James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.
27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
In the news recently we had world excitement because Notre Dame Cathedral opened up to the public once again. It had been closed due to a massive fire in 2019. Apparently it cost nearly 1 billion dollars in donations to repair this building for this massive distraction. It is just a building. It does not point people to God. It celebrates pagan religion and it brought world leaders to its reopening. Does this remind you of anything that is coming in the future? If you are saved it should be a reminder of future events under the short 7 year period of the antichrist.
We have also witnessed the restructuring of Syria. In a similar manner to the fall of Iraq, we are seeing a destabilizing of another region in the Middle East. The next leader, whoever that will be, will not be any better for the region than Assad has been. It is unclear at present where Assad is. What we need to keep in mind is that God is in charge and He sets up kings and He takes them down. Erdogan, in Turkey is still in place and he has plans as well. Again, he is limited in his plans by God. We know that in spite of what we see with our physical eyes, there will be a powerful alliance coming against Israel in the future. That alliance will be so powerful and the rest of the world will not interfere in that event. Israel will appear to be doomed. As that alliance advances toward Israel and Israel shudders under the threat of annihilation, God will be there and at just the right moment, He will stop that alliance from its planned attack. Israel will be spared and many within that alliance will be killed. The remainder will be greatly humiliated. It is a reminder of the armies of the Assyrians who encamped against Jerusalem. In one night God killed 185,000 men as they slept in their tents. In the morning they were all dead and the remainder went home, a defeated remnant. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria later went into the house of his gods and was worshipping there and two of his sons murdered him there. God can change events very quickly. He is still in charge now and as we watch what is happening in the Middle East we need to be reminded of the importance of knowing the true God.
The events in South Korea are also interesting. So many have their hopes in elections. The president of South Korea recently tried to change the course of that country by declaring martial law. His attempt failed, but he survived the attempt, for now. This same scenario could play out in the U.S. yet before January 20, 2025, and it could also play out in Canada before the next sham election. It is not “we the people” that are in charge. It is God that is in charge and He changes the world stage for His glory. There is also uncertainty in France, etc. There are people who bury their heads in the sand and do not pay attention to what is taking place. They will not stop events from happening. They will just be unprepared for what is happening. Those who want to hide, do not have a vital relationship with the Lord and thus cannot handle reality.
As we see in our text, we need a true and vital relationship with God. That relationship will not be realized just with actions, nor will it be realized just with words. Words and actions need to coincide. They need to agree with one another, and be founding in God.
James used the illustration of a man looking into a mirror to make his point here. A person might go to the mirror and look at himself and then turn away and forget what he looked like. God gave that illustration and it certainly is fitting. The false ‘professor’ forgets if he should act like a Christian for a certain occasion or if he should behave like the lost. His words prove his true nature. His actions also prove who he is.
In verse 25 we see that the person who looks into the “perfect law of liberty”, is different. It is important to note that the “perfect law of liberty” is the Word of God. It is not some charismatic social club or the Catholic religion or one of many other brands. It is by taking the Word of God in Its’ entirety and believing that and thus living by that.
We see that there is a need to continue in that perfect law of liberty. There is no such thing as a Sunday Christian. For some it is just the hour or two they are in their social club that matters. We noted from I Corinthians 13 that when the perfect is come that which is in part will be done away. We have the perfect law of liberty. Knowing God through His Word is the source of liberty. We know Him through His Word. It is completed and it is lacking nothing.
The person who is born again will continue in God’s perfect law of liberty. He will grow and become more Christlike. He is not a forgetful hearer. He is truly born again, and thus he reads God’s Word daily. He meditates on it as he goes about his daily duties. He finds a good local church and he joins that church and works in and through that church. He is not a forgetful hearer. He is a doer of the work. James tells us this man is blessed in his deed. As we have noted, the blessing is not determined according to human standards. It is determined according to God’s standard.
In verse 26 we are reminded again of the importance of truth. A person can be a good actor. An actor that cannot control his tongue, deceives himself. There are people who love to hear themselves talk. Our P.M. is such a man, as is Mr. Trump. They love to boast of what they can do. There are men like Kenneth Copeland and Joseph Prince and others who fit that camp as well. They talk big, but they are empty suits. Jesus warned of such people in Matthew 7. They can even say “Lord, Lord”, but they are unknown to Jesus.
Vanity is a common thread in most religions today. They have the drums and the bass guitars and they have their ‘singers’ and they can make noise. People come and they get all excited. They raise their hands and they clap and they jig and they think they are so blessed by God. They have much activity, but they have no substance.
In verse 27 we see that pure religion is different. It is not based on making noise. It based on truth. Pure religion meets God’s holy standard. It is undefiled. No one will be caused to sin by following pure religion. Pure religion comes from God and It changes the heart of the hearer. There is a genuine compassion for souls. You notice that those who are most open to the truth are the fatherless and the widows. A godly father is so important in a home. There are people who dismiss this fact. There are women who want babies, but no father. They do not want to submit to God’s order. There are widows who need a man to guide them in their decisions and in fixing things. Some women want to prove how strong they are and they want to try to learn how to fix things on their own. They miss out on the blessing of trusting in God’s way of doing things.
When pure religion is at hand, there will be no untoward things going on. There will be no abuse of power or taking advantage of the vulnerable. There will be a desire to help and to see others blessed of the Lord. The person who lives in pure religion will keep himself unspotted from the world. He will keep first things first.
Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
There is no substitute for the new birth. Those who are saved must feed on God’s Word daily. They need to be in God’s Word daily and meditate upon it throughout the day. When we do that, we will have a Word for those who God brings across our path. We will desire to see others know His blessings as well. So many people put up a wall against the truth. They reject it and want nothing to do with it.
Today is the Lord’s Day. God has given us another opportunity to get ready to attend a true local church where we can be fed the truth. Whether you are saved or lost, there is no better place for you today than in a true, Bible-believing, local church. You will find all you need there.
Sometimes, when we are at the check out at the store, the cashier will ask if we found everything we were looking for. They are trained to ask that question. They are told to make sure the customer can spend their money at that particular store for all their wants.
A true, local church will have everything every person needs on any particular Sunday or any other service. It is all there because God’s Word is central to any true local church. The pastor will be a student of God’s Word and he will also be a doer of God’s Word. He will guide all who come into that which they need at that particular time. He does not read people’s minds. He prays and seeks the mind of Christ. He is an ambassador for Christ, and the hearers need to hear from the Lord. That is why they came. That may not be their original intent. However, the pastor knows that is what they need. He is simply a vessel prepared for the “Master’s use”.
Follow God’s leading today and discover His blessing for your heart this morning.
Pastor Bartel
