice that I switched y.

• I moved from following the lead or direction of another person to being willing to be submissive to them.

• The word submission makes things more complicated.

• If you are willing to be submissive, how far down the rabbit hole are you ready to travel?

• Let's move this thought from people to God.

• A person baptized into Christ and claims Jesus as their Lord and Savior is called to be submissive to God.

• I think that is a fair statement.

• How far down the rabbit hole of submission are you willing to go with God?

• Are you willing to submit to God if God tells you to do something you do not want to do?

• If God is leading you to do something difficult, costly, or hard, are you willing to do it?

• Today, James will take us to a difficult place for many of us to go, the idea of submitting to God's will.

• At times, God will ask us to do difficult, costly, and hard things; the question is, what do you do when you do not want to follow what God has in store for you?

• Following God is great until it costs you something that you want.

Our Big Idea of the Message is this: True religion submits to God's will for our lives.

• Please turn with me to James 4:7-10.

James 4:7–10 (NET 2nd ed.)

7 So submit to God. But resist the devil and he will flee from you.

8 Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded.

9 Grieve, mourn, and weep. Turn your laughter into mourning and your joy into despair.

10 Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.

SERMON

I. The call to submission.

• James's teaching on submission follows from (3:13–18) and flows into (4:11–12) moral exhortation.

• At the heart of all attempts at right living is our relationship with God, who calls us to submit to Him.

• James goes to this thought because, in verse 6, he quotes Proverbs 3:34.

Proverbs 3:34 (NET 2nd ed.)

34 With arrogant scoffers he is scornful, yet he shows favor to the humble.

• The thought in verses 7-9 is that we need to submit to Him since God is scornful to the arrogant scoffer.

• Since God shows favor (or grace) to the humble, we must submit to Him.

• In verses 7-9, we are given the choice of friendship with God or friendship with the world and what friendship with God looks like.

• The ability to develop a friendship and relationship with God is built on the idea of being submissive to Him.

• In truth, all relationships involve the idea of submission.

• What does this nasty word submission mean?

• The word submission is built on two parts of the word that mean "to be under" and "place oneself."

• The word submission means voluntarily placing themselves under God by one's own will.

• The idea is to yield yourself to God and what He has revealed as necessary for your welfare.

• In the biblical sense, submission is a voluntary act of the will, a decision to follow and obey.

• To submit means to arrange or yield to someone or something greater.

• It's a voluntary yielding, though, never coerced, so it carries with it the connotation of humility.

• As James has stated in reference to Proverbs 3:34, in James 4:6.

James 4:6 (NET 2nd ed.)

6 But he gives greater grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but he gives grace to the humble.”

• In this context, submission is a readiness to submit to whatever God may impose on you.

• This is a characteristic of humility, which we will dive into later.

• Submission is a tricky subject for people of all ages.

• Postmodern societies value autonomy and self-direction.

• Within evangelical churches and youth groups, wonderful teaching on submission to God and within relationships happens regularly, but the topic is also abused by leaders and individuals seeking power.

• The second part of verse 7 says that if we resist the devil, he will flee!

• The devil sows seeds of doubt, and he goes on the offensive when he sees we have a weakness.