Sermonette: "Worthless religion"

Have you ever had someone drop a verbal bombshell in the middle of a conversation? You know, you’re talking to someone and they’ll off-handedly mention “oh, that was when I almost died.” Or “that was right around when the car exploded.” Or “oh, yeah, I had a tumor once. It was the size of a watermelon.” Those sorts of comments that bring a conversation to a screeching halt as you respond with “wait, what?!?!?”

As frequently as people do this by accident, the Bible seems to do it even more often on purpose. I found one this morning in James.

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.”

– James 1:26

“This person's religion is worthless.” Think about that. Are you a demon worshiper bound for hell? Or are you a sinner who has been redeemed by the blood of Christ, bound to spend eternity in the presence of the Almighty creator God? The difference is huge, obviously; but if you can’t control your tongue, the difference is moot to those around you. Those outside the church have known this for years. We talk about being saved, but then we say things (or type things) that are very un-Christlike, and the hypocrisy is the only thing they hear. Whether we’re saved or not, what we believe or not is irrelevant. Our religion is worthless.

Controlling our tongue isn’t the key to getting into heaven, only the blood of Jesus can do that. However, it is key for our faith to have value to those around us. They will struggle to see Jesus in us, if our tongues run out of control. James isn’t insisting on saying the perfect words, he’s simply calling for control. Intentionality. Say the wrong thing because you made a bad choice, not because your emotions got a hand on the steering wheel. Speak with passion because you chose to, not because you lost control. Say what you mean, and mean what you say. In other words, we need to keep a bridle on our tongue.

The religion of following Christ is not worthless. Demonstrate the value of your faith in how you live, how you share the truth in love and in how you speak.