James 1:26-27 — A Good Faith System

READ THIS: James 1:26-27

26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

 

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

Religion, by the definition I just found on google, means "a system of faith." James makes two arguments about our systems of faith here. The first argument is that if we say we have a strong system of faith, but our words to one another don't line up with what we believe (remember being slow to speak?), that system is worthless... Ouch. So what should our faith system look like? According to James, we should be caring for the people in need around us, and we should be less and less like how the rest of the world lives. Jesus showed both of these things perfectly! He lived differently than everyone else around Him, caring for the people that were often overlooked. Let's try to do the same.

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. Let's check in from a few days ago... how are you doing at being slow to speak? If the answer is "not so great," let this be your reminder to strive to be quicker listeners than talkers.

 

2. Can you think of someone at school, work, or in your daily life that may be feeling overlooked? How can you show them the love of Jesus today?

 

TRY THIS:

Write down 3 things you can do this week to care for someone in need, and follow through on it! Let's show people what a pure and strong system of faith looks like!