Practice the Word (James 1:22-25) - Part 1 of 2

Second, practice the Word (1:22–25)

We can't just hear the Word; we have to act on it. A lot of people think that listening to a good sermon or Bible study is what helps them grow and get God's blessing. It is not the listening but the doing that brings the blessing. Many Christians mark their Bibles, but their Bibles never mark them! You are only kidding yourself if you think you are spiritual because you hear the Word.

James said that the Word was like a seed in the last paragraph, but in this one, he said it was like a mirror. The Bible also talks about God's Word as a mirror in two other places. When you put all three together, you discover three ways that the Word of God works as a mirror.

Examination (vv. 23–25). The main reason to have a mirror is so you can see yourself and make yourself look as clean and neat as possible. When we look at God's Word, we see ourselves as we really are. James talks about some of the mistakes people make when they look in God's mirror.

First, they just look at themselves for a brief second or two.
They don't pay close attention to themselves as they read the Word. Many sincere believers read a chapter of the Bible every day, but they don't get anything out of it personally; it's just a religious exercise. If they didn't read every day, their conscience would bother them. But their conscience should bother them because they read the Word carelessly. A quick read of the Bible will never show us what we really need. This is the difference between a candid picture and an X-ray.

The second mistake is that they don't remember what they see.
If they looked deep enough into their hearts, they would see something they would never forget. We laugh at how "extreme" people were during the great revivals, but we could use that conviction. John Wesley wrote about a preaching service: “One before me dropped as dead, and presently a second, and a third. Five others sunk down in half an hour, most of whom were in violent agonies” (Wesley’s Journal for June 22, 1739) Before we put these people in some kind of psychological limbo, let's remember how saints in the Bible reacted when they learned the truth about their hearts. Isaiah cried out, "Woe is me! I am undone" (Isa. 6:5)! Peter said, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord" (Luke 5:8). Job was the most righteous man on earth at the time, but he said, "I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:6)

Mistake number three: They fail to do what the Word tells them to do.
They think that hearing and doing are the same thing, but they're not. Christians enjoy reading instead of doing things or even talking instead of doing things. We have many meetings and conferences about things like evangelism and church growth, and we think we're making progress. Conferences and committee meetings are acceptable, but they become problematic if they replace actual service.

We must look into God's mirror carefully and with serious intent if we want to use it well (James 1:25). No quick looks will do. We need to look at our hearts and lives in the light of what God says. This task needs time, focus, and real dedication. You need more than five minutes with God every day to really look at your spiritual life.

I've been lucky with the doctors who have taken care of me over the years, and I owe them a lot. I liked that they were honest and took their time with me. When Jesus, the Great Physician (Matt. 9:12 says that He uses His Word to look at us, He wants us to give Him enough time to do the job right. Maybe we look at the Word instead of staring at it because we're scared of what we might see.

We need to remember who we are and what God says after we look at ourselves, and we also need to do what the Word says. The blessing comes from doing, not from reading the Word. James 1:25 says, "But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed." In other words, to put it bluntly, 'This man shall be blessed in his doing.' James stresses the importance of putting the Word into action. After reading the Word, we should keep going; that is, we should practice it (James 1:25; see Acts 1:14; 2:42, 46; 13:43; 14:22; 26:22 for examples of such actions in the early church).

Why did James say that the Word of God was "the perfect law of liberty" (James 1:25)? God sets us free when we follow it. "And I will walk at liberty: for I seek Thy precepts" (Ps. 119:45). "Anyone who sins is a servant of sin" (John 8:34). “If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31–32).

Thus, we discover that the first way the word of God acts as a mirror is examination. There is another ministry.