What Your Choices Are Revealing
- Cornerstone Community Church
- Apr 12
- 6 min read
There are moments when you can feel the tension inside your own decisions. You know what is right, but something in you pushes the other way. It is not always loud. Sometimes it shows up in a small compromise, a quiet justification, or a simple unwillingness to yield. Most of the time, it feels ordinary. But underneath it, something deeper is happening.
That inner pull is not random. It is tied to who or what we are actually submitting ourselves to.
Where Humility Begins
Pastor Danny brings us to a place we often avoid. We tend to think of humility as a feeling or a personality trait. But James does not leave it there. He makes it concrete.
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:7–8)
Humility, according to this passage, is not first about how we feel. It is about what we do with our lives. It shows up in submission.
Submission is not a popular word. It never has been. There is something in us that resists the idea of yielding control. We prefer independence. We want to decide what is right for us, what we will do, and when we will do it.
That resistance is not just cultural. It is deeply human.
To submit to God means we are no longer the final authority in our lives. It means we place ourselves under His rule, His Word, and His will. Not occasionally, but continually.
This is not a one-time decision. It is a daily posture.
A Daily Act, Not a Past Event
It is easy to look back at a moment in the past and say we have already settled this. We gave our lives to the Lord years ago. We made that decision. We moved forward.
But James speaks in the present. Submit yourselves.
That means today.
There is a quiet assumption many of us carry that spiritual growth happens automatically over time. But Scripture keeps bringing us back to responsibility. Not independence from God, but active dependence on Him.
Each day brings new opportunities to either yield or resist.
Submission is not something we graduate from. It is something we return to again and again.
What Submission Actually Means
To submit to God is to yield yourself to His authority in every part of life.
It means:
letting His Word shape your decisions
allowing His commands to define what is right and wrong
choosing obedience even when it is inconvenient
trusting His authority over your own instincts
This is not forced. God does not coerce His people into submission. There is a voluntary aspect to it. We yield ourselves.
That is what makes it difficult.
We are not being overpowered. We are being called to surrender.
And that surrender touches everything.
The Other Side of Submission
James does not stop at submission. He immediately connects it to something else.
“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
This is not a separate idea. It is directly tied to submission. When we place ourselves under God’s authority, we are at the same time refusing another authority.
There are only two directions here. We are either aligning ourselves with God or we are drifting toward something else.
Resisting the devil is not about dramatic moments or loud declarations. It is about a steady refusal to follow the patterns of sin, temptation, and self-centered living.
It is quieter than we expect.
It looks like choosing truth over deception.
It looks like rejecting sinful desires instead of entertaining them.
It looks like standing firm when compromise feels easier.
We often underestimate how real this battle is. It is easier to think of temptation as something vague or impersonal. But Scripture is clear. There is an enemy, and his influence is not imaginary.
Ignoring that reality does not protect us from it.
A Change of Allegiance
At the heart of this passage is a shift in allegiance.
Before Christ, Scripture tells us that we were under the influence of the world and its ruler. That was our natural state. We followed what felt right to us. We lived according to our desires.
But something changed when God saved us.
We were brought under a new authority.
Submission is the lived expression of that change.
It is saying, in real decisions and real actions, that our lives are no longer aligned with the old way. We are no longer following the same patterns. We belong to God now.
That shift is not abstract. It shows up in how we live.
And when that shift is real, resistance follows naturally.
Not a Formula
There is an important clarification here. Resisting the devil is not about saying certain words or repeating certain phrases. There is no formula that makes temptation disappear.
You cannot treat this like a script.
The emphasis is not on what we say to the devil. It is on where we place ourselves.
If we focus only on resisting without submitting, we miss the point. Real resistance flows out of real submission.
It is not about technique. It is about allegiance.
And that changes how we approach the Christian life.
Moving Toward God
James continues with another command.
“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:8)
This is not just about turning away from something. It is about moving toward someone.
The Christian life is not sustained by avoidance alone. It is sustained by relationship.
Drawing near to God is an intentional movement. It is not passive. It requires attention, desire, and action.
It shows up in ordinary things:
time in God’s Word
prayer that is honest and consistent
obedience in daily decisions
love expressed toward others
This is not just internal or emotional. It is practical.
James does not separate faith from action. To draw near to God is to live in a way that reflects His commands.
That is how the relationship deepens.
God’s Response
There is a promise attached to this command.
He will draw near to you.
That is not uncertain. It is not conditional on perfection. It is a response rooted in God’s character.
When we move toward Him, He meets us there.
This is where the passage becomes deeply encouraging. The call to submission and resistance is not left hanging. It leads somewhere.
It leads to fellowship.
God is not distant or reluctant. He is near to those who seek Him.
That does not mean life becomes easy. It does mean we are not alone in it.
The Reality of the Struggle
There are seasons where it feels like resistance is constant. You make one decision to follow the Lord, and another challenge appears right behind it.
It can feel like there is pressure from every direction.
That experience is not unusual.
The Christian life includes real opposition. There is a reason Scripture calls us to be alert and to stand firm.
But James gives us clarity. The answer is not to become overwhelmed or reactive. It is to go deeper into submission.
When resistance increases, the call is not to panic. It is to return to the same foundation.
Submit yourself to God.
That is where strength is found.
What This Looks Like in Real Life
This passage becomes clearer when we bring it into everyday situations.
Submission might look like choosing honesty when it costs you something.
It might look like turning away from a pattern of sin you have excused for too long.
It might look like forgiving someone when you would rather hold onto the offense.
It might look like trusting God’s direction when your plans fall apart.
None of these feel easy in the moment.
That is why James says this path is not simple. It requires humility.
And humility always requires letting go of something we would rather keep.
Why This Matters
If we misunderstand submission, we will misunderstand the Christian life.
We might think growth is automatic.
We might assume proximity to church activity equals closeness to God.
We might believe that intentions are enough.
But James brings us back to something more direct.
Faith is lived out.
Submission is visible.
Resistance is active.
Drawing near is intentional.
These are not abstract ideas. They shape how we live from one day to the next.
A Simple Direction Forward
There is a simplicity to this passage that we should not overlook.
It does not give us a complicated system. It gives us a clear direction.
Submit to God.
Resist the devil.
Draw near to God.
This is not about mastering every detail at once. It is about taking the next step of obedience.
For most of us, that next step is already in front of us.
We know where we have been resisting God’s authority. We know where we have been drifting. We know where we need to return.
The question is whether we will yield.
Conclusion
James does not leave us guessing about what humility looks like. It is a life that places itself under God’s authority, stands against what pulls us away from Him, and moves steadily toward His presence.
The path is not easy, but it is clear.
Take one step of submission today. Yield one area of your life that you have been holding onto, and bring it under God’s authority.
“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.” (James 4:10)
To hear Pastor Danny's full teaching on this passage, click here.
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