Is Our Religion Pure and Undefiled?

This was a great day. The weather in my part of the country was sunny and warm with the temperature in the low 70's. This was especially nice since the last few days have been gray and rainy.

My family went to church as we always do on Sunday. I enjoyed a Sunday School class that studied the end of Hebrews 12 and the beginning of chapter 13. We listened to two outstanding lessons from the pulpit. The evening sermon was particularly enjoyable for me. It was based on Psalm 125:1-2 and dealt with the things God surrounds us with; His promise, peace, protection and presense. We lifted our voices in song and took part in the communion meal.

As I sit here at the end of the day though I wonder if that was enough. I mean my heart and mind were right and focused but I wonder if James would have found my actions to be enough. Not just today, but in my everyday walk am I practicing "pure and undefiled religion"? Are any of us?

James wrote in chapter 1, verse 27 of his epistle that, "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world." I believe (or hope) that most of us are doing the best we can with the second part of this verse, keeping ourselves unspotted. It's the first part that I wonder about.

Most congregations I've been a part of send fruit baskets to widows at Christmas time. Several congregations gather money at different times of the year for orphanages. This is usually done by families taking home cans and depositing change into them. When the can is full or the deadline arrives the can is returned to the church. Someone from the orphanage picks them up. There's nothing wrong with either of those tasks. The problem comes when that's the bulk of what we do.

I'm sure James meant for us to be concerned about these two groups more than once a year. How often are we visiting the widows? How often do we check on their well being? How often do we try to make sure their needs are being met? Most but of course not all widows are elderly. Older folks sometimes keep quiet about their problems. They don't want to feel like they're a burden to anyone. Don't you think it's vitally important for us to make sure these ladies are taken care of?

Remember in Acts 6 the Apostles appointed seven men to look after the widows in the church. That was to be their responsibility. Even if the widows among us have everything they need like transportation, food, safe and secure homes, what kind of priority do we place on visiting them? Older folks often feel lonely. If nothing else I think we should place more importance on that. I know I do.

What about orphans? When was the last time your congregation hosted orphans for a day of fun? How often do you think kids in that situation get to go to baseball games, go to the mountains, have a day of fun activities with other kids their own age? Think of the example it would set for our own children if a congregation decided to set aside one Saturday a month to host an event for the orphans in our community? I'm not saying no one does that. Sadly I will say though I've never seen it happen or heard of it. It's even possible a family in our congregations would meet and get to know a child that they would want to bring into their family.

The more I think about this it's not just the widows and orphans who are neglected. In not being of service to them year 'round, we're also neglecting ourselves, our spiritual growth and personal growth and failing to set the proper example to others. I hope you'll ask yourself the same question I asked myself today; just how pure and undefiled is your religion?