Doers of the Word

 James 1:22
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
It is dangerous to receive God’s word and not do something with it. It is possible to become comfortable with listening to and agreeing to truth, and even believing it in your mind to be right, but fail to take action to the truth that God has spoken, Many of us have attending church all our lives, gone to revivals, camp meetings, and conventions hearing God’s word preached. For the moment it speaks to our heart and we have good intentions on taking actions. But, we return to our daily routine life and the spoken word starts to fade away. We deceive ourselves in thinking that just attesting to truth is adequate.  Being a doer of the word is to take His word and apply it to our daily walk with Him. “We not just talk the talk, but we walk the talk.” Our lives need to speak louder than what we say. As a matter of fact, speaking the truth and not living it, can become a great stumbling block for those under our influence. James says it in another way when he writes, “Faith without works is dead.” Putting our faith into action (being a doer) is the completion of our religion. Pure religion is not just a profession of our faith, but a living relationship with our God. If our faith is dormant we become ineffective for God. May we step out with our faith, and become doers of the word, believing God that He through the power of the Holy Spirit is able to help us to be doers of His word. 

In My Youth

 Psalm 71:17

O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works.

God first spoke to me in my youth. Raised in a religious Catholic home, I knew the importance of church and the reality that there was a God. But, I did not know Him. I was familiar with the teachings of the church, having been confirmed at age 12, and taught the 10 commandments and the rules of the church. But in my youth, I came to know that Jesus was more than God’s Son who came to earth to die for the sins of man. I came to understand that He came for me. Confession of sin was personal, like King David, I went straight to the source for forgiveness of my sinful ways and sinful heart. Confessing my sins to a priest gave me a sense of relief, but it did not give me peace that passes understanding. From the time of my youth, I came to the realization that I could have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the Son of God, I devoured His word. I meditated on His word day and night, His word I hid in my heart that I would learn to please Him. “Hither-to, I have declared His wondrous works”, and His marvelous grace. Almost 50 years later, I still desire to know more of Him. He is everything to me, may I continue to declare that He is good and desires only what is good for me.

Not By Faith Alone

 Jame 2:20,24, 26

 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?...Ye see then how by works a man is justified, and not by faith only… For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

 

It would appear that James had something to say about getting saved or being justified before God. Paul is pretty clear that we are saved by grace, through faith, and that it is not by works or by any merit in ourselves. James is not saying that works will save you, but if you have faith that God has saved you, this faith will be demonstrated in the way you live your life. How can a person be delivered from sin, receive God’s gift of salvation and not love your neighbors by spreading works of love and kindness. A person who is hateful and selfish must examine their heart to see if they have truly believed. It could be that their faith, or belief was an intellectual acceptance to truth and not a faith that submitted to the practice of that truth. James points out that even devils could believe, and that does not save them. He who commits works of evil is of the devil, the father of deception. John was clear when he said, “He that commits sin is of the devil.” It was for this purpose that Christ came, to destroy the works of the devil. Faith in Christ will destroy the works of sin in our lives and allow us to manifest the works of godly living, doing what is right and good in the world we live in.

Pure Religion

 James 1:27
 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this…
I often hear, “Being a Christian is not a religion, but a relationship.” Hard to argue this point, because a religion that is founded on keeping rules and following the law is an empty religion,  but being a Christian is also about being religious. Our religion is to love those who are less fortunate, take care to help others when there is a need, consider the needs of others before your own. A religion without charity (love) is a religion without a relationship with Christ. Religion and relationships go hand in hand, much like faith and works. You really need them both to have a pure religion or a true relationship. A relationship with Christ requires that we keep him commandments, “If you love me (If we have a relationship), you will keep my commandments”. A pure religion requires that we remain unspotted by the world. You cannot have a relationship with Christ and not have a pure religion.

Praises of Men

Matt 6:1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.

We all like to be recognized for a job well done. Appreciated by others when we go out of our way to perform a good deed. But Jesus says to take inventory of your motives. Are your works of kindness done for the purpose so that other will give you praise and applaud your virtues? Some extol their generosity and speak freely of the gifts they bestow to the church, or all the work they do for the church. All is good and God is pleased when we give and work to keep the church doors open, but we are to do so because it is in our heart to work for His kingdom. Let us guard our words and thought and heart against bringing praises to ourselves, and do all things for His praise and glory.

Commit Thy Works

Proverbs: 16:3 Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.

Commitment is hard to find in the day we live. People are afraid to commit because they fear that such a commitment will interfere with what they want to do. Committing our works to the Lord means that there’s things in our lives that we will probably have to put aside. Any commitment demands that we give time. Committing to spend time alone with God, committing to attend the house of God, committing to do acts of kindness, committing to love as God would have us to love. Commitment demands our full attention. Commit to seek first the kingdom of God with all of your heart. Commit your way to God, and He will give you the desires of your heart, He will establish your thoughts to be His thoughts. “Whatsoever thy hand finds to do, do it with thy might”.

Evidence of Faith

James 2:17- Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

Truth is validated by evidence. Without evidence, claims are just speculation and opinion. The discovery of evidence is more likely to lead to truth. The heavens have declared the glory of God and His creation demonstrates His existence. I believe God is because I see His handiwork all around me. I have seen Him work in the hearts of lives of people. People who have come to faith in God, just don’t say they now believe, but there is a change in the way they live. Their faith is evidence in the works they do. It is a simple cause and effect reaction. I believe, I therefore do… The fruits of their lives will demonstrate what they believe. If you say you are a Christian and believe that Jesus is Lord of your life, then the evidence will be seen in the way you treat people and the love you show by giving of yourself to help others. Our works is the life we live. It is the evidence seen by the world that we are who we say we are. Without faith it is impossible to please God, the evidence of our faith in then demonstrated in the works we perform.

Faith to be Saved

Luke 18:42 And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.

Faith requires some action. James says that “Faith without works is dead” We are not saved by works, but our faith is demonstrated by the effort we make to step out in faith. Taking the first step is an act of works. It requires action on the part of the person who has faith. The blind man begging on the street corner demonstrated his faith when he cried out and was given an audience with the one he believed could heal his blinded eyes. We are all born as sinners and are blinded by sin in our lives. I remember when Jesus passed by in my life. The day my eyes were open to His love, grace and forgiveness. I saw that I was a sinner in need of a Savior. Jesus spoke to my heart and said, “Believe in Me and you will be saved” It will be a day that I will never forget,when my eyes were open to the spiritual world around me. If we but believe, have faith that He is God and is able to open our eyes, He will do it!

Labor of Love

1 Thess 1:3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

Doing the work of the kingdom is not restricted to preaching the gospel to the ends of the world. The great commission is clear, that as a church we need to share the good news of Jesus. He saves from sin and can dwell in our hearts. But not all are called to go to the ends of the world. The love of God is shared out within the four walls of our home, church, workplace, and community. Our work of faith is seen in our labor of love as we reach out to others who are in need. Such deeds may never be seen by others. A word of thanks may never be uttered, but it is done in the sight of God and our Father. That which is done in secret will God reward with eternal dividends. The calling of God is individualize for each one of us. This does not negate our responsibility to tell others of the gift of God given to us through Christ, but instead increases our responsibility to live the life of Christ by demonstrating His love in the works we do. Our greatest witness for Christ is best seen by putting other’s need before our own. This is the Kingdom’s work

Thy Sins Forgiven

Luke: 7:48,50 And He said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven…Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.

“By faith are you saved, not of works lest anyone should boast” Paul, the Apostle would later pen as he wrote his letter to the Romans. Our sins whether they be few or many, small or big all separate us from having a right relationship with God. Everyone born into this world is in need of forgiveness. The Pharisee who works diligently to live righteous by following all the rules given by God and conjured by man is still a sinner in need of forgiveness. The good moral person who seeks to please others by doing deeds and works worthy of praise needs forgiveness. For all have sinned, and have come short of God’s approval. “There is none righteous, no not one” (Roman.3:10) We all owe a debt we cannot pay by any works we can do. Christ came to pay the debt, He did not owe, we needed someone to take our sins away. Jesus, the Son of God has the power to say, “Thy sins are forgiven” for He is God and He paid the price that we may have the peace of God.

Stand Before God

Rev. 20:12 “ And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.”-

The reality is that we all will stand before God and give an account for the life we lived. There will be no exception, from the beggar in the street, to the kings and rulers that sit in high places. God is keeping a record of our life.  Did we live it to glorify God, or did we live to just please ourselves and our carnal desires? The work of salvation, accepting Jesus as Savior and Lord is written in the Book of Life. Have we experience the new birth? Have we been born again? These are the “works” that determine our eternal destination. There will be no excuses and no augments when we stand before God. There is no hiding for the books will reveal our works. It is sobering to think that we all will give an account after this life is over, and only that done in the Name of Jesus will matter. Standing before God does not have to be a fearful event. If our hearts have been cleaned by the blood of Christ we can stand boldly in that day knowing that we are a child of God and have a conscience void of condemnation. 

Spiritual Weakness

Roman: 15:1“ We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.”-

A strong Christian is one that has put their trust fully in the Lord. They have learned to walk by faith and not by sight. They realized the importance of doing good works, but know that it is not their good works that saves them, but it is grace given by God through Christ that they are made right with God. The weak Christian is still struggling with the flesh and understanding how to walk with God through the Spirit. They still have habits in the human that they need to break. The infirmities, or spiritual weaknesses they have are the results of years of putting their faith in following the law and observing days. Overcoming these things don’t come over night. Those that are strong in the Lord must be aware that their are those that will not understand the liberty they exhibit and be careful not to offend a weaker Christian. The scripture given to us hear specifically is dealing with Jews who still felt that God required the keeping of the law of Moses. We don’t have that specific issue among new converts today, but the principle here is to be patient with new Christian and do whatever we can to help them grow and be strong in faith even if it means putting our ownn personal desires aside. 

Delight in the Lord

Isaiah 58:6-14

“It is not until we are willing to put away our own desires and self-satisfaction, that we truly begin to know the joys of service God. Delighting in the Lord begins by putting God first in everything we do. Reaching out to help others, letting our joy be spilled out and overflowing, touching lives for God. God promises us many reward if we follow his commands and live a life that will honor Him."

Welfare of Others- undo the heavy burden

• What is true religion?
• Jesus was a servant, not a an oppressor
• Sensitive to the needs of others- If thy brother be naked
• Let us do good unto all men- Especially unto…

Works are Essential – dealing bread to the hungry

• Show me your faith by your works
• Faith without works is dead faith

Wealth of Rewards – glory of the Lord shall be thy reward

• God’s light shines on those who give of themselves
• God will see your good works as righteousness
• The approbation of God- His approval- Well done..

Watered Garden – thou shall be like a watered garden

• Your soul will be satisfied when life get tough
• Your life will show forth contentment- delight
• Jesus said, “Well of water springing forth”

Wasted Places Rebuilt –the repairer of the breach

• God desires to use us to restore others back to God
• Built the altars once again- Revival of Prayer

• Dig the wells that have been filled- Remove the clutter

Worship on the Sabbath – Shall honor Him

• Negative- Turn away from your own pleasures
• Positive- Honor Him- focus on Christ
• Is your Sabbath a delight or duty?

Word of the Lord has Spoken-the Lord hath spoken it.

• The Lord will lift you up and make you victorious
• He will provide and sustain you- Establish you goings
• God will honor and bless you for honoring His Day
• There is no question about it. God said t!