notes

Main point summary

It is not possible to be inwardly good whilst being outwardly evil. A person should judge their own actions as evidence of their relationship with God; the evil speak without thinking or consideration, while he who is truly good loves others with his actions and is not negatively influenced by the world.

Discourse**

editing

NT

James 1:26-27

esv

mine

If anyone thinks he is religious

A man may think he is good

q and does not bridle his tongue

but if he speaks harsh or foolish words

but deceives his heart,

he is not good, but rather is deceived

ideaexplanation

negativepositive

this person’s r religion is worthless.

this person's "religion" is a hollow thing, and he does not stand justified before God.

conditional

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this:

This is what one's life looks like when they truly know God:

s to visit t orphans and widows in their affliction,

they love others, especially the vulnerable

and u to keep oneself v unstained from the world.

and though they get their hands dirty by mixing with "sinners" and people who are not perfect, their hearts remain pure and untainted.

progression

discourse

Notes

It is not possible to be inwardly good whilst being outwardly evil. A person should judge their own actions as evidence of their relationship with God; the evil speak without thinking or consideration, while he who is truly good loves others with his actions and is not negatively influenced by the world. James challenges us to examine ourselves lest we be deceived. It is an appealing thing for a worldly man to recline on the promises of religion - our eternal salvation - in order that he need not worry about what waits beyond death. Yet these promises do not hold true for those who hold merely to the promises, and not to the commands. Those who live their lives in an "unbridled" way, with no thought or submission to God, have no true religion at all. Religion that has worth first seeks God, doing good to others, and remaining free from the corruption of the world.