We leave for Nicaragua this Saturday and will be teaching on the Doctrine of Scripture. Below are the notes from a sermon I will preach to the pastors and church leaders in Corinto, Nicaragua.

THE RIGHT WAY TO RECEIVE AND RESPOND TO GOD’S WORD.

When I was young and my dad and mom told me to do something they wanted me to stop what I was doing and listen closely and respond willingly. They were not OK with me partially listening or listening and not obeying.

God expects the same from His people. James 1:21-25 tells us the proper way to receive and respond to God’s Word.

1. The right way to receive God’s Word is by humbly hearing the Word of God

21Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

In this verse of Scripture you have two phrases that are important. James says “Put away…and receive.” When I was little I would play outside from morning to night. When I came home my mom would tell me that I was not to do anything until I took off my dirty clothes and took a shower. The phrase "put away" carries with it a similar idea. James is saying that for the word to benefit us properly we must first put off all filthiness and wickedness and then receive with meekness God’s word.

The word meekness reflects an attitude that is humble and teachable. When we hear from God, whether it is publicly or privately, we should always receive His word with humility knowing that if our lives are out of line with what His word teaches, we need to make changes accordingly.

2. The right way to respond to God’s word is by being an informed doer of the Word of God.

22But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

Many think that this verse focuses only on doing, but that is not the case. There are two approaches that must be avoided when studying this text. The first, is to think that “What I do” is more important than “What I know” and the second is to reason that “What I know” is more important than “What I do.” Both are important. Believers are to be both hearers and doers of the Word of God. In fact, what we do for God should be in response to what we hear from Him.

James compares the Scriptures to a mirror with the only difference being that a mirror reveals what we look like on the outside while the Bible reveals what we are on the inside. James’ point is that it is not enough to look into the Scriptures and read them. We must respond to what we are reading—we must be doers of God’s word. When James says be doers, he is not talking about something we do on occasion. He is saying that this is to be a common feature of our lives as Christians.

James also says that the one who cautiously and carefully hears the Word of God and obeys it will be blessed. Many do not think of Obedience in this way. They think of it as being restrictive, but the ironic thing is that obedience leads to a joyful and blessed life.

There was a well-known Christian who lived around the 12th and 13th century by the name of Saint Francis. He was born and raised in a wealthy family and was promised to inherit the family fortune. He, however, felt God calling him away from a life of luxury to a life of Christian service. Francis lived and died with very few material possessions.

Many might look at the wealth Saint Francis gave up and the amount of time he spent serving others receiving little in return and think, “What a miserable way to spend your life.” But he was a man of joy who was known to sing as he walked from place to place. He also had a band of followers who were attracted to his remarkable charisma and purity who, along with Saint Francis, found lasting joy through their relationship with God.

May this be true of us. May we experience lasting joy through devoting our lives to understanding and doing the will of God.