Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

READ .

Start at verse 22.

In our mini-series in the portion of James, “What Will You Do With The Word,” we reach part 3 and it will be our final part.

Last Sunday, I challenged you to be a hearer AND doer of the Word.

And we learn that God blesses those who receive and respond to the Word.

Secular society despises religion because it seems anti-science, anti-intellectual, out of date, and irrelevant.

Many, but not all, secularists, atheists, and agnostics, or those who do not believe in God or who do not know if God exists, may not like religion, they still respect the people who practice it.

Some atheists have a new movement called the New Atheism whereby they promote the idea that not only do they despise religion, they also despise the people who practice them because they believe that religion is a deadly poison to society and it needs to be exterminated.

Let’s talk about the Christians despising religion.

Probably about 15 years ago or at least…there was slogan that says this, and you may have heard of it: “Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship with God.” From this slogan, out came the idea from Christians that we should stop referring Christianity as a religion.

Why is that?

Why do Christians despise the word, “religion?”

The idea of religion, when looking at the teachings of other religions in the world, communicates moral codes and that you must do good works to earn yourself to heaven.

Christians who promote that slogan say that Christianity is unique in a sense that it is not about following moral codes to earn your way to heaven; it is about having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus.

I would say, “Amen,” to that!

Although I do think the slogan has some truths to it, we must be careful with how we use it and who we are talking to.

And although I appreciate the intention behind the slogan, I do see problems with it.

First, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines religion as this: the service and worship of God or the supernatural; commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance.

The Bible clearly tells Christians to worship God and to obey the Word of God.

That is “religion” in of itself.

Second, when you’re talking to a non-Christian about your faith, the slogan proves to be useless.

Your non-Christian friends should know how to use a dictionary, and if you use that slogan, then they might think you’re not intellectual.

I’ve used this before with an agnostic, and that person shut me down quite good.

Third, non-Christians might perceive us as not being entirely honest about our faith.

If we’re trying to tell our non-Christian friends about Jesus and we say that Christianity is not about following a moral code, then aren’t be self-contradicting ourself?

Jesus tells us to make disciples.

And if we are not following moral codes, then why are we telling others about Jesus?

Aren’t we commanded to love God and to love our neighbours?

(2): commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance

I say all these things because we should not read “religion” as a bad word, depending on how we define it.

I also say this because the Bible uses the word, “religion,” in a healthy way.

In today’s passage, James uses “religious” or “religion.”

and they’re found in the Bible!

They’re God’s Word!

In our mini-series in the portion of James, “What Will You Do With The Word,” we reach part 3 and it will be our final part.

Last Sunday, I challenged you to be a hearer AND doer of the Word.

And we learn that God blesses those who receive and respond to the Word.

So…what will you do with the word?

Big Idea: You Must Demonstrate That You Are A Hearer And Doer Of The Word.

Big Idea: You Must Resign To The Word

Big Idea: You Must Resign To The Word

How can you know if you truly have a true religion?

(I’m not talking about owning a pair of jeans from a bran called True Religion).

Because God’s grace shown through Jesus Christ, a Christian actually lives out their faith and practices God’s Word - that’s true religion.

With your Bibles, we will examine closely.

And from this passage, there are...

Three Marks Of A True Religion:

We learn that: God blesses the doer (and hearer) of the Word.

What does it look like to be a doer of the Word?

What happens when you are a doer of the word?

Three marks of true religion:

1. Controlling Your Speech (v.26)

James makes a conditional statement in v.26.

Verse 26 could be an extension of what James already mentioned back in v.22-25 because the language seems similar.

The person who is a “hearer-only” is the one who thinks he is religious.

What does “religious” or “religion” mean?

Religious/Religion - being devoted to a proper expression to God; being devout; being sincere in following God and His commandments.

(The word religious and religion are rarely used in the NT and it is used here in James).

It means being devoted to a proper expression to God.

It means being devout, like being sincere in following God and His commandments.

(The word religious and religion are rarely used in the NT and it is used here in James).

And this verse could be translated as “if anyone SUPPOSEDLY thinks he is religious.”

This person assumes that he is religious and devout without checking the facts.

His own thinking has deceived his heart.

This person has convinced himself that he’s religious person by being a hearer-only when in reality, he’s a hypocrite.

But, how is this person a hypocrite?

He fails to “bridle his tongue.”

Bridle - the headgear used to control a horse.

It carries the idea of restraining something or hold something in check.

Tongue - it is a small organ of the mouth of the body.

But, it symbolizes for speech.

James is saying that if someone who claims to be a religious person, but he fails to control his speech, this person’s religious is worthless.

Now, it might seem extremely harsh for James to say that.

There can be many things that could make a person’s religious worthless: sexual immorality, adultery, murder, stealing, fits of anger, and so forth.

We could argue and say that those things I listed may seem far worse than failing to bridle the tongue.

But, if you read through James, he addresses the tongue significantly because the tongue is a big problem.

Discrimination (2:3)

Discrimination (2:3)Hypocrisy / Lip-Service (2:16)Taming the tongue (3:1-12)Slandering Christians (4:11-12)Breeds Quarrels and Arguments (4:1-2)Selfishness (4:3)Exposes Pride (4:13-16)Lying and Integrity (5:12)

Hypocrisy / Lip-Service (2:16)

Taming the tongue (3:1-12)

Slandering Christians (4:11-12)

Breeds Quarrels and Arguments (4:1-2)

Selfishness (4:3)

Exposes Pride (4:13-16)

Lying and Integrity (5:12)

When we get to , we will spend a significant amount of time addressing the topic of tongue, communication, and speech because we may underestimate the significant problem with our speech and what it can do.

Jesus had many teachings on the issue of speech.

Jesus said that our speech exposes the desires and treasures of our heart.

Jesus elsewhere taught that God will judge our speech; therefore, it is significant.

Furthermore, Jesus exposes the hypocrisy of the religious leaders who may be devout on the outside, but they are hypocrites on the inside.

Their words do not truly reflect their devotion to God.

They claim that they worship God, but their hearts are far from Him.

It seems that what James is getting at here is that it does not matter how religious or devout you supposedly think you are (self-deception) if you are not controlling your speech.

Failure to control your speech means that you are deceiving yourself for having a true religion or being a devout Christian.

This kind of “religion” is worthless, useless, empty, fruitless, powerless, lacking truth or futile.

Pay attention to the word, “worthless.”

In , Luke characterizes idols or gods as “vain things.”

Perhaps, if you have a “religion” whereby you fail to control your speech, then you are no better than someone worshipping an idol.

Your failure and sin to control your speech is on an equal level with the sin of idolatry.