Pure and Undefiled Religion

This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father: to look after orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. (James 1:27).

This verse in James describes religion that is pleasing to God. I would like to do a little exegesis from the Greek text to see if it will help to understand what James was getting at. Remember that although this was written in Greek, the common language of most of James’ readers, he was born and raised a Jew, and he addressed his letter to “the twelve tribes in the dispersion,” aka Jewish people. To follow the cardinal principle of trying to read the Bible as the original audience would have done, we must think like a first century Jew.

The word James chose for “religion” appears only four times in the New Testament. It is translated “religion” three times, and once as “worship,” although that occurrence refers to false worship. (Col. 2:18) According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (Vines), the word religion emphasizes concern for “the externals of divine service.” The Jews were very familiar with this type of religion. Think of the focus on the temple, priests, sacrifices, and hundreds of rules that defined their religion. It could easily become external; this is precisely why Jesus blasted the Pharisees. I believe that James used this word to draw a sharp contrast between pure religion and the external sham that Judaism had become for many.

The words pure and undefiled are similar in meaning to us, but there may have been a distinction for James’ audience. Looking at Vines again, the word pure means “ethically [pure], with the significance being free from corrupt desire, from guilt.” This is an internal evaluation – having a pure heart. The Jews would also recognize the allusion to the ritual purity required of all who served at the temple. The ceremonial cleansing of the priests and Levites with blood and water was the external picture of the internal purity God required.

 The word undefiled speaks more to the outward aspect. Vines says “undefiled, free from contamination.”  The Jews would have remembered that their sacrificial animals were to be spotless, free from imperfections just as the Old Testament law required. Something as simple as a scar or discoloration would render the animal unclean for the purpose of sacrifice. The application of these two words to Christian religion would suggest that both our inner motivations and our outward actions must be in line with God’s demands of believers.

The first of James’ two admonitions describing acceptable religion concerned widows and orphans; this is drawn directly from the Hebrew Scriptures. Time and again God chastised Israel for ignoring the needs of these people. Certainly, He hated their idolatry, but He expressed similar disapproval of their abuse of widows and orphans. We may miss the significance of this in our wealthy welfare society. In our day, orphans become wards of the state which feeds, clothes, and houses them until they reach eighteen in most cases. In ancient Israel, right up until the time of Christ, orphans were often left to fend for themselves unless someone in their clan adopted them. Barring that, they would have to sell themselves as slaves or starve.

The situation was not much better for widows. Although Levitical law mandated some care for widows, it was often forgotten or ignored. Jesus chided the Pharisees specifically for tithing their spices and ignoring their duty to others. The instructions that God had commanded through Moses regarding support for both widows and orphans were systematically disobeyed. This is one reason why God heaped such wrathful judgment on Israel through most of His prophets. God cared deeply for people in difficult circumstances, and His people were supposed to mirror His concern. They failed to do so much of the time.

In the early years of the Protestant Reformation, Christians began to rectify some of Israel’s failures. Schools, orphanages, and hospitals were built to care for the less fortunate. Beginning in the twentieth century, some of the wealth of the two-thirds-world began to be directed toward the poor. In the years following the Great Depression in America, a welfare structure was constructed that now accounts for almost 25% of GDP. To gain perspective on that, consider that military spending reaches only 3%, and between 5 and 6% goes toward education. In spite of the government’s largess, No Kid Hungry reports that “In the United States alone, an estimated 14 million children live in food-insecure households, meaning up to 20% of all kids face daily uncertainty about where their next meal is coming from.”

I realize these statistics do not represent widows and orphans specifically, but they represent the needy in our society similar to those in James day. I suspect that most sincere Christians believe the needs of the poor are taken care of by the safety net of government programs. The statistics disprove that notion. I have no trouble suggesting that people who fall through or disregard the government safety net are precisely the people toward whom Christians must demonstrate pure religion. If American Christians would simply tithe from their wealth, there would be enough money to feed, clothe and house every person who truly needs it. If only those Christians who wish to demonstrate pure religion by James’ definition set about to find the “orphans and widows” in their circles, a huge bite would be taken out of the problem.

The second element of true religion mentioned in James 1 is separation from the world. Keeping yourself “unstained by the world” is an important test of your spiritual condition. The Apostle John said, “Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” Love for worldly things, otherwise known as materialism, may be the biggest “stain” James was referring to. When recommending proper Christian behavior, Peter warned his readers to “make every effort to be found at peace, spotless and unblemished in him” when the destruction of worldly people occurred at the end of the age.

I am going to quit preachin’ and go to meddlin’ as someone used to say. The use of our money is not the only way Christians demonstrate their religion. What we have to offer is time, treasure, and talents. I have dealt with treasure. We must also look carefully at how we spend our time. Employment and entertainment probably consume the lion’s share of Christians’ time these days. The question you must ask is whether your time is “unstained” by worldly things. The workaholic or the sports fanatic may want to consider how much time is stained by the world. One could ask what percentage of the 168 hours granted each week is spent in “pure religion.” For some, the answer would be embarrassing.

Look at your talents. I wrote several articles recently about spiritual gifts and natural talents. (See Related Posts) Natural talents and spiritual gifts are given by God with the understanding that they will be used in His service. Finding a way to use them in your local church is an essential part of your responsibility to the Giver. If your religion is “pure,” acceptable to God, it would seem reasonable to assume that a good share of your blessings from God (time, treasure, and talents) would be directed to the advancement of God’s kingdom on earth. Evaluate the purity of your religion by James’ standard. Then make the necessary corrections.

Related Posts: Natural Talents in Service to God; Spiritual Gifts