Sermon: Acceptable Religion - Jas. 1:19-27

In James 1:27, the half brother of the Lord says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." [NIV]

While the words of Amos instruct us in the ways God despises false religion in all its forms, James gets in my face about how what I believe must impact how I act. He picks actions that were particularly tough to live up to in his day. Nothing has changed. God's standards are still the same, and our weaknesses appear to be the same.

As we examine James 1:19-27 today, there can be no doubt as to what God finds acceptable from those who call Christ "Lord."

Acceptable Religion...

Outline

Effects Our Hardest to Control Behaviors (James 1:19-25)Quick to listen and slow to speakWill result in better understandingWill result in slower move toward "man's anger."Get rid of moral filth.Move beyond thinking about the word to acting upon the word.Effects Our Speech (James 1:26)If "when" we speak is a problem, "what" we say is particularly dangerous.Trying to cover up a lack of commitment to the Lord and His will with what we say can result in self-deception.At least morally corrupt people know they are not right with God. People who talk about their religion, when that religion is not backed up by actions, are in danger of being rejected by God.Effects Our Care for Those in Distress (James 1:27a)There is no symbolism in these words. Do what they say (v. 22).Such as acting individually and as a church to minister to single parent families at the point of their "distressing" needs.Such as acting individually and as a church to encourage foster parents and adoptive parents in their efforts to provide for children without parents willing or able to take care of them.Effects Our Resistance to Worldly Pollution (James 1:27b)The Bible is clear that we are to be different from the rest of the world in our attitudes and actions.We should probably ask the question, "does self-control, pure speech, and actions taken on behalf of distressed individuals do something to refine our character and keep us safe from the ways of this world?"

Conclusion

Acceptable religion requires the kind of faith relationship to Jesus that moves us to act as He taught us to act. We can not act as we should in our own strength. We can choose to allow the Holy Spirit to work through us and to empower us to do what God wants done. Any other approach is branded by the prophet Amos as false (today's Sunday School lesson), and by James as unacceptable. In our hearts, we know they are right.

Illustration Thumbnail

If you have an interest in drawing contrasts between other religions and biblical Christianity, a good overview of several other religions is available on the North American Mission Board's website at http://www.namb.net/resources/beliefbulletins/

Related Biblical Texts

Isaiah 1:11-20; Hosea 2:8, 13; 4:10-19; and Micah 6:6-8 deal specifically with God's judgment on unacceptable worship.1 Corinthians 13 includes a warning not to allow even religious behaviors to get in the way of an active love toward those who hurt us.The Sermon on the Mount is full of real religion lessons that counter the show common among the religious leaders of Jesus' day.