Friday, April 15, 2011
Me, Myself and I....The Trinity of Stupidity
"It is not my ability, but my response to God’s ability, that counts."
Love
Mom
Doer of the Word vs the Hearer Only....James 1:22-25
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 observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 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 1:22-25
To My Sweet Daughters,
When James uses the word "doer", he is emphasizing what a believer is rather than what he does. A Christian's entire life should be characterized by a dedication to serving the Lord. A doer of the word is one who devotes his life to not only the study of God's word but also to a faithful and continual obedience to it.His word matches his deed.
In contrast, a hearer of the word is a passive listener. John MacArthur likens them to someone who audits a college class. Auditing a class requires attendance, but it does not require you to submit any work or take any tests. Sadly, there are many Christians like that. They sit in church and hear God's word but have no desire to obey it. They may even claim to know Him and yet deny Him in their deeds. If this kind of behavior is evidenced consistently in a person's life, then they are not believers at all and are deceiving themselves.
James goes on to say this: "For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was."
The word of God here is likened to a mirror. As we allow it to penetrate our hearts it shows us what we look like. What we see if we are really looking and drawing close to Jesus are those things that do not reflect who Jesus is to others in our life. Sometimes what the Lord might show us is very hard to look at and sometimes perhaps even to stomach. Nevertheless, we are to look carefully and consistently into the mirror of the word and observe what we see. A doer of the word acts on what they observe. The goal in the study and hearing of the word is to become more like Him...to be transformed by the renewing of your mind and conformed into the image of His Son.
Girls, it is so easy to stumble here and deceive yourself into thinking you are doing something when you are not. A bondservant of Christ will take what he sees to heart and apply the word in his life because pleasing Christ and becoming more like Him is what his life is about. It is so easy to read the bible or listen to a message at church and say, "oh yeah...I agree with that." but I deceive myself if having seen in the mirror what needs to be taken care of and neglect to do it. Talk, girls, is cheap. Agreeing that we should love more, forgive more, worship more or pray more is not loving more, forgiving more, worshiping more or praying more...it is talking about doing those things. When your heart truly believes God, your actions will follow your belief. Look at your lives...really look at them. Would a jury convict you of being a Christian based not only on your words but on your actions? There is no virtue in reading the bible or hearing the word of God. We need to be willing to obey what it says and allow it to change us from the inside out.
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. The blessing is not in the hearing but in the doing. The validation of salvation is a life of obedience. John MacArthur says it is the only possible proof that a person really knows Jesus Christ.
Luke 11:28 says, "But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"
The opposite is true for the hearer of the word. The hearing and not the doing can eventually harden us and make the word begin to bounce off our hearts. Even worse we become more accountable because we know what to do but do not do it. If one does not obey Christ as a pattern of life, then professing to know Him is an empty verbal exercise.
James 4:17 "Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin."
What is the perfect law of liberty? God's word is the perfect law and as believers we are enabled by the Spirit to keep it. The perfect law of liberty then enables us to have genuine freedom from sin as we surrender to the Holy Spirit's working of it into our hearts. We are freed from the bondage of sin and are able to obey God. I know it seems pretty paradoxical that a law could give us freedom...but it does.
"For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, "YOU SHALL NOT COVET." But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead."--Romans 7:5-8
At first the law is used a s a tutor to bring us to Christ by making us aware of the sinfulness of our hearts and our absolute inability to keep it and save ourselves. Once that job is complete, and we have accepted Christ into our hearts, we are free from sin's control and are able to live as we were originally created to live. We are not free to do as we please but we are now free to obey God.
Our study and meditation on the word should have practical results in our lives and draw us closer to Him who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. It frees us from the deceit and the useless wranglings and reasoning of this world and focuses our attention on eternity. The precepts of the word are not burdensome to a heart who desires to obey and will bring blessing abundantly.
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
"But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall." --Matthew 7:21-27
Love
Mom
To My Sweet Daughters,
When James uses the word "doer", he is emphasizing what a believer is rather than what he does. A Christian's entire life should be characterized by a dedication to serving the Lord. A doer of the word is one who devotes his life to not only the study of God's word but also to a faithful and continual obedience to it.His word matches his deed.
In contrast, a hearer of the word is a passive listener. John MacArthur likens them to someone who audits a college class. Auditing a class requires attendance, but it does not require you to submit any work or take any tests. Sadly, there are many Christians like that. They sit in church and hear God's word but have no desire to obey it. They may even claim to know Him and yet deny Him in their deeds. If this kind of behavior is evidenced consistently in a person's life, then they are not believers at all and are deceiving themselves.
James goes on to say this: "For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was."
The word of God here is likened to a mirror. As we allow it to penetrate our hearts it shows us what we look like. What we see if we are really looking and drawing close to Jesus are those things that do not reflect who Jesus is to others in our life. Sometimes what the Lord might show us is very hard to look at and sometimes perhaps even to stomach. Nevertheless, we are to look carefully and consistently into the mirror of the word and observe what we see. A doer of the word acts on what they observe. The goal in the study and hearing of the word is to become more like Him...to be transformed by the renewing of your mind and conformed into the image of His Son.
Girls, it is so easy to stumble here and deceive yourself into thinking you are doing something when you are not. A bondservant of Christ will take what he sees to heart and apply the word in his life because pleasing Christ and becoming more like Him is what his life is about. It is so easy to read the bible or listen to a message at church and say, "oh yeah...I agree with that." but I deceive myself if having seen in the mirror what needs to be taken care of and neglect to do it. Talk, girls, is cheap. Agreeing that we should love more, forgive more, worship more or pray more is not loving more, forgiving more, worshiping more or praying more...it is talking about doing those things. When your heart truly believes God, your actions will follow your belief. Look at your lives...really look at them. Would a jury convict you of being a Christian based not only on your words but on your actions? There is no virtue in reading the bible or hearing the word of God. We need to be willing to obey what it says and allow it to change us from the inside out.
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. The blessing is not in the hearing but in the doing. The validation of salvation is a life of obedience. John MacArthur says it is the only possible proof that a person really knows Jesus Christ.
Luke 11:28 says, "But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"
The opposite is true for the hearer of the word. The hearing and not the doing can eventually harden us and make the word begin to bounce off our hearts. Even worse we become more accountable because we know what to do but do not do it. If one does not obey Christ as a pattern of life, then professing to know Him is an empty verbal exercise.
James 4:17 "Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin."
What is the perfect law of liberty? God's word is the perfect law and as believers we are enabled by the Spirit to keep it. The perfect law of liberty then enables us to have genuine freedom from sin as we surrender to the Holy Spirit's working of it into our hearts. We are freed from the bondage of sin and are able to obey God. I know it seems pretty paradoxical that a law could give us freedom...but it does.
"For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, "YOU SHALL NOT COVET." But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead."--Romans 7:5-8
At first the law is used a s a tutor to bring us to Christ by making us aware of the sinfulness of our hearts and our absolute inability to keep it and save ourselves. Once that job is complete, and we have accepted Christ into our hearts, we are free from sin's control and are able to live as we were originally created to live. We are not free to do as we please but we are now free to obey God.
Our study and meditation on the word should have practical results in our lives and draw us closer to Him who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. It frees us from the deceit and the useless wranglings and reasoning of this world and focuses our attention on eternity. The precepts of the word are not burdensome to a heart who desires to obey and will bring blessing abundantly.
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
"But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall." --Matthew 7:21-27
Love
Mom
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