James 1:22-24 "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like."
If you go to the gym and talk to your trainer, then go home, ...will there be any improvement in your physical health?... of course not.
The same is true spiritually. You can go to church, or read your bible everyday, but if you think just listening will change you - you are deceiving yourself.
You are like someone who looks in a mirror but doesn't fix anything. You walk away and nothing changes ... you haven't combed your hair or fixed your face - and once you're gone you don't even remember what needs to be done.
The phrase "deceives yourselves" is not a reprimand, it shows pity for the one deceived ... not so much a hypocrite, but someone who mistakenly thinks they're improving.
When you read scripture, look closely. Fix what needs to be fixed. Take action based on what you see. Make changes in your life predicated on what the Word of God says needs to change.
Sometimes we walk a rough road and it feels like we are not progressing ... but our aim has to be growth and improvement. In a world of empty promises, this is the one thing you can count on ... The Word of God, through the power of the Holy Spirit can change you ... truly permanently change you.
There are days we will stumble, and there is blood on a cross to cover that ...but it must be our goal to walk in the light of God's Word, let it impact us, and make us a little more like Him each day.
This week read the Word ... but read it slowly ... study it ... create a plan to implement it ... and then do what it says.
“Philosophy without action is the ruin of the soul. One brave deed is worth a hundred books, a thousand theories, a million words"
― Edward Abbey
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