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Pure Religion
May 4, 2019

Last week, we considered the recent controversy in the donations given to rebuild Notre Dame in Paris and the concern shared by some that the money should equally flow to the poor and we ended by previewing the verse ending the first chapter of James. Immediately prior to that we considered that the works shown by Abraham ws obedience, and that the works shown by Rahab was an affirmative action in response to the miracle of God she saw through the children of Israel. We considered what Jesus showed in Matthew 25 as needed for salvation in addition to obedience. The final verse in James chapter one shows once again what is needed, 1) obedience to God, and 2) helping people in need.

James 1:27
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.

Earlier in the chapter James uses the words hearing and doing to describe the works of faith. If people hear what is needed to be done and they believe, of and by itself that is not good enough. They also have to act on what they hear to show their faith. When we do what we hear, when we obey, we will be blessed.

James 1:21-25
Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 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: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 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.

A good measure of our faith is the language we use. We must be in control of the words we use and we must never lie to ourself thinking we are acting in faith when we may not.

James 1:26
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.

To summarize, eternal life is given to those who both 1) obey God, and 2) help people in need. Those who only obey God will not be granted eternal life. Those who only help people in need will not be granted eternal life.

All verses are from the King James Version.
This site provided by Tom Laign. To all who may believe differently, I also extend peace and love.
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