FAITH WORKS OBEDIENTLY
James 1:22-25
FAITH WORKS OBEDIENTLY, PM 11/20/05
FAITH WORKS #6
Obedience – We all like it when those who should obey
us, do. Actually, we even like it when
those who shouldn’t obey us, do!
Obedience is something we like to receive, but not
always something we like to give.
This week James continues his thoughts on the Word of
God by telling us that FAITH WORKS OBEDIENTLY
Those who have been regenerated by the Word of God are
not only to respond being “swift to hear, slow to, speak and slow to wrath, and
by receiving with meekness the engrafted word”.
They are to respond in obedience to the Word of God.
If you think about it, the most important thing we can
ever do is obey God.
That’s the only way we could have been saved.
God said, “You’re not good enough to save yourself!”
God said, “I’ll send my sinless son to die for your
sins!”
God said, “I’ll resurrect my Son from the dead!”
God said, “And to whoever obeys me by simply trusting
Jesus Christ by faith, I will give that person eternal life.”
Salvation is a matter of obedience! John 3:16
John 3:36 - He
that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the
Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
And if you are saved, by faith you said something like
this, “Lord Jesus, I’m a sinner who doesn’t deserve Heaven, but I believe you
died for me, were buried, and have risen again. I trust you alone for
forgiveness and eternal life. I accept you as my Savior!”
Trusting Christ as Savior was the first step you made
in obeying God. It is by no means to be your last. Tonight in James we see that
Faith works obediently. We see that:
OBEDIENCE IS COMMANDED – Vs. 22a
James 1:22a - But
be ye doers of the word,
Not only are we to confess our sins and humbly receive
what God has to say according to verse 21, we are also to do what the Word of
God says!
It takes more than listening intently to please God.
It takes more than accepting what God has to say.
We must become obedient to God, doers of the Word.
You say that you love the Lord Jesus because of what
He has done for you to give you eternal life.
Listen to what Jesus has to say:
John 14:15 - If
ye love me, keep my commandments.
John 14:21 - He
that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he
that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will
manifest myself to him.
Obedience has always been important to God. 1 Samuel
15:22-23
To be a “doer of the word” should be a personality
trait.
In other words, obeying God’s Word should be our
purpose in life.
A “doer of the word” should be part of my identity.
We should not obey what we see or hear in the Word of
God just when it suits our fancy. We should obedient to the Word of God whether
we like it or not, whether we agree or not.
One of my favorite Old Testament characters is King
Hezekiah. Hezekiah was a “doer of the
word”.
2 Kings 18:3-7a, 2 Chronicles 31:20-21
I see a decision to be made here. Am I, once and for all, going to be a “doer
of the word”?
If I am, obedience is to God is to be my goal, and my
lifestyle. Not just obedience when I
feel like it.
DISOBEDIENCE IS CONDEMNED – Vss. 22b-24
James 1:22 - But
be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
There’s nothing wrong with being a “hearer” of the
word.
We should hear the word by listening to sermons,
Sunday School Lessons, radio messages and Bible Studies. We should hear the Word when we read it and
study it. In fact we are told in 2
Timothy 2:15 - Study to shew thyself
approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing
the word of truth.
We already heard James say in James 1:21, Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and
superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which
is able to save your souls.
But we are to be more than just hearers of the Word.
We are to be doers of the Word.
Someone who is only a hearer is deceiving, deluding,
fooling himself!
I believe that there will be many people at the
Judgment Seat of Christ who are going to be shocked. They were deceived into thinking that just
because they made a profession of faith and/or walked an aisle, they were going
to Heaven.
If a person experiences no change in his life, no
desire to obey, no desire to live differently because Christ has saved him,
that person is in big trouble at Judgment Time.
There are many Christians who study the Word
profusely, who wouldn’t go to a church unless it had sound Bible preaching, who
know the Bible well, but will be in big trouble when they face their Lord.
If you think that listening to good preaching and
studying your Bible are enough, you are sadly mistaken. You are fooling
yourself. Obedience is required.
You may think that I mention coming judgment all too
often. However, coming judgment for the
Christian and non-Christian alike are coming. 2 Corinthians 5:10
James 1:23-24 - For
if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding
his natural face in a glass: [24] For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way,
and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
In Bible times they did have mirrors. They were not made of glass but off shiny
metal. Some were even made of silver or
gold. By careful study you could get an
idea of what you looked like.
Imagine someone looking in a mirror, going his way,
and promptly forgetting what he looked like. He was forgetful.
A person who hears the word without doing it is like that
forgetful person who looks in a mirror.
His mirror is the Word of God. As he looks in it he
will find the truth about God, about mankind in general, and about himself in
particular.
He hears what God has to say and promptly forgets or
ignores it.
Don’t listen to a sermon or read the Bible just to be
entertained or inspired and then go your merry way.
Instead, the response of obedience is required.
Do what the word of God says!
OBEDIENCE IS COMMENDED – Vs. 25
James 1:25 - 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.
The person in this verse is studying the mirror as
well.
But this person is a more avid student.
He takes his studies a step further.
He continues in what he reads.
He doesn’t forget.
He obeys!
Here the Word of God is called the “Law of liberty”.
It is in obeying the principals of the Word of God
that one is set free from the bondage of sin.
John 8:31-32, 36, Romans 8:1-4
Obedience leads to freedom.
Freedom from worry
Freedom from unforgiveness
Freedom from doubt and fear
Freedom from bondage to habits
Freedom from insecurity
Freedom from anger
And freedom from a host of other things
These are just a few of the blessings that come when
we become doers of the word and not just hearers.
I want to close by reading you some verses from Jesus’
Sermon on the Mount. These verses
underscore just how important being a doer of the Word is. Matthew 7:21-27
Faith works obediently. We see that:
OBEDIENCE IS COMMANDED – Vs. 22a
DISOBEDIENCE IS CONDEMNED – Vss. 22b-24
OBEDIENCE IS COMMENDED – Vs. 25
RETURN TO HEBREWS – PHILEMON INDEX