Tiago 4
J.C. Ryle · Citado em PreceptAustin
Tiago 4:4
Ryle - All loving of the world, and all fellowship with it — is unfaithfulness to Him who has so loved us; and in the measure in which loving of the world is followed, it proves us in that measure, to be untrue to Him. It is spiritual adultery, and as such it will be counted to the sore loss of him who indulges in the friendship of the world. (Love Not the World) Thomas Brooks has a stinging commentary on spiritual adultery - Neutrality is the spiritual adultery of the heart. Double-minded men are spiritual harlots; they have their hearts divided between God and mammon, between Christ and other lovers. Now harlots in ancient time were to be burnt, Gen. 38:24. Certainly hell is for the double-minded man—and the double-minded man for hell. God will be as severe, yes, more severe, in punishing, spiritual whoredom, than ever men have been in punishing bodily whoredom. God looks upon every double-minded man as in arms against him: Mat. 12:30, "He who is not with me, is against me;" and, therefore, martial law shall be executed upon them. God will blot out their names, and hang them up as monuments of his justice and vengeance. (The Crown and Glory of Christianity, or, HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness) Warren Wiersbe succinctly defines spiritual adultery as... being married to Christ (Ro 7:4+) yet loving the world (2Co 11:2,3). In the OT, God called Israel’s idolatry “adultery” because the idols had robbed Him of the people’s devotion. How can Christians have friendship with the world when they have been called out of the world? (Jn 15:18,19) We have been crucified to the world, and the world to us (Gal 6:14). There are four dangerous steps that take the believer into a wrong relationship with the world: (1) friendship with world, Jas 4:4; (2) being soiled by the world, Jas 1:27+; (3) love with the world, 1Jn 2:15, 16, 17; (4) conformity to the world, Ro 12:1+, Ro 12:2+. The result is that the compromising believer is judged with the world (1Co 11:32). Lot illustrates this folly; see Ge 13:10, 11, 12, 13 and Ge 19:1-23, 24, 25, 26. (Wiersbe's Expository Outlines on the New Testament) ISRAEL: GOD'S WIFE In the OT God is portrayed as the husband of Israel...(See also Israel Wife of Jehovah) "Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, 'Thus says the LORD, "I remember concerning you the devotion of your youth, the love of your betrothals (espousal = indicates time of engagement of Israel to God), your following after Me in the wilderness, through a land not sown. (Jer 2:2) 'Return, O faithless (apostate, idolatrous) sons,' declares the LORD; 'For I am a master (ba'al = a husband) to you, and I will take you one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.' (Jer 3:14, cp other translations = Jer 3:14NIV, Jer 3:14KJV) Surely, as a wife treacherously and faithlessly departs from her husband, so have you dealt treacherously and faithlessly with Me, O house of Israel, says the Lord. (Jer 3:20 Amplified) (Speaking of the New Covenant Je 31:31 which Jehovah says is...) not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke (Mosaic Covenant - the "10 Commandments"), although I was a husband (ba'al) to them," declares the LORD. (Jer 31:32+) (Speaking of the future day at the onset of the Millennium Jehovah declares) "And it will come about in that day," declares the LORD, "That you will call Me Ishi ("Husband") and will no longer call Me Baali (means "lord" or owner but in context used in sense of idol-worship) For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, so that they will be mentioned by their names no more. In that day I will also make a covenant (literally "cut a covenant", cp Ro 11:26, 27+) for them with the beasts of the field, the birds of the sky, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land (OF ISRAEL), and will make them lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to Me forever; (This is the fulfillment of the New Covenant, cp Jer 31:33, 34, 35, 36, 37+, Ezek 37:25+ = "forever") Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, In lovingkindness and in compassion (Hos 2:16, 17, 18, 19) "Fear not, for you will not be put to shame. Neither feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. For your husband (ba'al) is your Maker, Whose name is the LORD of hosts; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth. (Isa 54:4, 5) Comment: This promised declaration will be fulfilled in the time of the Millennium., for that will be the only time that He would not be angry with Israel (as Isa 54:9 prophesies). THE CHURCH: BRIDE OF CHRIST OUR BRIDEGROOM The NT Church, composed of the body of all believers, both Jew and Gentile (cp Ep 2:11, 12+, Ep 2:13, 14+, Ep 2:15, 16+), is often referred to as the "Bride of Christ", a phrase which actually never appears in Scripture. Jesus Himself however did allude to the "Bride of Christ" when He said... While the bridegroom (clearly a reference to Himself) is with them, the attendants of the bridegroom cannot fast, can they? So long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. (Mk 2:19, 20+) Paul describes the mystical body of Christ, the Church as Christ's bride writing to the believers at Corinth that... I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed (Gk = harmozo = to fit or join together, from harmos = a joint or articulation! In Scripture betrothal unlike our modern "engagement" was so binding that to break that covenant required a bill of divorcement!) you to one Husband (emphasizes that there is one person and ONLY ONE to Whom the Corinthians owed their allegiance and faithfulness!), so that to Christ I might present (Gk = paristemi = technical term for a priest’s placing an offering on the altar = Literally to place beside with idea of yielding to the disposal of another) you as a pure (hagnos) virgin. (2Co 11:2+) Comment: And so Paul parallels James' warning to remain loyal to Christ (Jas 4:4) and not to engage in "lewd, lurid" activities with "another woman" named the "wicked world" for to do so would be tantamount to committing "marital (spiritual) infidelity" of the grossest kind! Writing to the saints at Ephesus Paul used the relation between a husband and wife to expand on the intimate relationship between Christ, the Bridegroom and His Bride, the Church... Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24 But as the church (Think "Bride") is subject to (hupotasso; present tense = continually) Christ (Think "Bridegroom"), so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love (agapao) (present imperative = not a "suggestion" or an option but a command to do so continually! How? Only possible as we choose to die to self [cp Mk 8:34, Jn 12:24] and practice surrendering our will to the will of the Holy Spirit that we might be controlled by Him and be "energized" to "desire" to love this way and then be empowered to do so! See Ep 5:18+, Php 2:13NLT+) your wives, just as (no "wiggle room" here!) Christ ("Bridegroom") also loved the church ("Bride") and gave Himself up for (= substitutionary sacrifice) her, 26 so that He might sanctify her (set her apart, make her holy), having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word (The gospel, cp Col 1:5+, 1Co 15:1+), 27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, (When? see Rev 19 below) having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. (Eph 5:22-27see notes beginning with verse 22). John refers to the Church as a Bride in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ declaring... Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb ("Bridegroom") has come and His bride (Church) has made herself ready. 8 It was given to her (Bride) to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints (cp Ep 5:26+). 9 Then he said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ ” And he said to me, “These are true words of God.” (Rev 19:7, 8, 9+). Comment: Holloway writes that "James extends the metaphor from the church as a whole to the individual Christian. Each Christian is to God as a wife to a husband. Thus, these Christians, like Israel of old, have broken their vows of exclusive allegiance to God to follow pleasure, one of the gods of their age and ours." (James & Jude. The College Press NIV Commentary. Joplin, Mo.: College Press Pub) Erdman's Dictionary of the Bible observes that the "Bridal imagery in the OT and NT connotes the intimacy and mutual fidelity (the quality or state of being faithful) between God/Christ and God’s people. It also signals the care and protection required of the bridegroom toward the bride. The bridal metaphor underscores her dependence on and obligation to show reverence toward her spouse, in accordance with the demands of gender relationships in “honor and shame” cultures. Israel’s infidelity, or “harlotry” (Hos 2), constitutes the most developed form of this marital metaphor in the OT." John
Tiago 4:9
Ryle writes that those who turn laughter to mourning refers to those who sorrow for sin, and grieve daily over their own shortcomings. These people are more concerned about sin than about anything on earth: the remembrance of it is grievous to them; the burden of it is intolerable. Blessed are all such! “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit” and a contrite heart (Ps 51:17). One day they will weep no more: “they will be comforted.” (Mt 5:4-note) (Ryle, J. C. Matthew) John