PHYSICAL VERSUS MATERIAL: SCRIPTURAL TRUTH Part-1 Dear Children of God For today's reflection let's read from the Epistle of James. '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. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.' (Jm 4:4-8). Often we confuse physical and material. Many people including preachers consider it to be the same. They use it interchangeably too. There is a clear difference between the two. While physical is the existence of what has been given in nature by the creator, material is the creation of human greed and lust. Therefore we must be able to separate and understand its depth. We must love and protect nature—which is a gift of Elohim the creator. But we should disengage from the material creation of human lust and power. It is this material love that creates power, dominion, enmity, accumulation, jealousy, etc. leading to more and more unrighteous and unjust systems and structure—which is defined as sin and sinful acts. That's why James calls people who follow this material world as adulterous people and friendship with such a world means enmity against God. "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. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us?" (Jm 4:4-5) #faith #scripture #bibleverse to be continued....