Fresh Word- Doers of The Word 11-3-10

Josiah Elias
11/3/10

 

Fresh Word

Doers of The Word

I love this scripture.

Jas 1:22  But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

    It is so important for us to be a people who not only come to church and hear what the pastor is saying, what kind of songs their singing, the overall message of the whole service. It is so important to factor in application to what your learning.
    I just had lunch with my pastor and we were discussing the word, and character. How the bottom line of all meetings, discipleship, bible studies, services and so on is to help produce character in individuals life that make us more like Jesus. It doesn't do us any good just to hear the word if we never apply the principles the Word gives attention to. It doesn't do us any good to receive knowledge on Christian things without ever applying them to our lives.

    Its really easy for someone to say that they are a Christian but it is quite a different story when you ask them to prove it. If someone were to walk up to you right now and ask you to prove that you were a Christian, what would you do? Would you quote some scripture at them? The Pharisees could do that. Would you sing them a Christian song? Anybody who's heard of K-Love could do that. Would you try to them all you know about Jesus? Professors and other scholars could do that but that doesn't mean they KNOW HIM. The best way to prove that you are a Christian to somebody is to invite them to hang out with you for a day. Your lifestyle will depict where you allegiance lies. If you are a Christian you should be expressing that through your lifestyle. Your heart for God should be leaking through your speech,  your dress, your conduct, your thoughts, ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING! This is how people will know that you are a Christian.
    Its not enough just to know the Word and expect it to affect your life. You have to be willing to allow that Word to change your character. Just like its not enough to know about water, and how to drink it. It will do me no good unless I actually take the glass of water and begin to drink it, then it will benefit me immensely! In fact if I don't do that than sooner or later I'm going to die. I need it. Just like you need the word, you need the Spirit of God, you need each other, and all of these tools and relationships are used to mold your character into that of Who Christ is.

Jas 1:23  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;
Jas 1:24  for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.

I like this scripture so much.
For people who do not practice what they are being taught, what the Holy Spirit is teaching through the pastor, through the minister, through the worship leader, through the bible study leader, he is like a person who see’s who he is naturally or even metaphorically, but he leaves and immediately forgets what he saw and what was brought out.
When I think of this scripture I visualize the word coming into someone’s ears and teaching them to be kind to people. This person being an angry, rude, arrogant, mean person. He hears this, recognizes that this teaching applies to him, leaves that meeting and immediately discards everything that he was just taught through the meeting. Why in the world did that person come to the meeting in the first place?!

We watched a movie this past weekend at youth conference at the church called  “To Save A Life” and my favorite quote from the movie is when the main character at a youth group interrupts the service and asks all the students, “What is the point of all this if your not going to let this change you?” Ask yourself that! What is the point of going to church if your not going to let it change you. Are you perfect? No! We all need to change, we need a character adjustment. We need to STARE SO LONG AT JESUS THAT OUR WHOLE BEING BECOMES MORE AND MORE LIKE HIM. That's why its important to come and hear the word, that's 1 of the reasons why its important to go to church, that's the reason why its important to not only hear the word but to actually make those character adjustments and LIVE IT OUT!

I hope this challenges you to take a look at your attitude. I hope this challenges  you to look at the gatherings you find yourself in and actually take into account what your being taught. How does it apply to your life? Is the pastor up there just wasting time, talking to a bunch of brick walls? That might be just as productive, because a brick wall is going to do nothing with what the pastor is preaching, but apparently many of us don't do anything with what he preaches either! So what makes us different from the brick wall?!
    We need to walk into each service, each gathering, each personal prayer time and personal bible study with a heart that says Holy Spirit change me to be more and more like Jesus through this word. Through this prayer. Through this teaching. I want to be just like Jesus.

Isa 64:8  But now, O LORD, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand.

Are you clay? Or are you a brick wall? Teachable? Or do you know it all? Does the word that you hear actually change the way you live your life? Are you coming to listen to a man? Or are you coming to listen to God?
Re-evaluate your heart and your attitude! EVEN NOW! That your through reading this, ask the Holy Spirit to continue to break you down and build you back up the way He wants you. TO LOOK JUST LIKE JESUS! JESUS BUILT!

Josiah Elias
~Revival SD~