DON’T MISS SUNDAY SCHOOL

YOUR HEART WILL BE CHALLENGED & CHANGED

9:30 AM

Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart:

James 4:4, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be [or, resolves to be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”

James exposes the source of our struggles.

The words “will be” in this verse are very significant.

They mean “resolves.”

This same word is used by Paul in 1 Timothy 6:9-10, which sheds further light on our understanding: “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.  For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

The word “desire” in verse 9 is not merely an impulse to be rich.

It is a resolve to be rich.

It is the kind of decision one makes with a definite intention.

So Paul speaks of resolving to be rich, and James speaks of resolving to be a friend of the world.

When we receive the Lord, He comes in to take over.

All the rights to our life are gone.

We belong to Him.

We are under His headship.

We are under His lordship.

To have any resolve other than the resolve to follow Him, to know Him, and to live by Him is to have an evil eye (Matt. 6:23).

The Lord tells us that our eye should be “single” (v. 22).

This means that we should have only one goal, look at only one thing, and not tolerate a divided heart.

To have a single eye means to have a single heart (vv. 21-23).

When the Lord spoke of having a single eye, He did not contrast it with having double vision.

Rather, He used the word “evil” as the contrasting word for “single.”

This is because in God’s thought having anything other than God Himself as our one goal is evil.

Any resolve in our life apart from the Lord Himself will lead us into trouble.

There are serious consequences when we resolve to be a friend of the world or when we resolve to be rich.

Even to resolve to “get rich for Jesus” is an error of the heart.

We only need to have one resolve and that is, “Lord, I love You, and I am one with You. My only desire is to be under You and to follow You on the path of life” (cf. Matt. 7:14).

In the New Testament, Paul uses the phrase “Jesus Christ our Lord.”

This confession is very significant.

It means that the Lord is not someone outside of us that we are observing from afar.

No! He is the One who lives and rules in us.

When we feel inwardly restrained from doing or saying something, we need to go along with that restraint.

Jesus Christ is not just our Savior.

He is our Lord!

Our only resolve is to say “Amen” and “Yes” to Him.

Until Tomorrow,

With A Shepherd’s Love

Pastor

TODAY’S PRAYER LIST

Ashton Bateman & Family

Amy Garner’s Mom & Dad

Brandon’s Dad

Dan Haines

Dr. Don Davis

Freddie May’s Mom

George Alexander

Jane Hick’ Mom

Jim Mabe

Joan Cronan’s Sister

Linda Hodges’ Sister

Michael Stanley

John McClain

Rodney Wiggins – Darlene’s Husband

Ronnie Palmer

Ricky Gipson – Ashley’s Brother

Tom Witcher

Ann Sullivan – Paula’s Friend

Bentley Smith

James Garner’s Friend 

Kim McClain’s Mother

Lonzo Christian             

Ashley Burn’s Sisters

Bill Moody 

Colby/Connor – Allison’s G’sons 

Greg Payne – Lisa’s Brother

Hanna Hall – Pray for Grace

Kenny & Nora Allison  

Kimberly – Dustin’s Sister  

Larry Barker  

Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah

Mary Sims  

Marynell Ford

Pastor & Mrs. Driskell 

Paula Ferus’ Missionary Friend 

Ricky Stubbs  

Roseleigh Osborn  

Scott Lanier – Linda’s Son 

Shaelyn – Jill’s Friend

Sheila Simmon’s Cousin

Tammy Shellnut’s Mother/Dad Dad