Introduction
Let me begin with a discipleship question: will we trust and obey Jesus in the real decisions of everyday life? Christ forms us through truth received, repentance practiced, and obedience lived out.
Main Points
Grace and Justification
this will actually be our last pass through james chapter one so if you have a bible turn there and uh we've got just two verses and yet in these two verses i hope we have enough time because james is so full of the wisdom and truth of god's word that really requires meditation and a slow pace to it and i think the entire conversation that james is having with anyone who hears this word requires you to consume it slowly we're going to talk about that this morning but read these two verses with me and then i'm going to lead off with a question for you and i just want i want you to answer it honestly james chapter 1 verse 26 if anyone among you thinks he or she 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 spotted from the world another moment where the book of james is going to really put something before us that i hope will challenge us in one of those painful truthful glorious ways so the question i lead off with is how many of you think you're religious and if you're if you're like first service or just a show of hands how many of you are like religious people would you say this morning it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a tough survey this is exactly what happened in first service nobody hears religious not one hand you're all a church singing songs with bibles and notebooks and you're like no not me i'm not religious yeah i know what you're thinking you're like i believe in relationship not religion it's a very good way to think about the pursuit of god that is freed from some of the stereotypical nonsense of religion in fact the word this morning says there is some religion that is absolutely useless and i think we all feel that at times we all sense that criticism for the non-religious world and we think okay i don't want to be religious but then james goes on to say but the good religion the pure and undefiled religion and so i hope that as we get towards the end of the sermon all of our hands would eventually raise and say we want that in our lives we want to be people who are doing what god has called us to do um let's define the term just for a second and then much like our series through the book of james we're going to have to take one step back before we take a couple forward and before i share this with you i'll say over the last couple months many of you have asked for specific quotes that i've shared or specific passage of scripture so i've actually just shared all of my little notes that i use with the projection team this morning so i'm just going to let you see them and if you're a visual learner i hope this helps you if you're not a visual learner then do not visualize any of this let's work on what james is maybe getting at with this word religion that none of us raised our hands for religion working definition behavior that flows that follows a system of beliefs and convictions this is uh worthy to kind of think about what james is getting at because in this sense of the word james is actually talking to people who are desiring to be religious he's not warning people against the stereotypical dangers of religion remember as we take a step back what we talked about last week was this idea that james says listen here's the word of god it can save your souls it can bless your life but only if you do it if you're a hearer of the word but not a doer you're foolish you're like looking in a mirror and not remembering who you are so now james is having almost one of those rhetorical conversations with the audience that he's writing to because someone might say maybe that someone is you from last week i do the word i listen to the sermon i open the word and i do my devotional in the morning and i and i receive it with gladness and i am a doer of the word and what james is saying is in that way this is your religious response you say you're religious you're doing things according to the word that is the religion that james is getting at and i hope all of us have a desire to be working what we believe to have a system of beliefs that is followed by a system of character conviction and action this is the sense of religion that james is getting at we'll have to again unpack the word as we get farther into the book because he'll say faith without works is dead same concept it's belief without the corresponding action is not actually a belief that you hold very dearly and so james is saying this morning in response to anyone who said last week don't worry preacher i listen to the word and i do the word what he's saying is some of you think that some of you think that you listen and you do but there's a chance for some of us and for probably all of us throughout our walk with god that we think we're doing the word in a religious kind of way although we wouldn't use that word but we're actually deceiving ourselves this is a strange concept i want to talk about three ways for us to kind of understand the good and the bad religion as presented in these two verses and we're going to look at religion in three terms the doing of the word first james is going to give us a test for our inward religion our inward work that comes from the word and that will be talked about as james says you're deceiving your heart then james is going to point us towards a pure and undefiled outward religion as he talks about orphans and widows and boxes that we send across the world to care for those in need and then james is going to talk about an upward religion what does any of this have to do with that god that we all say we believe in so as we go through this we're going to look at it in three ways starting with a surprising measurement of our inward religion james says you know you think you're doing the word but you're deceiving yourself because you're not bridling your tongue this is a strange moment for us to pause isn't there a better measurement for the way that we do the work in our life to be people who follow the word of god with conviction unto his glory and our satisfaction besides our tongue isn't can't we just find some like behavioral things that kind of show that we're walking in the word and the answer to that is yes but that's not what james answers james says this morning for those of us that really want to be free from the deception that because you come to church listen to the sermon download the podcast know the memory verse buy the books you're not necessarily doing what you think he says before we talk about behavior let's talk about your mouth why does he go there well one that's something hopefully all of us relate to there's not one of us that can't read the book of james and all of its warnings about the way that our mouth is a measurement of our health and say oh that's a little convicting so that's a good starting point i hope we're all listening that james says part of the deception of religious people sometimes is found in their words to answer this question as we've done through much of the book of james it's helpful to remember that sermon on the mount overlap remember one of the ways that we found a blessing in studying the book of james is that we just finished our summer on the mount and james is actually overlaying this measurement for your inward religion with something that jesus taught so let me share with you from matthew chapter 7 verse 15. he says there is actually an outward appearance of good that has an inward deadness or an inward evil james or jesus now says in matthew 7 beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly they are ravenous wolves this is the part of the warning that we need to listen to he says here's how you'll know them buy their fruits do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles so jesus says exactly what we're getting at this morning a lot of us look good on the outside look good on the resume of religion but inwardly our hearts do not match our action and what jesus says is measure the fruit if you really want to know what kind of tree you've got growing in your backyard wait for it to blossom it's fruit if it's an apple it's an apple tree it's a peach it's a peach tree if it's thorns it's no good in the same way jesus says measure the fruit he goes on to say in the warning in matthew 7 that if you don't get this right there's useless religion matthew chapter 7 verse 21 not everyone who says to me lord shall enter the kingdom of heaven but those who do the will of my father in heaven so there's james and jesus overlaying each other fitting like a puzzle piece to help us understand now measure the fruit to find what kind of believer that you are and here's why this is so important the sermon on the mount and all the teachings about this good tree and battery will flow into a very important scene that jesus interacts with religious people and in his interactions with religious people he's going to give them the example of the tree again matthew chapter 12. so a couple chapters later in the ministry of jesus he has one of those interactions with religious people who say they're doing the work but are deceived and they're arguing with jesus about the validity of his work and their main challenge with jesus is that he's doing a bunch of work on the sabbath so if the chapter begins with him and his disciples on the sabbath day picking up grain that was left from a harvest for poor people they were hungry they must have qualified as poor so they start eating and religious people who would say they're doing the word say to jesus how on earth can you justify what you're doing on the sabbath and jesus continues to give them reason for their religion to be challenged by his work he goes on to heal a withered hand they challenge him again he then goes on to cast out demon from a boy and then in matthew chapter 12 we have the reintroduction of the tree as he's talking to his religious critics he's going to use the tree example they are calling him someone that is actually working for the devil by casting out demons they're blaspheming his name and they're arguing with him to which he says in matthew chapter 12 verse 33 make the tree good and its fruit good or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad for a tree is known by its fruit great so we can measure the way that you're taking the word by the fruit of your life and what is the fruit the very next verse you brew to vipers how can you who are evil say anything good for the mouth speaks what the heart is full of what jesus is saying is measure it by the fruit and i can tell you your fruit by your words against me as you argue with me as you doubt me as you say that i'm not who i say i am as you continually put your religion above my work i can tell your bad tree by your words and this is what james is getting at for all of us the unbridled tongue is telling something about not only our words but our heart the words that you speak are an overflow of your heart and this is why this is so important you continue to read matthew 12 the very next verse matthew 12 35 a good man of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil as we consider bridling our tongue oftentimes you think of that as a horizontal once again it's like okay we've got to speak kindly to each other which we do we have to not gossip we have to not slander we have to not be divisive which is all true but remember the lesson from last week being quick to listen and slow to speak is so valuable in interpersonal relationships but it has to start with god the whole command that james is giving these believers that have been scattered abroad to find joy if you're lacking joy go to god if you're going through temptation don't blame god and in all of the ways that god will speak to you and give you the wisdom that you need and give you the power to overcome your role is to listen your role is to allow god's word to now govern your heart think about the definition that we're working with again with bridal look what it says the headgear with which an animal is governed govern your words means that your heart is also governed by the treasure that exists and overflows from it your treasure governs your life the depths of your heart flow the words out of your mouth and represent what you live for what you care about and what's really important to you and when james says bridle your mouth or bridle your tongue what he's saying in the beginning of all of this is to allow the word of god to be implanted into your hearts so much so that your words are represented of a bridled life remember what it says in james chapter 1 the verse we looked at last week verse 21 lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness and receive with all meekness the imparted word which is able to save your soul allow the word of god to be implanted into your heart in such a way that it governs you it has bridled your life what the word says is a narrow gate to the truth and the life and the way that god has called you to and your words begin where your heart flows this is something that all of us are challenged by to allow the word to be something that we listen to and then it governs our life and you'll know by the way that you hold your tongue to listen to god and then by the way that your words are words filled with the hope and the faith and the love that you have in god for others or if this has not happened coming out of your heart flowing through your mouth will be all the other things that you treasure remember last week matthew chapter 13 where jesus gives that lesson of the good listener he says there are so many things that are inside of the soil of your life or your heart that keep you from bearing the fruit it goes over your head because you don't understand there's riches that you care more about the things of this world than the things of the kingdom there's all sorts of things that will choke out the joy when persecution comes and what james is saying is as you bridle your words and listen to god it penetrates the depths of your heart so that your life is bridled by the word this is all an extension of last week to be bridled we have to listen and then we have to do the will what is god saying to do in the circumstances of your life and the deception comes when we're listening but we're not bridled when we hear the sermon and we hear all of the things about god but it doesn't change the direction of our life it is more than just the way we speak james goes on to say in james chapter 3 verse 2 for when we stumble in many things if anyone does not stumble in word he is a perfect man able to bridle his whole body indeed when you put in bits in horses mouths they may obey us and we turn their whole body you don't bridle a horse just for the mouth you bridle the horse for the whole horse and when james says you're unbridled he's saying you have not given your life by the implanted word of god in your hearts fully over to god you're hearing but you're not doing what god says going through the motions going through the routine going through all of the listening but it doesn't match you following now as a horse would follow the bridle i'm always grateful for the way i get these lessons just in everyday life and once again i have to share a story of my children so bear with me i feel like all of these stories are like using a credit card it's easy to do now and then i'll probably pay for it later i was doing a bedtime routine with my kids and it was very similar to this is what i'm thinking about telling my kids to be good listeners and ultimately listen to god what does he want for your life and love god so you can love others and it's like the parable of the sow or i can see some are getting it and some aren't and so you know the teacher that's trying to engage that child that's distracted i called on one of my kids to just pray for our night to pray for god to just give us the word implanted so that it would grow and we would do it and it's like okay and then pray for you know whatever the lord puts on your heart before we go to bed and the daughter that i called upon was like got it and so we all close our eyes and she goes dear lord thank you for this food bless it to our bodies in jesus name amen and i was like oh you're just totally going through the routine of prayer you're praying for a meal that's not here and your default prayer obviously is praying for food which is great oftentimes your words will be shaped by your hunger i get that as well but as i'm getting ready to rebuke her i realize that what i see in her the lord is showing something in me and how often do i do the same thing the lord says here's what i want you to do with the word here's how i want the word to be in your heart so that you hear my voice so that you do my will and i'm like got it i'm gonna do the opposite got it heard the message and now life starts when the church ends and all of us have a challenge with that because what james is saying to us this morning if you do that if you sit in church but it doesn't change your life if it doesn't bridle your heart bridle your words bridle your walk this is all a waste of time there's no value intrinsically in listening to a sermon and not allowing the word of god to be implanted james says you're deceiving yourselves if you think that this is what will change your life what changes your life is when the word impacts your heart so richly that you do what god tells you to do and then you get to get this verse that says and anyone who continues in his word will be blessed it's a promise jesus says i want to give you life more abundant like got it you want to give me life in heaven and now my life will be flatlined he's like no i want to give you life now well we're just happy to not have it till then i want to give you joy got it i'll have joy in heaven and for now i'm just going to grit my teeth until i get there no i want you to have joy through trials one of my favorite living parables of this is actually seen in my favorite movie sorry if you've heard me share this before because i know i have it some at some point but one of my favorite movies is forrest gump i see a lot of myself in him i hope because he i believe he was such a picture of a life that has lived so simply upon the wisdom of listening next time you watch the movie if you do think about all the times he says well my mama always said and so much of his life was shaped by the wisdom that was given to him and it wasn't just his mom that he listened to in fact the person that he listened to the most was the person that he loved the most and this is an imperfect parable because the person he loved the most was a fallen woman of this world named jenny if you've seen the movie you know that everything oriented around jenny and there was one moment when he saw her and he told her hey i'm going to vietnam and jenny in her own kind of season of life just had one bit of wisdom she said if you get into any trouble i want you to run and he took the word and it landed into his heart and not long after he got into trouble and the air raid overhead started falling down on him and all the men that he was serving with and it was like danger disaster scatter nobody knew what to do people are dying bullets are flying and the word came out and it governed his life and he began to run and as he was running he started picking up people it's kind of a picture of just the gospel it's like i'll tell you what to do and when you see people who need help just help him and he starts picking up everybody and throwing them down his best friend bubby he throws him down and he goes back for his lieutenant he picks him up and he's like leave me here and he's like nope gotta i gotta save you he drops him down it was such an amazing moment of his life that he won the medal of honor what a moment to win the highest honor that our country can give to someone who serves and then in a moment that represents what is supposed to happen as we listen and we do and we're blessed and we're saved he sees jenny after he's got the medal he actually has the medal honor on and he says jenny i've got to give you this medal and she's like i can't take that's yours you earned it and then he says one of my favorite lines and i always look at this as something that we would simply say to god he says i got it just by doing what you told me to do it's not my medal you told me what to do and i did it and it saved my life and it blessed others and it brought joy and honor and it all belongs to you now what we're being called to is not to our moms or the love of our life but a relationship with the word of god representing god himself that is so rich that we live a simple life of doing it and everything that the word promises call called to joy and peace and faith and hope and love and a life and a life more abundant as we receive those things we come at our worship services and when the tithe is passed and when we're sitting around the table and eating food and we say god this is all yours i only got it by doing what you told me to do that is the inward religion bridled by the word of god that is blessed has the power to save your soul and bring joy to every circumstance of your life and yet even in our doing we can have an outward expression that doesn't match the inward truth and so james is going to offer some corrective religion now the useless religion is when we do but we never cash it in now the pure religion verse 27 pure and undefiled religion before god and the father is this to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and keep oneself unspotted from the world already referenced how james and jesus are almost teaching back and forth this morning with the sermon on the mount and the inward religion and the outward expression and as jesus continues to just collide with religious people who by their words would plot against him he often references back to a moment in the story of god where there was a very similar time where god's people were not hearing god's voice and that's why jesus often references the prophet isaiah lived in a time when there was lots of religiosity there was lots of doing but with that lots of deception because it didn't have any impact on their relationship with god in isaiah chapter 1 as you read it you can't help but hear the call of james to pure religion isaiah chapter 1 verse 16 wash yourselves make yourselves clean purify the relationship that you have with god put away the evil of your doing from before my eyes cease to do evil learn to do good here is the outward expression that isaiah was called to bring to the people of god then that jesus came to cleanse the people of god in his ministry and that now we see in our time a desire to see seek justice rebuke the oppressor defend the fatherless plead for the widow is the word of god so rich in your heart so bridled of your life that you have an expression of the heart of god to the world that you live in and if you're like me the answer is often no i do not do this well i do not do this perfectly and it's worth to continue to read because even as isaiah the prophet was being raised up he himself had to go through this transformative shift towards the outward expression being cleansed not just the inward truth and in isaiah chapter 6 we get this famous scene where isaiah has such a real interaction with the living god the way that we desire to have with the living word of god that he was undone it says that he saw a vision of the lord that filled the temple it could not contain him and that there were heavenly beings just worshipping him and as that becomes implanted in him that is so rich look what he discovers of
Conclusion
We return to the opening teaching: discipleship is not just information, it is transformation through faith and obedience to Jesus. If we receive His Word and walk it out, He will shape us into people who endure and bear fruit.
Lord Jesus, help me hear Your Word, obey it with faith, and grow as Your disciple. Amen.
Conclusion
We return to the opening teaching: discipleship is not just information, it is transformation through faith and obedience to Jesus. If we receive His Word and walk it out, He will shape us into people who endure and bear fruit.
Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, help me hear Your Word, obey it with faith, and grow as Your disciple. Amen.