Pure Religion

The phrase "pure religion," means that which is genuine and sincere, or which is free from any improper mixture.
[James 1:12] Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
[17] Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
[18] Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
[19] Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
[22] But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
[23] For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
[26] If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but
deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.
[27] Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
Blessed is the man, this sounds like one of Y’Shua’s’ Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). In those great statements of blessing, Y’Shua wasn't finished telling us how we can be blessed. Here, we learn we can be blessed as we endure temptation.
Temptation is one of the various trials we face. In each and every case, whether by affliction or by direct allurements to do wrong, the question comes before the mind whether we have religion enough to keep us, or whether we will yield to murmuring, to rebellion, and to sin. As we persevere through temptation, we are approved, and will be rewarded as the work of G-d in us is evident through our resistance of temptation. The form of trial involved an allurement or inducement to sin; he says that no man should regard it as from G-d. That cannot be His design. The trial is what He aims at, not the sin
When desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin: Springing forth from corrupt desire is sin. Springing forth from sin is death. This progression to death is an inevitable result that Satan always tries to hide from us, but we should never be deceived about.
The crown of life which the L-rd has promised reminds us that it really is worth it to endure under the temptations we face. Our steadfastness will be rewarded as we demonstrate our love for Y’Shua (to those who love Him) by resisting temptation.
From our own fallen natures and from those who would entice us, we expect no true goodness. But every good and every perfect gift comes from the Father in heaven. The ultimate goodness of any gift must be measured on an eternal scale. Something that may seem to be only good (such as winning a lottery) may in fact be turned to our destruction.
G-d's goodness is constant. There is no variation with Him. Instead of shadows, G-d is the Father of lights. In the ancient Greek grammar, James actually wrote "the Father of the lights." The specific lights are the celestial bodies that light up the sky, both day and night. The sun, moon, and stars never "turn off," even when we can't see them. Even so, there is never a shadow with G-d. This means that G-d never changes!
We can see G-d's goodness in our salvation, as He initiated our salvation of His own will, and brought us forth to spiritual life by His word of truth, that we might be to His glory as firstfruits of His harvest, then will come the Gentiles.
Stand firm against unrighteous anger. Slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of G-d: In light of the nature of temptation and the goodness of G-d, we must take special care to be slow to wrath, because our wrath does not accomplish the righteousness of G-d. Our wrath almost always simply defends our own agenda.
We can learn to be slow to wrath by first learning to be swift to hear and slow to speak. So much of our anger and wrath comes from being self-centered not others-centered. Swift to hear is a way to be others-centered. Slow to speak is a way to be others-centered.
Receive with meekness the implanted Word: In contrast to an impure manner of living, we should receive (doing it with meekness, a teachable heart) the implanted Word of G-d. This Word is able to save us, both in our current situation and eternally. The purity of
G-d's Word will preserve us in an impure age.
To take comfort in the fact you have heard G-d's Word when you haven't done it is to deceive yourself. In the ancient world, it was common for people to hear a teacher. But if you followed the teacher and tried to live what he said, you were called a student of that teacher. Y’Shua is looking for students (disciples in Greek) - doers, not just hearers.
Y’Shua used this same point to conclude His great Sermon on the Mount. He said that the one who heard the Word without doing it was like a man who built his house on the sand, but the one who heard G-d's Word and did it was like a man whose house was built on a rock and could withstand the inevitable storms of life and eternity. (Matthew 7:24-27)
If we study the word of G-d intently, and do it (continue in it), then we will be blessed. In the ancient Greek language, the word for looks into speaks of a penetrating examination, so that a person will even bend over to get a better look.
Real religion is not shown by hearing the word, but by doing it. One way to do G-d's Word is to bridle the tongue. Your walk with G-d is useless if it does not translate into the way you live and the way you treat others. Many are deceived in their own heart regarding the reality of their walk with G-d.
Who can doubt that that is good which leads to compassion for the orphan and the helpless widow that is a widow indeed? Notice it was the ‘churches’ responsibility not the governments. Do you know any churches that practice that?
If a man is truly benevolent, he bears the image of that G-d who is the fountain of benevolence; if he is pure and uncontaminated in his walk and deportment, he also resembles his Maker, for he is holy. If he has not these things, he cannot have any well-founded evidence that he is a Christian; for it is always the nature and tendency of religion to produce these things.