Read: James 1:22-25
It’s not simply the hearing of the word that blesses us but the practicing of God’s word, James reminds us. Hearing the word is not enough. Warren Wiersbe once said, “Too many Christians mark their Bibles, but their Bibles never mark them.”
To prevent this, James gives us a mandate to observe the word: “Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” But many believe that hearing is enough, so they substitute reading the word and talking about the word for doing the word. But true disciples learn God’s word in order to do God’s word; we apply the word of God to the situations and circumstances of our lives and practice standing on the promises of God.
James also warns us that if we listen to the word and don’t obey the word, we deceive only ourselves. Others know, and most importantly God knows.
That’s why we need the mirror of God’s word. It reflects God’s glory and shows us our great need for God. And unlike those trick mirrors at the State Fair, the mirror of God’s word doesn’t lie. It always reflects the truth!
A quick glance at the Bible isn’t likely to reveal our deepest needs; we must examine our hearts in the ongoing light of God’s word. It’s like the difference between a photo and an MRI. They both involve exposure to light, but one is brief and reveals an external image, and the other is a prolonged exposure that reveals what’s inside of us. There is a blessing waiting for you in the mirror of God’s word.
PRAYER PROMPT: Father, thank you for your Word, for as we read your word, your word also reads us. Help us to look into the mirror daily and be doers of your word and not hearers only, so that you can shape and mold us to be more like you.
Adron Robinson is pastor of Hillcrest Baptist Church in Country Club Hills and president of the Illinois Baptist State Association.