James 1-Con't

God's perfect gift is regeneration. We should lay aside sin and receive the Word which is able to save souls. Unregenerate man does not have the capacity to do good. His sole desire is for how he can benefit. When God gives us His perfect gift of salvation, we are changed. Our heart of stone is turned into a heart of flesh. He gives us the capacity to do good. To work for His glory and not our own. But it will be even more awesome when upon death or resurrection we are sanctified fully and made to sin no more!

As far as laying aside sin and receiving the Word which is able to save souls, I picture putting down the trash to pick up the treasure. And the more trash that I let go of, the more treasure I'll be able to hold!

We need to bridle our tongues. We should not just say everything that comes to mind. I need to have more self-control in this area OR my religion is useless. Unfortunately, I have the personality that has a hard time letting things go and really desire to have the last word. Lord, help me to have discretion and to speak only when it glorifies you. Plato once said, "A wise man speaks when he has something to say. A fool speaks to say something." Oh help me to be wise!

Pure and spotless religion is selfless and sacrificial and forsaking sin. This is so important. We can't just go on living in sin, we must forsake it. And our service to the Lord should be selfless and sacrificial. Serving others without the thought of what we will get from them--love, admiration, kudos, kind words, reputation, etc. In fact, perhaps it is even better to serve those who we know are not capable of reciprocating.