In the world we live in, all the good things are from God. All our talents and strength is from above:
James 1:17-27
- Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
Sickness, determination, aging, accidents and catastrophies and limitations of this world are not from God, but from the enemy.
- Of his own will brings forth he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first- fruits of his creatures.
Now that our lord has given us both talents in a healthy body and his word of truth, it is our responsibility to use both to spread his goodness in the world. And to substitute what is from the enemy, the sicknesses, the poverty, the hunger, with healing, financial help, good food and other services we can provide. The same, it is our duty to replace deceit and lies with our lord’s word of truth.
- Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
- For the wrath of man works not the righteousness of God.
- Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and abundance of evil, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
In order to use our talents and the word of truth from our God to replace the wickedness of this world, we need to listen carefully to people, be good listeners, and speak and act carefully, based on truth and based from our talents and not our temptations which are from the enemy.
It is like trying to spread disinfectant in a garden infected by a parasite. You need to first make sure your gears are clean. So that you are spreading only the disinfectant and not even more parasites. And then you make sure to use all the tools and material you have to disinfect that garden.
Likewise, anger, lie, lust, greed, envy, selfishness, these are parasites and not from God. We cannot disinfect the world using them. But we must spread the word of God among people, by listening carefully to them and to talk gently and carefully.
- But be all of you doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
The more you hear the word and not act upon it, the more you deceive yourself to be a righteous man, merely because hearing good words, while doing nothing! Beware not to become those people who are proud of their lifetime bible studies, but in their behavior and actions, there is no difference between them and atheist people!
- 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:
- For he beholds himself, and goes his way, and immediately forgets what manner of man he was.
When you look into mirror, you want to see your face and how to improve your look. Should you comb your hair? Should you wash your face? You don’t look into mirror just to appreciate who you are and walk away (as this world exactly teaches us!).
- But whoso looks into the perfect law of liberty, and continues therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
- If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridles not his tongue, but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.
Once again, beware not to become those people who are proud of their lifetime bible studies, but in their behavior and actions, there is no difference between them and atheist people.
- 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.
For anyone who wonders, what action can be considered using our gifts and the word of God in this world to replace wickedness and evil of this world, and how is it to act based on what we have received from God and not the teaching of this world, here is an example of helping the widow and the orphaned.
In what the popular movies teach us, usually the hero helps the orphan and the widow, and then as a compensation, sleeps with the widow woman in a love scene (and thus commits fornication!). Help the needy and the poor and expect nothing in return from them. Keep yourself holy, innocent, clean and unspotted from the lust of this world. While you are spreading the disinfectant your received from God, be careful not to get yourself infected instead!