22 Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves. 23 For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror, 24 and after observing himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom, and continues to do so—not being a forgetful hearer, but an effective doer—he will be blessed in what he does.

26 If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart and his religion is worthless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Sarah Cameron

If I asked you to think of an example of someone being a hypocrite, it probably wouldn’t take long for something to pop into your head. A celebrity speaking about saving the environment while they take an excessive number of plane flights, or a politician who campaigns for family values when secretly they’ve been having an affair, or a work colleague who complains about others being lazy while cutting corners themselves. It can be infuriating and discouraging when someone says they believe one thing but then do the opposite.

Sadly, the Christian community is not immune. It’s even worse, I think, when we hear about Christian leaders and church members who claim to follow Jesus speaking and acting in ways that are abhorrent to God.

In today’s passage we see that we’re right to be frustrated about people’s lives and actions not lining up with what they say they believe, because it’s something God doesn’t want either. But, although it’s easy to point it out in the lives of others, what James has to say in these verses are for all of us.

If you claim to follow God, it’s not enough just to listen to what he says, but your life needs to show it. Living God’s way is where you will find true freedom and blessing.

I found it interesting that verse 26 narrows in on our speech. We know that words are powerful. A single word can start wars or change the course of your life. It’s not surprising then that how we use our words matters, because our words show what’s in our hearts.

After reading this passage I’ve tried to think about one concrete way I could change how I use my words this week, and one way I could change my actions so I’m living consistently with what I believe. It’s not going to be easy this side of heaven, but we know God has promised his Holy Spirit will help us live for him. Pray God would use our lives and our speech to bring blessing to those around us.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah is a member of our Fairfield Morning congregation.