"The Marks of Believer"
Notes
Transcript
Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher and theologian, once said…
“The human race in the course of time has taken the liberty of softening and softening Christianity until at last we have contrived to make it exactly the opposite of what it is in the New Testament”
You know, if we are honest and look at the church, what we will find is that man has tried for far too long to define Christianity by our own terms instead of taking what was defined in the NT.
The culture of of what Jesus mandated, and the apostles set forth in the early church has always stayed the same.
However, the religious subculture of the church in the United States has changed so much because we have tried to align faith and Christianity with our preferences and out lifestyles.
If we are going to be honest, many people will engage God, faith, and church if it does not affect the way that they do life. Here is the problem.
If God is going to be pleased, if our faith is to be authentic, true, pleasing, and acceptable to God, then it must be defined by Him alone. It comes down to submission.
Martin Luther said something that has echoed for years on end. He said, “A religion that gives nothing, costs nothing, and suffers nothing, is worth nothing.”
As we dig further into James, closing out chapter 1 and going into chapter 2, we might find our feathers ruffled a bit.
As James takes us into this next section, he introduces the idea that God pleasing true religion is characterized and marked by our lifestyles.
Again, it is that mindset that we have changed from the inside out. Read Passage: James 1:26-2:13
26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.
27 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.
1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.
2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in,
3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,”
4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?
6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court?
7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?
8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.
9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.
11 For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.
12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty.
13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
I know that this may not be a popular feel-good sermon today, but His word affects me and convicts me, and I pray that it does the same for you today as we continue to evaluate ourselves.
As we move forward we find that there are three markers of a heart that is controlled by God. The first mark of a believer, James tells us, is ...
1. We reflect a controlled tongue
1. We reflect a controlled tongue
Now as we move into this section, I want to remind you that this is not a father who is welding or flexing his power by telling us to be a certain way.
How many of you grew up in a home with a healthy display of a Father? Most of you would be able to say that his warnings not to do something were there to protect you and guide you.
With my kids, I do not warn them, so they see I am in alpha male, but so that they see they have an opportunity to join in a much better life, into something better.
“Don’t do this.” Why? “Because I want you to be safe.” “Don’t do this.” Why? “Because I want you to be happy.”
“Don’t do this.” Why? “Because if you do this it will make me unhappy and you don't want me unhappy.” Right?
That’s what’s happening here in this section. There has been a lot of warning, but in that warning there’s an invitation into something better. Look at how James begins here. Read James 1:26
26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.
See this is a lot of warning, but this warning really invites us all into something better, not just some set of rules to follow.
James begins making his point by discussing what comes out of our mouthes. He will do this throughout the book as well, but why start here?
If you remember, I told you the last few weeks, James being the brother of Jesus and one of the first disciples, is once again speaking heavily on what Jesus taught in the Gospels.
Jesus taught us that a reflection of our heart is what comes out of our mouthes. James is not talking about Religion from the Sunday morning church attendance, but a true faith that we proclaim.
He is telling us to let our hearts speak God’s goodness. The way that you speak says so much about you. Look I don't want to pretend that I have this all down, but it is so critical friends.
The way you speak talks about your heart. How you speak about your spouse, your friends, your neighbors, your boss, those around you.
Like wise, it applies in the way you speak to your spouse, your friends, your neighbors, your boss, and those around you.
Your tongue is a test of your faith. All to often you can confess God out of one side of your mouth and not back it up in our speech daily. Especially today friends, we must be careful.
In the days of X, FB, blogs, snapchat, where when we think we can share those thoughts at once, we stand a chance to hurt our witness.
Be aware of your speech and be aware of this next marker. The next marker of a believer is seen when ...
2. We are moved and grasped by grace
2. We are moved and grasped by grace
In a day and age where we have been more polarized by political sides than we have by the Gospel, this is something that should grab our attention. Read James 1:27
27 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.
I do not think that this can ever be over preached, grace saves us, Jesus saves us, but don’t forget Jesus still said these things ...
love your neighbor, and to take care of the poor and vulnerable. This is where we must take a look closely in the mirror friends.
The greatest command is to love the Lord with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. I would venture to say that these other commands are second to that alone.
We should be asking ourselves if we are moved by Jesus? Are we loving Him with our heart, mind soul, and strength?
You see, when we are serious about loving Jesus that way, we will be serious about loving our neighbor and taking care of the vulnerable.
Tim Keller weighs in on why this is so important, when you lack the love for your neighbor, especially the poor and vulnerable. Here’s what he said in his book "Gospel in Life".
“A merely religious person, who believes God will favor him because of his morality and respectability, will ordinarily have contempt for the outcast.
’I worked hard to get where I am, and so can anyone else!’ That is the language of the moralist’s heart.
’I am only where I am by the sheer and unmerited mercy of God. I am completely equal with all other people.’ That is the language of the Christian’s heart.
A sensitive social conscience and a life poured out in deeds of mercy to the needy is the inevitable sign of a person who has grasped the doctrine of God’s grace.”
No, we are not saved by doing good things, but those who are grasped by the grace of God do things in this world quite differently.
You want to see people who are grasped by grace you will find people who are concerned for the needy around them. To be blind or unmoved shows a crack in your understanding of the Gospel.
Look I am not saying that we will be perfect at it, but we are a work in progress that should be engaging the world by helping our brothers and sisters.
It's not always about money, sometimes it is a simple as a conversation. Illus: I Used to carry around blessing bags in my pickup when I was in Topeka. The conversations were amazing.
So, this leads us into the rest of the passage that we read earlier today 2:1-13 and it is the third and final marker of a believer, that ...
3. We are inclusive not partial
3. We are inclusive not partial
The way that chapter one ends is a reminder to be holy. Being holy according to James is going against the grain. Favoritism is a system that the world has operated under for years.
Honor the rich and neglect the poor is a fairly common way of thought. James says be careful church, don't let this happen.
James is creating a scene where the church does not distinguish honor between a wealthy man and poor man.
Do not withhold or give glory, love, affection, hospitality, friendship, mercy, kindness, or service to people based upon their external appearance.
Now listen, I know how I operate. It is easier to do life with people who are more like me. Why? Because I don't have to work as hard to do that.
We naturally will spend more time with people who are easier to spend time with the same circles we are from. That is the easiest. Listen to what Paul said. Read 1 Corinthians 1:26-29
26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.
27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
Yes, God is talking about the poor who are financially poor, and a lot of people will hear that and think, "Okay Derek I can throw a few bucks somebody's way.”
But God is speaking about the spiritually poor as well. What about those who need God, and because of some sort of background, past, or obvious need that is awkward to deal with, we look past.
I get it. I do. I get when it is just not that easy to connect with certain individuals. I get that because I have been there myself. But does it make it right?
God is not trying to wield His power. God is trying to warn you. His warning is inviting you into something better friends. Why do we not want to show partiality?
Because it can dishonor God. He is not saying, look down on the rich and build up the poor. He is saying this, when we only see Christ as supreme and give honor there alone, that is when we get it.
David Platt said it like this, The church in James was giving honor where honor was not due. You don’t honor the wealthy because they are rich in money; you honor Christ because He is rich in glory. Only Christ is supreme, so we focus our eyes on Him. We will also put aside favoritism when we remember His sacrifice for the needy.
God is telling us that as we have received mercy, we should also extend mercy. This brings us full circle today. If we are not doing these things, it should lead us to question why.
One of the more astounding realities in the universe is as we slowly make progress in the Christian faith, the Father never grows weary of us or tired of us.
Let me just end with this. If you’re struggling with doubt, if you’re wrestling with what all this means, that’s okay.
See, as we progress, as we mature, as we grow in understanding of the faith, these types of sermons serve as fuel to rejoice, not as tripwires that make us wrestle. Let’s grow in this together.
