Pure And Undefiled

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James 1
Greeting to the Twelve Tribes
1 James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad:
Greetings.

Profiting from Trials
2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

The Perspective of Rich and Poor
9 Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation,
10 but the rich in his humiliation, because as a flower of the field he will pass away.
11 For no sooner has the sun risen with a burning heat than it withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beautiful appearance perishes. So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits.

Loving God Under Trials
12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
18 Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

Qualities Needed in Trials
19 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;
20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

Doers—Not Hearers Only
21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror;
24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.
25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless.
27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

These scriptures were written by James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. As he was inspired by the Lord, James addressed these words to all of God’s people who were scattered everywhere in the world.

As they were relevant for the people of God during those tough times, they are also relevant for us today!

We will have many kinds of troubles. But when these things happen, we should be very happy. We need to know that these things are testing our faith in Christ.

And as we go through these troubles, trials and tribulations, they will help us to develop patience. And our patience will reveal itself perfectly in whatever we do. Then we will be perfect and complete. We will have everything we need. In Christ, we can do all things!

If any of us needs godly wisdom, we should ask God for it. God is very generous. He enjoys giving wisdom to all of us. But when we ask God, we must believe. We must not doubt God. Anyone who doubts is like a unstable wave in the sea. The wind will blow the wave up and down.

When we doubt, we are thinking two different things at the same time. Is God able or is He not? Is God willing or is He not? Will God give or will He not? We cannot decide about what we ask. We cannot decide which way to go. If we doubt God, we should not think that we will receive anything from the Lord.

True riches is being contented with what God has provided for us. If we are poor, we should know that God has made us rich in Christ. If we are rich, we should not boast about our earthly possessions and debase others!

The rich will die like wild flowers in the grasslands. The sun rises and becomes hotter and hotter. The scotching heat will dry the plants, and the flowers will fall off. The flowers were once very beautiful, but now they have faded. It is the same with the rich. Some day, they will fade like flowers while doing their business.

When we are tempted but remain faithful in Christ, we should be happy. After we have stood the tests of our faith, God will reward us with life forever. God has promised this to all people who love Him.

When we are tempted, we should not say, “God is tempting me.” Evil cannot tempt God, and God Himself does not tempt anyone. Temptation is not from God. It is the evil desire that we want that tempts us. Our own lusts and cravings will lead us away from God, and imprison us! Those lustful desires will lead to sin. As the sin grows, it will bring forth death. Thus, we should not be fooled, and become entangled in bondages again by those desires.

Every good action and every perfect gift is from God. These good gifts come down from the Creator of the whole universe. God does not change like shifting shadows. God has decided to give us life through the Word of truth. He desires us to be complete and whole in Christ! We are among the most important things that He had made.

We should be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry. Our anger does not achieve the righteous purposes of God. Our anger will not help us to live a good life that God desires. We need to put out of our lives every evil thing and every kind of wrongs we have done and are doing.

We should humble ourselves and accept the teachings of God in His Word. As His Word is being planted and rooted in our hearts, we will grow and nurture in Christ! We will bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

We should do what God’s Word says. We should not just listen and do nothing. When we only sit and listen, we are fooling ourselves.

When we hear the Word of God, and do nothing, we are like looking at ourselves in a mirror. We see our faces, then go away and quickly forget how we look. We do not bother to clean and wash up even when we see that we are untidy and dirty!

But we can be truly happy in Christ when we study the Word of God carefully. His Word will perfect us, and make us free from bondages! We need to study His Word daily and continually! When we listen to His Word, we must remember what we have heard. When we keep God's Word in our hearts, we will obey the Lord according to His Word! When we do so, we will be blessed.

What is the true way to worship God? We may think that we are godly and faithful. But if we say or do things we should not say or do, then we are just fooling ourselves. Our beliefs and religious acts are worth nothing.

What God really requires us to do is to care for the orphans and widows who need help, and to keep ourselves free from the evil influences of the world.

Micah 6:8
He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the LORD require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?

In doing what the Lord requires of us, we will be pure and undefiled in the sight of the Lord!

Written on 2 January 2022