Jas. 4:8 ... "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you."
This exhortation consists of two parts, the second being the consequence of the first. That is, when a person commits himself to seek the Lord, the Lord sets forth to meet that soul. Jehovah once sent His prophet Azariah unto Asa, the third king of Judah, with a word of advice on how to succeed in the administration of God's chosen people. "The Lord is with you when you are with Him. And if you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you," (II Chr. 15:2). This statement is as true for us today as it was for King Asa, who himself took it to heart, (see II Chr. 14:2). It assures us that whoever will make it his sincere, steadfast ambition to seek God and come into His wonderful presence will not suffer failure. To this writer the saddest condition that can come upon a person is the resolution that God does not exist, that He is nothing more than a product of human imagination. Those who do not perceive the real and imminent existence of God surely have not made the effort, for the quest for God does not extend inordinately far nor expend considerable time.
One does not have to go far to begin to "draw near to God," for in the sermon to the people of Athens, Paul urged them that "they [sh]ould seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist," (Acts 17:27-28). God is, in fact, just beyond the limit of our physical senses. We cannot quite see, or touch, or hear Him, but He is nonetheless very close and very much present. Nature eloquently expresses His constant presence, as David by inspiration so beautifully proclaimed: "The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands," (Psa. 19:1). So God is ever near to us, just beyond the veil of nature which testifies to His presence, something like the swaying of trees indicates the passage of the unseen wind through their boughs. To a limited, but very significant extent, we can "draw near to God" by beholding and admiring the order and beauty of the material world about us, and showing it due respect and appreciation as the masterpiece of God.
There is, however, a higher and more essential avenue of approach to God, one which was revealed by Jesus when He said, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father," (John 14:9). By coming unto Christ, therefore, a person may also "draw near to God." Our Lord made this even more emphatic when He said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me," (John 14:6). Not only can you "draw near to God" through Jesus, but His last-quoted statement unequivocally says that it is utterly impossible to come to God otherwise.
We must further observe that this Godward approach is one of faith. In Heb. 11:6 it is decreed that "without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him." Therefore, to "draw near to God" one must bring with him a true and stable faith. The true God cannot be approached as an impersonal abstraction, which is the only image in which many people do see Him. One must not think of God as a spirit which fills the meetinghouse on Sundays, but rather as an omnipresent Spirit who fills the factory, the department store, the home, the schoolroom, and the athletic field all seven days of the week. The promise is that if in faith you will "draw near to God," God will in turn "draw near" to you. He will then support you and lead you in the path of life that is best. He will also protect you like a mighty shield day by day. God will listen to your prayers and answer them in your best interest according to His own will and perfect wisdom. And, in a way that the infinite human mind cannot comprehend, He will cause "all things to work together for (your) good," (Rom. 8:28).
