Culture: "No Jellyfish" 10-6-24

Overview

No Jellyfish: Friendship with the World

James opens his fourth chapter with a jolt: "Adulterers!" He isn't speaking of sexual sin but of spiritual adultery—failing to live as those in covenant relationship with God. Scripture often frames our bond with God as a marriage. "Your Maker is your husband" Isaiah 54:5; Israel's faithlessness is described as adultery requiring a decree of divorce Jeremiah 3:8; and Jesus rebukes "an adulterous generation" that asks for a sign Matthew 12:39. The cause of this unfaithfulness, James says, is friendship with the world: "Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God" James 4:4.

The Greek word behind "friendship" carries the weight of strong attachment and commitment—not casual acquaintance. And "the world," in Scripture's vocabulary, means a godless system marked by self-centeredness. Consider how a jellyfish moves: in still water it can propel itself, but in the open sea it simply drifts wherever the current carries it. That is the warning. We make friends with the world by going with its flow—drifting into the devaluing of the poor, into speech that wounds rather than blesses, into envy, selfish ambition, conflict, and coveting (themes James presses throughout chapters 3 and 4). The current feels normal because it is crowded; popularity masquerades as truth. When the watching world cannot tell the difference between the speech of a Christian and the vitriol of everyone else, drift has done its work.

God's response is jealous love. "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us" James 4:5; "the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God" Exodus 34:14. Yet by nature we yearn for what is sinful—a struggle Paul names plainly: "When I want to do right, evil lies close at hand" Romans 7:21. Into that struggle God sends his Son. At the cross, Christ bears our sin and the just wrath of God, securing our reconciliation by his blood. The Holy Spirit then dwells in us, transforming hearts through Word and Sacrament so that we fall in love with Jesus. The law continues to humble us by exposing our dependence, and in that humility we find grace upon grace: "He gives more grace… God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" James 4:6.

Here is the pastoral charge: God did not create his people to be jellyfish. Real fish swim against the current—and counterintuitively, that is how they breathe most freely and avoid being swept where they should not go. Drifting with the current looks easier, but it carries you over the falls. Redeemed by Christ and indwelt by his Spirit, you will face opportunities every single day to swim against the flow—in your speech, your judgments of others, your ambitions, your loves. God himself empowers the swim. So, church: no jellyfish. Swim.

Transcript

Zuma Beach, California. 3s

As a boy, during the summer we would take frequent trips to Zuma Beach. 8s

We lived in the San Fernando Valley, and so the drive wasn't too terribly far. 15s

We would go through the canyon, through the little tunnel that was there. 20s

When there was no cars on the other side, a parent would beep the horn. 27s

We'd emerge from that tunnel and wind around for a little bit more, and then it would appear in front of us. 35s

The beautiful Pacific Ocean, Zuma Beach, right nearby. 41s

We had brought along our inflatable boards that we would ride the waves on, 49s

and we would inflate them as quick as we could when we got into the sand. 57s

And then running into the water, we would go, 64s

we would ride those waves. 70s

Our fingers were all wrinkled up, telling us that we needed to get out of the water, 73s

but we just ignored that. 79s

We didn't wait the 30 minutes after lunch, barely 20 minutes in back into the water. 82s

We would go, it was a glorious, glorious way to spend a summer day. 90s

But on occasion, on occasion they would come. 98s

These little floating mounds of Gooh, and in they would come, jellyfish, jellyfish. 109s

Some large, some small, but you didn't want to be stung by a jellyfish. 121s

And so when the floatilla on those times would come, we would have to exit the water, much to our anger. 130s

And then we would come onto the sand, and there they were, even there, 140s

having to dodge them as we walked up to the parents. 147s

I came to learn in later years that God created jellyfish actually with a purpose. 157s

It's not surprising, is it? 164s

Did you know that jellyfish actually protect young fish, young fish will swim under a jellyfish? 167s

It protects them from predators, it helps to preserve life in the ocean. 175s

Jellyfish, I also came to understand, helped to spread nutrients in the water. 182s

They really perform an important function. 188s

But tell that to a boy who simply wants to be in the water. 194s

I want to use that image of jellyfish this morning, because how jellyfish travel, that's something to avoid. 201s

What do I mean? 219s

James, the brother of our Lord, in our text for today, in the fourth chapter of James, he begins with a jolt. 222s

It startles you when you read it, when you hear it. 232s

James simply starts out and says, 237s

Adultors, adulters. 242s

Now, he's not talking about sexual adultery here. 243s

He's talking about spiritual adultery. 250s

Oftentimes in Scripture, you see God making the comparison of his relationship with his people. 255s

God making the comparison with us and framing it in terms of a marriage, for example. 262s

In Isaiah, the 54th chapter, for your maker is your husband. 270s

The Lord of hosts is his name. 277s

Jeremiah the third chapter, lifts up that understanding of spiritual adultery. 281s

She saw that for all the adulteries of that faithless one is real, 286s

I had sent her away with the decree of divorce. 292s

Jesus continues here that understanding, that relationship of God with believers, 296s

that marriage understanding, he turns, for example, in Matthew 12, chapter, he says, 305s

an adulterist generation asks for a sign. 311s

What is spiritual adultery? 319s

Spiritual adultery is not acting as if you are in relationship with God. 323s

And what is the cause of spiritual adultery? 333s

What's the cause of it? 338s

James gets at it in the second part of verse 4. He writes this. 341s

Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God, therefore? 347s

Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 357s

We're in the series where week after week, we're taking a look at different 368s

relationships in Scripture and asking what is it that we can learn from those 371s

friend relationships. This is a friend relationship that we are to avoid. 377s

Friendship with the world, the Greek word is filiates and the noun form here. 386s

The word means a strong commitment, a strong attachment. 392s

In ancient day with regard to friendship, they understood friendship in terms of that attachment, 402s

in terms of that commitment. They didn't have the understanding of a quasi-acquaintance 408s

and because I friend in terms of an acquaintance, they didn't have that type of understanding. 416s

Friendship was commitment. Friendship was attachment. 423s

James is warning here. Don't be attached. Don't be committed to what? 429s

The world. How does the Scripture reveal the world is? 437s

The Scripture points out that the world is a godless system. 441s

Scripture points out that is part of the world. It's manifest in the self-centeredness of people. 448s

So James here then is saying, don't make friends. Don't commit yourself. 459s

Don't become so attached to a godless system, a self-centered way of living. 467s

Don't make friends with the world. 476s

Well, how does friendship with the world? How does it happen? 486s

How does it happen? 492s

Interesting thing about those jellyfish. 500s

They move by contracting the muscles around the bell. 505s

So you put a jellyfish in a pond or you put a jellyfish in the aquarium. 515s

And still water, the jellyfish can move. It contracts the muscles and that's how it propels itself. 525s

But put it in the sea, put in the ocean, and the jellyfish. 538s

It just goes where the water goes. 551s

Jellyfish personify the phrase, just go with the flow. 557s

But you have to fish, do. They can't do anything other than just bubble long with the tide and the current. 565s

They're 99% water. 579s

And so when they land on the shore, are all the image. 587s

The temptation for us is to go along with the current of the world, which ever way the current happens to be flowing. 601s

We make friends with the world by just going along with the flow. 616s

James points out that going along with the world's current, well, it manifests itself, 633s

making friends with the world by simply going along with the current and going along with the flow. 642s

James talks about the temptation and the reality of devaluing the poor, of thinking that they are somehow less a person, 652s

because they don't have the economic means. 667s

He talks about in the third chapter, talks about speech that doesn't bring glory to God. 673s

You know, it's the speech that appears on the neighborhood app. 685s

It's the speech that appears sometimes on the Facebook. 689s

Right next to the person who has a cross. 695s

And the non-Christian reads that and says, I don't see any difference between the Christian and the non-Christian. 702s

And they sound the same to me. It's the same ugly vitriol that I'm used to. 710s

It's the same use of language and devaluing of others. 716s

I don't see a difference. James says, that's where you can wind up. 721s

In the third chapter, he talks about envien, selfish ambition, and the fourth chapter. 730s

He talks about conflict and coveting. 738s

You see, we can get really comfortable in the water. 747s

We can get really, really comfortable in it. 752s

Because we're just floating around with others, wherever the tide goes. 758s

And we just go with the flow and the water just feels so normal to us because why? 765s

Well, it must be popular because it's so populated. 775s

And so we go with the flow. 782s

And in so doing, we make friends with the world. 789s

God's response. 805s

Well, please, it's verse 5. 809s

James says, or do you suppose that it is for nothing? 815s

That the Scripture says, God urns jealously for the spirit that He has made to dwell in us? 820s

And when you read soul and spirit in the Scriptures, there basically synonymous terms. 833s

They're basically synonymous. 839s

The word sukei is often times translated as soul, communicating the relationship between the soul and the body. 843s

The other word for it is penuma. 853s

That's often times translated as spirit. 855s

And that so often connotes the relationship of our spirit with God. 861s

So you've got sukei, the soul and the body. 866s

And then you've got penuma, the spirit in our relationship with God for all practical purposes. 870s

So there's synonymous terms. 877s

The soul, the spirit is that is the immaterial part of us. 880s

It's that which gives us life. 888s

It's the spiritual and emotional and intellectual center. 889s

And we have a jealous God, the Scripture says, 898s

A jealous God, that's jealous. 904s

When the spirit is functioning in ways that He never created the spirit to function. 911s

Exodus 34th chapter, it says, 918s

You shall worship, know, other God, because the Lord whose name is jealous is a jealous God. 921s

He earns for the spirit that He has placed in us. 930s

And by nature, we earn for that which is sinful. 937s

In God's response, he sends his son, the Lord Jesus Christ, 948s

and at the cross, all of our sin. 957s

All of the condition of our sin is borne by him on the cross. 963s

And the wrath of God, the just wrath for God, is laid upon the sun. 971s

And atonement is made. 978s

Reconciliation is made through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. 981s

Jesus responds with grace. 988s

And the Holy Spirit then dwells in us as God changes our hearts through word and sacrament. 997s

He transforms us so we fall in love with Jesus. 1007s

That Holy Spirit then dwells in us. 1012s

But all of our days, this side of heaven, all of our days, this side of heaven. 1016s

It's a struggle. 1022s

It's a struggle. 1023s

Because the old Adam and the old Eve hangs around until the day that the Lord takes us home. 1025s

Paul writes about that in Romans 7. 1031s

He says, So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what's good, 1034s

it evils lives close at hand. 1038s

Paul is relating the very struggle in his own life. 1044s

God comes then and reveals that to us. 1049s

He continues to reveal that struggle in us. 1052s

And that humbles us. 1057s

It humbles us. 1059s

Because the law reveals our sinfulness. 1061s

The law reveals the struggle in us. 1065s

And that law humbles us because we realize the absolute need we have for the grace of God. 1072s

We realize our absolute dependency upon God Almighty. 1079s

That law humbles us. 1086s

And what do we discover in that humility? 1088s

But we discover his grace. 1090s

Look, please, it verse 6. 1093s

But he gives all the more grace. 1095s

Therefore it says, God opposes the proud. 1099s

But gives grace to the humble. 1103s

To our jellyfish pension for making friends with the world and just kind of going with the flow. 1109s

Oh, God comes to us with this grace. 1118s

You know the thing about those jellyfish, they're really not fish, you know. 1137s

They're called jellyfish. 1147s

But they're not really fish. 1152s

It was a rather large aquarium. 1160s

Had a sign on it. 1163s

Talked about current flow. 1166s

There was two buttons you could push. 1169s

One button made the flow of the current go this way with all the fish and the tank. 1173s

And this button made the current flow this way with all the fish in the tank. 1178s

And it's a watch what happens when you change the current in the tank. 1186s

So you push the one button. 1193s

Do you know that fish fish have a tendency to swim against the current? 1195s

This swim against it. 1210s

That doesn't make sense to me. 1212s

It seems like it would be a lot easier if they just would go with the flow and go with the current. 1214s

Right? 1221s

It seems like it would be a lot easier. 1222s

But in actuality, when a fish swims against the current, it's easier for them to breathe. 1226s

Because the water is being forced more forcefully into their mouth and then, of course, through the gills and the auction ate themselves. 1231s

Or when it's very dark or the fish has poor eyesight, what they do. 1240s

So they keep swimming against the current. 1248s

Because if you swim with the current, you can wind up in a place you don't want to be. 1254s

Or over a fall that you don't want to be. 1262s

God did not create us to be jellyfish. 1271s

He created us to be like fish and swim against the current. 1281s

Redeemed of God, you're going to have opportunities today to swim against the current. 1302s

You're going to have opportunities every single day to swim against the current. 1315s

And God empowers the swim. 1324s

Church? 1335s

No jellyfish. 1339s

No jellyfish. 1343s

Church. 1347s

Swim. 1352s