"True Freedom Leads to Willing Obedience" James 1:18–27

It's actually interesting.

The sermon I picked, just by chance, I didn't mean to do this, was I actually preached this

! exactly within a day of a year ago.

When I was a curate in Port Perry, we were going through the book of James, and this is the sermon

that I preached a year ago.

So I'm looking forward to doing it again.

So we're going to get into it.

And the way we're going to start this is that I'm going to talk about American politics.

And so now I just ask for mercy.

I'm just going to touch on it very briefly, because it draws a good point.

Pretty much a year ago, Trump gave, I know that name can cause fear, anger, anxiety for some people.

Just hearing that name, Trump, but we're just going to go into it.

In his inauguration speech, the day that he was sworn in as president for the second time,

second term of the United States, in his speech, he called that day Freedom Day, as he went on in his speech.

He called it, this is the Freedom Day.

This is the day of the new era for American people.

See, most would roll their eyes at that statement.

Like, oh, that's just Trump being Trump.

But the thing that's interesting, and I remember this, through the campaigns of both Trump and his party with Vance,

and then also Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, is that both parties promoted this narrative and this ideology of freedom.

Then just Trump, so happened to one, so he was able to say it in his speech that this is Freedom Day.

But the other party would have done the same thing.

Because a closer look at these freedom narratives that both these parties promised

is always through the censoring and oppressing of certain people groups, depending who's in power it happens.

And this is also the same case for our own political climate here in Canada.

I was a photojournalist, I've probably mentioned it before, in Ottawa for over a decade

before I transferred into ministry and I felt the call.

And I spent a lot of time on Parland Hill, just because it's Ottawa,

so you spend a lot of time taking photos of political things going on.

And I was able to witness the fall of a party and then also the rise of the next party.

And they promised the same narratives of freedom, but at the expense of other people.

Western culture, in particular, is full of narratives promising freedom.

Freedom from your old self.

Freedom to become a better you.

Freedom from anything that holds you back.

It's the air that we breathe.

We breathe it in every day.

We see it every day.

Live your best life now.

Live what you got.

A quick walk through any shopping mall, you'll see all these different narratives.

You get bombarded with it.

That promise you the good life if you buy their product.

I remember this a while back.

I saw this commercial for an ad.

And I knew the actor within it, within the commercial, so I ended up watching it.

And what, in this ad, this actor had the perfect family.

Everyone was happy.

Everyone was very smiley, having a good time.

He was tanned.

He was built.

He had the perfect man bun.

He was promoted as the manly man, the family man.

Nothing could go wrong.

He gave off the appearance of success.

But the thing that was interesting about this commercial, right after all this, about 30 seconds in,

it zooms in on the logo of his pants.

And he does a voiceover.

And he says, without my Carhartt pants, I can never have anything like this without them.

I need them.

And right there, I clicked off.

See, everything in this life promises freedom.

But it's just freedom in different ways.

So why bring all this up?

James is writing to Jewish Christians amongst the surrounding area.

In his letter, he begins it saying,

James, a servant of God, of the Lord Jesus Christ,

to the 12 tribes in the dispersion, greetings.

Now what that means is that he is writing to Christians

who have been scattered around the surrounding area of Jerusalem and beyond.

He is writing to Christians,

Jewish Christians, who are facing persecution for their beliefs.

They are facing suffering and isolation for their beliefs.

They are being bombarded with narratives that offer freedom and a better life.

They would be living in these places that have temples,

that if you go to these temples,

they promise that if you worship their God,

you will have a good life.

Whether it is through the God of fertility,

the God of success, of money,

all that keeps going, depending on the temple.

They're being bombarded.

The majority of them are poor economically.

Everyone around them seems to be enjoying life more than them.

And some of you may be feeling you can relate to some of this,

that you look around and you see people having a good life,

but when you profess your faith to people,

it almost appears that your life is not going well.

I know I can relate to this when I talk about it with my family and my friends.

They look at you differently.

So that doesn't sound like good freedom.

The Christian life.

So how are we, as followers of Jesus,

as our Lord and Savior,

to make sense of this?

I'm sure the scattered Jewish Christians

would have been thinking the same thing.

What is going on?

What is this happening to me?

I thought, being a Christian,

I was supposed to be free.

I was supposed to have freedom.

Isn't that what was spoken to me, told?

See, we're going to look at this,

and James shows that there's another way to experience true freedom,

or we can call it liberation,

as it says later, liberty.

Well, let's look at God's Word.

If you haven't already, we're looking at James,

the letter of James that comes after the book of Hebrews.

If you have your Bible, it would be very helpful,

because then you can see what happens before and what happens after.

And we're going to look at James 1, verses 18 to 27.

James 1:18–27

And we need to start in verse 18,

to understand the flow of the letter,

because it's hard to understand the flow

when you just pop in to certain books as we go.

See, the reformer Martin Luther,

a very famous man,

was not a fan of the book of James.

He said it resembled too closely,

too close to the works of a works-based religion.

He was not a fan of it.

He didn't want it in the Bible.

And then other people in this debate

would say it contradicts Paul's writings

and his main thrust of justification by faith.

Many would say that it contradicts the book of Romans.

And you'll see that as Daniel preaches through the book of Romans,

that it points directly to justification by faith,

but also by works, as James talks about.

A closer reading shows us this,

and we're going to flesh it out.

A better way to understand this

is that Paul, when he speaks,

is more cerebral.

He's more philosophical in his teaching

and how he writes.

And then James is more like a how-to guide,

how to live out the Christian life.

James has been compared to

the New Testament Proverbs.

We have the Old Testament Proverbs,

and then you have the New Testament Proverbs.

James is compared to that.

But we see, as we look,

three things from this passage,

and we're going to look at it.

And it's this.

True freedom leads to willing obedience.

Three points, practical points.

How to listen,

how to be a doer,

what does it look like?

Because true freedom leads to willing obedience.

Let's look.

Verses 18 to 21.

Of his own will, God,

he brought us forth by the word of truth,

that we should be a kind of firstfruits

of his creatures.

Know this, my beloved brothers.

Let every person be quick to hear,

slow to speak,

slow to anger.

For the anger of man

does not produce the righteousness of God.

Therefore, put away all filthiness

and rampant wickedness,

and receive with meekness

the implanted word,

which is able to save your souls.

See, the first thing we see here

in verse 18

is that God is working.

God has brought us forth

by the word of truth.

And then in 21,

it says the implanted word,

which is able to save your souls.

Before James moves into the practical part

of this passage,

he wants to make clear

that the Christian life

is one of true grace,

that it is truly given.

It's not something that you earn.

It doesn't say bluntly,

justification by faith,

but it makes it quite obvious.

It is given by grace.

Faith is given by grace.

Justified by the word of truth.

If you recall John's gospel,

he begins his gospel

by saying the word made flesh,

the word of truth.

Justified by faith through grace,

freely given.

This is how we are to view ourselves

as we move into this part

of what it looks like

to be a doer of the word.

Saved through faith.

In James chapter 2, verse 17,

James 2:17

he says this,

Faith by itself,

if it does not have works,

is dead.

This is where the debates come from,

that they think that

they contradict each other,

but they go hand in hand.

Imagine someone who says,

I believe I'm a doctor,

but doesn't do the schooling,

the work,

to learn how to become a doctor,

to learn the anatomy

or the anatomy of a human body,

how to do it,

what medicines to give.

Would you go to them?

Would you believe that they are true doctors?

Or think of a lifeguard

who doesn't know how to swim,

doesn't know how to do CPR.

Would you want them guarding the beach

your kids are at?

Would you believe that they are a true lifeguard?

No.

The second thing we see in these verses

is listening to God's word.

Remember, James is writing to Christians

Christians

who are being put through intense trials.

They're being squeezed.

They're being oppressed.

Look again at verse 19.

Know this, my beloved brothers.

Let every person be quick to hear,

slow to speak,

slow to anger,

for the anger of man

does not produce the righteousness of God.

Now this is easier said than done.

Quick to hear,

slow to speak,

slow to anger.

This is easier said than done.

But why do this?

Why not jump on things

if we're accused of things?

It's because it produces

the righteousness of God.

See, these Christians,

the Jewish Christians

that are scattered,

as we talked about at the beginning,

is that they are facing

immense persecution,

immense suffering.

But James here tells them

that amidst the suffering,

amidst this,

be quick to hear,

but slow to speak,

and slow to anger.

So I'm going to use

a cliche illustration.

Diamonds,

they're produced

through intense,

slow pressure

of the pressure

of the earth plates

coming together,

and it takes many years.

See, the Christian life

is one of this as well.

It is one of slow listening

to God's word,

but the mark of a Christian

is one who shows

these traits in public life.

No matter the circumstances,

God's word

slowly shapes us

through the pressures of life.

This is what James

is getting at here,

is that when we experience

these things in life,

we need to be slow to react,

slow to speak,

slow to anger.

And he continues

in verse 21,

when he talks about,

put away all filthiness

and rampant wickedness,

and receive with meekness

the implanted word,

which is able to save

your souls.

James is talking about

this idea of an old identity

and a new identity,

that when you live

a Christian life,

is that you have to

put off the old identity

and put on the new identity,

but it's done

through looking at God's word,

not through our own means.

New citizens,

the implanted word,

it's put within you.

It's not something

that you do yourself.

See, true freedom

leads to willing obedience.

But how are we

to be a doer of the word?

How does this play out?

See, James now moves

into the thrust

of his argument.

If you only listen

and never change,

you're not truly saved.

Think about in marriage.

For those of you

who are married here,

or if you're in a relationship,

or even just with a friend,

if you only listen to them,

but never act,

it's a bad thing.

If you only act,

but never listen,

that is also a bad thing.

You need to have both.

If you don't have both,

the relationship falls apart.

See, it's the same thing

with God's word.

You can be a good listener

of the word,

know all the answers,

but never a doer,

and not be saved,

as James points out.

You can also be a doer

of the word,

but never listen to it,

and never be saved.

You must have both.

This is what James

is getting at here,

of how to be a doer,

as he talks about.

Look at verse 22.

But be doers of the word,

and not hearers only,

deceiving yourselves.

For if anyone is a hearer

of the word,

and not a doer,

he is like a man

who looks intently

at his natural face

in a mirror.

For he looks at himself,

and goes away,

and at once forgets

what he is like.

But the one who looks

into the perfect law,

the law of liberty,

and perseveres,

being no hearer

who forgets,

but a doer who acts,

he will be blessed

in his doing.

Something that's so nice

about James

when you read through it

is that it's practical,

and he gives many illustrations,

which is very helpful.

I find it very helpful.

He uses illustrations

of waves being tossed

back and forth

for those who are being tossed

through different ideologies.

He talks about flowers

and fields being scorched away,

passing away

when the sun rises.

And here we have someone

looking intently in a mirror.

If you think about it,

most will have a mirror

at their front door,

or in their bedroom

when they're getting dressed.

And you check yourself

to make sure

if you have any food

or anything on your face,

or if your outfit is proper.

James is using this

to illustrate

where do you find

your moral teaching.

Because remember,

he's talking to Christians

who are bombarded

by ideologies and narratives

promising freedom.

Where do we find it?

Where do we find

our moral teaching?

Do we find it in ourselves,

our self-determination,

or do we find it

within the culture around us?

Or do we find it

in God's word,

and are we doers

of his word?

See, if we look again

at verse 25,

he says,

but the one who looks

into the perfect law,

the law of liberty

and perseveres,

being no hearer who forgets,

but a doer who acts,

he will be blessed.

See, there's three things

that go on here.

It's the looks,

read and listen,

persevere through trials

and life,

and doer who acts.

He lists it out.

See, when we read God's word,

when we look at it,

when we listen to it

and meditate on it,

it is a mirror

that points back at us

and shows us things

that we need to put off,

the daily self

of putting things off.

It shows us,

it encourages us as well.

See, the perfect law,

the law of liberty,

what is that?

Jesus, in Sermon on the Mount,

he talks about

how he is the law.

He is the fulfillment

of the law.

See, we find

the example of Christ,

of Jesus,

to reflect on,

to meditate on,

who points at us

and shows us

what we need to put off.

See, moral law

is impossible

to do perfect.

It shows us our need.

In the Old Testament,

there's the law of Moses

that James refers to.

And this law

is impossible to keep.

But God gave the law

through Moses

to show the need

for the people

to cling to him

and not to people.

But they fail at it.

See, we are liberated

through Jesus dying

on the cross.

We're given freedom

through that act.

His spirit enters into us.

Jesus is the perfect law.

Because true freedom

leads to willing obedience.

But point three,

what does it look like?

What does it look like?

Look with me

at verses 26 and 27.

If anyone thinks

he is religious

and does not bridle

his tongue

but deceives his heart,

this person's religion

is worthless.

Religion that is pure

and undefiled

before God the Father

is this,

to visit orphans

and widows

in their affliction

and to keep oneself

unstained

from the world.

something that is

so important

within the Christian walk

as James points out

is controlled speech.

Later on,

there's a section

in chapter three

called,

it's titled

Taming the Tongue.

And this has got to be

one of the hardest things

to do for all of us

is to tame the tongue.

He compares it

to the tongue

as something

that sets off

a forest fire,

a blaze.

He compares it

to a flame

that makes

a massive forest fire.

There's this time

I was on a canoe trip

when I was a canoe guide

in Algonquin Park

and a spark

went up

from the fire.

It's a little spark.

And because it was so dry,

it lit the forest part

on fire

and we had to scramble

to get this forest fire

put out.

And it started to go

through the root system

but we managed

to get it taken out.

But it happened so quick.

And that can happen

with speech.

See,

James talks about this.

Our tongues are small

but they can cause

great fires

within our lives

and other people's lives.

James is telling us

not to tear people down,

not to do

crude joking,

not to live

a life unstained

from this world.

And we're to care

for the oppressed

and the poor.

It's interesting

because James is talking

to those who are

oppressed and poor.

Those who are marginalized.

To care for the marginalized.

And we are called

to do this ourselves.

We are called

to seek them out.

And then it says

to be unstained

from the world.

Now this can mean

many things

to many people.

And it's our job

to listen to God's word

to find out

what that means.

But here,

in this part,

James is talking

about economic indifference

between the rich

and the poor.

See,

the thing,

I think I've mentioned

it before,

the thing that is

so interesting

about church,

about coming to church,

is that we all come

from different walks

of life.

Some people have money,

some people don't have money

or are in between.

But we get to come together

and worship the Lord.

We get to be brothers

and sisters in Christ

through the risen Lord

and the spirit within us.

And James is pointing

at this.

People with money

are not to look down

at people without money.

And people without money

are not to scoff

at those who have money.

The church setting

is a beautiful example

of this.

And James points it out.

See,

to reiterate the points,

true freedom

leads to willing obedience

of God's word.

Freedom by faith

in the cross.

Freedom by listening

to God's word.

Freedom by doing

God's word

through loving obedience.

A critique of Christianity

often is that,

is that,

oh,

you have to follow

all these rules.

All these things

are heaped upon you

and you can be okay

with God.

But it's not that.

See,

it's through

the gift of faith

when we reflect

on this free gift

that's been given

to us

by a loving father

that we cannot help

but act out

what God's word says.

By resting

in the finished work

of the cross

and listening

and living out

God's word,

we can experience

true freedom.

all other narratives

and ideologies

rise and fall

but the risen Lord

will never fall,

will never fail you,

will never leave you

as anything,

everything else will.

Whether it's,

you're following

a narrative

of self-determination

or a narrative

of following

the right rules,

both will leave you

empty.

But the gospel

pushes through that,

both sides.

The gospel

is the true

freedom

and it's a free gift.

Sam Alberry,

a very famous author

and apologist,

has a really good quote

on this passage

in his commentary

and he says this

and this is where

I'll end.

Obedience

in God's word

is never

simply mandated

nor vaguely

beneficial.

It is transformational

for following

God's word

changes us

and this is what

this is what

James is getting at here

is that when we

follow God's word

and submit to it

our lives

become transformed

through the working

of the gospel

of the spirit

within us.