James Ch1v22-27 - Doers Of The Word

To preach, and as Tyler comes up, he'll be preaching from James chapter 1, from verses 22 to 27.

James 1 · chapter mention

So if you have a Bible, please turn to that.

And if you have a red church Bible, it's on page 1213.

Thank you, Tyler.

Well, good morning.

Good morning. As Jonathan said, if you have your Bibles, I'd ask that you go ahead and open them up to the book of James.

James chapter 1, and I'll be reading here from verse 22 in just a moment.

James 1 · chapter mention

But before I dive in, I just want to take some time to thank Johnny and the other elders for the invitation to come and open God's word with you today.

Consider it an honor and a privilege. Super excited to be here.

And I bring you greetings from Carrick Tool Baptist Church, where my wife and I are members.

So thank you so much for having us. It's really a privilege.

Now, I haven't had the pleasure of meeting quite a few of you.

So I just want to take a little bit of time to tell you about myself.

So as you can tell from my accent, I'm originally from Donegal.

No, I'm just kidding.

I wasn't sure how that would land, but that was good.

That's good.

So no, I'm actually, me and my wife just recently relocated from North Carolina in the United States.

So down in America's Southland, I am one of four siblings.

So I have two brothers and a sister.

And were you to ask my parents, they would probably tell you that out of all their children, I was the most energetic.

Well, maybe a better word is hyper, actually.

But I don't think I was a particularly disobedient child or anything like that.

I just had loads and loads of energy.

And one example from my childhood that I feel demonstrates this fact pretty well.

It comes from a trip that my family took at the zoo when I was younger.

So I was maybe four or five years old.

So I don't have any real recollection of this event.

But my mom, she swears that it happened.

And so we're at the zoo.

We're enjoying our time together.

We're looking at all the wonderful animals.

But because of what I just told you, that I'm incredibly energetic, being the energetic child I was,

I'm running around everywhere, just back and forth, like a ping pong ball going back and forth between the paddles.

And my mom, she's a wonderful mom.

She's trying to rein me in.

She's trying to stop me from causing a scene.

And she runs after me.

And she says, as the story goes, Tyler, stop running.

And me, as I am jogging in place, I turn back to my mother and I say, I'm not running, mommy.

And as I said, I don't remember this, but I can totally see myself doing it.

It's kind of funny to think about, I'm there, this little boy, I'm hearing what my mom's saying.

I'm just doing a really poor job of the whole listening part.

And I'm sure I looked pretty ridiculous, pretty silly.

She's telling me not to run.

I'm screaming that I'm not running as I quite obviously run in place.

So it's kind of a crazy picture.

Well, James, in our passage today, he's going to paint another crazy picture.

The absurdity of hearing God's word and failing to respond to it.

And if I were to reduce the central idea of this passage down to a single sentence,

this is what I would say, that we must listen to and obey God's word,

demonstrating the genuineness of our faith by our behavior.

I'll say that one more time.

We must listen to and obey God's word,

demonstrating the genuineness of our faith by our behavior.

So for the rest of our time together, I want to unpack that idea.

And I want, by God's spirit, my prayer is that we would leave this place with a greater understanding

of what the Holy Spirit was saying to James's original audience

and what's more, what he intends to teach us today.

So look with me, begin reading with me here in chapter 1, verse 22.

James writes,

But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourself.

Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer,

he's like someone looking at his own face in a mirror.

For he looks at himself, he goes away,

and immediately forgets what kind of person he was.

But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it,

and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who works,

this person will be blessed in what he does.

If anyone thinks he is religious without controlling his tongue,

his religion is useless, and he deceives himself.

Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this,

to look after orphans and widows in their distress,

and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Let's pray together as we open God's word.

Dear God, thank you so much for the opportunity to come

and open your word with these brothers and sisters.

I ask that you would, by the power of your spirit,

make clear the message that you have for us this morning.

Not a word from me, God, but a word from you to your people.

And God, help us to be receptive to the message from your word,

but would you also, by the power of your spirit,

empower us to respond appropriately.

And God, I ask all these things in the name of your son, Jesus.

Amen.

So we've already noted that the idea James is driving at for his readers

is that we must listen to and obey God's word,

demonstrating the genuineness of our faith by our behavior.

But how is it that that unfolds throughout our passage?

Well, to give a little bit of context,

James has indicated in the opening verses of his epistle

that it's primarily believers he has in mind as he writes.

And he tells these believers that it is God,

the one who's the source of every good gift

whom they have to thank for their salvation.

You can look in chapter one, verse 18.

He tells them,

by his own choice,

by his own choice,

he gave us birth by the word of truth

so that we would be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

And now, at the outset of our text today,

he begins to describe two individuals

and their very different responses to the word of God.

So let's take a look at that first individual in verses 23 and 24.

James says,

because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer,

he's like someone looking at his own face in a mirror.

For he looks at himself,

he goes away,

and immediately forgets what kind of person he was.

Here in verses 23 and 24,

James uses this very interesting analogy

to illustrate the absurdity of hearing God's word

and failing to respond to it.

He says that the one who hears it

and fails to respond to it,

it's like someone who stares at their own reflection,

they walk away,

and they forget what they've seen.

Now, when you and I read the word mirror,

we think of this really nice and crystal clear,

perfectly reflective thing

that we probably have all of us hanging in our bathrooms now.

But when James's original audience

would have heard this word mirror,

something quite different would have come to their minds.

Because mirrors in the ancient world,

they weren't made of the glass as we know it today.

They were made from metal,

which had been polished to offer a reflection.

So rather than this crystal clear likeness

and what we're used to today,

these mirrors would have provided a murky image at best.

And if you manage to see yourself adequately

in these little mirrors,

adequately enough to find any sort of cosmetic flaw,

well, then of course you would address it.

And in this passage,

James is highlighting for his readers

how absurd it is to give one's attention

to one's appearance in the mirror,

recognize that an issue needs to be addressed,

and then not do anything about it.

It's just not something that you would do.

And I think that for most of us,

this is an image that we can pretty intuitively grasp.

But just to put it in more modern terms,

I want to give you just an example here.

So imagine that you're out

for a nice Italian dinner with your friends.

And as you're eating spaghetti,

some sauce that maybe drops onto your chin,

and one of your friends notices.

And because they're a good friend,

they point it out to you.

So maybe you even head to the bathroom

and you look in the mirror

and you see you've got this massive glob

of spaghetti sauce on your chin.

But instead of seeing the sauce,

wiping it from your face,

you walk right back out,

you ignore the problem,

and you continue to eat.

This would be crazy.

It just isn't something you would do.

And in the same way,

to hear from God's word

and to recognize a problem

but fail to do anything about it,

it just doesn't make any sense.

And so after giving this example

of the one who hears and fails to respond,

James describes for his readers another individual.

So let's look again at verse 25.

Verse 25 says,

But the one who looks intently

into the perfect law of freedom

and perseveres in it

and is not a forgetful hearer

but a doer who works,

this person will be blessed in what he does.

Now there's quite a bit to unpack in this verse,

but already at first glance,

we can see the difference between this individual

and the individual described in verses 23 and 24.

This person doesn't walk away from the word,

failing to take action.

This person looks to the word

and acts appropriately in response,

and James tells us that they're blessed for it.

So let's revisit our analogy

of the fancy Italian dinner.

So remember while you're eating some spaghetti sauce,

it's dripped onto your chin

and one of your friends has noticed, right?

Then after you have been informed of this tragedy,

you went to the bathroom and you check things out.

But imagine that this time

you see the sauce on your chin

and instead of walking out

without addressing the issue,

you wipe it from your face

and you return to the table.

This makes a whole lot more sense.

Having looked into God's word

and recognized a problem,

this here that James describes for us

in verse 25

has chosen to address the issue.

Now you may have noticed

that James uses this very interesting phrase

in verse 25.

He says,

perfect law of freedom.

What does this mean?

Because I think that

if you and I are honest,

we read the word law

and we start to get a little nervous here.

Is James urging us

to adopt some sort of legalistic mentality

or encouraging us

to keep some sort of checklist of behaviors

by which we earn God's favor?

Well, I don't think that's what James

is getting at at all.

In fact, I think that these words

he chooses to use,

perfect and freedom,

I think they're intentional and significant.

Because by the use of these particular modifiers,

James helps his readers

to see the law

in light of Christ's redemptive work.

Christ's ultimate fulfillment

of the law on our behalf.

In one scholar,

he says it this way,

though the Old Testament law

was holy and righteous and good,

it had no power by itself

to enable sinful people

to conform to it.

Thus, the Old Testament law,

it did not liberate God's people,

but it enslaved them,

as Paul taught.

But the law is one of liberty

when it comes along

with the word of the gospel

and the power of the Holy Spirit

to change hearts.

Now, if you're here this morning

and you have placed your faith

and your trust in Jesus Christ,

I want to stop and take a few moments

to remind you of something

that if you're anything like me,

this is something that you know,

but you are so often tempted to forget.

As we work through James' teaching

in this text,

the idea isn't that we look

into the mirror of God's word,

we grit our teeth,

and we try harder to obey

to get on God's good side.

Yes, we should desire

to follow God's commands,

and if you are in Christ,

you will want to do so.

But here's the thing.

You don't do this

to earn God's favor.

Believers have been made right

before God

by placing their faith

and their trust

in the only one

who ever kept God's law perfectly,

Jesus Christ.

And now we desire

to keep God's commands

because we've been given

an incredible gift.

We've been made right with God

and adopted into his family.

And what's more,

we've been given

the Holy Spirit

who is day to day

working to make us

more like Jesus.

Paul,

as he's writing

to the church in Philippi

in chapter 2,

verse 13,

he says it this way.

It is God

who is working in you

both to will

and to work

according to his good purpose.

We aren't doing this

in reliance

on our own strength.

Now at this point,

I want to pause briefly again

because I know

that there are likely

some here today

who have been trying

to earn God's favor.

They've been relying

on their own strength

to get on God's good side.

You've worked so hard

to do all of the right things,

to follow all of the rules,

to get yourself

into God's good graces,

to tilt the scales.

If you find yourself

in that camp this morning,

please hear me.

You will never do enough.

You can't do it.

Because as James goes on

to tell us

in chapter 2,

verse 10,

if you've broken

just one of God's commands,

it's as if you've broken

the whole lot.

You cannot keep

God's laws perfectly.

You cannot do it.

But there is one who did.

Jesus lived

a sinless life

in perfect obedience

to the Father.

And he died a cruel

and a painful death,

a death that you

and I deserved.

But he didn't stay dead.

After three days,

he walked out

of the tomb alive.

And now,

for those who would

turn to him

in faith,

he offers

forgiveness

and restored

relationship

with God.

He received

sin's penalty

on our behalf

so we can now

receive his righteousness.

Praise God.

God.

So having

explained

to his readers

that the word

of God

needs to be acted on

and not just heard

and forgotten

through the example

of these two hearers

in verses 22

to 25,

James gets

really,

really practical.

He provides

for his readers

an example

both of a hearer

of the word

and a doer

of the word.

Let's look again

at verses 26

and 27.

James states,

if anyone thinks

he is religious

without controlling

his tongue,

his religion

is useless

and he deceives

himself.

Pure

and undefiled

religion

before God

the Father

is this.

To look

after orphans

and widows

in their distress

and to keep

oneself

unstained

from the world.

In these verses,

James contrasts

for us

the one

who has

a legitimate

and a God-honoring

religion

and the one

whose religion

is simply

counterfeit.

And how is it

that you and I

can tell the difference?

We can tell

the difference

by examining

behavior.

So let's take

a look at that

example of

counterfeit

religion first.

James uses

some pretty

strong imagery

in this passage

to get his

point across

here in verse

26.

He says that

the one who

claims to be

religious,

but they can't

get a hold

of their tongue,

that person

demonstrates that

their religion

isn't the real

deal.

people.

Now,

if you're like

me,

it may strike

you as a

bit strange

that an

inability to

control one's

tongue is the

example James

chooses to use

in this passage.

But throughout

his epistle,

he's reminded

us of the

importance of

the human

tongue and

its great

power both

for good

and evil.

people.

for example,

in James

James 3:2

chapter 3

verse 2,

he tells us

that one's

ability to

control the

tongue is an

indicator of

their ability

to control the

rest of their

body in a way

that's honoring

to God.

God.

He says,

for we all

stumble in

many ways.

If anyone

does not

stumble in

what he

says,

he's mature,

able also

to control

the whole

body.

And in

James chapter

James 3:9–12

3,

verses 9

to 12,

this is how

he puts

it.

That with

the tongue

we bless

our Lord

and Father

and with

it we curse

people who

are made

in God's

likeness.

Blessing

and cursing

come out

of the same

mouth,

my brothers

and sisters.

These things

should not

be this way.

Does a

spring pour

out sweet

and bitter

water from

the same

opening?

And of

course,

the obvious

answer to

James'

rhetorical

question is

no,

it does

not.

Jesus

himself in

Matthew

Matthew 15:18

chapter 15

verse 18,

he tells

us that

what comes

out of

the mouth

comes from

the heart

and this

defiles a

person.

So we

see that

the tongue,

though it's

seemingly

small and

insignificant,

it's actually

incredibly

powerful and

what's more,

it reveals the

condition of

one's heart.

So that's the

counterfeit

religion.

religion.

So how is

true and

legitimate

religion

manifested?

Well,

according to

James,

it's manifested

by care for

the widows and

orphans of the

world in

moral purity.

If you look

again with me

at verse

27, this is

what James

says.

Pure and

undefiled

religion before

God the

Father is

this, that

we look

after orphans

and widows

in their

distress and

to keep

oneself unstained

from the

world.

Widows and

orphans had

an incredibly

difficult life

in the

ancient world.

They were

hard-pressed

in almost

every way,

politically,

socially,

economically.

And God,

throughout the

scriptures,

he demonstrates

the importance

that he places

on their

care.

So it's not

really surprising

that James

highlights the

importance of

their care

here.

I think it's

important to

remember,

though, that

James' intention

isn't to give

an exhaustive

list of the

ways a

legitimate and

a God-honoring

religion is

presented.

This can be

thought of

sort of a

summary statement

which gives

some examples

of behavior

that's characteristic

of a true and

vibrant faith,

but there are,

of course,

other ways.

And it could

be that James'

focus on

serving the

downtrodden

here,

it sort of

anticipates his

teaching that

he'll go on

to do on

favoritism in

chapter 2,

verses 1 to

9,

because in

that text

there are

indications

that James'

readers,

they may have

been giving

preferential

treatment to

the wealthy.

So here,

James,

in presenting

service to

widows and

orphans as

evidence of

true and

God-honoring

religion,

he might be

pushing back

on that

tendency

among his

readers.

But at

any rate,

what's clear

from James'

comments here

in verses

26 and

27 is that

one's behavior

is an indication

of the

genuineness of

their faith.

God-nosed

God-nosed

So as we

begin to

bring our

time in

the word

to a

close,

I want to

leave you

with a few

more points

of application.

And one

of the

things I

love about

this passage

is you

don't have

to dig

very deep

to discover

the application.

What I

mean to

say is that

you do not

have to

look very

long and

very hard

at this

passage before

you start to

get a pretty

good idea of

the response

that James

wanted from

his original

readers and

the response

that God

wants from

us.

And I

mentioned at

the very

beginning of

our time the

central idea

and we must

listen to and

obey God's

word.

Demonstrating the

genuineness of

our faith by

our behavior.

And brothers

and sisters,

this sounds so

incredibly simple,

but if we're

honest with

ourselves,

this is

incredibly

difficult.

It's a battle

that we fight

every single

day, a

constant struggle

for each

and every

one of us.

In verses

22 to 25,

we see that

merely hearing

the word of

God and not

doing what it

says is

foolish.

It's as

foolish as

looking in a

mirror, seeing

that spaghetti

sauce on

your chin

and choosing

not to wipe

it away,

going right

back to the

table without

taking any

steps to

address the

problem.

But the

person who

acts appropriately

to God's

word, responds

and does what

it says, that

person will be

blessed.

Friends, our

desire should be

not to just

listen to the

word of God,

but to actually

do what it

says, to

listen to the

word and

respond appropriately,

demonstrating our

faith to a

watching world.

So how does

this play out

in our daily

life?

Well, let's

say that you're

at work, you're

reading your

Bible, maybe on

your lunch

break, and you

come across a

portion of

scripture that

talks about having

a quick temper.

Maybe you're in

James 1, verses

James 1:19–21

19 to 21.

You read the

passage and you

recognize that

your tendency to

blow up and

lash out against

your coworkers in

anger is sinful.

It's not God

honoring.

It's not

appropriate in

the sight of

God.

Well, you have

two choices.

You can close

your Bible and

ignore the

teaching of God's

word on this

issue, or you

can, by the

power of the

Holy Spirit, take

steps to address

your anger.

In our passage,

James makes

clear which one

of those is the

appropriate response

to God's word.

And if we

consider verses

26 to 27 of

our passage, where

James, he teaches

us that our

behavior, it

demonstrates the

genuineness of

our faith.

I think that

James' instruction

in these verses,

it highlights the

need for self-reflection

in our Christian

lives.

Because let's

return just for a

moment to that

individual with an

anger issue.

What that person

and every one of

us needs to ask

ourselves is,

am I demonstrating

that my faith is

the real deal in

the way I am

living my life?

Does my behavior

indicate that I

possess a genuine

faith?

Friends, let us

strive by God's

grace and the

power of the

Holy Spirit to

be able to

answer yes.

Let's pray

together.

Dear God, would

you confront us

with the truth

that we have met

in this passage?

Would you

forgive us for

the many times

when we've acted

like this man who

looks into your

word and immediately

forgets what it

says?

God, forgive us

for the times when

our words indicated

that our faith was

genuine, but our

actions told another

story altogether.

God, would you, by

your grace, continue

to sanctify us,

making us more like

Jesus every day?

We ask all these

things in his name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Thank you.