A Hearer of the Word and Not a Doer (James 1:23)

Your Bible is a mirror that shows you what you are really like in God’s eyes, If anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. This word ‘man’ is the Greek word for ‘male’, so we are talking about the way men use the mirror, they glance just long enough to get the basics done – then they are gone. But not women. They are so intent on knowing how they look that they carry a mirror in their purse. They can find out any time of the day how they look. The point here is not the difference in the way men and women use a mirror but the difference between taking a quick glance at yourself and taking a good look in the mirror until you have fully seen who you are in God’s eyes.

As we read God’s word, the holy spirit word holds up a mirror before us. God wants us to see ourselves so that we can make whatever adjustments are necessary. James continues, “One who looks intently at the perfect law (the word of God) and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:25). In what area of your life do you desire a greater measure of God’s blessing? Take care of the doing and God will take care of the blessing.

Bro Gilbert Tevere (Mutare, Zimbabwe)