Pure and Undefiled Religion
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Bumper sticker Christian
Bumper sticker Christian
(insert Bumper Sticker Christian Picture)
Insert illustration woman with stickers on car . . .
Actions speak louder than words. People notice our actions so we need to be careful that our actions line up with our words and our words with our actions.
Prove yourself to be doers of the Word (Jm1:22)
22 But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
Be a doer so not to delude yourself
Put aside all filthiness (Jm1:21)
21 Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.
Do it by receiving God’s word that is able to save you soul
Now bridle your tongue so not to deceive yourself (Jm1:26)
26 If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless.
If not you make your religion worthless
So what kind of religion do you have?
(spare tire picture) - used only when you are jacked up and in emergency?
(wheelbarrow picture) can easily be turned over, upset and must be pushed?
(bus picture) - ridden only when it goes your way?
Don’t be a bumper sticker christian with worthless religion, don’t be futile (1Pt1:17-19)
17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers,
19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
Jesus paints a picture of bumper sticker Christians too (Mt15:7-9)
7 “You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: 8 ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me. 9 ‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’ ”
We can be good at deceiving ourselves, deceiving the man in the mirror, but we cannot deceive God. We need to have pure and undefiled religion that is pleasing to God and that is what we are here to talk about tonight.
It is practiced
It is practiced
Practice, practiced, to practice means to do something repeatedly, practiced means something you have done repeatedly. May our life be one that is practiced not just proclaimed. May our religion be worth something.
Religion worth something is religion that is doing (Jm1:22-25; Mt7:21)
22 But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror;
24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.
be an effectual doer; and be blessed; make your religion worth something
Religion worth something is undefiled (Jm1:26-27)
26 If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless. 27 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.
Pure and undefiled defined as Free fro evil, corruption, it is pure, sinless, unblemished, uncorrupted, unstained, flawless, clear, clean and spotless. And we know that can only happen in Christ Jesus.
Religion worth something is evidenced (Jm1:27; 1Jn3:16-18; Jm2:15-16; Mt25:35-36)
16 We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?
18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.
Love not only in word, but in deed and truth!
15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16 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?
It is visiting, it is keeping, visiting orphans widows, it is keeping yourself unstained.
35 ‘For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; 36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’
It is s feeding, giving, inviting, clothing, it is visiting and coming!
Practiced religion helps us not to be deceiving ourselves as mentioned before from (Jm1:22) for that is the only one we are truly deceiving, others will see it and notice it and God knows it. We need to practice so it can be practiced so not to be a dead religion (Jm2:14-17, 26)
14 What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,
16 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? 17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.
26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
we are to have and do deeds of compassion such as personal ministry work. Personal in seeing the needs of people and meeting the needs (in scripture sense it is about orphans and widows).
Pure and undefiled religion must also be practical
It is practical
It is practical
Practical, being pure and undefiled is practical. We are not called to “go” to church we are called to “be” the church and that takes practical application.
Why we gather (Rom10:17; Heb10:25; Eph4:12-14; Act14:22; 1The5:11)
We gather to hear the word of God for from the word comes faith.
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
We gather so not to forget the word and applying the word so we don’t return to some old way that does not work.
25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
We gather for the equipping of the saints and look at this passage what ore you see.
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
Building up, promote unity, knowledge, to help mature, all to the fullness of Christ!
And, if that were not enough look at (v.14) so we are not tricked, deceived, carried away by every wind of doctrine (teaching)
When we gather (Act2:46; Act20:7; 1Cor16:1-2)
We see the example of daily, so no we do not need to just meet on Sunday, the first day of the week
46 Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart,
We do see example of 1st day of the week
7 On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight.
One of the things done on the 1st day of the week.
1 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. 2 On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come.
Pure and undefiled religion is serving (visiting, meeting needs, etc.)
It is doing good (Gal6:10; Tit2:14; 1Jn3:17-18)
10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.
We have opportunity to do go now, not just to us, but good to all people.
14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.
Not only to do good deeds, but to be zealous for them.
17 But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.
Good deeds done in truth, meeting the need of his brother.
Practical because God replaced our heart of stone with a heart of flesh (Eze36:26); gave us a new spirit, not of works but of faith. When we apply compassion for the poor for the widows for the orphan, it makes our religion worth something.
It is personal
It is personal
Pure and undefiled religion starts were a persons personal relationship. Personal leads to corporate, but corporate should not replace personal.
Personal, just look at the pronouns (Jm1:23-27)
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.
25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. 26 If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless.
27 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.
Anyone, He, His, Himself, This one, Anyone, and oneself
There is a time and place for corporate giving (1Cor16:1-2) but never intended to replace personal responsibility (visiting, caring, meeting needs)
Our personal giving as purposed in our hearts is not intended to be the end of personal giving, by monies, time, prayer, we are to work together to visit, to care, to meet the needs of people.
A minister, an elder, a deacon cannot do your personal work, that is personal between you and God, you need to be committed to that yourself, take responsibility yourself.
May we be willing to make something out of our religion, make it worth something, make is personal, make it then corporate as the body and then finally.
It is (make it) pure.
It is (make it) pure.
To have pure religion that is worth something, that is undefiled, we need to know God’s instructions, follow God’s instructions and then we have pure undefiled religion that is unspotted from the world.
27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Don’t be tainted by the world (1Jn2:15-17; Php2:15)
Store up your treasures in heaven by serving
Our religion is worthless unless it is put to action and is
Pure- without spot or blemish
Undefiled - untainted by the world
Unspotted by the the world
Our purity still lies in fact we fall short (Rom3:23); we are sinners (1Jn1:8) and that His blood still cleanses us (1Jn1:7)
8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Our religion is pure and undefiled we we keep His commandments (1Jn2:3) and when we continue to confess our sins (1Jn1:9)
3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.
and add to that
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Keep His commandments and confess our sins knowing. . .
Our religion is pure and undefiled when we know no temptation can overtake us. For we have a way of escape that has been provided (1Cor10:13)
13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.
Finally, our pure and undefiled religion has to be true (Jn14:6)
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
(what kind of religion . . . picture)
So, what kind of religion do you have, do you practice?
May it go beyond this building
May it go beyond pages in the bible, but application in the hands, feet and mouth
May it go beyond hearing to applying through compassion for others and serving others
Is it personal? Do you have personal relationship with Christ outside of this building?
Is it personal and pure having your sins continually washed when you confess your sins?
(lead to invitation to salvation and from salvation to sanctification)
Invitation slide(Something to think about -1), Song, exit slide