Living the True Religion
Beloved People of God,
I wonder if we really understand how God sees us. Some of us go through life under a cloud of condemnation, and, failing in our warped views of perfection, we ascribing those failures to God. Others seem to be so carefree they flout any form of righteousness that doesn’t easily fit into their lives. Both extremes fall short of seeing ourselves through God’s revealed character.
James tells us that in Christ we are ‘brought forth’ by God. He uses this birth concept twice in his letter: first, to describe how our unchecked sin ‘gives birth’ to death (1.15), followed by verse 18 where the Lord God “gives birth” to us. We are brought forth by the Father’s will and by His Word of Truth for a very specific reason: to be a kind of firstfruits of all creation. James, writing to those he affectionately calls the “twelve tribes of the diaspora,” knows they will understand the reference. In calling them the twelve tribes, he is indicating their completeness as God’s kingdom of priests, set apart for divine purpose. However, for those of us who didn’t grow up in Ancient Israel, let me explain.
In Exodus, God’s people were commanded to bring their firstfruits, the very best of their harvest (23.16, 19; 34.22, 26). These offerings of their first and finest were given in worship to honor the Lord with the wealth He created in their lives, recognizing how He filled their days with His faithfulness (Proverbs 3.9-10), they acknowledged God’s Lordship over their lives and His ultimate ownership over all things (Leviticus 25:23). Accordingly, the Lord promised to consecrate—make holy—all of their possessions (Deuteronomy 14.28-29; 28.12).
So, when James tells us we are the firstfruits of all creation, he is saying we are set apart as holy—the Lord’s special possession—blessed with purpose. How we see ourselves matters, and what we do matters too. This should challenge us, whether we have too low or too high an opinion of ourselves. As God’s firstfruits then, we should orient our lives toward Christ, living a true religion which brings Him glory, fueled by a faith characterized by His righteousness and revealed through righteous action (James 1.19-27).
For Christ the King,
Brett