One of my Pet Peeves is hearing James 4:7 misquoted -- well, not so much misquoted as not quoted in its entirety.
Frequently we hear well-meaning Christians glibly quote "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." That's all well and good. But let's not forget the first part of that verse which really has a strong bearing on the effectiveness of that popular command to resist the Adversary!
Quoted in its entirety James 4:7 reads, "Submit yourselves, therefore, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
Submitting ourselves to God indicates that we are in a right relationship with the Lord in all areas of our lives. I'm not talking about being perfect. I'm simply talking about obedience to the Lord in all things to the best of our ability. Then, and only then, are we in position to effectively resist the enemy. Then, and only then, are we in position to usurp our God-given authority over circumstances, sickness, disease and demons as authorized in Luke 9:1.
Trying to resist the devil without first submitting to God is useless. Satan is not dumb. He knows whether or not our surrender is real, whether or not it is complete. And if not, he just laughs at us when we try to come against him. But when our submission is genuine, we can confidently claim the promise in James 4:7, boldly resist the powers of darkness and confidently expect them to flee!
Have you checked your submission status lately?
Preacher's Kid
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