There are some perspectives in the teachings of Jesus and Paul about division that seems to pull a popular audience of those who think they need to be offensive with the Gospel in order to be like Jesus. They are under the impression that they are justified in being offensive and that their manner of presenting the Gospel is meant to divide.  But lets take a deeper look at just what is divisive about the Gospel. Some believe that this division is how God divides between who enters the Kingdom and who doesn’t. Of course, people from over 30,000 denominations have their prescription for how one enters the Kingdom, but we won’t get into that this time. In this article my reference to the Kingdom is about the here and now, not the after life.

In the book of Hebrews we see the unknown author explaining his/her perspective on entering the Kingdom. I like to look at passages like this in the ESV since it clarifies which statement is of the author and which is a quote from a previous book of the bible. In Hebrews chapter 4 the main point of entering the Kingdom is to enter into his rest. It was being explained that there are some who did not enter his rest (the Kingdom) and some who did. The author goes on to explain why some didn’t enter the Kingdom. It was through their disobedience to rest.

Hebrews 4: 6 “Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience,”

The author clearly says that it was those who DID receive the Gospel, but they didn’t enter into the rest of the Kingdom. It’s important to understand that this Kingdom is here and now. Jesus said in “The Kingdom is within you”. {Luke 17:21}

The Old Covenant gave a clear instruction that the 7th day was a day of rest. It was the foreshadow of the “rest” to come, which is in Christ. The 7th day was God’s day of resting from His works and thus he wanted the people of the old covenant to also rest and it was to reveal to them that the day would come when they could spiritually be at rest in the Kingdom. This Kingdom rest is while we are here on earth. Just as the 7th day was on this earth also.

Hebrews 4: 10 “for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.”

The Kingdom is not a place where we have to work, it’s a place of rest. We are not bound to perform religious rituals (works), we are free to rest. When we cease from rest and attempt to perform religious rituals thinking that those works make us something special or better people, then we have disobeyed what God has said, rest. Any time we begin to partake in religious rituals in our attempts to be ‘something’ in the Kingdom, it is then that we have shut ourselves out. In the Kingdom, it is all about resting from our religious works.

This is an offending Gospel to those who want to work towards their own righteousness.

In verse 12 it says, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” It’s important to see that it’s the LIVING Word that is active and causing a division and the purpose is for God to discern the ‘thoughts and intentions of the heart”.

God is discerning the hearts and thoughts of the people. His LIVING Word is searching us and by His Spirit, we will hear him tell us to rest. He knows if our charitable works are done with a deceptive heart or not.

The entire chapter is devoted to pointing out that we have that rest today in Christ and that God wants us to rest from our works based religion so we can be at rest as He is. No where in this chapter is the author indicating that we need to divide people by condemning them with sin. The only ‘disobedience’ mentioned in this chapter was that of ‘not resting’.

In verses 14 and 15 the author says, “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” I find great comfort in knowing that Jesus understands our weaknesses! No matter how weak we are in our faith, he understands. The author goes on to explain in verse 16, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

The Gospel is an open door to come with confidence to the throne of grace to receive mercy in our time of need. This is a divisive teaching to the works based religious crowd, because it points out their error of not halting their works. It reveals that those who stop their religious works can not only be at rest, but they can still come to the throne of grace, without works, and still receive mercy. The religious crowds who do not halt their works and enter the rest, will not be pleased with this grace. This grace is what divides.

Now we also need to take into consideration that there certainly are times when the Spirit says to reach out to those in need. In the book of James we see him correcting the churches in the matter of their works. This book has been the center of much controversy over the years as people think they still need to “work”. But as we saw above in the book of Hebrews, that we are indeed at rest and to do ritual religious works towards our own righteousness is an act of disobedience.

In James chapter 1, he rebukes the people and tells them,  21“Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.”

When you read the entire letter of James, it is evident that he is speaking of how we live our lives in the Kingdom now. So put aside the thoughts you have of the after-life. No where in the book of James will you find him speaking of what happens after we die. In verse 21 he says that we need to have meekness. To receive the implanted word requires meekness. Then the question of what does it mean “to save your souls”?

A quick reminder to help with this study is that God already reconciled us to himself through His Son. {2 Corinthians 5:18} So I do not believe that James is speaking about us needing to “do” anything to “get saved”. There is another context in which we need to understand this word, “saved”. For surely we know that it’s “not by works lest any man should boast”. So just what is James talking about? I believe he is referencing the saving of our souls from religious works.

I believe that James’ letter was a letter of correction to the early churches. James rebukes them first of being angry people. James 1:20 “for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” When I look in the Greek literal translation, this is what is revealed.. ‘the anger of man does not accomplish the justice of God’. This is a very important concept to understand as it seems that James is rebuking the people of attempting to use anger to bring people into Kingdom living. He says it does not work! He calls it filthiness and rampant wickedness.

He then goes into telling them about being doers of the word. Keeping in mind that we are at rest and need no more religious ritual work to enter the Kingdom, what is James talking about? In verse 25 he speaks of looking into the perfect law of liberty. Liberty is the freedom we have in Christ because of God’s grace. We are free from religious rituals for our righteousness, because we have the righteousness of Christ. Then James hits the nail on the head when we mentions the widows and the fatherless.

26If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. 27Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Remember that the Gospel can discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart and God knows if our works are genuine or if they are empty religious rituals. Jesus saved us from religion, but James seems to be putting a stark truth and rebuke in the faces of the people. He mentions the widows and orphans. Such a serious rebuke and so applicable to the churches of today. Most widows are on SSI and orphans provided for by the state while the churches pour their finances into fancy buildings and $500 suits for their pastors.

What did James mean about remaining unstained by the world?

In James 2 he addresses the problem at hand, wealth. There’s nothing wrong with being wealthy, again the Gospel  discerns the intents of the heart. Is the wealth being shared? It was shared in the book of Acts, so equally that no one had lack. But now James reveals a different progression of the lives of the people.  Lets stay on topic though, the topic of the Gospel being divisive and living in the Kingdom.

James’ words in chapter 2 has been a hot topic for centuries. What is it about our faith and works, when we know our works has ended and we are at rest in the Kingdom? It takes faith to enter the Kingdom we have on this earth and we can only enter in as we rest. So what is James speaking of?

Those who live in the Kingdom can rest all they want, but where is the love for the widows and the orphans? Does the fact that we rest mean that we neglect the widows and orphans? God forbid! Our faith in God organically manifests from the outpouring of love and compassion we have for those in need. James’ letter was rebuking the wealthy for their ambitions to be rich while neglecting those in need. When we walk in the Kingdom we become people who make a difference in this world. He gives us the illustration of Abraham, whose faith manifested in his willingness to sacrifice his own son.

In James 2:22 we see in the ESV “You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works;” and a closer look at the Greek gives us a clearer picture of what was meant. The words in ESV ‘active along with’ is sunergeó, which means ‘to cooperate with’. The words ‘completed by’ is teleioó, can be said ‘accomplished’. So the popular AKJV says “See you how faith worked with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?” has been misunderstood by many as saying ‘your faith doesn’t save you unless you also perform works’. He goes on to explain in verses 18- 26 that our faith will manifest in our lives by works. But remember that the works he used as an example was caring for the needy. When we care for the needy out of a compassionate heart, an outpouring of God’s love, that is a manifestation of our faith. Do not perform religious ritual works in an attempt to ‘prove’ your faith. To do so would be arrogance and a lack of faith that God already performed the final work through His Son on the cross.

It’s important to understand the context in which James was writing about and take into consideration all of the letters from the apostles and the very words of Jesus as well. Remember that in James 1 he rebukes them of anger? Then in chapter 3 he brings it up again in how they used their tongues to cause chaos in their churches.

James 3:6 and the tongue is a fire, the world of the unrighteousness, so the tongue is set in our members, which is spotting our whole body, and is setting on fire the course of nature, and is set on fire by the Gehenna.

Ouch! James uses the scariest place in their earth at the time to describe their angry tongues, Gehenna. The garbage dump where the Sanhedrin would burn the bodies of those they judged as ‘sinners’.

He brings up the context of the letter again in 13Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. 14But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.

Here it is again, the consequences of their actions 15 “This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.”

We live in the Kingdom, at rest. Yet we have an outpouring of organic love and compassion when we reach out to help the needy. When we make our lives into selfish ambitions to become wealthy, and deny the outpouring of love to those in need, we forget the Kingdom in which we have been given entrance to. When we rest in the Kingdom and do not follow the outpouring of love, we remain idle in our faith. We become lazy and forgetful of what we have been forgiven of and we neglect others who need so desperately to enter the Kingdom and also be at rest.

Yes, we are at rest, and we also have a work to do. But our works do not gain us entrance to the Kingdom, our entrance is by grace. However, being a citizen of the Kingdom will have it’s organic manifestation of compassion that pours out to help those in need. We see the encouragement in verses

17“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Our manifestation of faith is pure in heart (no secret agendas to become wealthy or gain popularity for our works), to be gentle (not aggressive with angry tongues), open to reason (understanding), full of mercy and good fruits (loving compassion that pours out), impartial (not showing preference to the wealthy or popular over the poor), and sincere. Then we will have a harvest of righteousness (justice) and it is sown in peace (not anger) by those who make peace.

The Gospel is good news to everyone, but is divisive to those who puff up their own self righteous works, that are motivated by selfish ambition, and tainted by the world of wealth and popularity. The Gospel brings peace and division. But the division is not done in haste, anger, unruly tongues, or condemnation. The Gospel simply divides the oppressors from the oppressed. The Gospel gives entrance to living in the Kingdom to the weak and weary. Our genuine faith will have an outpouring of love and compassion to others as we reach out by that faith and bring them into the fellowship of rest. They are included and as we welcome them into the Kingdom that is theirs, it divides the hearts of the self righteous, revealing to them that their ambitions are deceitful. It is then that they realize that they have left living in the Kingdom and have been put out into the darkness again, making them blind due to the beams in their own eyes. They will gnash their teeth as the weak and oppressed enter into this fellowship of Kingdom living.

So in my conclusion, I present my view that James is cautioning the people not to be idle in their faith, but to respond to the compassion of the Lord by caring for the weak and abused, the widows and the orphans. In our world today, that includes anyone that the self righteous have pushed away from this fellowship of the Royal Priesthood. You can read more about James’ rebuke to the churches in the final 2 chapters (4 and 5) of the book of James.

We are at rest and this Gospel of inclusion is surely offensive to the self righteous and divides them from living the Kingdom life and from partaking in the fellowship of the Royal Priesthood.