Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God

"Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God" (Jas. 4:4). "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty" (II Cor. 6:14-18). "Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God" (I Cor. 13:33,34). "For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them... And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them" (Eph. 5:5-7,11). That should suffice to show that God does not want his people to voluntarily keep company with those who are not following after his Spirit of holiness and truth unless they are wanting to find out how to do so. To entertain those who are not of God is to allow the demon spirits to which people are in servitude, to invade your space that God has given you as "the earnest of your inheritance," which space is your own spirit joined to his Spirit (Eph. 1:14; I Cor. 6:17). The old saying, "Birds of a feather flock together" could not be more simplistically true. Everyone naturally draws to people who are of the same kind of spirit that they themselves are of, and the same is certainly true for God's people who follow after his Spirit. When a child of God is regularly entertaining those who are NOT following God's Spirit, or showing any sign that they would like to do so, it is a bad sign of where that child of God is headed. The apostle Paul told it like it is: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be NOT conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Rom. 12:1,2).

You simply cannot spend time regularly on a voluntary basis with people who are not following the Spirit of God, without being conformed to their spirits. This rule is not excepted for the case of family either. Listen to what JESUS had to say about it: "There came then his brethren and his mother, and, standing without, sent unto him, calling him. And the multitude sat about him, and they said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee. And he answered them, saying, Who is my mother, or my brethren? And he looked round about on them which sat about him, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother" (Mk. 3:31-35). He had some other like things to say about this topic also: "And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them, If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple(Lk. 14:25,26). And, "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (Mat. 10:34-37). The truth of the matter is my friend, if you really want to go the distance with Jesus, and always follow where he leads, understand that it will cost you much in this life. There is a very good reason that the scripture says, "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes" (Rev. 21:4). The reason many merge from true steadfastness in Christ into a form, is simply because they fear persecution and prefer the honor and acceptance of men more than "the honor that comes from God only" (Jn. 5:44). The problem is just being carnally minded, and being mixed up about who is truly a friend, and who is truly family. Nonetheless the truth of the matter remains the same whether we understand and abide in it, or not: "No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier... If we suffer [with him], we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us... Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution" (II Tim. 2:4,12; II Tim. 3:12). Amen.