Just Do It!

James 1:22-25 ESV
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For 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. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But 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.

This is one of my favorite sections of scripture. This combined with 2 Timothy 3:16-17 encourages me. I know God is perfecting me through His word. The one challenge I have is obedience to His word.

The image James brings up would be like you looking in the mirror, seeing a piece of spinach stuck in your teeth and doing nothing about it. If we look at God's word as just literature we lose out on the life-changing experience He offers us. If however, you believe the Bible is God's way of communicating with us, you are more likely to do His word.

By doing God's word you not only learn it you get to know God. You become who actively loves God and others. Those actions become a witness to others (Matt 5:16).

Make no mistake, you don't have to be a Bible scholar to let God's word change you. You have the Holy Spirit who dwells in you and teaches you (1 Cor 6:19-20; John 14:26) and the Bible is God's and it can perfect/complete you (2 Tim 3:16-17). How can this happen? As the Nike advertisements say, ''Just do it!''