October 2, 2005
Morning Worship
Text: James 1:19-27
Subject: True Religion
Title: More Than Church Attendance
I can’t begin to tell you how many times I have said from this pulpit that church attendance is so important to us all. We need to be in church. Hebrews 10:25, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” I do want to encourage all of you to be in church as often as possible. For those of you who may not remember, we do have church on Sunday Evenings at 6:30 and Wednesday at 7:00 and prayer on Friday morning at 8:00. It is important that we come together as often as possible in order to study and hear the word proclaimed and to worship the Lord in song. Every time we come together the Holy Spirit is doing something different. We are at an exciting crossroad for this church body and have great expectations for the things to come.
Now that I have said all that, I want you to listen to what I am about to say next. THERE IS MORE TO BEING A CHRISTIAN THAN CHURCH ATTENDANCE!!! Yes, church attendance is of vital importance for those who are hungry for more of God and who desire to be everything they can be in Him. Church attendance then offers us a place to worship and a time of learning so that we can know what God’s word says to us concerning every situation we might encounter in this life. And then we put the Word into action.
In our passage today James, the brother of Jesus, gives us an outline for living the Christian life. Like so much of what we hear through sermons or read in the bible, the spiritual reality must be transferred to the physical world for it to have real effect. Today, let the Word of God become real for you.
I. CHRISTIANS MUST HAVE RIGHT AMBITIONS. (19-21)
A. Practice the Art of Listening. “Everyone should be quick to listen…” I know a man who is a terrible conversationalist. Part of the problem is that he has a hearing deficiency. The root of the problem is that he would rather talk than listen. He can begin a conversation by asking you a question and interrupt you before you can answer and go off on another tangent. We need to be able to listen. Other people have things to say that are important. Other people need to talk without interruption. Sometimes people just need to vent. We need to learn to listen to others without making any kind of judgment. Just listen! We need to be, “slow to speak…” . People don’t always want advice. They just want someone to listen and be sympathetic. It takes a real burden for people to do that. It’s the kind of burden Jesus had for People. He came to seek and save that which was lost. Notice that Jesus didn’t just come to save. He actively sought out people. He engaged in conversation. He went one-on-one. And He listened. Being quick to listen and slow to speak means you care about people. You have compassion for them. Compassion for people is seen in the way you interact with them.
B. The Act of Holiness. James goes on to say in verse 19-20 that we are to be “slow to become angry 20 for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.” Where does anger come from? Did you ever stop to think about that? Why do we get angry? Anger is self-centered. Anger is concerned about “me”. Anger says, “I’m right and everybody else is wrong.” Paul says, “Love is not easily angered or is not self-centered or proud. It keeps no record of wrongs…” All anger does is to keep us form living the way God wants us to live – with love and compassion for others and zeal for Him and His word. Jesus said that all the commandments were rolled up into two – Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself… If you do these things you live the kind of life that God’s expect you to live.
C. The Acceptance of the Word. Verse 21, 21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. The Word of God, whether written or spoken, cannot effectively work in your life until you separate yourself from moral filth and evil. So everything we have said so far about your relationships with other people, according to the Bible, cannot take hold in you until you have made the conscious decision to get rid of pride and anger and self-centeredness. This word of God cannot change you unless you are willing to let go of things in your life that do not produce love and compassion. Do you have ambitions of being a great Christian? Love God and people. Our core beliefs are stated simply, “Loving God, Trusting God, Loving People. That is all the ambition you need to please God.
II. CHRISTIANS MUST HAVE RIGHT ATTITUDES. (22-25)
A. The Right Attitude in the Hearing of the Word. Verse 22, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” When I talk about having the right attitude, I must start with asking you this question. Why do you come to church? You like the people? You like the music? You like the preaching? It’s what I have always done? It’s what I’m supposed to do? It makes me feel better about myself? How about, “I come to church because I love God and want to become more like Him.” So you come to church to hear God’s word proclaimed? That’s good. Faith comes by hearing… “I’ve heard God’s word preached – faith come! I want it.” But you see, it goes way beyond that. Hearing the word builds your faith so that you can now be doers of the word. If you hear the word of God and are not actively doing what you hear, James says you deceive yourself. When you first heard that we are saved by grace, if all you did was hear, you weren’t saved. It might have sounded good and right to you, but nothing happened. But, when you took an active participation in it and accepted the salvation offered to you it became a reality.
B. The Right Attitude in Responding to the Word. Verses 23-24, “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.” If we come to church just to hear the word without applying it to our lives we have missed the whole point of preaching and church. James says that person is just like one who looks in the mirror and turns away and forgets what he looks like. In other words when you look in a mirror, you do so for a purpose. You either comb your hair or wash your face or put on your make-up. If you just look into the mirror for the purpose of seeing a reflection of yourself, what you have seen serves no purpose. Likewise, hearing the word without responding to it serves no purpose. The word translated “looking” means “careful scrutiny”. But if all you do is look carefully, you still haven’t done anything. The practical application here is that you can do the same thing with God’s word. You can study and be considered a scholar, but if you have not applied it to your life you have an improper attitude toward the word.
C. The Right Attitude in Remembering the Word. Verse 25, “But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.” What happens when we study and apply the word to our lives? Joshua 1:8, “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” Hearing the word builds the faith you need to apply it. Applying it continues to build on that faith and you are continually blessed and prosperous. Maybe this requires our expanding the definition of blessing and prosperity. James calls it the perfect Law that gives freedom. In God’s economy blessing and prosperity is not limited to financial or material things. In God’s economy they encompass changed lives on the spiritual plane and souls added to the kingdom. It is only in total submission to the word of God can we find true freedom. Remembering God’s word and doing it not only changes you, it sets you free from the standards the world has set in place.
III. CHRISTIANS MUST HAVE RIGHT ACTIONS. 26-27
A. Right Actions in Your Reflection of God’s Word. “If anyone considers himself religious…” Do you consider yourself religious because you come to church and hear the word? You’ve heard it said that Christians don’t have “religion” they have a relationship with Jesus. That is true. But listen, a true relationship with the right ambitions and right attitudes will result in what James calls true religion.
B. Right Actions in Your Religion. “Keep a tight rein on his tongue…” Do you know that the word “religious” is never used in a positive context in the New Testament? It always refers to people who thought they were in right standing with God but really weren’t. “Keep a tight reign on his tongue” is just one example of hearing the word and not doing it. Proverbs is full of admonitions to keep control of what you say. And the readers of James book would have known the Proverbs well. But if you know it without applying it, it is useless religion.
C. Right Actions in Your Relationships. Verse 27, “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. True religion manifests itself in our relationships. We need to have a special interest in brothers and sisters in Christ who have real need. In the early church orphans and widows had no means of support but the church took care of them. It was expected of those in the church to do so. There is a difference between those who have real need and those who are looking for a handout. We’ll allow the Holy Spirit to show us the difference. Meanwhile, I will commend this church for taking care of its own over the 4 years we have been here. Now there are other relationships James speaks of here. “Keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” The book of Genesis gives us a prime example of one who was saved by faith but did not avoid the world’s pollution. “Lot, pitched his tent near Sodom… Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord.” It was obvious that Sodom was a terrible place but Lot ignored that because of the great material blessings it offered. Because of his association with the evil city he lost everything and narrowly escaped with his life. Keep yourself from being polluted by the world. It doesn’t mean you don’t associate with your unsaved neighbors. Just don’t do the things they do. You cannot live with one foot in the world and the other in the kingdom. Even though they coexist they are separated by a great chasm that is continually moving further apart. At some point you have to make up your mind which it is going to be.
Church attendance is important. But being doers of the word is even more important. Our ambitions for our Christian lives will determine our attitudes toward the Word. Our attitudes toward the word will influence our actions. Our actions show the world who we really are.
The Spirit of the Lord is calling out to the church today come and dine. The Lord has prepared a table for you in the midst of your enemies. It is your local church. Those who are hungry will come to the table and be fed.
