Moving Forward
James 1:25-27
8/14/06
But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
„« A doer will be blessed in what he does
o When you become a doer of the word you tap into the next phase of God¡¦s resources. Repeat that!!
o Look at Psalms 1:2-3 = But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates (Or being a doer!) day and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.
o When I meditate on God¡¦s word, it is something that I choose to process through my mind every hour of the day.
o When I become a doer of his word the blessings of God will follow me!
o My ultimate blessing can be found in Rev 22:14 - Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.
„« Watch that tongue!
o Proverbs 18:21 - Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.
o The words of our mouth have control over our lives, whether we like it or not, or whether we believe it or not. What comes out of our mouth will determine our future. As a rudder controls the direction of a ship, your tongue controls the direction of your life. God made man to be a steward not only over the earth but over his own mouth as well. We are our own prophets. What we say today impacts our tomorrow.
o There are 113 references to the tongue listed in the New King James version. Remember what I¡¦ve said in the past ¡V If something is repeated that much in scripture: We need to listen up!
o Proverbs 21:23 - Whoever guards his mouth and tongue Keeps his soul from troubles. Nothing good comes out of trouble!
o Listen to what Jesus said about the tongue: But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned" (Mt.12:36-37).
„« Useless religion
o Here is the definition of useless - having no beneficial use or incapable of functioning usefully
o Any religion that does not recognize that Jesus Christ paid our sin debt and died on a cross, buried in a tomb for three days, arose from the dead and is now sitting at the right hand of God the Father it is useless! And there a lot of them out there.
o II Timothy 3:5 - having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
o Don¡¦t make your Sunday morning¡¦s a routine. If you fall into a rut and your spiritual experience become routine, then all you have are empty words and no fresh experiences with Christ!
o A religion which is not a practicing religion is a Dead religion! Practicing is different then game time ¡V Practice is something I do Monday though Saturday ¡V Then Sunday is game time!
o C.S Lewis said - ¡§If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next ¡K all left their marks on Earth precisely because their minds were occupied with heaven.¡¨
„« What should we do?
o Take care of the orphans and widows
„X If we are to be like Christ, listen to his words: "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor.
„X He didn¡¦t say that he was going to focus on the rich, popular, or someone with outer beauty ¡V But the poor! Just remember that earthly stuff can cloud your spiritual sight.
„X Jesus stated in one of his parables - Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
„X The fact is it¡¦s only by God¡¦s grace that we are not poor or destitute!
o Keep yourself unspotted from the world
„X Remember no matter what level of sin it is ¡V It always stains. God has given us a white garment after we received him as Lord over our life and with white you cannot hide a stain!
„X To keep myself unspotted from the world, I must lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and I must purify my heart and cleanse my hands. This is all about personal repentance and determination to avoid all sin and error.
„X I must use the Word of God to monitor my heart. If I detect any beginnings of any of these behaviors, I must put them away, to maintain the activity of my faith in God and keep myself unspotted from the world.
