Worthless Religion
26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 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.
James makes a very bold statement today that if believers do not keep a tight rein on their tongue, their religion will be worthless. That is a sobering statement. Why do you think he made this statement? Why is he so adamant about this topic?
1. The early Christian movement was in a critical time period. Integrity between what they preached and how they lived was of critical importance to those they sought to reach. Like today, James did not want the word on the street to be, "Christians are all a bunch of hypocrites!"
2. James realized how dangerous the tongue was in creating division and hurt in the early Christian community. Though the smallest part of the body, when ignited, our words can cause a lot of destruction and misunderstanding.
3. God cares more about our "walk" than our "talk". The best witness for our faith is how we treat others especially those in need, like widows and orphans.
While James' words were so important for the church back in its early stages, I believe it is as relevant for us today. People today are still trying to dismiss the church as irrelevant. Jesus called us to be in the world, not of the world. The world today is looking at how much churches care for those they claim to love, including their own. It is a scary thought to think that our religion, or what we say we believe in, would be considered worthless. After Jesus gave us our worth on the cross, we should make every effort to have our lives be considered worthy of the call we have in Him. The next time you are tempted to cut someone down, or join in the gossip or rumor mill consider Paul's words to the Ephesians,
"Don't let anything unwholesome come out of your mouths, but only that which will build others up according to their needs, so that it might benefit those who listen." Ephesians 4:29
James makes a very bold statement today that if believers do not keep a tight rein on their tongue, their religion will be worthless. That is a sobering statement. Why do you think he made this statement? Why is he so adamant about this topic?
1. The early Christian movement was in a critical time period. Integrity between what they preached and how they lived was of critical importance to those they sought to reach. Like today, James did not want the word on the street to be, "Christians are all a bunch of hypocrites!"
2. James realized how dangerous the tongue was in creating division and hurt in the early Christian community. Though the smallest part of the body, when ignited, our words can cause a lot of destruction and misunderstanding.
3. God cares more about our "walk" than our "talk". The best witness for our faith is how we treat others especially those in need, like widows and orphans.
While James' words were so important for the church back in its early stages, I believe it is as relevant for us today. People today are still trying to dismiss the church as irrelevant. Jesus called us to be in the world, not of the world. The world today is looking at how much churches care for those they claim to love, including their own. It is a scary thought to think that our religion, or what we say we believe in, would be considered worthless. After Jesus gave us our worth on the cross, we should make every effort to have our lives be considered worthy of the call we have in Him. The next time you are tempted to cut someone down, or join in the gossip or rumor mill consider Paul's words to the Ephesians,
"Don't let anything unwholesome come out of your mouths, but only that which will build others up according to their needs, so that it might benefit those who listen." Ephesians 4:29
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