James 1:27 “27 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.”
Restoring God’s original plan for the family
- What was God’s original plan for the family? Let's look back at the garden of Eden
- If we look back at Genesis, we see God created men and women to live in a paradise together.
- God never intended for us to have to live in broken families.
- We serve a God who loves to restore what is broken. That is what the whole Gospel is about!
- By being a part of the family of God, we have the opportunity to be connected to God, who is a PERFECT father. Recall from two weeks ago how Cody talked about God being a PERFECT father.
- It is through peoples’ selfish choices that families are torn apart and broken. Just as choices can serve to break families apart, similarly choices can also work to restore wholeness to families. Does that mean that we can completely erase the bad? No, but we can serve God by being His hands and feet to do what He has called us to in restoring broken families. THIS is what God calls us to!
The family of God is supposed to take care of the most vulnerable in its midst
- It can be incredibly overwhelming to see all of the brokenness around us and to not know where to start. Well start with the most vulnerable people groups.
- In the first century (when the book of James was written), orphans and widows had extremely minimal means of economic support. Simply put, they were viewed as some of the most vulnerable people in society…
- Today, we are focusing on standing with widows and single moms.
Why we need to care for widows and single moms:
- What we are NOT saying - Making less of single mothers or belittling them in any way whatsoever.
- Simply put: God cares about them, so we need to care about them. There are a number of stories in the Bible of God caring for widows:
Examples of God caring/providing for widows/single moms:
- The widow of Zarephath - 1 Kings 17; God performs a miracle in order feed both the prophet Elijah and a widow who helped him out during a drought. The widow was fully prepared to die, but God provided for them by continually refilling a jar of flour and jug of oil.
- The prophet’s widow and Elisha - 2 Kings 4; God performs another miracle to provide for a widow whose sons were being threatened with slavery. God filled jars with oil continually, enough to pay off all the woman’s debts with extra leftover for her family to live off of.
Practically how can we help widows and single mothers?
- Claiming loyalty to God means more than worshiping in church; it involves truly serving others:
James 1:22 “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”
- Be realistic with what we have to give - we need to be generous with our time and our possessions.
- Assistance meeting financial needs
- Provide a meal
- Help out with childcare
- Give general support when needed (be a friend)
