what does James 1:26 mean?

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Permalink Reply by Carla on March 22, 2015 at 10:02am

There are so many indepth layers.  A good way to check our hearts is by monitoring what is coming out of our mouths. 

"And the reckoning isn't based on the fruit we see in our lives (whether good or bad), but only because we're trusting in Christ"

I believe that the fruit we see in our lives does reveal what's in our hearts.   Scripture does talk about a good tree only bearing good fruit, and a bad tree only bearing bad fruit (Matt 7:15-20) but that is specifically talking about false prophets.

We know we're on a journey being sanctified.  We're not to take advantage of God's Grace, but we also know we will fail many times.  Jesus frees us from the life that is dominated by sin and death.

Matthew 7 goes on to say:

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

24“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Verse 24 stands out for me.."Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who builds his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house; yet it did not fall, because it had it's foundations on the rock."

John 14:23 says :"23Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me."

Therefore, we must build our foundation on Jesus alone. Our hearts reveal if we love Him.  And those who love Him will obey His teachings.  So--if He tells us to bridle our tongue, we will do it.  We fail, but we get back up and know we are blessed, chosen, adopted, accepted, redeemed, forgiven and loved.  Knowing our identity in Christ is crucial.  If some one asks us 'Who are you and why are you here?'  we can now confidently answer... "I am daughter of the most High King, who is God Creator of the world and everything in it.  I'm here for His purposes and to fulfill His desires.  His greatest desire is for all people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth, so that is my purpose."  He will use me wherever He places me.

Rabbit trail alert: This is not to maintain salvation, but it is out of love because we are already saved.  A 'religious' person (ie:pharisees) who feels that they must do certain things or somehow strive to be saved is not acting out of love, but rather out of fear (1 John 4:18) or pride (Proverbs 16:18).  God's children simply obey what Jesus says to do out of a grateful heart and love of the Father. 

This morning my son asked me if he could use his own money to buy something for his video game.  Of coarse my answer couldn't be a simple 'yes' or 'no'.  After we discussed it for awhile, I told him to come back at breakfast and we would sit down and talk about it again.  He told me he decided to not spend the money (our discussion had revolved around potential addiction issues and waste of money).  I asked him why he decided not to, he replied because it would make me happy.  I said to him "I don't want you to simply make me happy, I want you to understand that your choices will affect you positively or negatively.  It's in your best interest to manage your money in a way what will not potentially hurt you"  It was interesting to me that he was most concerned with making me happy, and my only concern was his best interest in safety and making good choices for his well-being.

I think that's how God deals with us.  He's just wants what's best for us, and He knows that when we follow His commands it is what's best for us.  He gives us the choice.  But as His children, we don't always see that....we are prone to thinking selfishly, but we do want to make Him happy because we love Him.

Blessings, Carla

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Permalink Reply by Jenny on March 22, 2015 at 10:50am

"24“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock."

So there are two things going on, which this verse talks about:

1) putting Jesus' words into practice (vs. 24), and, 

2) building our foundation on the rock, or having our foundation on the rock (vs. 24, 25)

Is the first talking about sanctification, and the second justification?

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Permalink Reply by Carla on March 23, 2015 at 7:09am

Yes... interestingly, James 1:22-25 is cross referenced in my bible with these verses. :-)

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Permalink Reply by Jenny on March 23, 2015 at 11:06am

So if we add in the James verses,

1) putting Jesus' words into practice = being a doer of the word Ja.1:22 (continuing in "the perfect law of liberty", Ja.1:25) = Sanctification

2) having our foundation on the rock = looking into the "perfect law of liberty" (Ja.1:25)= Justification

I think I'm getting this. 

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Permalink Reply by Carla on March 23, 2015 at 1:43pm

God is showing you. :-)  PTL

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Permalink Reply by Zachary James Gott on May 12, 2015 at 9:45am

It's clear to me that the authors understanding has led him to believe speech is a vital indicator as to a person's actual devotion to God. And reflecting on that point I have to agree. It is so easy to lose control over your words if you do not take your religion seriously.

It is not in my opinion, about being a hypocrite who does good things to be seen as good. I interpret it as a person trying to be a good Christian but still lacking the conviction to be a Christian ALL of the time.

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