“Adulterers, do you not know that friendship with the world means hostility toward God? So whoever decides to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy. Or do you think the scripture means nothing when it says, “The spirit that God caused to live within us has an envious yearning”? So submit to God. But resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded……So whoever knows what is good to do and does not do it is guilty of sin.” James 4:4-5, 7-8, 17 NET https://bible.com/bible/107/jas.4.4-17.NET

The One True God is a jealous God. Our God is jealous of the love and devotion of humanity that we give primarily to ourselves and other things besides the One True God. Like my granddaughter, who knows I want to hug and kiss her but runs away, so too we know God is worthy of our allegiance, loyalty, and unquestioned obedience, yet we run away. We do not spend time with God in His Word. We do not serve God by sharing Him with lost humanity and helping others grow in their faith. We love the world and the enjoyment we derive from it. We are not of this world. We are aliens and strangers here. Our home is an eternal dwelling place where the deepest love, joy, and peace exist with all those who have ever loved God forever. We look forward to that home where we always do what pleases God, and so does everyone else while we all enjoy the intimate presence of God, Who is love and righteousness. Until then, we must pursue God, for we do not know Him intrinsically. We must pursue God because we do not obey Him naturally. We must pursue God because we do not serve His interests usually. Our lives are to be given to following Jesus, Who came to seek and save the lost as a servant and not as one to be served. So too, we are to love people into the kingdom of God while encouraging those in the kingdom to remain diligent in their work and faithful in their obedience even as we seek to do the same.