James 1:22–25 (ESV) —
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
NOTE: I have a lot of favorite passages and this is one of those. I think this truth is one of the most misunderstood and forgotten passages in the bible. I rarely find people who take it serious. In my words it is saying:
It is not enough just to hear the word. The word is powerful but there is no change if we do not apply it. Applying the word of God is comparing the word of God to our life and seeing where we fall short and (most importantly) taking some type of action to change. There is great blessing in being a doer. There is great danger in only being a hearer.
I will forever be telling and retelling this truth to people. It has been the heartbeat of my life. It is the missing piece of the puzzle in the church. It is the reason for the broad across-the-board failure of the church to make any impact in my society and culture. The church has deceived itself in knowing the will of God and thinking that is enough.
PONDER:
- Am I changing spiritually? Am I any different today spiritually than I was last year in terms of behavior? And the year before, and the year before that?
- If I am not changing in Christ, I either don't really know Christ or I am deceiving myself by not applying the word to my life.
PRAYER: Father, grab our hearts and makes doers and not just hearers of your word. Change us, reshape us, mold us into tools for your use.
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