James 1:22 -25

We went back to Harvest Bible Chapel in Hickory this morning and heard a wonderful sermon by Pastor Kurt Gebhards on James 1:22 -25. The church is getting ready to start Life Groups and he related the sermon to the groups and also what the congregation should be doing when they come to church.

James 1:22- 25 22But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. 23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.

25But one who looks intently at the perfect law the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

The goal of the Bible is to understand and for understanding to lead to life application. Pastor Gebhards said when you look into the truth it compels you to do something about it. Hearing does nothing for you if you don’t apply it. You must know it, but then you must live it out.

These verses tell us that to be an effectual doer of the word we have to obey it. Obey God’s Word. We should also be taking on the attributes of Christ. His holiness, His humbleness, His servant’s heart, etc. There should be proof in our lives that we are Christians. That we are followers of Christ.

And there are two things we get from this. Freedom (God’s law gives us freedom and keeps us safe) and blessings.

The Pastor gave us another verse to meditate on:

Luke 6:46-50 46"Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? 47"Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: 48he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49"But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great."

He ended with giving the congregation a list of 8 things they should do.

1. Bring their Bibles to church
2. Expect to hear from God in church and when reading the Bible
3. Have a “live” Bible during the sermon. (Meaning people should not only be following along, but reading the cross references and looking things up.)
4. Take notes
5. And along with that keep a Journal
6. Study the extra passages during the week
7. Bring their application plan to Life Groups to encourage others
8. Establish a to-do list from each sermon

Hearing God’s Voice

A friend sent me one of the email chain stories today. This was about a young man who had been to Bible study where they talked about how God still speaks to us today. He got in his car and prayed for God to speak to him and that he would listen and try to obey.

It goes on to tell about a thought he had to do something which made no sense and that by actually doing it anyway, he became the answer to someone’s prayer.

Then it said this:

Sometimes it's the simplest things that God asks us to do that cause us, if we are obedient to what He's asking, to be able to hear His voice more clear than ever. Please listen, and obey! It will bless you (and the world).

I think all along I’ve thought about this backwards! I kept waiting for God to tell me clearly and completely exactly what to do and then many times ignored the little intuitions, thoughts and urges because they didn’t seem to mean anything or seem to come from Him.

This tells me if we follow those thoughts, the outcome from our actions can be God’s voice shown clearly to us!

Life's little choices

Joshua 24:14 says, “but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

This is a daily decision and everything we do all day should reflect on this promise. Obeying God is the first step. We need to check our thoughts and actions to see if there is an area where we lack total commitment to God. Often our motives, not our actions, contain the sin. If we fill our life with God, worship and service we will have no room for sin. But, it’s a daily and sometimes hourly decision to put God first. To put His will before ours, to choose the higher ground.

Luke 9:23 says, “Let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” We are called to ignore our selfish desires and follow Christ’s way. To strive to become more and more like Him.

John the Baptist told the Pharisees and Sadducees in Matthew 3:8 to “bear fruit that befits repentance.” Our words are judged by the actions that accompany them.

To help out at church, call the sick or lonely, give our time, talent and money always. Not just now or then in big things, but in constant daily things. God wants us to love others, help them and witness to them. That’s what Christians do. Love is the very foundation of Christianity. In every event of our day we can make a choice to put God’s will before our own. Should I pray first or get my chores done? Should I volunteer to teach a Sunday school class or just attend the class? Should I cook a meal for a sick neighbor or go out to dinner with my family. Should I read a Bible story to my child or send him off to bed with his own book. Should I lie to make things easier, or tell the truth and take the consequences? Should I put on an uncomplaining smile or grumble about my problems. Should I choose to accept my problems as a part of life and an opportunity to grow? Should I confess a sin and repent, or try to ignore it and live with the guilt.

The key ingredients to obedience can be found in Exodus 15:26. “If you will diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord your God and do that which is right in His eyes and give heed to His commandments and keep His statutes.” Then we are obedient to God. We are in His will. And our daily choices will reflect this

Lord, fill me with the Holy Spirit. Let me enter into the full inheritance of Christ. Show me what’s holding me back and help me repent of it.