James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction… I. "TO VISIT THE FATHERLESS AND WIDOWS," THAT IS, TO BE PLENTEOUS IN GOOD WORKS; "THESE ARE THE VERY BEGINNINGS AND NURSERY OF THE LOVE OF GOD." 1. There is no surer and readier step to the love of God, "whom we have not seen," than by the love of our brethren, "whom we see" (1 John 4:20). 2. As compassion to our brethren is a fair preparation to purity of life, so doth purity of conversation commend our liberality, and make it to be had in remembrance in the sight of the Lord. It may be bread, it is not an alms, that is brought by the hand of an oppressor or a Pharisee. 3. Therefore, in the next place, as they bear this fair correspondence, and mutually uphold each other, so we must not think it possible to separate them. Both are required at our hands; and if God hath joined them both together, let no man take upon him to divorce or put them asunder. II. For, in the next place, THESE TWO THUS LINKED AND UNITED TOGETHER WILL KEEP RELIGION "PURE AND UNDEFILED"; which are as the colours and beauty of it, "the beauty of holiness," which hath its colour and grace from whence it hath its being and strength, and, if it be true, will shine in "the perfection of beauty." "Religion, if it be true, and not a name only, is as a virgin pure and undefiled, and maketh us so, and espouseth us to Christ." So is true religion, simple and solid, full of itself, having no heterogeneous matter, but ever the same, and about the same. There is nothing in our love which soureth our justice, nothing in our justice to kill our compassion, nothing in our liberality to defile our chastity, nothing in our fear to beat down our confidence, nothing in our zeal to consume our charity. "A true religious man is always himself." And as religion is "pure," without mixture, so it is "undefiled," and cannot subsist with pollution and pro. faneness. "Now are our Olympics, now is the great trial" to be made "before God and the Father." And our religion consisteth in this, "to fight it out legally" (2 Timothy 2:5); a condition they were bound to who were admitted to those games and exercises. III. And now I have showed you the picture of religion in little, represented it to you in these two, doing of good, and abstaining from evil; filling the hungry with good things, and purging and emptying ourselves of all uncleanness. You have seen its beauty in its graceful and glorious colours of purity and undefiledness; a picture to be hung up in the Church, nay, before God Himself. And THUS IT APPEARETH "BEFORE GOD AND THE FATHER," AND HATH ITS RATIFICATION FROM HIM. Application: 1. This may serve, first, to make us in love with this religion, because it hath such a Founder as "God the Father," who is wisdom itself, and can neither be deceived, nor deceive us. 2. Again, if St. James be canonical and authentic, if this be true religion, then it will make up an answer sufficient to stop the mouth of those of the Romish party who are very busy to demand at our hands a catalogue of fundamentals, and where our Church was before the days of Reformation. Do the ask what truths are fundamental? Faith supposed, as it is here, they are — charity to ourselves and others. "To know this, is to know all we need to know." For is it not sufficient to know that which is sufficient to make us happy? But if nothing will satisfy them but a catalogue of particulars, "they have Moses and the prophets" (Luke 16:29); they have the apostles; and if they find their fundamentals not there, in vain shall they seek for them at our hands. 3. To conclude then. Men and brethren, are these things so? Is this only true religion — to do good, and to abstain from evil? If this should take place amongst the sons of men, we should have more religion and less noise. Could this religion, could the gospel of Christ prevail; could we "deny ourselves and take up the cross," and "keep ourselves unspotted from the world," there would be then no "wars, nor rumours of wars." Let us not deceive ourselves. It is the neglect and want of this that hath been the main cause of all the hot contentions which have been, and aa yet are, in the Church of Christ; I mean, amongst those who call one another "Christians"; whose mark and badge it is "to love one another." (A. Farindon, B. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. |
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