Godly Actions

Don’t read this line - Auditing Truth

Read James 1:22-25.

Don’t read this line - Auditing Truth

Colleges offer the option to audit a class.

When you audit a class, you attend the lecture.

You hear the teacher teach.

But you don’t actually participate.

You aren’t required to do any of the work.

You don’t have to turn in any homework assignments.

You don’t have to write any papers.

Back in Jesus’ day there were a lot of people who audited the word of God.

, describes part of a Jewish worship service from Jesus’ day.

In , Jesus goes into the synagogue of His hometown, Nazareth.

It was the Sabbath.

He stood to read from Isaiah.

He took the scroll of Isaiah, and unrolled it to .

He read from it.

Rolled it up and then began to teach from it.

This was a fairly typical event.

Within synagogues, a priest or a rabbi, would carefully unravel a scroll.

Read from it.

And the people would listen.

The Jews loved to hear about the law.

They expounded on the law.

They talked about the law.

They knew the law.

But they didn’t obey the law.

That might sound strange, a lot of religion, without any heart, but it’s not that uncommon.

Colleges

Today, we have people who audit sermons.

They hear a sermon.

But they don’t do anything about it.

They read their Bible, but they don’t do any homework.

They have no desire to put anything to action.

They are just auditing the word of God.

At the end of a sermon, people leave and they act as if they just listened to a lecture.

They say things like:

“That was a nice sermon today.”

“I enjoyed listening to that sermon.”

The call is not to be hearers of sermons, or hearers of the word, but to be doers of the word, doers of the sermon.

Each week I prepare a sermon.

As I study the text, I preach it to my soul.

I grieve over my own sins.

I long for maturity.

I long for the Lord to sanctify my own heart.

The very things I’m pleading with you to do, trust me, I’m pleading with myself about.

And then I hope, my prayer is that you experience what I’ve experienced throughout the week.

So I preach.

But if there is no change.

If you aren’t changed.

If you only hear.

Then I’m like the farmer who scatters seed, but never sees any growth.

A sermon should cause you to do something.

The truth should cause you to trust Christ.

It should cause you to repent of sin.

It should cause you to have joy.

It should cause you to do something.

It should cause action to happen.

Last week we heard about how we should receive the Word.

To be quick to listen.

Slow to speak.

Slow to anger.

But this week we learn that listening is more than hearing.

it’s more than listening to sound.

It is more than being taught.

It is more than accepting truth.

It’s much more than auditing a course.

It should cause a response.

Let’s continue in the text.

Please open your Bibles to

Read .

James is describing two types of people.

There are hearers and there are doers.

James begins with a warning to those who are Hearers Only

The warning to those who are hearers only is that they are deceived.

Flip back in your Bibles to .

This chapter is sometimes read as an offering meditation.

But really, it’s a passage about those who are deceived.

Look at .

Read .

God is rebuking Israel for their vain worship.

It’s funny, sometimes we read this passage during offering meditations.

But in reality, it is a Psalm where God describes how He rejected Israel’s sacrifices; how He rejected Israel’s worship.

Sometimes we say all God wants is your worship, He doesn’t care how you approach Him.

But look, God wasn’t saying, “I’m glad you gave me something.”

He wasn’t asking for more sacrifices.

He was saying how much He hated their sacrifices.

That’s why in verse 9 He says He will not accept their sacrifices.

They were religious.

But they were not obedient.

They were religious, but they refused God’s Word.

Verse 16, God says how angry He is that they quote His word.

They’d audited the word of God.

They knew it in a literary fashion.

But they didn’t know it in their heart.

Verse 17, “For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you.”

Casting His words aside, means they hear God’s word, but they ignore it.

They blow it off.

They continued doing what they wanted to do.

Verse 19-20 - “You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit. You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother’s son.”

They had no fear of God.

They said whatever they wanted.

Verse 22 - “Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver!”

describes people who are deceived.

They have been deceived into thinking that God wants their religion.

They think God wants us to do the religious duty:

Church attendance.

Offering

Sacrifice.

But that God has no concern for our hearts.

This is the deception.

The people of Israel knew God’s law.

They heard it taught in the synagogues.

But when it came to applying it to their lives, they forgot what it had to say.

They would go to synagogue.

James uses the description of a man who looks into a mirror.

Back then they didn’t have glass mirrors like we have today.

Hear the Scripture read.

They had polished metal.

But never apply it to their life.

They were auditing the word of God.

Where do we see mirrors made out of metal today?

James compares this person to someone who looks in the mirror and immediately forgets what he looks like.

In a carnival.

If we aren’t careful we can do the same thing.

Think of a funhouse mirror.

We do

They make you look wobbly.

Some of them make you look tall.

Others make you look short.

We can do the spiritual thing.

A metal mirror isn’t a perfect image.

I love buffalo wings.

And I’m also a messy eater when it comes to them.

I get the orange sauce all over the place.

We go to church.

It’s distorted.

It stains my finger tips.

It is on my clothes.

It gets on my face.

And it dries.

We get up and read our Bible.

And do nothing about it.

James says that a person who is a hearer only, sees himself in the mirror, but then he walks away, and immediately forgets.

A couple weeks ago, after church, a few of us went to get Buffalo wings after church.

I love buffalo wings.

And I’m also a messy eater when it comes to them.

I get the orange sauce all over the place.

It stains my finger tips.

It is on my clothes.

It gets on my face.

And it dries.

And it’s impossible to wipe off.

We went out to eat, and of course I got it on my face.

We went out to eat, and of course I got it on my face.

A couple people told me I had it on my face.

I should have gone to the bathroom and looked in a mirror to clean off my face, but I didn’t.

I let it dry and I forgot about it.

I got in the car, and I saw my face and it made me laugh.

On my way home, I had to stop off at the store.

Went into the store.

I got a couple funny looks, but didn’t think anything of it.

I got home, and Amanda pointed out that I had dried buffalo sauce on my face.

People had warned me about it.

A couple people told me I had it on my face.

I had seen my dirty face in the mirror’s reflection.

But I had forgotten all about it.

I got in the car, and I saw my face and it made me laugh.

I never applied what I heard.

On my way home, I had to stop off at the store.

I never cleaned up my face.

Went into the store.

We do the same thing with our spiritual lives.

I got a couple funny looks, but didn’t think anything of it.

I got home, and Amanda pointed out that I had dried buffalo sauce on my face.

People had warned me about it.

Too many hear a sermon or read a passage that says:

I had seen my dirty face in the mirror’s reflection.

But I had forgotten all about it.

I never applied what I saw.

I never cleaned up my face.

Believe

We do the same thing with our spiritual lives.

But they argue against God’s word, and refuse to believe it.

Or there is a passage that says repent.

Yet, they continue to harbor a sin.

They were definitely convicted.

But like the buffalo sauce on my face, they did nothing about it.

Have joy.

And they remain joyless.

And they leave, and they think that God is happy with them, because they did the religious thing.

Because they put in their time, and that’s all that God wants.

And we convince ourselves that we are good with God because we have done the spiritual thing.

We went to church.

We read our Bible.

But we didn’t respond to it.

James says that the person who hears, but doesn’t act is deceived.

When you think of a deception, most of the time you think of a deceiver.

You think of a con man.

Someone who sells you a sack of lies.

He promises the moon.

He swindles you.

But in this instance, it’s not someone else who deceives you.

It’s not an outside deception.

It’s not a lie from the outside.

James says, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”

Who’s doing the deceiving?

It’s yourself.

We act as if God needs our Bible reading or our church attendance.

He doesn’t need it.

He owns the cattle on a thousand hills.

He needs nothing.

He takes no pleasure in spiritual deeds from the person who is a hearer only.

But you see, God doesn’t need your spiritual actions.

He needs nothing.

He has the cattle on a thousand hills.

And if you think these actions make you right, you’re deceived.

Look

How do you know that you are deceived?

Ask yourself this, when was the last time you were convicted by God’s Word?

If you are never convicted, this is a sign that you’ve grown spiritually proud.

You’ve forgotten what it’s like to be challenged by God and His Word.

Here’s a second question, when you hear God’s Word are you thinking more about others or yourself?

The hearer, thinks himself or herself on a higher plane than everybody else.

They are deceived

He no longer needs to pursue God.

He no longer needs discipline.

He no longer needs to be sanctified.

But everyone else does.

He is deceived.

God isn’t looking for you to simply hear His Word.

Think of your friendships or your marriage.

You don’t just want someone in the house with you.

You want to interact with someone.

You want to engage them.

Ask them a question, have them answer.

Tell them your thoughts, and them respond.

You want to hear their thoughts, and then respond back.

This is what God is calling for.

God saved a people so they would be His people.

The church is His bride.

Christ died for us so that we could have a relationship with Him.

James then gives a blessing to Doers.

I grew up playing baseball.

When I was about 12 years old, I was on the Giants.

I was the smallest one on the team.

I ran the slowest.

I threw the weakest.

I swung the bat the poorest.

I couldn’t throw a baseball as hard as kids my age.

This meant, I was the last to play.

I couldn’t run as fast as other kids my age.

There were some games that I didn’t get to play at all.

My dad was furious.

He was my biggest cheerleader.

He’d go to my games wanting to see me play, and for me not to play … he raged.

He was angry at my coach that he wouldn’t put me in the game.

He wanted to see me play.

This is what God desires of you.

Strangely, when it comes to applying biblical truths, many times we act as if we’ve been benched.

As if we are on the sidelines, just watching.

As if no one wants us in the game.

But this isn’t at all what God desires.

He wants us active.

Verse 22, tells us what God wants.

He begins verse 22 with a command.

“But be doers of the word.”

Get off the sidelines.

Get off the bench.

Naturally, we are watchers.

Get in the game.

We like to observe.

Stop watching.

Put into practice what you’ve learned.

It’s actually a command.

“Become doers of the word.”

But God has bigger plans for you.

There is this expectation that you participate, that you respond.

James gives us 4 descriptions of the doer.

First, the doer gazes deep into God’s Word.

Look at verse 25, “But the one who looks into the perfect law.”

Verse 25 uses a different word for looking then what you see in verse 23 and 24.

In verse 23 and 24, the hearer, looks at the law, but it’s only a passing glance.

It’s brief.

Then in verse 25 he says to parakupto into the perfect law.

That means to bend over and to look deeply into something.

Remember back in the 90’s those weird 3d pictures.

They were filled with some strange colorful design.

You couldn’t see it just by looking at it in a passing glance.

You were told to look through it.

So you had to unfocus your eyes, and gaze through the picture.

After staring at it for eternity, you’d end up seeing a boat or the statue of liberty.

This is how we look into God’s Word.

To pull out your magnifying glass, and to play the role of detective.

To look deep into it.

This is like the scientist who observes a newly discovered species.

When an animal is discovered, they observe everything.

They look at the skin, the hair, the skeletal structure.

They look at the direction of the hair follicles.

They look at the placement of the eyes.

They look at where the organs are.

And the more the scientist looks at it, the more is seen, and the more they understand this piece of God’s creation.

And the more you look into God’s Word, the more beauty you find in it.

That’s what James is talking about.

.

He describes the word as the perfect law, the law of liberty.

There is some debate over what this law is that he’s talking about.

This isn’t the Mosaic law.

The Mosaic law brought death.

It condemned.

It showed you your sin, and it condemned you in your sin.

It told you that you deserved Hell.

James is describing something different.

Back in verse 18, it is called the word of truth.

Then in verse 21, it’s called the implanted word.

John calls Jesus the Word made flesh.

This perfect law, this law of liberty is:

Is the Gospel.

This is the New Covenant.

This perfect law of liberty that James is describing promises life.

It doesn’t promise death.

The Mosaic Law promised death.

This one promises life.

But understand that this new law is life changing.

James describes this new law as perfect.

This is the third time in the chapter that James has used the word perfect.

This new law brings about maturity.

Previously it brought about judgment.

Now it brings a change.

You are made complete.

As you gaze into God’s law, you should see that something has changed within you.

Previously, the law said, “Here’s what your missing.”

Righteousness.

You have sinned.

You’ve earned Hell.

But as you look into the Gospel, you see how God has completed you.

The Gospel changes you from within.

says that God writes His law upon your heart.

This new law shows how God has changed you.

It showed how you have failed.

This new law shows how God has changed you.

Don’t you see this to be true within you.

In the Gospel, in conversion, you see how God changes your heart.

You now desire to do what is pleasing to Him.

And James describes it as perfect and freeing.

This is the third time in this chapter that James has used the word perfect.

This is the word for completeness or maturity.

God’s word is meant to bring about maturity.

As you gaze into God’s Word, it should do something to you.

It should make you complete.

It shouldn’t leave you as it found you.

It’s also called the law of liberty.

Liberty is freedom.

Not only do you gaze into the law, but you persevere.

This becomes the main idea of the passage.

You look at God’s Word, and you remain in God’s Word, and you remember God’s Word.

You persevere in God’s Word.

The person who is deceived, looks into the mirror and forgets what he saw.

The person who is deceived, says, “That was a nice sermon, and then quickly forgets what he heard.”

Here, James says you persevere.

This is different from endurance.

This means to stay somewhere.

This perseverance has to do with your location.

You remain in a situation.

You remain in a condition.

You continue doing something.

The person that God is looking for is the one who looks into the word, is convicted by the Word of God and remain in this state.

He says that we are to

Maybe you’re familiar with Israel in the Wilderness.

God freed them from Egypt.

They are in the Wilderness.

They go to Sinai.

Moses goes up the mountain and receives the Law from God.

Before he even gets to deliver the law to the nation, they fall into sin.

They worship the golden calf.

One generation perishes in the wilderness.

40 years later, just before Moses’ death, he gives his farewell address.

The book of Deuteronomy is Moses retelling Israel’s history and God’s law to the people.

Deuteronomy is a reminder to continue to be convicted by the word of God.

Then Moses dies.

The leadership of the nation is passed on to Joshua.

God appears to Joshua in the beginning of , and gives this command beginning in verse 6.

“Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

The advice is exactly what we are seeing here in James.

Don’t let the Book of the law depart from your mouth.

Meditate on it day and night.

Don’t forget what you read.

Don’t forget what you hear.

Persevere in your conviction.

James then explains what it means to remain, to persevere or to remain in a condition of conviction - you act.

“being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts.”

You hear truth, then you act on truth.

Think back on phases of your life.

When you were a kid, maybe you collected baseball cards, dolls or comics.

You went through phases where you did things.

You played sports, worked out, or did crafts.

There have been seasons of your life where you did certain things, then for whatever reason, you outgrew them, you moved on.

James is not describing a season of Christian conviction.

Your Christian conviction should not be like the phases of the past.

You continue to mediate on God’s Word.

You continue to hold to God’s Word.

And continue to you obey God’s Word.

James is stressing that the Good news of the Gospel brings with it the unavoidable understanding, that if you are truly converted you obey.

Obedience is the fruit of a life that has been changed.

If you understand:

Who God is.

What your sin is.

Who Christ is.

Then you will obey.

In his Institutes of the Christian Religion, John Calvin said, “Obedience is the mother of true knowledge of God.”

You know the Gospel.

You will obey.

A great tragedy has happened in the church today.

People are rightly told of the Gospel.

But they are never told about Who Christ is.

They are never told that He is a King.

They are never told that He is Lord.

Becoming a Christian is no different than choosing a new clothing style.

But there is no inward change.

Jesus never promoted some idea of easy believism.

In He said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,”

If someone says they follow Christ … they will obey.

says, “Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,”

If you call Jesus Lord and Savior of your life, then there must be obedience.

Hearing something like this probably sounds like legalism to our ears that have been tickled for so long.

Too often people are told, God wants you just the way you are.

Don’t change.

You probably have some specific things that you have been convicted on.

It’s time to act on them.

Imagine having a sit down conversation with Christ.

And you get to talk about your religion.

Imagine saying, “Jesus, we at Southwest love your Word. As a matter of fact, Lord, we have had Bible study every Wednesday night. We even break up into small groups and discuss many of the things you wrote. Some of the things were really interesting. You’ll be pleased to know that a few of us have actually committed to memory some of your sentences. Great stuff in those letters!”

What would Jesus say?

“Okay, you got my letters, you studied them and meditated on them, discussed and even memorized them. BUT WHAT DID YOU DO ABOUT THEM?”

Southwest where can we improve in our obedience?

Where can you improve?

How can we become doers of the word?

I’d throw out 3 things to start with.

We have been commanded to make disciples.

Let’s make disciples.

Encourage people to follow Christ.

Become a part of Gospel to the Valley.

There’s a seat for you in the mall evangelism.

But also, take someone under your wing and help them follow Christ better.

Spend more time drinking coffee with others, talking about things that matter.

Second, we could do a better job encouraging one another.

I’ll take the blame on this.

The Mosaic law brings death.

This perfect law of liberty is obeyed because of the promise of life.

It’s not out of fear it’s out of promise

They are blessed

I’m sarcastic.

I joke around a lot.

I have to apologize for my sense of humor, because I think I’m funnier than I am.

Let’s spend more time encouraging others behind their backs, then tearing them down behind their backs.

Thirdly, take seriously the gathering of the saints.

If there is an opportunity for us to be together … let’s be together.

CU should be packed.

View it as a time to be with other.

Wednesdays should be packed.

Jason does a great job teaching.

I love our discussion groups afterwards.

I love hearing how God’s word has impacted you.

Sundays should be packed.

If you aren’t here on Sunday, that means something is more important than Christ.

And brings others with you.

That’s part of discipleship.

It’s establishing the church.

The fourth description of the doer is found at the very end of our passage, “he will be blessed in his doing.”

The doer is blessed.

I think it’s amazing how Jesus works.

Everything He tells us to do, ends up being for our benefit.

In , Jesus said, “If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”

So what’s the blessing in doing?

This obedience is different from the Mosaic law.

The Old Testament law, showed you sin.

If you sin, then you expect death.

Therefore, the Mosaic law brought death.

What’s new in the New Covenant? What’s new about this law?

This perfect law of liberty brings life.

God changes your heart.

God puts His law upon your heart.

And now, you obey because of a promsie.

It’s out of gratitude.

It’s out of a new understanding of who Christ is.

It’s not out of fear of punishment; it’s because we look forward to what has been promised already.

James says you are blessed in your doing.

The blessing is confirming that the Lord has done something within you, because you see it.

The blessing is that you know that you belong to Christ.

The blessing is that you have an assurance that Christ has truly worked in your life.

The blessing is there is visible fruit that the Lord has converted you.

Have you ever thanked someone for something, and they say, “It wasn’t me it was the Lord.”

In a sense that’s true.

Whatever it is they did, is evidence that the Lord has done something within them.

When you walk in obedience, you are showing that the Lord has done something in you.

And this becomes evidence.

This becomes a blessing.

Not as something to boast in of yourself.

But as something to boast in God about.

Within the Church there are two groups of people.

There are those who are hearers only.

They are content in their hearing.

They take up seats in the church.

But there is no change.

James says these people are deceived.

Then there are those who hear and do.

You who hear and do have great promises.

You see the truth and you find beauty in it.

You persevere in it.

You meditate on it.

You remain in a position of constantly being challenged by the Lord.

You act.

The word of God becomes alive within your life.

And you are blessed.

Because you experience the Gospel, as the Lord confirms His work in your life by your obeying.

If your walk with Christ has grown stale, perhaps you’ve become a hearer and not a doer.

Maybe, you’ve started auditing the truth, rather than being a student of the truth.

The Reformers had a series of slogans.

Sola gratia - grace alone

Sola fide - faith alone

Sola Scriptura - Scripture alone

Solus Christus - Christ alone

Soli Deo gloria - Glory to God alone.

There was a 6th slogan that isn’t talked about much, sola reformanda.

This means always reforming.

It means to never think you’ve made it, but to continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

Knowing that the Lord continues to work in you

I love buffalo wings.

And I’m also a messy eater when it comes to them.

I get the orange sauce all over the place.

It stains my finger tips.

It is on my clothes.

I’d love to be praying for you.

It gets on my face.

And it dries.

We went out to eat, and of course I got it on my face.

A couple people told me I had it on my face.

I got in the car, and I saw my face and it made me laugh.

Would you do me a favor?

On my way home, I had to stop off at the store.

Went into the store.

I got a couple funny looks, but didn’t think anything of it.

I got home, and Amanda pointed out that I had dried buffalo sauce on my face.

People had warned me about it.

Send me an email.

I had seen my dirty face in the mirror’s reflection.

In that email, tell me where you have been convicted to start putting into action what you’ve read.

But I had forgotten all about it.

I’ll send it on to the rest of the elders.

I never applied what I saw.

I never cleaned up my face.

We’d like to be praying for you and encouraging you as you work out the work that God has done within you.

I don’t want you to audit God’s Word.

We do the same thing with our spiritual lives.

says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”

I want you to graduate as someone who’s qualified.

Who has no need to be ashamed.