RELIGION

"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" (James 1:27).

 

James told us in verse 26, that a person who talks too much with an unbridled tongue is not religious (spiritual).  In verse 27, he tells us what God is really looking for in religious activity.  The religious acts that God considers to be pure is to visit (implies helping and caring) orphans and widows.  In James' day, widows and orphans were the most vulnerable of all people--they had no way to provide for themselves.  They shared a common loneliness and a common place in a society that prevented them from making a livable wage.  The truly spiritual person's heart is moved to action by those who are suffering helplessly.

 

A second measure of spirituality is also included in verse 27--keeping oneself from the influence of the world's values.

 

So today, let us adopt two agendas: #1--accomplishing God's agenda in the world by caring for the broken and the helpless; and #2--accomplishing God's agenda in the world by guarding our hearts from all that the world would have us become.