What does this verse mean?

[SilverToast]

"4 You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." James 4:4 NIV
I have been struggling lately to understand what is of the world and what the word world means in this biblical context. Did I miss the context in an earlier chapter in the Old Testament? I would appreciate some help.

[Lynna]

It might be helpful for you to look at the whole chapter: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+4&version=NIV
Anyways, when it talks about "the world" in the New Testament, it means the ideas/sinful nature that are opposite to God, such as selfishness and greed, which are primarily what James was talking about in the previous passage. He was explaining that the people were not getting what they needed because 1. they weren't asking God for it and 2. When they did ask, it was only because they were being greedy. This passage then explains that this attitude is like being friends with "The World" (in other words, a sinful/worldly nature) makes them enemies of God, because they are chasing these sinful desires rather than seeking after him, and it even suggests that they are hurting each other to get what they want.

[Atria35]

Conext is key when reading the Bible. Taking any verse out of context can lead to misunderstanding it and incorrectly interpreting what it says. The section of the Bible that verse is in is:

4 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

4 You adulterous people,[a] don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us[b]? 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:


“God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.”[c]

7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

It's about being faithful to God and not being tempted into things like coveting, jealousy, adultery. Those were sins he saw happening in the world.

EDIT: Lynna posted right before I did, but yeah. That's what it means.

[Xeno]

Lynna pretty much nailed it. The context of James 4:4, if you just want to read one passage, is best read from 4:1-12.

1 What is the source of wars and fights among you? Don't they come from the cravings that are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. You do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and don't receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your evil desires.

4 Adulteresses! Don't you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? So whoever wants to be the world's friend becomes God's enemy. 5 Or do you think it's without reason the Scripture says that the Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously?

6 But He gives greater grace. Therefore he says:

[indent]God resists the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.[/indent]


7 Therefore, submit to God. But resist the Devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, double-minded people! 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep. Your laughter must change to mourning and your joy to sorrow. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.

11 Don't criticize one another, brothers. He who criticizes a brother or judges his brother criticizes the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is one lawgiver and judge who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?

The Holman Christian Standard Bible (my personally preferred translation) has a note on all the verses here, I'll post the notes on verses 4-5:

4:4-5 Adulteresses refers to the congregations's unfaithfulness to God. Self-centeredness is cast as diametric opposition (hostility) to God. The phrase the Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously plays off "the cravings . . . at war within you" in verse 1, demonstrating the difference in attitude between a Spirit-filled life and one enslaved by selfish cravings.

Edit: apparently Atria sniped me, while being sniped by Lynna. Wow.

[SilverToast]

Thank you all for responding.Thanks for helping me understand Lynna, Xeno and Atria.

For some reason the verse seemed confusing and out of place to me when I was reading the chapter at first. I probably confused the dictionary definition of the world with the biblical one when "world" was being used by itself. I had some idea that the world was related to sin.
I understand now that "world" refers to sinful nature in the New Testament and not the Earth.

That's funny though that a chain of snips happened. haha

[SierraLea]

This is one of the biggest things the Bible teaches and is really quite simple. Basically, it's saying that you shouldn't get too caught up in the things of this world. Power, fame and money all go away when you die. Focus on the things that are going to last, like heaven and Jesus, not your next big paycheck.

[Nate]

One cannot serve both God and Money.