"Are you a hearer only?"
James 1:22-25
Sunday, February 3, 2013

Introduction: Listening is something we have to work at, it isn’t something that just happens. Even though we have ears that have the capability of hearing, it doesn’t mean that we are really listening. There are times when Tami is talking to me, and I am reading the paper, or watching the TV, and I don’t hear the words she is saying. It is only after she gets my attention and repeats what she said that I listen to her, and can respond to her!

            Jesus often said the words, “For those who have ears to hear…” Meaning, that as Jesus taught the people, He knew that there would be some who would not really hear what He said. To listen then is to be able to understand what is said, and then be willing to put it into practice.

            This morning I want to talk about being more than a hearer, but being a doer as well. The truth is, unless we are doers, then our faith is in vain! If we are only hearers, then we deceive ourselves and we really don’t live a Christian life.

I.                   Listening, but not doing- (1 Corinthians 13:12; James 1:22-24)

a.      Looking in a mirror- The apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:12,

“Now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.” Sometimes when Tami and I are getting ready for the day we are both standing in front of the mirror. When we talk to each other we look at each other in the mirror, instead of face to face. When I realize I’m doing this, I immediately stop and turn to look at her. Why do I do this? Because when I’m looking at her in the mirror, I am not fully seeing her, I’m just seeing her reflection. I also realize that I would rather be talking to her, than to her reflection. How weird it would be if I had to always talk to her through her reflection?!

            The spiritual life can often be like this. God is not physically present here, so we see God as in a reflection. We will not fully know God and see God until we go to be with God in heaven. However, the beauty is that we can see God some: we see God through the love that is shared. We see God through the life of Jesus. We see God through the miracles He does.

            James tells us in verses 23-24, “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.” If I were to ask you to describe all the details of your physical body, how well could you do it? We look at ourselves all the time in the mirror, but we don’t really take in the details. James tells us that this is what it is like when we read or listen to the word of God, but don’t put it into practice. We might hear for a moment, but then we put it out of our minds and don’t apply it to our lives! This is a common practice for people, not living according to what they say they believe.  

            Why does this happen? Because other things in life become more important than living according to God’s word. The world infiltrates our thinking, and causes us to forget how God wants us to live. We are too busy, and just try to get by the best we can. The teaching of the Bible is too challenging for us, and so we put it out of our minds. We might listen for a time, but then when we are done listening, it makes no long-term impact in the way we live our lives. We become hearers, but not doers.

b.      Forgetting what you see and hear- (After you get done reading this illustration, you need to highlight the blank section with your cursor to read. For some reason blogspot didn't show it correctly).  Ex. A.A.A.D.D.- Have you ever

heard of A.A.A.D.D.? It is known as Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder. This is how it works… I decide to wash the car; I start toward the garage and notice the mail on the table. OK, I'm going to wash the car. But first I'm going to go through the mail. I lay the car keys down on the desk and take the trash can out, but since I'm going to be near the mailbox anyway, I'll pay these few bills first. Now, where is my checkbook? Oops, there's only one check left. My extra checks are in my desk...Oh, there's the coke I was drinking. I'm going to to look for those checks. But first I need to put my coke further away from the computer, or maybe I'll pop it into the fridge to keep it cold for a while...I head towards the kitchen and my flowers catch my eye, they need some water. I set the coke on the counter, and Oh! there are my glasses. I was looking for them all morning! I'd better put them away first...I fill a container with water and head for the flower pots--Aaaaagh! Someone left the TV remote in the kitchen. We'll never think to look in the kitchen tonight when we watch television, so I'd better put it back in the family room where it belongs. I splash some water into the pots and onto the floor, I throw the remote onto a soft cushion on the sofa and I head back down the hall trying to figure out  what it was I was going to do? At the end of the day: The car isn't washed, the bills are unpaid, the coke is sitting on the kitchen counter, the flowers are half watered, the checkbook still only has one check in it, and I can't seem to find my car keys! When I try to figure out how come nothing got done today, I'm baffled because I KNOW I WAS BUSY ALL DAY LONG!! I realize this is a serious condition and I'll get help, BUT FIRST I think I'll check my e-mail. 

Now, this isn’t just an age problem, because no matter what age you are, you can have these kind of scenarios arise. What really is going on here is a distraction problem. This is what happens to people all the time spiritually. They say they are going to be more loving, but then they get distracted by the person who cuts them off while they are driving, and they start to think about rude drivers. Then the kids are fighting in the back seat, and they start to think about quieting down their kids. Then the cell phone rings, and they answer it (using their hands free bluetooth of course!), and they get caught up in the phone call. All the while forgetting about being more loving.

            OR, the sermon you heard last week really spoke to you. What did Pastor Chris say again? You can’t remember so you go to check your outline (which you saved of course), and see that I was talking about praying to God to keep us from evil. You commit yourself to staying the course for God and keeping yourself from Satan’s evil ways. But then the week goes along and work is very challenging. The bills are making the finances tight. Your time gets away from you and you aren’t getting everything done. Your prayer time gets squeezed out, and the memories of the sermon are long gone!!

            James 1:23-24, “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.”

II.                   Listening, and doing- (Psalm 19:7; Galatians 3:10-11, 19, 23-24;

James 1:25, 2:10)

a.      Looking at the perfect law- The law is not always well liked, because it

can cause us to think that we are being told what to do, and we don’t like to be told what to do. We like to have our freedom and make our own choices! Now of course, there are laws that border on the ridiculous. For ex…In Alabama It is illegal to sell peanuts in Lee County after sundown on Wednesday; It is illegal to wear a fake moustache that causes laughter in church. In California It’s unlawful to let a dog pursue a bear or bobcat at any time; Sunshine is guaranteed to the masses; Women may not drive in a house coat; No vehicle without a driver may exceed 60 miles per hour. And on and on these silly laws go from state to state to state!

            We also need to understand that the law is not what brings salvation. The Apostle Paul was clear about this when he said in Galatians 3:10-11, “For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.’ ¹¹ Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.” Meaning, that if you cannot fully live up to the law and perfectly do everything the law tells you to do, then you cannot be saved. Or as James says in James 2:10, “For whoever keeps the whole law, and yet stumbles on one point, he has become guilty of all.” To be a keeper of the law means you must keep it all. To break one rule of the law is to break the whole law!

            And yet, the law is beneficial, as the psalmist says in Psalm 19:7- “The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul…” The law also gives us guidance and direction. The law is what helps us to understand that we cannot be saved by our own doing, but only by the saving grace of Jesus Christ. We are told in Galatians 3:19, 23-24, “Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgression… Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. ²⁴ So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith.”

            The Bible tells us that even Abraham, who was given the covenant from God, was saved by a righteousness through faith, not through the law! So it is actually the law that makes us free, because it leads us to Christ who saves us from the law and from sin. The law helps us to understand how we are to live.

b.      Blessed by what you do- As James 1:25 says, “But whoever looks

intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.” We are told to not forget what we have heard. How do we show that we don’t forget what we have heard? By the way we live our lives; by our actions!

            The book of James, in the New Testament, is filled with the idea that it is not enough to just have faith. James tells us that if we have faith, but that faith cannot be seen through our actions, then this faith is not real, but it dead. Jesus Himself lets us know that we can say we have faith, but when we get to heaven He will tell us that He never knew us!

Saying you believe something doesn’t prove that you believe it. What proves your believe is your actions. This is because what we really believe affects our thinking, and our emotions, and ultimately changes how we behave.

EX. A father wanted to read a magazine but was being bothered by his little girl.
She wanted to know what the United States looked like.  Finally, he tore a sheet out of his new magazine on which was printed the map of the country. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to her and said, 'Go into the other room and see if you can put this together. He thought that would keep her busy for a long time. However, after a few minutes, she returned and handed him the map, correctly fitted and taped together.
The father was surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly. 'Oh,' she said, 'on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got all of Jesus back where He belonged, Then the map came together.'

            This is a great example of where Jesus fits in. You can follow the law without love. You can follow the law without compassion. You can follow the law without being a giving person. Without Jesus, we lack so much; we just don’t fit together the way we are supposed to. Jesus helps us to fit together with each other. Jesus helps the law and faith fit together. Jesus helps us to understand the importance of really listening. Jesus teaches us what we need to do, and how we need to live. We need to hear Jesus’ teaching, and we need to put it into practice!

Conclusion: When Jesus says, “Those who have ears to hear,” what does this say to you? It should say that Jesus knew we have a problem with hearing something, but not following through on it. Jesus knows that we can think we have learned something, but then our actions show that we didn’t learn it. Jesus knows that we might think we are listening, but then forget it.

            Are you a hearer only? That question is not one that is to be answered with our mouths, but with our lifestyle. In chapter 2 of the book of James, he says in verse 18: “Someone may well say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” People should be able to know that you are a Christian just by the way you live, and love, and forgive, and care for the needs of others. Whenever you read the Bible, or listen to a sermon, or participate in a Bible study, or memorize a verse of scripture, you should do it with the intent to take it to heart, and allow it to make you more like Jesus.

            Don’t be just a hearer, BE A DOER. Amen.