Read James 1:19-25
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because our anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Those who listen to the word but do not do what it says are like people who look at their faces in a mirror and, after looking at themselves, go away and immediately forget what they look like. But those who look intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continue in it—not forgetting what they have heard but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. (James 1:19-25)
We now move on from new birth to new life. As Christians we have been saved from the penalty of sin, we are being saved from the power of sin and we will be saved from the presence of sin. God’s Word, revealed to us in the Scriptures, teaches us what to believe and how to live so that we can be saved from the power of sin. It is therefore vital that we listen to the Word of God and that we do what it says.
The older we get the more advice we are given in order to maintain our health and strength. A physiotherapist and a retired matron have given me clear instructions concerning neck and breathing exercises which I should undergo regularly. I have listened to them and understood their advice but I confess that I often forget and fail to carry out my responsibility. I am a listener but not a doer!
To listen to God’s Word we must have the right attitude. If we are always hasty with our words, full of unrighteous anger or “moral filth and evil”, we will neither want to listen nor be able to listen to or hear the Word of God which is able to save us. We are like people looking into a mirror – (I am sitting in front of a mirror in a peaceful hotel room as I write these meditations!). I see my ageing face, but when I leave the hotel – unlike most Hollywood stars – fortunately I forget what I look like! We have got to study the Scriptures intently (and also listen to the expounding of the Scriptures) so that we can hear what God is saying to us personally – and also to the church and nation. Then, having listened we must do. When we obey His instructions, God promises that we will be blessed in all that we do.
O Lord, help us to both listen and do.
This meditation is extracted from “Transformation from Belief to Behaviour: 39 Lenten Meditations on the Letter of James” by Peter Young and used with permission by the author. It may be used solely for personal, noncommercial, and informational purposes. Republication or redistribution of this devotional is prohibited.
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