James 1:26-27

If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless.  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.

Everything of value is at risk of being counterfeit.  There is nothing more valuable than salvation from sin.  That reality makes knowing the marks of genuine salvation of vital importance.  Having said that, it is of even greater importance to know that these practices are not prerequisites for salvation.  The are the expected results of salvation.  Nobody will be saved by doing these good works.  Those who are genuinely saved will be making progress in these areas.

BE IN CONTROL OF OUR WORDS: Every religion has rituals.  Usually, the rituals of religion center on external appearances and performing different repetitive acts.  Religion becomes associated with wearing strange looking clothing, going to some sort of “sacred” place on a regular basis, and repeating memorized prayers over and over again.  These things James describes as worthless religion.  Whatever the habits of religion might be, the tendency is to mindlessly practice these things to be able to check them off our list and then go about life in an unchanged manner.  The most basic area where the reality of our heart is revealed is our speech.  Profanity, dishonesty, gossip, slander, rudeness, and unclean speech in general are all demonstrations of worthless religiosity.  God has redeemed us through the work of Christ to transform every aspect of our lives and hearts.  This will show up on our tongues in the form of praise, worship, encouragement, honesty, testifying, and speech that is full of grace.  

BE CARING FOR OUR WIDOWS: Humanity is naturally selfish.  Looking out for our own needs and interests is a very common way of life.  Genuine salvation will transform us so we have a genuine concern for and desire to care for others, especially the most vulnerable.  In a marriage relationship God gives husbands the responsibility of caring and providing for their wives.  Marriages usually produce children that also need provision and protection from their parents.  Unfortunately, in a sin-cursed world, husbands and parents neglect those basic responsibilities or are unable to fulfill them for a variety of reasons including death.  Widows and orphans become vulnerable and are in desperate need of help.  Those who are genuine believers will turn from their selfishness and take the time to help relieve the afflictions widows and orphans face.

BE CLEAN IN OUR WORLD: The world in which we live can be a filthy place.  Sins of lust, greed, violence, oppression, and pride seem to surround us in every direction we look.  Sin is sort of like the water in which we swim and the air we breathe, so it is impossible to completely avoid it and its influences on us.  Besides that reality, we are all born with hearts that are contaminated by sin.  Sin surrounds our bodies and infects our hearts.  Christ came to redeem us from sin.  That does not mean we will immediately stop sinning.  It does mean that we have the hope of an eternity living in a world and having a heart from which sin has been completely irradicated.  The power of the Gospel allows us to live today in this fallen world without becoming stained or overcome by sin.

APPLICATION: Avoid meaningless religious rituals and focus on using our words to glorify God and edify others.  Sacrifice of our time and resources to care for the most vulnerable of our society.  Don’t allow the sinful systems and habits of this world permeate our lives and trust in Christ alone to transform our sinful hearts.  Look forward with eager expectation and joy to our eternal home where our words will always be gracious, there will never be widows or orphans, and our hearts will be completely set free from sin.