Chico Alliance Church
Pastor David Welch
“True Religion”
This is our thirteenth excursion in front of God’s faith-exposing mirror. James’ letter provides pointed instruction evaluating the true nature of our faith. James’ mirror exposes the reality of faith by showing us the character of true faith. The first category has to do with faith’s response to trials and tribulations.
I. Faith’s response to trials 1:2-18
TRUE FAITH…
A. Considers it all Joy knowing trials produce endurance.
B. Continues enduring knowing endurance produces maturity
C. Confidently asks God for wisdom knowing He will give it.
D. Focuses on your spiritual riches. (Instruction #4)
E. Considers how God rewards endurance 1:12
F. Doesn’t blame God but yourself for temptations 1:13-18
The key component to enduring trials is our interaction with the Word of God. We cannot consistently stand up under trial and grow in our faith without God’s word continually flowing into our lives and directing our lives.
Our interaction with God’s word must go beyond exposure.
TRUE FAITH…
G. Receives AND practices the implanted word of truth. 1:18-27
1. God’s truth is the foundation of new birth. 1:18
2. Prepare to receive the implanted truth 19-21a
3. Receive the implanted the truth 1:21b
4. Perceive and Practice the implanted truth 22-27
a. Instruction to hear and obey the word
b. Description of the deceived forgetful hearer
For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
c. Description of the enlightened blessed doer
But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and having remained there, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
James urged his readers to stand in front of God’s mirror. He even included a few flaws to look for in the mirror. God preserved the entire book of James to expose phony faith.
He suggested three examples of genuine faith.
The arena of our words – supervise your tongue
The arena of our works – serve the needy
The arena of our walk – shun the world system.
A bridled tongue.
A compassion heart that serves others.
A life unstained by the world.
Earlier James differentiated between the one who thought they were spiritual because of interaction with the word but demonstrated otherwise by their lack of obedience to the word. The word “religion” referred to acts of ceremonial worship. specific actions motivated by a love for God. Thinking something to be true that isn’t is the definition of self-deception. Many people think claiming something equal doing something. Some regard intention as action.
Here, James focused on three areas where people thought or claimed to be someone truly devoted to God but lacked specific action to back it up. Interaction without action. Ceremony without service. Words without heart.
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51:16-17
d. Characteristics of the true follower of Jesus.
(1) A Bridled tongue (speech)
James focused on a clear indicator of a broken and contrite heart.
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless
To think or supposed to be true. He used the present tense verb to indicate a continual mind set that I am a spiritually mature. James expands on the power of the tongue later and so will we.
He went so far as to boldly assert…
We all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. James 3:2
The tongue is an accurate barometer of one’s spiritual maturity. What comes out of our mouth during trials exposes what is in our heart. Most sins against others addressed in the Bible relate to our speech. Of course, the tongue is not really the problem. Words of the tongue only reveal the condition of the heart.
What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. Matthew 15:18-19
The tongue discloses bad attitudes, impure motives, unaddressed bitterness, impure thoughts leading to evil actions. Don’t claim spiritual maturity when you fail to bridle your tongue. James asserted that our failure to bridle our tongue actually renders our testimony useless, empty, vain. The only way to bridle the caustic tongue is to cleanse the contaminated heart.
How many have driven people away from Jesus by their inappropriate attitudes and words. Not only is our testimony useless, but we only deceive ourselves about our spiritual state. Paul urged the Colossians to…
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Colossians 4:6
Test one deals with our speech. The second maturity test relates to our service to others.
(2) Compassionate heart (service)
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction
Genuine heart change demonstrates seasoned speech and a compassionate heart. Reaching out to those in need is not limited to orphans and widows, but James focused on a neglected class of needy people in the culture of that day.
This word has the idea of getting involved in the lives of others, providing, helping them out and caring for them. It is a word of giving and sacrifice. It comes from the same Greek root as the word episkopos which means "the overseer or bishop" of a church. We are to oversee the needs of others like a shepherd that cares for his flock. The persecution of the church in that day left many families fatherless as godly men were martyred for Christ. There was a great need for Christians to help one another. Mattoon's Treasures
God looks out for orphans and widows.
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. Psalm 68:5
God sternly warns those who mistreat widows and orphans.
You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless. Exodus 22:22-24
Serving others with a compassionate heart demonstrates a transformed heart. There is no shortage of needy people in our world. Jesus said the poor will always be with you. You can’t meet every world need.
The challenge is to know who and how to meet those needs. This test focuses on the personal connection to those in need. The term comes from a base meaning of to inspect. It conveys the idea of a personal connection resulting in helping someone in need. It is too easy to write a check.
James used the term to describe God’s inclusion of the Gentiles.
After they finished speaking, James replied, “Brothers, listen to me. Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for His name. Acts 15:13-14
What is the nature of that “visit”. It most assuredly involves more than a casual visit to say, “Hi!”
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, Luke 1:68-69
Paul used the term to describe his intent to go back and encourage those who had come to Jesus in the various cities where he had preached the gospel. Act 15:36. Hebrews uses the term to indicate God’s special connection to humankind.
It has been testified somewhere, “What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the son of man, that you care for him? Hebrews 2:6
Jesus cited this action as an indication of a genuine believer. To those He promised a place in the kingdom.
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Matthew 25:34
I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Matt 25:36
When they asked when they visited Him.
And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Matthew 25:40
Failure to “visit” those in need indicated a phony faith.
I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Matthew 25:43
‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:45-46
John links care for those in need to genuine love of God.
If anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:17-18
How connected are we to the needs of those God brings into our sphere of influence? Every Christian has an obligation to visit those in need. This principle applies to individuals as well as a church family. A specific church family can become so ingrown and introspective that they lose impact in the community around them.
Now that Abraham’s House no longer operates out of our building, how are we impacting the needs in our community? True spirituality shows up in our speech, our service to those in need and in our lifestyle.
(3) Unstained life (separation)
and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
Interesting to note the contrast between pure and undefiled religion and stained. The word “keep” is a military term meaning to guard carefully. James used a present tense action word indicating a continuous guarding of one’s self. What are we to continuously guard against? Any stains from too close association with the ungodly world system.
If your roll in mud, you pick up stains. If you handle dirt, your hands get dirty. If you embrace the things of this world, you will pick up the stains of the world. The thing about stains, people can tell where you have been and what you have been doing. Some stains are more visible than others. Some stains are harder to cleanse than others. I have some pants and shirts I call. “dirt shirts” because the stains couldn’t be removed.
Mental and emotional stains may not be immediately visible. The world can stain our thinking with unbiblical ideas. We can pick up moral stains. Some worldly behavior affects even our physical bodies.
Jesus lived completely without stain.
And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 1 Peter 1:17-19
It was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Hebrews 7:26
Paul urged Timothy to maintain a good testimony to the end like Jesus did.
Keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1 Timothy 6:14
Peter urged his readers to live unstained with end times in mind.
Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 2 Peter 3:14
Scripture urges us often to guard against defilement by the world system. Jesus reminded His disciples that though they were IN the world, they were not OF it. Peter encouraged his readers to live differently.
Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. 1 Peter 4:1-3
James later warns that being a friend of the world makes you an enemy of God. John exhorted his readers not to love the world.
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15
Paul commanded followers of Jesus not to be conformed to it.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind…Romans 12:2
Later, James wrote what to do if we pick up stains along the way.
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. James 4:7-10
Paul reminded the Corinthians who knew about worldly stains of their special relationship with God.
What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore, go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” 2 Corinthians 6:16-18
Considering such a powerful promise Paul urged a cleansing.
Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God. 2 Corinthians 7:1
To consider ourselves spiritual while failing to bridle our tongue, help the needy or keep from becoming stained by too close of association with the world indicates self-deception regarding our true spiritual state. John wrote concerning saying and not doing.
If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
He offered the stain remover.
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:6-7
Keep exposing yourself to the light. True believers don’t fear exposing their life to the light.
Everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” John 3:20-21
To refuse to acknowledge the stains in our life is self-deception.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
To agree with God about the sin in our life is the path to stain removal.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:8-9
What does this brief encounter with God’s mirror reveal? The worst thing to do is notice the smudge and stain exposed by God’s mirror and walk away without any intention of dealing with it.
Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. James 4:17
