“Merely hearing God’s law is a waste of your time if you don’t do what he commands. Doing, not hearing, is what makes the difference with God.”
— Romans 2:13 (MSG)
Maybe you know a girl in Sunday school who listens attentively. Yet at school, she acts stuck-up, tells dirty jokes, and behaves totally differently. What’s going on? According to Romans, she’s wasting her time at church because the words are going in one ear and out the other. Unless it changes your attitude and behavior — unless you actually DO what the Bible says — your church attendance won’t make any difference to God.
Are you that person yourself? Maybe you’re not phony. Maybe you fully intend to do what God’s Word says, like forgiving that person who gossiped about you, or being patient with your little brother. You haven’t done it yet because it’s too hard or you don’t have time. Be careful that you aren’t proud of all your Bible knowledge, but then fail to put it into practice. So what if you can recite whole books of the Bible from memory, if you don’t obey any of it? God would prefer that you know only three verses, if you actually put them into practice.
Be a doer of the Word, and not a hearer only.
More to Explore: James 1:22
Girl Talk: Do you know what God’s Word says, but aren’t following it? How hard do you try to put God’s Word into practice?
God Talk: “Lord, I know I don’t always do what I say I do. Please help me to do what you want me to do, not just read about it. Amen.”
From No Boys Allowed by Kristi Holl