Today's thoughts come from James 1:22-27.
When I look in a mirror, if I see something wrong or something that needs to be changed, I fix it, right? I don't usually walk away and leave it alone, whether it's my hair, makeup, something on my face or in my teeth, etc. I do something about it.
James likens God's Word to a mirror. It's not enough for me to just hear God's Word. It's not enough for me to just say I believe God's Word. I need to put action to what I hear and say. 2 Timothy 2:16-17 states that God's Word is intended "for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped, ready for every good work." The Bible, like a mirror, reflects what is wrong in my life. God speaks to me through His Word. So what will I do about it? Will I hear what God is saying and then walk away and not take action or will I allow God to help me make those changes? In verse 25, James says that the man who follows through with doing what he hears "will be blessed in what he does."
I am deceiving myself if I think that hearing God's Word is enough. I need to put actions to what I hear. James goes on in chapter 1 to explain a little of what he is talking about. I won't spend much time on the tongue today. That's a whole other topic, and James takes up several verses in chapter 3 talking about the tongue. Let me paraphrase what he says, though. He explains in verses 26-27 that if I consider myself "religious," yet I don't keep my tongue under control, I am deceiving myself, and my "religion" means nothing. My tongue is a small part of my body, but it can cause huge trouble if I'm not careful. James explains further what pure and faultless religion looks like. He references looking after orphans and widows in their time of need and keeping oneself from being polluted by the world. When I look at this as a bigger picture: I need to selflessly serve those in need. I am not to look after my own interests. I should not allow worldly things to corrupt my way of life and distract me from what God intends for me to do...it goes back to denying myself.
1 John 3:9-10 states,
No one who is born of God will continue to sin,
because God's seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because
When I look in a mirror, if I see something wrong or something that needs to be changed, I fix it, right? I don't usually walk away and leave it alone, whether it's my hair, makeup, something on my face or in my teeth, etc. I do something about it.
James likens God's Word to a mirror. It's not enough for me to just hear God's Word. It's not enough for me to just say I believe God's Word. I need to put action to what I hear and say. 2 Timothy 2:16-17 states that God's Word is intended "for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped, ready for every good work." The Bible, like a mirror, reflects what is wrong in my life. God speaks to me through His Word. So what will I do about it? Will I hear what God is saying and then walk away and not take action or will I allow God to help me make those changes? In verse 25, James says that the man who follows through with doing what he hears "will be blessed in what he does."
I am deceiving myself if I think that hearing God's Word is enough. I need to put actions to what I hear. James goes on in chapter 1 to explain a little of what he is talking about. I won't spend much time on the tongue today. That's a whole other topic, and James takes up several verses in chapter 3 talking about the tongue. Let me paraphrase what he says, though. He explains in verses 26-27 that if I consider myself "religious," yet I don't keep my tongue under control, I am deceiving myself, and my "religion" means nothing. My tongue is a small part of my body, but it can cause huge trouble if I'm not careful. James explains further what pure and faultless religion looks like. He references looking after orphans and widows in their time of need and keeping oneself from being polluted by the world. When I look at this as a bigger picture: I need to selflessly serve those in need. I am not to look after my own interests. I should not allow worldly things to corrupt my way of life and distract me from what God intends for me to do...it goes back to denying myself.
1 John 3:9-10 states,
No one who is born of God will continue to sin,
because God's seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because
they have been born of God. This is how we know who the children
of God are and who the children of the devil are: anyone who does not do what is right
is not God's child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother or sister. (NIV)
of God are and who the children of the devil are: anyone who does not do what is right
is not God's child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother or sister. (NIV)
John calls it like it is. My actions speak louder than anything else. I shouldn't claim I'm a Christian, attend church on Sunday, then act like the world the rest of the week. My actions are what set me apart as a child of God or a child of the devil.
I shouldn't let what God speaks to me fall on deaf ears. I need to take action and follow through with what God is asking me to do. Satan doesn't care if I hear God's Word. He only cares if I am obedient to what God says to do. When I am obedient to God, I should expect to experience resistance from Satan.
The bottom line is this: Be a doer of the Word of God and not just a hearer. I need to take action and be obedient to what God is speaking to me through His Word. I need to allow God's Word to be my mirror and show me what needs to be changed and allow Him to help me change it.
The bottom line is this: Be a doer of the Word of God and not just a hearer. I need to take action and be obedient to what God is speaking to me through His Word. I need to allow God's Word to be my mirror and show me what needs to be changed and allow Him to help me change it.
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