Blessings From The Bible
In America we can find Bibles everywhere. They are for sale in grocery stores, drug stores and of course book stores. They are available in all shapes and sizes. Some of them are paper bound and others are leather bound. Some of them now even look like magazines. Last year there were over 500 million Bibles published in the world in over 18,000 different languages.
Today in America we have the Bible available more than any other time in the history of our country – yet millions of people still miss the blessings that the Bible can give. Why? Because receiving the blessings of the Bible is not automatic. Let me be clear on this – the Bible IS a book of blessing. It promises to give you comfort, strength, hope, wisdom, joy, power and purpose for living. But just because you own a Bible doesn’t mean that you’re going to get any benefit from it. You must be a doer of the Word and not just a hearer.
We have been conducting a study through the book of James. James is a very practical book and James tells us how we can get “Blessings From The Bible”. Follow along with me as I read verse twenty five of chapter one:
“He who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” James 1:25 (NKJV)
James here is talking about reading, studying and following the guidelines of the Bible. He calls the Bible the: “Perfect Law of Liberty”. It is the Perfect Law of Liberty because it promises us freedom and blessings. It has exactly what we need. James gives us three steps to get a blessing from the Bible.
Step One: I Must RECEIVE God’s Word
Let’s read James chapter one verse twenty one. James says:
“Lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” James 1:21 (NKJV)
Go ahead and circle the word “receive”. It is translated in some versions of the Bible as “accept”. This word in Greek is a term of hospitality. It means “to welcome”. In other words – it means “come on in”. If we are going to be blessed by the Word of God – we must first welcome the Word of God into our lives. We must accept it. We must receive it. We must be receptive.
But notice that James gives us two conditions in verse twenty one on how we are to be receptive.
Condition One: Be CLEAN
Condition Two: Be TEACHABLE
Let’s spend some time on each of these. Let’s look first at being clean.
Go ahead and circle the phrase: “Lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness”. James is telling us here that we need to be clean before the Word can be “implanted” into our lives.
Before you can plant any seed in the ground – you need to prepare the soil. You need to do some weeding. You need to make the ground ready for the seed to come. Jesus talked about this when He told the parable in Matthew chapter thirteen:
"Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" Matthew 13:3-9 (NKJV)
James tells us that we need to prepare the soil for the seed to have the most production. Go ahead and look at verse twenty one again and circle the word “filthiness”. James tells us to lay aside all filthiness. The word “filthiness” in the Greek actually means – earwax. When you have earwax in your ears – it blocks your hearing. When you have sin in your life – it blocks your receiving a blessing from God. It prevents God’s word from getting into your heart. James is telling us to get rid of the filth that is in our lives. Get rid of anything that will keep us from hearing the Word of God. The Bible says, “Get rid of all the emotional garbage, the old habits, the junk in your life – so you can hear clearly what God has to say to you.”
How do we clean up the filth that is in our lives? By confession. The Bible says:
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 (NKJV)
We need to prepare the soil of our hearts so that we can receive God’s Word. So that it can be “implanted” into our lives.
Remember I said that there were two conditions to be able to receive God’s Word? The first is be clean. The second is be teachable.
Let’s read verse twenty one again:
“Lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” James 1:21 (NKJV)
Circle the word “meekness”. Meekness is not weakness. Most people seem to think that meek means weak, a spineless person without any backbone at all. But in the original language, the word “meek” is the same word that is used in bridling a horse, or taming a wild animal. In other words – meekness involves the process the teaching or training the animal. It is not that the animal has become “powerless” – but that the power of the animal has been brought under the control of the trainer. So, in the Christian realm, when we talk about a meek person, we’re not talking about a spineless wimp. We are talking about a person whose life has been brought under the influence of the Holy Spirit, and God is in control of his or her life.
In other words:
Meekness = power under CONTROL
In order to receive the Word of God James tells us that we must be clean and we must be teachable before we are ready to receive the blessings that God has in store for us.
Step Two: I Must REFLECT On God’s Word
Let’s look at verses twenty three through twenty five. James says:
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” James 1:23-25 (NKJV)
James uses an illustration here. God’s Word is like a mirror. The purpose of a mirror is to help us see ourselves. It helps us evaluate ourselves. We use a mirror so that we can see – what we look like. We may not like what we see – but a mirror is a reflection of our outward appearance. God’s Word is like a mirror. It is to reflect what we are like on the inside. In the book of Hebrews it says:
“The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 (NKJV)
A lot of people don’t read the Bible because they’re afraid of what may happen to them. They are unwilling to see themselves as God sees them. They’re unwilling to face themselves and see themselves as they really are. They don’t want to look in the mirror of God’s Word.
James gives us three practical ways to reflect on the Word of God.
1. READ it.
The first practical way of reflecting on the Word of God is to read it.
Verse twenty five says:
“he who looks into the perfect law...” (v. 25)
In the Greek the word to “look” means “to stoop down and gaze in”. It’s the word that was used when Peter went to the tomb on the first Easter Sunday and saw that Jesus was not there. He stooped down and gazed in. He focused his attention and saw that the tomb was empty.
There are two ways that you can look into a mirror. You can glance at it or you can gaze at it. All of us have done both. The Bible tells us that as we read the Bible that is glancing at it - but we are to read the Bible intently - that is to gaze at it. We are to stoop down and investigate what is going on.
The second practical way to reflect on the Word of God – is to:
2. REVIEW it.
Verse twenty five also says:
“he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it”
James says we are to continue in it. In other words – we are to review it. That means we are to look at it – consider it – over and over and over again. The Bible calls this – meditation. Meditation is thinking about something over and over. If you know how to worry – you know how to meditate. Worry is thinking about your problems over and over. Meditation is thinking about God’s Word over and over. The Bible tells us to meditate on God’s Word. Jesus said, “if you continue in My Word, then you are truly My disciples.”
We are to read God’s Word – and we are to review God’s Word then we are to:
3. REMEMBER it.
Verse twenty five also warns us that we are to:
“not (to be) a forgetful hearer” (v. 25)
In other words – we are to remember God’s Word. We are to hearers of the God’s Word and remember it. One of the most important practices that a Christian can do is to memorize scripture. It will benefit your spiritual walk in ways you can’t even image. The Bible says, “Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.” Memorize God’s Word and you will be blessed by it.
But that is not enough:
STEP THREE: I Must RESPOND To God’s Word
In other words – I must put it into practice. James says:
“Be doers of the word, and not hearers only.” James 1:22 (NKJV)
Folks if you are a Christian – you have given your life to Christ. You have said, “Yes Lord I believe in You – I trust You – I will follow You.” What that means is that you have promised to do what Christ asks you to do. You have promised to listen to Him and to follow Him. Jesus said,
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27 (NKJV)
You can’t be a faithful Christian without following Christ. How do you know where to go and what to do unless you have a guide? You can only know where to go by following the voice of the Shepherd. "The Lord is my Shepherd - He lead’s me - He guides me." You can only be a faithful follower by doing what He has told you to do. God’s Word is here to guide you and lead you. The Bible says, “God’s Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” God has given you a tool of guidance – it is the Bible. We must read it – review it – and remember it – but most of all we must do what it says - we must put it into practice if we are to be faithful followers of Christ.
The Bible is not just a good book – it is “The Good Book” that has a purpose. Do you know what the purpose of the Bible is? The purpose of the Bible is to help you change your life. That is what a mirror does. You look into a mirror and you see your reflection. It shows you what needs to be fixed. It shows you what is out of order so you can make it right. All of us need a personal makeover. The Bible gives you a reflection of yourself and then it shows you how to make things better. Look at Romans chapter three with me:
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24 (ESV)
Folks all of us are in the same boat. All of us have sinned and fall short of what God expects from us – and no matter how hard we try we are going to fall short. It is only by the grace of God that any of us will be allowed into the gates of heaven.
Let me give you a practical example.
Jesus was never part of a mob. He was never part of a “bully bunch”. He never physically nor verbally beat up on people even though He had the opportunity to so.
Do you remember the story of the woman caught in adultery? It’s found in John chapter eight. It seems that a bunch of scribes and Pharisees found a woman in the very act of committing adultery. They became a “bully bunch”. They knew what she had done – and they knew the law. The law said that anyone who committed adultery was to be stoned to death.
They brought the woman to Jesus. They came to Him asking Him questions of the law – wanting Him to join their group - wanting Him to become part of the "bully bunch". He knew the law too. He knew what the Mosses had written. Yet He would have no part of a mob. He would have no part of a “bully bunch”. So He knelt down and began writing in the dirt. What He wrote – we do not know.
The mob pressed Him harder. The mob wanted an answer – they wanted action – so He stood up and said, “The sinless one among you, go ahead and throw the first stone.” Then He stooped down and wrote in the dirt again. As I said before - we don’t know what He wrote – but when He stood up the second time “bully bunch” was gone. Not one of them was without sin. Not one stone was thrown.
Folks – here is a fact – all of us could be put in the center of a circle and have rocks thrown at us because of what we have done. All of us are sinners. All of us are guilty. No – perhaps we have not committed adultery – yet again maybe you have. But all of us have sinned - that’s exactly what the Bible tells us. "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." All of us have lied in one form or another. All of us have taken something that doesn’t to us. All of us have had desires that are outside the will of God. Some of us have treated people with cruelty. Some of us have treated people unfairly. Some of us have been a part of a "bully bunch". Because you see – all of us have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We have all been off base - we have all missed the mark - we all have fallen short at some time in our lives.
I’m glad that Jesus never joined a “bully bunch”. I’m glad that He never became part of a mob. When Jesus finished writing in the dirt - He stood up and the mob was gone. The “bully bunch” had disappeared. Then He looked at the woman and he saw a person who had made a mistake - a person who had messed up her life - a person who needed a friend and forgiveness. And He said to her, “I don’t condemn you. Go and sin no more.”
I’m glad that Jesus was never part a mob. I’m glad that Jesus was never a part of a “bully bunch”. I’m glad that when I fall down – He picks me up. That He dusts me off. That He sends me on my way and says, “Be careful. Watch out. Watch your step. Because I love you.” And He can do the same for you - if you will let Him.
If He treats us like that – how should we treat one another? How should we respond when someone around us falls - when someone around us stumbles - when someone around us has messed up and is hurting? Let us do what Jesus did - He loved people - He picked them up - He dusted them off - He warned them - He encouraged them and He sent them on their way. Let us be doers of the Word and not just hearers. Amen!
(Special thanks to Richard Warren for his sermon “How To Be Blessed By The Bible” which inspired this sermon.)
