JUST DO IT
James 1:21-25 NKJV
21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Because this is an introduction to the book of James, today is a repeat of the devotional I did earlier in the month by mistake. But repetition is a good thing especially if it's about God's word. And I don't do this much so please indulge me. The first chapter of James is a chapter worth looking at again.
I know, I know. I borrowed from the old Nike slogan. It's hard for me to believe that the Just Do It slogan was introduced in 1988. It was an extremely successful ad campaign that lasted for years. But a couple of thousand years earlier, James beat Nike to the punch.
The Book of James is referred to as the Proverbs of the New Testament. The book written by James, who was a pastor, is short, sweet, and to the point. I love the Book of James. In the first chapter, he gets right to the point, stating who are the blessed and who are not. The blessings go to the doers, those who put what they hear into practice. Receive with meekness the implanted word. God's Word has to be received to even begin to be effective. Meekness is a teachable characteristic that enhances everything we receive from God. The teachable are the ones who move forward, not the defensive or the argumentative.
But just do it. Be doers of what you hear. Don't just hear, do. I often hear people talk about some negative thing that a person did that surprised them. And they say things like "they've been in church for years." Being in church is valuable and a huge benefit if you not only attend church but allow what is preached and taught to become a part of your life. James said if we hear without doing then we are deceiving ourselves. The deception is that we are growing and blessed by what we hear. But that is only a part of the equation.
James likened hearing without doing to looking in a mirror. When you look in a mirror, you are able to see what you look like. When you walk away from the mirror, you forget how you look. You are thinking everything is okay until someone comes and tells you that you have food in your teeth. Or you look again a few hours later and notice some things that need to be adjusted. But the person who puts what he has heard from God's Word into practice is like the person who is continually looking and not forgetting. This person is not a forgetful hearer but a doer and is blessed in what he does.
It is so easy to hear and then forget. But hearing and practicing is what puts us in a different category. It is the doers of God's Word who are blessed. So, with each message with our Bible reading times, we must retrain ourselves to ask the question, what can I do? What can I put into practice? Just do it is more than a great ad campaign, it's a great way of life.