Text for series read: James 1:21-25
James 1:23-25 ( ) “Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his own face in a mirror. For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but one who does good works—this person will be blessed in what he does”
Ladies we know how important a mirror is. This week I am at the beach and there is not a full length mirror in the Condo. This is not good considering at the beach one usually wears a swim suit and likes to check to see if they are getting burned or if they are covered properly. With no mirror to check I am sure I probably look worse than I already feel in my swim suit.
If the Bible is a mirror that reveals our true condition, too many of us walk away thinking we’re better than we really are. While it may be okay to say, “Close enough” when it comes to our appearance, it’s deadly to say that about our spiritual life.
The real danger here is forgetting.
We read “Love one another” but then we forget.
We read “Pray without ceasing,” but then we forget.
We read “Rejoice always,” but then we forget.
We read “In all things give thanks,” but then we forget.
We must “look intently” into the truth of God.
We must not forget what we have heard. (James 1:23-25)
Note that the Bible is called the “perfect law of freedom.” That sounds very archaic to modern ears. We don’t equate law with freedom. We think the law restricts our freedom by telling us what not to do. That’s partly true. After all, eight of the Ten Commandments are in the negative. The law puts limits on our behavior. It tells us not to worship other gods, not to make idols, not to misuse God’s name, not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to steal, not to bear false witness, and not to covet. But those laws were given by God to protect us from our own sinful impulses. In a deep sense, we do not “break” the Ten Commandments. We are broken by them when we disobey.
For instance, a man may be bored with his marriage and decide he needs to have some fun on the side. So he joins one of those websites devoted to helping you have an affair discreetly. But then one day hackers break the encryption and suddenly his name is broadcast to the world as an adulterer. It costs him his reputation and his marriage, and it may cost him his career.
Meanwhile, here is a man who loves his wife, who because of a promise he made to her, fights off temptation, keeps his vows, stays faithful, and doesn’t have an affair. He and his wife have gone through the trials of life side by side and hand in hand. When they get to the end of their earthly journey, they are still together and still in love.
Which man is truly free? The man who kept the rules or the man who broke them?
In all of life, there is always an easy way and a hard way. In the beginning, the easy way looks inviting because you can take short cuts to get where you want to go. The hard way seems daunting because it demands so much discipline. But in the end cutting corners and bending the rules always costs more. The easy way turns out to be the hard way, and the hard way turns out to be the easy way. So it is with the Word of God.
That leads us to the final question: Am I willing to obey even when it is not easy? When the answer is yes, we discover the freedom that becomes a blessing from the Lord.
James 1:23-25 ( ) “Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his own face in a mirror. For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but one who does good works—this person will be blessed in what he does”
Ladies we know how important a mirror is. This week I am at the beach and there is not a full length mirror in the Condo. This is not good considering at the beach one usually wears a swim suit and likes to check to see if they are getting burned or if they are covered properly. With no mirror to check I am sure I probably look worse than I already feel in my swim suit.
If the Bible is a mirror that reveals our true condition, too many of us walk away thinking we’re better than we really are. While it may be okay to say, “Close enough” when it comes to our appearance, it’s deadly to say that about our spiritual life.
The real danger here is forgetting.
We read “Love one another” but then we forget.
We read “Pray without ceasing,” but then we forget.
We read “Rejoice always,” but then we forget.
We read “In all things give thanks,” but then we forget.
We must “look intently” into the truth of God.
We must not forget what we have heard. (James 1:23-25)
Note that the Bible is called the “perfect law of freedom.” That sounds very archaic to modern ears. We don’t equate law with freedom. We think the law restricts our freedom by telling us what not to do. That’s partly true. After all, eight of the Ten Commandments are in the negative. The law puts limits on our behavior. It tells us not to worship other gods, not to make idols, not to misuse God’s name, not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to steal, not to bear false witness, and not to covet. But those laws were given by God to protect us from our own sinful impulses. In a deep sense, we do not “break” the Ten Commandments. We are broken by them when we disobey.
For instance, a man may be bored with his marriage and decide he needs to have some fun on the side. So he joins one of those websites devoted to helping you have an affair discreetly. But then one day hackers break the encryption and suddenly his name is broadcast to the world as an adulterer. It costs him his reputation and his marriage, and it may cost him his career.
Meanwhile, here is a man who loves his wife, who because of a promise he made to her, fights off temptation, keeps his vows, stays faithful, and doesn’t have an affair. He and his wife have gone through the trials of life side by side and hand in hand. When they get to the end of their earthly journey, they are still together and still in love.
Which man is truly free? The man who kept the rules or the man who broke them?
In all of life, there is always an easy way and a hard way. In the beginning, the easy way looks inviting because you can take short cuts to get where you want to go. The hard way seems daunting because it demands so much discipline. But in the end cutting corners and bending the rules always costs more. The easy way turns out to be the hard way, and the hard way turns out to be the easy way. So it is with the Word of God.
That leads us to the final question: Am I willing to obey even when it is not easy? When the answer is yes, we discover the freedom that becomes a blessing from the Lord.
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