Be Doers of the Word

Intro: Imagine a World with Only Hearers & No Doers.

A Lot of Unmet Quarterly Goals & Upset Bosses.

A Lot of Workouts That Never Happened.

A Lot of School Assignments That Were Never Turned In.

A Lot of Honey-Do Lists That Were Left Undone.

When We Say: “Didn’t You Hear Me?” We Imply That We Expected Something to Be Done.

I. Hearing is Important.

Faith Comes By Hearing (Rom 10:17).

Faith is the Gift of God.

It is Our Trust in the Merits of Jesus to Save Us & Bring Us Into the Family of God.

We are Saved By Grace Through Faith ALONE.

Faith is the Foundation for This Sermon.

Don’t Move to DOING Before You First BELIEVE: Not Looking for a Bunch of Anxious Do-Gooders.

But, Hearing Isn’t Everything

Illustration: Buddy Rich Drum Solo Transcription: Not Enough to Hear It: Need to Play It.

II. Hearing Alone is Not Enough.

We Deceive Ourselves if We Think that Hearing is All There is.

James’ Mirror Analogy:

We Have Mirrors All Around Us Every Day (Even Our Phones).

Mirrors Were Rare in the First Century: People Rarely Saw Themselves.

It Would Be Easy to Forget What You Looked Like.

James Warns Against Forgetting What You Hear.

When the Holy Spirit Shows You Something in Scripture, Don’t Wait to Apply It.

Don’t Settle for a Do-Nothing Faith: A Do-Nothing Faith is No Faith At All.

Jesus is Clear About This:

Matt. 7:26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.

Matt. 7:21 Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Doing is the Evidence of Faith: Faith Can Only Be Seen When It Is Put Into Action.

III. What We Do is Evidence of What We Believe.

Why Be Doers of the Word?

The Law is Perfect: When We Become Doers, We Become Like Our God.

The Law Brings Freedom: When We Become Doers, We Gain Freedom.

The Law Brings Blessing: When We Become Doers, We are Blessed.

What Does This Look Like in Practice?

Look Intently.

TV Show/Movie: Plane Crash in Ocean: Frantically Look for Something that Floats.

Personal Story: Feeling of Judgment After Reading Book of Leviticus. Rest in Grace.

You Look Intently on that Which You Think Will Save You.

Continue to Do What You See.

Who Should We Look to as an Example?

Jesus was a Doer & Not Only a Hearer.

In the Incarnation, Jesus Did Something.

In His Life… His Death… His Resurrection… Jesus Did Something.

Now, Reigning on High… Jesus is Still Doing Something.

Closing: Imagine a Church with Only Hearers & No Doers.

Now, Imagine a Church of Doers.