How to Be Blessed by the Bible-James 1:19-27
James 1:19-27
Key Verse 25
“But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it–he will be blessed in what he does.”
The last four weeks, we have been studying the book of James. James is known as the book of wisdom in the New Testament. Wisdom can be defined as “the application of knowledge”. Today, in the computer age, we have more knowledge available to us than we know what to do with. So, all the more, we need wisdom to know how to apply knowledge. We can also define wisdom as “knowing how to do what God wants.” Today we will study about how to be blessed by the Bible. Do you want to be blessed? The Bible is the book God’s blessing. Among all the books in the world, the Bible is God’s revelation to us, in which God gives us a wealth of wisdom. Last year there were 500 million Bibles published in the world in 18,000 different languages. Yet millions of people still miss the blessing of the Bible. Why is this? The Bible promises blessings of comfort, strength, hope, joy, and purpose, but they don’t come automatically. Just having a Bible doesn’t mystically give us its benefits. James, being a man of practicality, gives us three steps on how to be blessed by the Bible.
FIRST, RECEIVE THE WORD OF GOD (19-21)
In vs. 21, it says, “humbly accept the word planted in you.” This word “accept” in Greek is a term of hospitality which literally means “to welcome”. To be blessed by the word of God, we must welcome the word into our hearts. We must be receptive. James gives an illustration. He says the word is “planted in you”. The Bible is often compared to a seed. Jesus told the parable of the sower, saying that the word of God is a seed that is planted in the soil of our hearts. Some seed fell on the path, which is like a hardened heart, and it could not penetrate into the soil. Some seed fell on rocky ground, which is like an uncommitted heart; it was received with emotion, but had no depth to grow. Some seed fell on thorny soil, which is like a distracted heart, where worry and worldly desire crowded out the word so that it was choked. Finally there was the good soil, which is like a receptive heart, which received the word, allowed it to take root, and produced a bountiful harvest. We must receive the word of God with the right attitude. James gives us four attitudes for receiving God’s word. We can remember them as the 4 “C’s”. We should be careful, calm, clean, and compliant.
1. Be careful. v. 19a says, “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak…” God gave us two ears and one mouth, so we ought to listen twice as much as we talk. Many problems are caused because we’re quick to speak rather than quick to listen. Speaking reveals what we’re thinking, but listening enables us to think about what God is saying to us. Being quick to listen means that we are eager to investigate God’s word. We are excited about the treasures of wisdom that we are going to discover. To receive God’s word, we should be careful.
2. Be calm. v. 19b says “… and slow to become angry …” We can receive God’s word in our hearts when we are calm. When God appeared to Prophet Elijah, he did not appear in a wind, earthquake, or fire, but in a gentle whisper. (I Kings 19:11,12) To hear a gentle whisper, one needs to be quiet in listening. An article from Reader’s Digest said that when you listen, it actually lowers your blood pressure. When you speak it raises your blood pressure. James says to be calm and be slow to anger. I used to have frequent anxiety attacks, but eventually I discovered the peace of God in my heart, even around rowdy children, and others began to call me the peaceful “Mr. Rogers” of UBF. It is good to be calm if we want to be blessed by God’s word.
3. Be clean. v. 21a says, “Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent…” The word “filth” is actually the Greek word that means “earwax”. Sin in our lives blocks us from hearing. It prevents God’s word from getting into our hearts. Like the thorny soil in the parable of the sower, sin chokes our hearts from receiving God’s word. We must repent of our sins in order to clear away the thorns. 1 John 1:19 says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” God wants to help us to clean out our spiritual ears so that we can hear his word.
4. Be compliant. V. 21b says, “humbly accept the word of God planted in you, which can save you.” Compliance means to be teachable, humble, and willing to be changed. Pride is a barrier to hearing God’s word. Pride makes us think that our own ideas are more important than God’s. We can have a compliant attitude when we realize that God’s words are the words of eternal life, which have the power to save us if we receive them. To be blessed by God’s word, we should be careful, calm, clean, and compliant.
SECOND, REFLECT ON THE WORD OF GOD (23-25)
v. 23-24 says, “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.” God’s word is like a mirror. The purpose of a mirror is to evaluate ourselves. Then we can do something about it. If I notice that I have messy hair, then I know I need to comb it. A mirror reflects what we’re like on the outside, but God’s word reflects what we’re like on the inside. According to Hebrews 4:12, “the word of God is living and active…it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Many years ago, Queen Elizabeth, who was beautiful in her youth, ordered that all of the mirrors be removed from her Palace because she didn’t want to see that she was getting old. A lot of people don’t read the Bible because they’re afraid or unwilling to see themselves as they really are. The mirror of God’s word enables us to check if we are doing things right before God. It also reveals our ugly sins; but this is good, so that we can receive Jesus’ cleansing grace. James gives us three practical ways to reflect on the word of God.
1. Examine it. v. 25 says, “the man who looks intently into the perfect law”. To look intently means to investigate, analyze, or examine. The word “look” in Greek means “to stoop down and gaze in”. It’s the word used when Peter went to the tomb on resurrection Sunday when he stooped down and peeked in. He investigated. When someone merely glances in a mirror, he immediately walks away and forgets what he has seen. It didn’t do him any good. Glancing is not an effective method of Bible study. God wants us to gaze at the word, to look at it intently in detail. When we examine God’s word, let’s remember four things to look for. These four things make an acrostic for the word PACE, which means “to take slow, regular steps.”
P – Is there a Promise to claim? Look for promises, there are over 7,000 promises in the word of God. One of my favorite promises is Mt.28:20b, where Jesus said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
A – Is there an Attitude to change? Right behavior begins with a right attitude. Jesus uncovered attitude problems that lead to law-breaking. (Mt.5) Paul explained that an unbelieving attitudes leads to corruption. (Rom.1)
C – Is there a Command to obey? The Great Commandment (Mt.5) and The Great Commission (Mt.28:19) are good ways to summarize the will of God.
E – Is there an Example to follow or avoid? Paul said, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” Most narratives in the Bible feature characters whose examples we should imitate or avoid. King David was known as a man after God’s own heart. But King Saul was known as a man of disobedience. We should imitate King David, and avoid being like King Saul.
To reflect on the word of God, we need to examine it by PACE-ing ourselves, searching for promises, attitudes, commands, and examples.
2. Review it. v. 25 says, “…and continues to do so…” Meditation means to think seriously about something over and over. Jesus said in John 8:31, “…if you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.” Worksheets, questions, and testimony writing are good tools for reviewing God’s word. Psalm 119:97 says “I meditate on your word all day long.” Reviewing deepens our gaze into God’s word.
3. Remember it. In v. 25, it says, “… not forgetting what he has heard.” One of the best habits for Christians is memorizing Scripture. Psalm 119:11 says, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” A good relationship with God begins with remembering what he said. Human beings are very forgetful. The United States Air Force did a study and found that we forget 95% of what we hear within 72 hours. Testimony writing is a good way of remembering God’s word and finding applications based on it. At our International Summer Bible Conference, we heard beautiful testimonies from missionaries around the world who wrote reflections based on God’s word. Testimony writing can begin as simply as remembering one word of God and reflecting on it. In this part, we learn that we should reflect on God’s word by examining it, reviewing it, and remembering it. But there’s still one more thing needed in order to be blessed by God’s word.
THIRD, RESPOND TO THE WORD OF GOD (22, 25-27)To be blessed by the Bible, we must take action and put what we learn into practice. There is a saying that impression without expression leads to depression. Vs. 22 says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” The word “listen” in Greek is the word for “auditor”. If one audits a class in college, he doesn’t take it for credit; there are no tests, no responsibility, no research, just listening without applying it. God’s word cannot be audited. We must respond to God’s word, and let it change us if we want to be blessed by it. James says that it’s self-deception when we don’t let God’s word change us. Just gaining knowledge will not make us spiritually mature. The test of maturity is character. One who has a lot of Bible knowledge and little practice is like a creature with the head of a rhinoceros and the legs of a flea. James also said in 4:17, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins..” This is called “sin of omission”. Sins such as murder, adultery, theft, or even road-rage are obvious. But ignoring what we know we should do is also sin. Imagine reading a diet or exercise book without taking any action. We must live the word of God, not just hear it or know it. You may have heard of the Living Bible. God wants us to be Living Bibles. The best translation of Scripture is when we translate it into our lives and let it change us. 2Corinthians 3:3 says, “You show that you are a letter from Christ…written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” People can best see Jesus when we put the Bible into action in our lives. One of my favorite poems is called “Jesus’ Hands”. I’ve heard the Bible stories about Jesus of Galilee How he used his hands to heal the sick and to make the blind man see. When the multitudes were hungry, compassionate hands gave them bread. When broken hearts were grieving, loving hands raised the dead. When his followers were frightened, mighty hands calmed the sea.When Zacchaeus looked for Him, friendly hands brought him down from that tree. When the woman at the well searched for God,Teaching hands showed her the way. When His disciples needed strength or help, prayerful hands taught them to pray. But I’d only heard the stories. I’d never seen the hands, Till I saw you…then I began to understand, Your hands are His hands. You’ve surrendered them to His will. Now He works through your hands, and touches [people] still. Thank you for the hands that teach, that lead and love throughout the year. And thank you for the chance to see, Jesus’ hands are working here.”
v. 25 says, “But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.” Jesus once told the story of the wise and the foolish builders. (Mt 7:24-29) The foolish builder built his house on sand. He heard the word of God but didn’t do what it says. The wise man built his house on rock. He heard it and then put it into practice in his life. When the winds and storms came, the house of the wise builder which was built on the rock was the one that remained standing. The simplest definition of Christian maturity is to be a doer of the word of God.
James concludes this section with three examples of practicing the word of God. One way to be a doer of the word is by having self-controlled speech. Verse 26 says, “If any one considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight reign on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.” Practically, it is very challenging to control our speech when we feel upset about something. We will have another message about this topic in three weeks, so stay tuned.
Another way to be a doer of the word is by doing acts of service. Verse 27 says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress.” Helping the helpless is an active way to put God’s word into practice. Jesus’ great commandment is to love others as you love yourself. Specifically, there are people around us who are spiritually helpless. They need Christian friends and mentors to show them how to put God’s word into practice, and how to receive God’s blessings.
Yet another characteristic of putting God’s word into practice is by cleansing our minds. Verse 27 continues,”…to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” We call this spiritual integrity. Earlier we thought about being clean as a way to be receptive to God’s word by repenting of sin in our hearts so that there is room for God’s word to come in. However, there is also an active component to having a clean mind. There is the act of clicking the mouse away from the bad websites. There is the act of listening to Christian music rather than Hard Rock. There is the act of switching the channel from a crude or violent show to something educational or noble. Keeping oneself from being polluted by the world is really quite an active job. Self-controlled speech, acts of service, and cleansing our minds are some ways that we can respond to God’s word.
In conclusion, let’s think about how we can put God’s word into practice this week. James teaches us to receive, reflect, and respond to God’s word. We can remember the 4 c’s, to be careful, calm, clean, and compliant. As we examine this week’s Bible passage, we can PACE ourselves with a Promise to believe, an Attitude to change, a Command to obey, an Example to follow. We can respond with self-controlled speech, acts of service, cleansing our minds. These are ways to be blessed by the Bible.
