Give Me That Upside-Down Religion

Religion

Some weather we’re having…at least it isn’t snowing.

One winter morning a husband and wife in Denver were listening to the radio during breakfast. They heard the announcer say, "We are going to have 8 to 10 inches of snow today. You must park your car on the even-numbered side of the street, so the snowplows can get through."

So the good wife went out and moved her car.

A week later while they are eating breakfast again, the radio announcer said, "We are expecting 10 to 12 inches of snow today. You must park your car on the odd-numbered side of the street, so the snowplows can get through."

The good wife went out and moved her car again.

The next week they are again having breakfast, when the radio announcer says, "We are expecting 12 to 14 inches of snow today. You must park...." Then the electric power went out. The good wife was very upset, and with a worried look on her face she said, "Honey, I don't know what to do. Which side of the street do I need to park on so the snowplows can get through?"

With the love and understanding in his voice that all men who are married to blondes exhibit, the husband replied, "Why don't you just leave it in the garage this time?"

says, “ But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.”

Charles Spurgeon comments, “James has no speculations. ‘By their fruits ye shall know them’ , seems to have taken possession of his mind, and he is always demanding practical holiness. He is not satisfied with the buds of hearing, he wants the fruits of obedience.”

The fruits…

One of the oddest scenes in the life of Christ is the day He approached a fig tree which had no figs on it. When He got to the tree and found no figs—He said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!”

It was time for figs…probably early figs…but nonetheless, Jesus was not being unreasonable to expect to find fruit on a fruit tree in season. It’s reasonable, it’s practical.

John the Baptist once said, “The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

When Pam & I were stationed in Hanford, CA, we had a nice home—it even had two fireplaces. We heard one day that a local rancher was taking out his peach trees—selling them for $6 each, all you could cut. So, me and a couple of friends took a pick-up and a u-haul trailer and we loaded them up.

They were nice trees—but it turns out they just weren’t producing good peaches anymore—time to replace them. It’s only practical.

Pray with me…

The book of James was written as sort of an abridged version of the Bible. It isn’t full of doctrine—you won’t find in the book of James all the glorious mysteries of God explained. You won’t find reference to the rich heritage of God’s involvement with man. There are no great passages like the —the Love Chapter, or like —the Hall of Faith; but what you will find is some very practical advice—and some simple instruction!

James doesn’t mince words. And it doesn’t take him too long, just a few verses before he says, “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.” ,

In other words… all that hearing, all that time in the pew—is meant to produce an effect on us—an effect on our religion. I know a few years ago it became popular to exclude the word religion from the Evangelical Christian’s vocabulary. But put simply, religion is, “the practice of religious beliefs”.

Hold Your Tongue

I read this week in my studies about Darwinist, who wrote about his great frustration with “religion” because he considered it a waste of time that should be spent by us creatures on our survival. No other creature besides man is religious. I of course, wrote to him and asked him had considered praying mantises. Just kidding.

I read this week in my studies about Darwinist, who wrote about his great frustration with “religion” because he considered it a waste of time that should be spent by us creatures on our survival. No other creature besides man is religious. I of course, wrote to him and asked him had considered the praying mantice.

His point was that he thought religion—all religion was a waste of energy.

Of course, the word has been hijacked. I heard someone on a talk show refer to how someone had a religion of promoting political views.

And there is also the word “religious”—which generally refers to the practices of people of faith. But it’s also used to refer to a person who is devoted to almost anything.

Religiously reads the sports page

Religiously walks 20 minutes every day

Religiously watches Gilligan’s Island.

James, in verse 26, uses both words—religious and religion. And he uses it to mean devotion to God and relationship with God. His is not a vague reference. Let me remind you… “If you claim to be religious but don't control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.” NLT

In other words—if you think yourself devoted to God but don’t control your tongue—you’re kidding yourself, you’re not really devoted at all and your worship is worthless.

James knew what you and I know—and even the Darwinist I mentioned earlier knows—people are inherently religious. By nature people are religious. And James makes the point that true religion—real devotion and worship of the true God is “…designed to bring the whole man under control.” (from Barnes' Notes) After all, self control is a fruit of the Spirit.

This is a radical teaching—many other religions designed sin right into their worship. And in the religion they knew, the Pharisees were nothing if not devout—but people didn’t really want to be like them—they weren’t good people, they weren’t really righteous, they weren’t roll models for your young.

James says, real religion is life altering! And it will be evident—first & foremost—by what you say—and perhaps more pointedly, by what you don’t say.

Open Your Heart

But James doesn’t just say good Christians hold their tongues, he goes on to say, in verse 27 “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress,”

He says good Christians hold their tongues and open their hearts. Or today we might say, good Christians shut their mouths and open their hearts.

James could have just said Pure religion is showing kindness or mercy to others—i.e.

…what does the Lord require of you/ But to do justice, to love kindness,/ And to walk humbly with your God?

But James is more practical than that—he wants you to see what mercy looks like. He isn’t saying every Christian ought to find a widow or orphan to support—but widows and orphans weren’t cared for by the government—so James was just pointing out that you can’t claim to be authentically religious and let a child or woman starve.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.”

Jesus and James expect more of our faith, more of our devotion, more of our religion than the status quo. , What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?

ILLUSTRATION

Miserly ol’ Ebenezer Scrooge, too cheap to warm his office, paid his staff poorly, refused to give to charity, The change that came over him caused him to care for the poor.

That’s what James says should be going on with us. Our faith, our devotion, our religion should change us. Paul says in “Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” NASU

James says authentically RELIGIOUS Christians will!

Guard Your Purity

This little practical talk on religion ends with one final challenge—one last indicator of the authentically religious Christian.

“Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

To the Corinthians… In , the Apostle Paul writes, “…beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

To the Thessalonians:

Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil .

To the Romans…

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

—Author Harry Blamires, wrote,

“In the Christian life, nothing, nothing at all, can be purchased at the do-it-yourself shop.”

I am a do-it-yourselfer… over the years I’ve tackled everything from rebuilding my ‘67 mustang’s engine to tiling my family room floor and recently I even built a crib. And I have a half dozen projects in various states of completeness in my garage.

But when it comes to holiness—there is no do-it-yourself manual! This is a divine partnership—instituted by Christ Jesus Himself, He prayed:

"I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.”

And He taught us to pray, “…deliver us from evil,”

And He taught us to pray, “…deliver us from evil,”

Holiness--is the life we live - connected to the power to live it.

I hear preachers all the time talking about joy, peace, love—fruits of the spirit—and how if we will just relax, and let ourselves live lives of joy, peace and love, we’ll have joy, peace and love. I saw a poster this week that said, “I choose joy.” But friends these are fruits of the Spirit—they are produced, they grow, only when the branch is connected to the tree!

Conclusion

We don’t like using this word “religion” much these days—and I don’t blame us. Listen to what the Apostle Paul predicted, Other religions…not so much.

(NLT) “For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths.”

Is he right? Just listen to what Wilbur Reese writes,

I would like to buy three dollars worth of God please. Not enough to explode my soul, or to disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a coup of warm milk, or a snooze in the sunshine. I don’t want enough of Him to make me love a black man, or pick beets with a migrate worker. NO, I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the ETERNAL in a paper bag. Give me three dollars worth of God please.

That is not the kind of religion we want—no wonder we don’t like the word all that much. We prefer the word relationship—because it absolutely infers that we are connected. But I love that James didn’t shy from it—but rather defines it in terms of how God feels about religion. “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father...”

Pure and genuine religion, authentic religion—according to God—comes down to basically two things:

If a person is genuinely caring—then he or she bears the image of our God, Who is infinitely benevolent.

If a person is pure—uncontaminated by the world—then he or she also resembles our Maker, Who is holy.

However, as Barnes writes; “If he has not these things, he cannot have any well-founded evidence that he is a Christian; for it is always the nature and tendency of religion to produce these things.”

I might just add “…it is always the nature and tendency of authentic religion to produce these things.” To produce caring, holy hearts…

Like a fruit tree producing fruit, because it is what they do, as Christians caring and holiness should be produced naturally, without really thinking about it.

So choose for yourselves today…three dollars worth? A pound of the ETERNAL in a paper bag? Or authentic religion. Be careful friend—your choice is more obvious than you think.

I urge you on this Decision Sunday - to think about your religion. Is the practice of your faith - authentic? Do you believe this book? Or think of it as inspiration for better living?