James 1: 22-25 (ESV) “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 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. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 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.”
I have always said that we need to read and devour the Scriptures. The more we read the better our lives will be. But I was impressed by something that happened in church yesterday. We can’t just read, we must do! Reading alone is not enough; it must come with action. Let me give you an example:
Last summer I came upon Revelation 2: 1-7, more specifically verse 4. “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.” As soon as I finished that verse, the Holy Spirit flat out accused me of not loving Christ the way I did as a teenager. Conviction came down on me like a heavy stone, and instantaneously I knew He was right! I called out, “We have to fix this. I must get that love back!”
But I could not just wave a magic wand and get the love back. Verse 5 gave me His instructions, “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. I had to yield to the Spirit and follow His will. He started with my arrogance. It was in the way and must go first. Once the arrogance began to break up judgment was uncovered. So, we began to work on that. Then I saw that I had a critical spirit in me. I needed to stop throwing stones at fellow believers and the lost. I started to soften as these issues began to disappear. By mid-fall I could sense my love for Christ returning in both strength and joy. If I had only read those verses and continued on in my life without making a concerted effort, there would have been no change. By doing the word I found freedom and a restoration of my love for Christ.
Yesterday, our pastor preached on those same verses. I already had an intimate understanding of what they truly meant. But it was so refreshing to hear them again. I believe that when we read the Scriptures or listen to our pastors preach on difficult subjects, we should always be ready to allow the Spirit to convict or correct us. Most people do not like change, but as followers of Christ we must welcome these corrections and changes. We should hear, repent, and do!
Isn’t that what the Christian walk is all about?
Comments