The Book of James, The Pure Religion of Mercy and Charity, James 1:23-27 - Lesson 9

James 1:23-25,  For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: ²⁴For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. ²⁵But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

Before we leave the man who beholds himself in the glass there is a nuance of words given that is worthy of our attention.

As in much of scripture our attention is called to compare two men.

Here we are called to compare a man who beholds his natural face in a glass to a man who looketh into the perfect law of liberty.

This word looketh according to the Greek, means to stoop down beside in order to take a better look.

The word looketh is used to indicate a close and attentive look, a look of investigation for the purpose of doing something about what is seen.

Now this looking is in contrast to the cursory look that the man who beholds his natural face in a glass and simply goes his way without seeing what manner a man he is.

So we have a great difference between this man who beholds his face and walks away and the man who looketh and does something about what he sees.

But to do something about what he sees in the glass requires a careful scrutiny, a careful study which translates into productive living.

This is such a simple concept and one we follow religiously every day.

All of us look into a mirror for the purpose of making adjustments in our outside appearance.

This is what the doer of God’s word is to do, but for his or her inside appearance.

The hearer reads the word but nothing changes on the inside.

He is like the man who looks into a mirror in order to commend himself in that his appearance can not get any better.

But the doer of the word looks into the perfect law of liberty that the purpose of God in his life may be realized.

He is a doer of the word in order that his inside appearance be conformed to God’s Son, Jesus Christ.

This perfect law of liberty that James compares to a glass is a new law established by Christ for right living that calls for holier habits than the old laws of Moses.

The difference now is that men and women respond to this new law because they want to, not because they are told to.

Once the Spirit of God gives a man the ability to be free from his old sin-nature, he feels free to obey God because he loves him.

The man who looketh into the glass, loves God and wishes to obey His word in the matter of doing His word.

Love for God is shown in the doing of His word and not the hearing of His word only.

But what does this do for the doer?

Well he is the man who is blessed, for inherent in the doing of God’s word is being blessed by God.

The doing of God’s word always, automatically brings blessing.

This blessing is God ordained and incorporated into God’s creation.

If there is one thing that you can put into your children it is this.

Obedience to God’s word is good for you, it is healthy for you, and it is that which will bring joy and peace to your heart, for God has so ordained it to be, and therefore you can count on it.

Now James having said this continues in his instruction regarding the use of the mouth.

Now notice the comparison of religions.

Two religions, one based upon speech and one based upon acts of mercy.

One based upon talk and one based upon action.

One which seems to come from a hearer of the word only and another one that comes from a hearer/doer.

One comes from a man who will tell a cold and hungry man "Be ye warmed and filled" but the other comes from a man who will actually give that hungry man his coat and his food.

James tells the unbridled mouth that actions speak louder than words.

He tells that mouth that there is such a thing as pure religion.

It is not the religion of careful observance of Pharisaic customs, or rules of outward conduct or ritual.

No! Pure religion is a religion of mercy and he specifically advises that pure religion would include acts of mercy such as visiting the fatherless and the widows in their affliction.

And that mercy is to be expressed from one who keeps himself pure, that is, unspotted from the world.

God is not interested in his work being done by those who have been or are being corrupted by the world.

Christ did the father’s will without spot or blemish and if you are being conformed to Christ so will you.

The doer of the word will keep himself unspotted from the world but the hearer only will not do such a thing for he lacks the tools to do so for he walks not in the Spirit of God.

The doer of the word knows that works of charity and mercy are the proper fruits of pure religion.

And James could not have mentioned more worthy objects of charity and mercy than the orphans and widows, those folks who are alone and without family.

There is much of religion today that performs acts of mercy and charity but its motives are not pure.

Deeds are done to be noticed and repaid in some form or the other.

The religion of Christ is a religion that works for the good of the weak, and has no exterior motives where benefit is sought for itself.

Remember when Jesus rebuked the scribes and Pharisees for being hypocrites in Matthew 23, He specifically mentioned that they pray long prayers that look pious, but they steal widows’ houses.

The real test of religion is how one who is strong deals with those who are weak.

The biblical pattern is for the strong to use their strengths to minister to the needs of the weak.

Those who exhibit true religion do not simply throw money at those in distress but they visit them and care for them and love them as Christ loves them.

Those of true religion get involved in their lives by going to their houses, and seeing to their needs, bringing a witness of Christ to them through the Gospel.

And those of true religion do all these things for the Lord’s sake and in His name.

Those of true religion are truly the body of Christ on earth, they are His hands, they are His feet, called to do good works in His name.

It is the religion that proves itself by unencumbered works of charity and mercy with purity of heart.

It is not a religion of the outward, it is not a religion of the ritual, but a religion of love and concern for people in need.

God has expressed this religion in Micah 6:8 where we are given our marching orders,   ⁸He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

We have seen in our study of chapter one of James that James is about faith and not just about works.

James began his epistle by talking about faith and that trials are a testing of our faith.

They are a means of conformance to the image of God’s Son and in order to obtain wisdom in our trials we must ask of God in faith.

James does not talk about saints being saved by works, but about God giving us the new birth through the message of the truth (verse 18).

He gets down to the basics of why God has left us here after that new birth.

We are not here to live in the ivory towers of Christianity, hearing the word, discussing the word, intellectualizing the word, parsing every word, but to take that word and incorporate it into good works.

We are not to be of the group who just studies the Bible, we are to be of the obedient ones who obey the Bible and do it.

We are not to be of the ones who debate points of theology but neglect the witness of that theology to our neighbors or to care for widows and orphans who are in need.

As Christians, we may make much ado about the Word, but we often fail to do that which the Word clearly commands.

Knowing God’s Word is not enough.

Doing God’s Word begins by studying God’s word to see if we are approved of God and in so doing seeing our own sins and weaknesses and dealing with them, and then moving on to look out for others.

And part of this looking at ourselves is to accept that the adversity that comes into our lives is from the hand of God.

James tells us to count it all joy when divers temptations come into our lives.

This is such an alien concept to us that only by the power of the Holy Spirit can such a thing be done.

But God gives such power and that power is to be used to gain such joy.

No adversity comes into the life of the Christian that has not been purposed by God.

He does not allow us to suffer in order to destroy us, but to chasten and strengthen us.

He promises to supply the wisdom we need to respond in a godly manner to our suffering.

He assures us that our afflictions are for our good, as well as for His glory.

For this reason, we are to rejoice in our afflictions and that rejoicing will bring praise directed to the Lord from our lips for we look to the end of the process rather than the process.

James tells us to not see suffering and trials as an evil, from which the Christian should seek to escape.

There is not even encouragement to pray that God would deliver from trials but on the contrary he preaches for us to joyfully see that trials are from God and are designed by Him for a good purpose.

We are told to pray when we fall into various trials, not for deliverance, but for wisdom.

God promises that our prayers requesting wisdom will be answered, without rebuke, if we but pray in faith.

A lack of faith is what keeps us from wisdom, not from deliverance from our adversity.

James is far from those who believe that they can, by faith, claim a healing or deliverance from pain.

James says that those who are facing trials should pray, and that their prayers must be in faith.

But they are not assured of an escape from pain and suffering; they are assured of receiving divine wisdom while in pain and suffering.

There are those who preach that the Bible guarantees an escape from pain and suffering and adversities but that is not what we find in James.

James instead speaks of endurance and calling upon God for that endurance.

There are many voices that call upon us to believe otherwise but James is clear and when we know the clear teaching of the Bible then we are obligated to cleanse from our minds those things contrary to what we know to be the truth.

How many people have gone thru adversity and found the Savior?

Should not those trials be joyfully recalled as a blessing?

Listen to the Psalmist of Psalm 119:67,71,75.

Verse 67, Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

Verse 71,  It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.

Verse 75,  I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.

In conclusion I came across this entry in a book by John Baillie, called A Diary of Private Prayer [1949]

Teach me. O God, to use all the circumstances of my life
today that they may bring forth in me the fruits of holiness
rather than the fruits of sin.

Let me use disappointment as material for patience:
Let me use success as material for thankfulness:
Let me use suspense as material for perseverance:
Let me use danger as material for courage:
Let me use reproach as material for longsuffering:
Let me use praise as material for humility:
Let me use pleasures as material for temperance:
Let me use pains as material for endurance.

The lesson of James is that the circumstances in the life of God’s children are there to fulfill God’s purposes and good pleasure.

If we are God’s He then has power to work His work in you.

And we see this in Philippians 2:12,13,  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. ¹³For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.