In the World and Of the World

“You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"?”

(James 4:4-5 ESV)

We’ve all heard the phrase: “Be in the world, but not of the world.” Although this isn’t a direct quote from Scripture, it certainly is consistent with Scripture.  And it tells us that, even though we do live in this world, and although we live among the people of the world, we are called to be different.



As much as we claim that this is our endeavor as believers, the truth is very different. The reality of the situation is that we are in the world and of the world. We do not like to be different. We do not like to stand out. We desire to reflect he world in which we live. We desire to be like the people among whom we live.



We prefer conformity. We prefer to be in accord with the world. We prefer to keep in step with the standards of the world. And we long for this that we might be loved and accepted by the world.



Our tendency is to think that this is no big deal. However, according to James in the above passage, this is a serious problem. Our tendency to befriend the world demonstrates a spirit of adultery. It reveals that, instead of demonstrating our faithfulness to the Lord, we worship the world in which we live.



We are not able, at the same time, to befriend the world and love God. Yes, we are to be kind to the people of the world. We are to love the people of this world. But we are not to befriend the world in the sense that we are conformed to the world around us.



The world, after all, is wicked. The world is in a state of rebellion against God. And if we’re conformed to the image of this world, if we befriend the world, this will be our condition as well.



James says that, to be a friend of the world is to be an enemy of God. Both conditions cannot coexist. They are mutually exclusive. It’s one or the other.



Scripture tells us, James says, that God is jealous. In other words, he is not willing to share us with another. We belong to him, and to him alone.



Loving the Lord, then, invites the hatred of the world. Jesus says as much in John 15:19. And although none of us like to experience hatred and rejection, this is the reality we face. We, then, must willingly endure the world’s hatred that we might experience the love and mercy of God. We must endure the world’s hatred that the love of God might be seen in us.