”But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” (James 1:25 New King James Version)
Living out the word of God as it has been revealed to you must be materialized on your living. That is if you want blessings, and you want to avoid some unwanted, negative consequences of some sort in your life. If you don’t believe me, just ask Moses (Did not get to go over to The Promised Land), ask Saul (The Lord withdrew His Spirit from Saul and he lost his kingship), David (He did not get to build the Lord’s temple.), or ask Achan (Not only him, but his family members, his sons and daughters who were probably accomplices in taking things under the ban, they stoned with stones and burnt with fire.)! They will tell you that there are indeed negative consequences that can be circumvented, avoided, if they had you just followed the word of the Lord that is revealed specifically to you. All four of these men will tell you, being in agreement with the writer of James’ epistle, that believers need to be doers of the word and not hearers only. If not, you will miss out on some blessings.
Take a note: Agreeing with the truth from God’s word must be followed by allowing that truth to be manifested in your living, especially if you want to avoid consequences that have an adverse impact of you, your witness, and even your family.
Let’s keep focusing on the same topic by having you do a little self-appraisal; a little DYO (DYO mean “Do Your Own.”). Have your initial, inward and outward reactions to God’s word ever been cancelled by your external, demonstrated actions that were contrary to that same word? For example, after intently hearing the teacher’s instructions from the Bible, describing the way of living that we should ascribe to as children of God, did you willing do well in letting the teaching be manifested on the outside of the classroom? Did you ever listen with open ears and an open heart, taking in each word spoken in God’s message last Sunday for instance, where you even wrote some notes on what was specifically sent to you by the Lord’s specific messenger, standing in the pulpit being a mouthpiece for the Lord, and you showed agreement with the preached word, but did your agreement reveal itself in action? Do some ethical thinking, clothed in integrity, and look at your responses to the questions that were just posed to you. Now say to yourself, “We all need to progressively get better, and I am going to start with me.”
Let me get more specific, in an effort to aid you in doing your self-appraisal and aid you in stepping out on faith. Are you ready? Alright! Did you ever hear a biblical teaching about being member of Christ’s body and it was pointed out that the members of the body care for one another, but within an hour after hearing that specific teaching, did you immediately let Satan snatch it away from you, and you failed to utilize the teaching wherever you were and regardless of whatever you were doing? More aid requested as you do your appraisal? Alright! Did you ever forget, even for a moment, that for the young in Christ, and those who are yearning to know the Lord, that you are the only “church” they may be exposed to on any certain occasion? Did you recognize that they were looking at how you modeled holiness and how you presented yourself as a member of a royal priesthood, basing your presentation on your behavior? Did you show the raising of your voice in the sanctuary in praise was not separated from rising up to an elevated spiritual level outside of the sanctuary? You know that our actions speak louder that our words outside of the sanctuary, don’t you? I know that you do? So. let me ask another question. Did you ever agree with your own assenting voice or with the active raising of your hand from the pew where you sat on in the assembly of the righteous to instructions from the Lord, but you failed to exemplify your vocal agreement by visible actions, right after the benediction? Let me get more specific with my examples. Did you put the word in action, soon after hearing a preached word that encouraged you to love one another, or to live holy, or to teach thy children, or to be Christ’s letter? Let me close this paragraph with the same sentence that I closed the first paragraph. “Do some ethical thinking, clothed in integrity, and look at your responses to the question that were just posed to you.”
It’s mid-week, so if you don’t have a Bible Study Class tonight, look deeper into what happened with the four individuals who I named in the first paragraph. For if you don’t believe me…check it out in the word! If you don’t believe me, let these well-known Bible figures teach you something. Oh, I know we will not be perfect, and we will have failings, but do your best to let the word do its work in us and out of us! Let God’s word do it’s transforming work, changing us, taking us to that elevated classification called “Better!” You will benefit and others around you will too! Show forth genuine love my friend! Be blessed!
“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” (Romans 12:9-13 ESV)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King