3. Deepening Our Faith
Notes
Transcript
Welcome to part three of our series, All Day, Every Day…learning to follow Jesus well in every area of our lives. So really the most important part of this life devoted to following Jesus is faith. Faith that Jesus is the Son of God, and King over all creation is the key starting point.
We recognize that there are different levels of faith when it comes to that position or belief. Some maybe just figuring it out, others maybe have an extremely deep faith depending on your journey as a follower of Jesus. Simply put, there are different levels of faith.
Let me demonstrate what I’m talking about. I need a volunteer.
1. “Volunteer, do you trust me?” (First level of faith)
2. Do a trust fall. “Volunteer, looking straight ahead, trust me and fall backwards and I will catch you.” (Second Level - Faith is deepening)
3. Stand in front of the volunteer. Have them look you in the eye. Meanwhile a second person is quietly sneaking up behind them. Ask the volunteer is they trust you. The say, “Yes” Tell them to fall backwards. Have fun trying to convince the person to fall backwards. (Third Level of faith)
This is the level of faith we want to get to. So, on this rudimentary scale, where is your faith right now?
If the best way to live life comes through following Jesus, how do I move deeper into that relationship? How can I deepen my faith?
That is what James will address here in chapter one of his letter. If you have a Bible or device, find James chapter one. If you are using the YouVersion Bible app, go to your menu, look for Events. Then search for Iowa City Church.
Remember, James is writing to Jewish Christians scattered around the region, probably all the way up into Asia Minor. He’s helping them deepen their faith in Jesus. Here is what he writes.
19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
Remove Evil And Daily Pursuing Jesus Deepens Our Faith
Let me give you a little bit of context for what James says. Remember, I mentioned that James was writing to Jewish Christians. This is important because Jewish people, especially those in Judea were in conflict with the Roman Empire. Political activists called Zealots were riling up the Jewish people to rebel against Roman rule. Needless to say, there was a lot of frustration, anger and violence. So a Zealot, Jewish way of responding to problems of situations of unrest would be in anger and violence.
James is very straight to the point. In following Jesus, pursuing anger does not produce right living, nor does it deepen ones faith. Or you could say, living a life dictated by anger will not produce righteousness.
How would you describe our current culture right now? Divisive? A bit on edge? Would you describe our current culture as angry, at least politically? It feels that way at times doesn’t it. Sometimes the urge Christians may feel is to lash out in anger, fight anger with more anger. The problem is that just develops more anger. Maybe you even feel anger, and you feel like your only path through life is to be an angry person or let other people feel the wrath of your anger.
James teaches that we need to remove these other evil and unhealthy pursuits at living life. Pursuing anger. Pursuing wealth. Pursuing pleasure. These will not produce a righteous life, nor deepen our faith. Instead, James takes an important message from Jesus.
To you remember Jesus’ parable about the soils? You can refresh your memory by looking at Matthew 13. Essentially, Jesus says that the Good News about the Kingdom of God is like a seed planted in different soils. One of the soils contains a bunch of weeds that grow up and choke out the seed of the Good News. Similarly, we may put our faith in Jesus, but if you allow the weeds of anger, violence, money, career, pleasure…to control our lives…the good news is squeezed out and our faith not only doesn’t grow…it dies. Here’s the point:
To deepen our faith, we need to make sure and diligently weed our garden of harmful distractions and focus our attention on Jesus.
James 1:22–25 (NIV)
22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
2. When We Do What Jesus Says, Our Faith Grows
Okay, this is where we all get hung up. Let me define a couple of terms here to help understand what James is saying. “Listen to the word” and “perfect law” are both referring to Jesus. John describes Jesus as “The Word” and in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says that he came to fulfill the Law (Matthew 5:17). Our source of what to do or how to live life is Jesus and his word.
Honestly, I don’t think there is a lot of disagreement with that statement. The problem is exactly what James is pointing out: listening to the word does not equate doing what it says. Here’s and example.
If we tell our kids to clean up their room what do we expect? We expect them to clean up their room. So what would happen if you check the next day and don’t find the room clean. However, you discover that your child invited their friends over to talk about what you told them to do and they decide to meet every week to look at what you told your child to do means. They will talk about what it means in Greek and Hebrew. It’s many possible meanings and applications…and they will continue to meet for as long as it takes.
This sounds ludicrous…am I right? However this is exactly what we do! We study the Bible, analyze it, deconstruct it, question it, but ultimately never really do what it says. According to James, the freedom you seek, the life of blessing God wants to provide, comes when we do what Jesus says.
James uses the illustration of a mirror. He says that the mirror is like “the perfect law” or Jesus. So let’s do a quick test of this. Take your phone out. Open the camera. Now, change the settings so the camera is showing your face on the screen. Take 10 seconds and look at yourself. What needs some attention? Hair in place? Your dome is too shiny? Nose hair? A pimple that needs attention? There’s a piece of breakfast in your teeth? You look in the mirror, and you see a problem, and you give it attention. James is saying, Jesus is a mirror…it points out the problem areas that need fixing…don’t be ignorant or lazy and walk away an not do something about the problem. If you see a problem fix it.
A deepening and growing faith is a result of doing what Jesus says.
James concludes this section with a helpful test to measure a deepening faith.
3. Is Your Faith Growing? Here’s The Test
26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Let’s define religion. That will be helpful in understanding what James is teaching.
Religion = appropriate beliefs and devout practice of obligations relating to, in this case God.
In relation to what we are talking about today, religion would be summed up as: The appropriate way to live out one’s faith in God.
You can measure your faith in these three areas:
Do you guard what you say? This is a big issue for James and we will see in chapter three. The tongue maybe one of the most damaging and deadliest parts of our humanity. Think of all the different ways you have been personally hurt or wounded from the words of another. Our response as faithful followers of Jesus is to be slow to speak, quick to listen and slow to get angry. This includes gossip, lying, rumors, disparaging remarks. Sometimes the church is the worst place for this. As Chris teaches the children upstairs, once we say something, the genie is out of the bottle, it’s really hard to put back. Just like squeezing too much tooth paste out of the bottle, it’s impossible to put back in. A true religious follower of Jesus guards what they say, and carefully measures their words. Not who you are? Then go back to the beginning and figure out who Jesus is.
Do you serve the least? In first century culture, orphans and widows lived in the margins. They were outsiders. James’ point is that faithful, religious Jesus followers would make sure and lift up the down and outers. How are you doing regarding people not like you? How are you serving marginalized people? How are you making a difference in the lives of people who have very little? Again, if you’re not doing well, go back to the beginning. How did Jesus change your life, when you where at your very worst? Who is Jesus to you?
Do you live like the culture? There is a powerful pull to fit in, to be normal. No one wants to be ostracized. The problem happens when culture has pursuits or principles that are the opposite of what Jesus says our pursuits should be or unholy, unrighteous, or in some cases, just plain evil. Think of it this way. What are the things our culture elevates as important? Maybe, like the American Dream? Romantic love, sex, children, private property, wealth, a fruitful career, appearance. How many of those priorities were a driving force in the life of Jesus? None. Jesus was focused on doing what God wanted. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus put it this way. Matthew 6:33
Matthew 6:33 (NIV)
33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
So a test we all must take is this: Are we focused more on looking like Jesus or our neighbors down the street?
If our faith is truly deepening, we will look more like Jesus.
So I was trying to figure out how to illustrate what a deep faith with Jesus looks like. There was the man who was flying in a two person Cessna, when the pilot died. He radioed people until he could find someone who could tell him how to land the plane. He listened very intently and did exactly what they said, and he landed the plane.
Or there’s Erik Weihenmayer who is blind, yet on May 25, 2001 reached the peak of Mt. Everest, by listening to the bell attached to his guide…as well as their careful instructions such as: “Death fall two feet to your right!” Talk about listening and doing…and deep faith! Those are both good. Here’s a video I want to show you of what a deep faith in Jesus look like.
This is a video from the Para Athletics about the World’s Fastest Blind Sprinter
Here’s what we learn: Our faith in Jesus deepens as we simply do what he says.
Here are some next steps to consider:
What is one thing Jesus is asking you to do?
What is an unholy pursuit you need to abandon?
Have you made Jesus the King of your life?
Remember: Our faith is Jesus deepens as we simply do what he says.