12-6-2016

Good Morning All,

               James 1: 27; “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

    I was listening to a radio program about the future direction of the Church.  One of the challenges or alternatives addressed was the group of people who call themselves “spiritual but not religious.”  There are a growing number of people who claim this title.  Many claim this deep personal relationship with God but claim they have no need for or desire to belong to a church.  Many of these have had a negative experience in a church and feel “burned.”  Some are misreading Scriptures and some are trying to change the Bible to fit their choices.  While there different ways to look at things, in this case, the biblical way gives us a clear direction.

    If we take a look at faith and religion, most would agree that the two are not necessarily the same.  Faith is a gift from God.  It comes to us through the preaching of God’s Word by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Faith causes us to cling to the promises of God.  Faith is the desire to cling to these promises, promises of life eternal, forgiveness of sins, hearing our prayers, never abandoning us.  Faith gives us the security to face this broken world, often hostile towards us, with a calm confidence in our victory.

    Religion is how you live within that faith.  Jesus often engaged in this discussion with the Pharisees.  They were engaged in a religion that focused on looking pious, judging others harshly, looking for loopholes for themselves, and being greedy.  Jesus, throughout his ministry, lived and taught differently.  He taught, with the Sermon on the Mount and with parables like The Good Samaritan; that our religion should play out in the form of service to others, looking after their well-being especially those who suffer the most.  At the time of Jesus, widows and orphans were at the bottom of the list.  They usually lacked the wherewithal to eke out a living and were often forced to beg for everything.

    So we are encouraged to live within our faith by the outward expression in service to others.  Taking care of each other is one of the reasons that God created us. From the time of Cain’s sinful question of “Am I my brother’s keeper” to the lawyer who sought to justify his life by asking Jesus, “who is my neighbor?” to our lives today when we look away or pass judgment on another person’s situation in life.  God calls upon his redeemed children to live out their faith by showing compassion and love for those around them especially those who are weak and downtrodden.  Share God’s love with those whom you meet today.  Live your faith, trusting in God’s mercy always to sustain you.

Father of love and mercy, guide us by your Spirit that we may always live our faith in the public square by showing the same compassion for others that you have shown.  Strengthen our zeal to serve you.  Lift up our hearts that we may always walk in your ways.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret