Friendship and Allegiance

Great sermon this morning. The pastor began with an account of his three year old bursting into the room with an urgent message: one sibling had called another sibling a "big bully." Pastor Chris dealt with the clearly agitated boy, then pondered what had made his son so keen to defend his older brother's honor. Normally, the three year old tattletale used his emergency broadcast system to declare how much of a bully the other was and how deserving of punishment. As it turns out, a deal had been brokered between them (to include an exchange of goods and services) and they had agreed to become allies and promised each other friendship.
He concluded that kids understand friendship -- friendship is allegiance -- but they are shallow in their practice and make friendship conditional. They treat it like money, exchanging it and trading for goods and services like any other commodity. How many of us, he asked, approach God this way? We pledge our allegiance to God with our fingers crossed behind our backs in case a better deal comes along. How many of us are unfaithful in our friendship with God? We serve Him when convenient, but when the world offers greater pleasures we transgress.

James 4:4-5 says, "Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, 'The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously'?"

The NIV says "hatred". If you love the world, you hate God. Our God is jealous and demands unadulterated allegiance. What's the big deal about friendship with the world? Why does faith in God have to be all or nothing?

Because claims of allegiance without the acts of allegiance are worthless.
"But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.' And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only."
-James 2:20-24
Abraham wasn't trying to broker a deal. He was committed, and because of this he was called the friend of God.

How do these words find you? My double-mindedness was apparent. I run after many lovers (idols) and return expecting to find the light on and dinner ready. I love the world, returning to God on Sunday mornings only to say I'm sorry and make sure the deal about going to heaven is still on. God be thanked that there is grace even for this.