“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. DO what is says.” James 1: 22
Many scholars do not highly esteem the epistle
of James. Martin Luther says it is “an epistle of straw”. This guide to “practical Christianity”
nevertheless contains the more real-life, down-to-earth, faith-in-action
admonishments found in the New Testament. James sees Christianity as
more about how we live and less about what we know and say. For him, Christianity
that’s all talk and no walk is worthless.
Christians must live lives befitting of members of the faith. To succeed at
this, James says we must “Listen to the
Word” (v.19), “Accept the Word” (v. 21) and “Do the Word” (v. 22).
I
particularly like the admonition to be “quick to listen and slow to speak”. We
must be eager to listen, especially to the word of God. God’s word “is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto
my path” (Ps. 119:105), and in order to live Christlike lives in this sinful
and perverse generation where morality and abnormality are politically
incorrect concepts and words; where our
children are being groomed and exploited sexually; and where those who play by
the rules get shafted, we need the word of God
to “order our steps”.
Acceptance must accompany the listening. The person who said:
“Well the Bible says so, but this is my money” during the Bible Study on
tithing listened but did not accept the word. Accepting
the word means allowing it to become a part of our life; hence some use the
word “implanted” or “ingrafted” to describe the process. When something is
ingrafted it eventually takes root and becomes a part of another, from which it
draws life and sustenance. The output
will be consistent with the word listened to and accepted (ingrafted). So James
says the Christian must “Do” the word. Every Christian should listen, accept
and allow the word of God to become a part of who they are, thus enabling them
to make a difference in the world.
Unfortunately,
many believers are not having a transformational impact in their home,
community, workplace or country as God requires, and a major contributor is the
compartmentalization of our lives. Too often the events of one to three hours
on Sunday morning or the entire day on Saturday is surgically divorced from the
rest of the week.
I
read that at an annual convention of the American Heart Association in Atlanta,
300,000 doctors, nurses and researchers gathered to discuss the importance
of a low fat diet in keeping our hearts
healthy. At lunchtime they had burgers and fries. When one cardiologist saw the
irony, he asked a colleague whether or not his partaking of high fat meals set
a bad example; the colleague replied, “Not me…I took my name tag off.”
Permit
me to suggest that one of the reasons why Christianity is not having the impact
it once had, and can still have, is that too many Christians are taking their
name tag off. No! I don’t mean walking around shouting “Praise the Lord!”.
Neither do I mean wearing our religion on our sleeves. We keep our name tag on
when we are compassionate to the orphans and widows in their afflictions
(v.27), and when we Secure, Appreciate, Value, and Encourage at risk children.
No comments:
Post a Comment