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This is Not a Test



            “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” (James 1:27).
            In the past, I have read that verse as if it was a test with the question being, “Have you ever gone out of your way to look after someone?”  If you answer, “Yes I have helped people in the past” then you pass.  The problem with this thinking, though, is that it does not tell you anything about what you are like right now.
            For example, if you were to look at my grade twelve report card, you would see that I got a passing grade in Geo-trig.  However, that was twenty-seven years ago!  If you were to put me in a geo-trig right now, I would fail miserably.  My old report card tells you something about what my skills were at one time, but not necessarily what they are now.
            Therefore, what if we looked at this scripture differently?  What if it does not say, “Service proves your faith” but rather “Service is your faith”?  What if the definition of Godliness is that you move yourself out of the centre of your life and put other people there by serving them every day? 
            Jesus was described as one who “… went around doing good and healing” (Act 10:38).  Hebrews 13 says, “Do not forget to do good deeds and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased” (verse 16).  Those two verses seem to say that serving others is more than an optional, once in a while, thing.
            Think of it this way.  In March of this year, Niagara Falls froze over.  It was so cold that the water literally stopped falling. It was beautiful (Google it and you will see), but is a frozen waterfall still a real water fall?  It looks like one.  It has all the elements (water, a cliff, gravity), but the thing that defines a waterfall is “falling water”.  By definition, a frozen waterfall is not a “waterfall” at all!
            Similarly, we can look like Christians.  We can talk about prayer.  We can debate what we believe and teach.  We can study for hours.  However, according to James, what defines our faith is not that we know the right stuff, but that, every day, we serve God by serving others.
            The good news here is that by seeing people’s needs and serving them you become more tender-hearted and compassionate. 
            In other words, you end up being more like God.

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