James 1: 22 Do not deceive yourselves
by just listening to his word; instead, put it into practice. 23 If you listen to the word,
but do not put it into practice you are like people who look in a mirror and
see themselves as they are. 24 They take a good look at themselves and
then go away and at once forget what they look like. 25 But if you look closely
into the perfect law that sets people free, and keep on paying attention to it
and do not simply listen and then forget it, but put it into practice—you will
be blessed by God in what you do.
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Life had gotten out
of hand for me. I finally bowed my knees and resorted to prayer. I went to
church for the first time in years. The messages were exactly what I needed to
hear. I did not know much about the Bible, so I took classes. I felt better and
my life got better, so much so that I wanted to hear more sermons and sit in
more studies.
- I had become used to being in church.
- I felt better about myself and I thought church attendance would make me feel even better.
- I did not know that I was afraid of going back outside of church to put into practice what I learned.
James warns everyone
not to fall into the habit of sitting around and merely listening to sermons
and bible study participants. He knew people were afraid of the world, especially
since they were scattered and chased by the religious leaders who sought to kill
them. He spoke with a sense of urgency, telling everyone to learn and put into
practice what was learned.
My Observations:
- Church gatherings felt safe to me and the world seemed unsafe and dangerous, BUT GOD wants me in the world.
- I thought I was growing in church simply by attending regularly and studying more, BUT GOD wants me putting HIS word into practice.
- I was so excited that I passed around sermons, thinking I had reached a higher “level” of belief, BUT GOD showed me I was afraid to face the world with HIS message of love.
“Outside of church,
who have I encountered to bring the Good News about JESUS?” was my question to
myself. I mean, sermons told me I should go out and tell many people, who look
like me and who don’t’, about JESUS. But I was scared, so I followed the words
of fear, “Just be an example without using words.” I tried being good and found the world was
better at helping those in need than the church.
GOD wants me to
gather with believers to tell them my wounds, HE then wants me to be healed by
the words of encouragement, brought on by hearing GOD’s word. Afterwards, GOD
wants me to go back out into the world to seek those who are lost and serve those
in need. I am glad GOD heals me and wants others healed through me as I take
HIS message out to them.
Challenge
- Why does the writer emphasize putting the “word” into practice?
- Outside of church and bible study groups, where are you having discussions specifically about the love of JESUS?
- Will you change your mind about spiritual growth and get out of your comfort zone to speak to people about JESUS so HIS kingdom will grow through you today?
