Just a Spectator

James 1:22 Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

I have heard a few thousand sermons in my life. I have forgotten most of them, not because they were unworthy of memory but because I have just been a hearer (and forgetter). James said however, that I am not to be just a hearer or a spectator. If I am a Christian, I am to be a doer. My greatest destruction in life has come to pass, not because I was ignorant of the truth, but because I have not been obedient to that truth.

There are those of course, who believe that if we simply know the truth that our actions will automatically follow. They believe that behavior is a byproduct of knowledge, so, they teach the truth in hope that once everyone knows it, bad behavior will end.

James however, knew us better than that. He knew that the truth, while necessary, is just a stepping-stone. He knew that without the second step of doing, the first step is just useless, prideful knowledge.

When I choose to do wrong, it is rarely out of ignorance. When I overeat, indulge in pride, get angry, gossip, or follow self, it is not because I have not been taught (a thousand times) that I am not to do this. I know what is right. I just want what is wrong more. My problem is not knowledge. It is obedience.

So what am I to do? How do I move from being a spectator of Christianity to being a doer of Christianity? I have many times read the bible for five minutes in the morning, only to walk away and live the rest of my day according to what Scott wants. The challenge is to hear the word and then decide that I am going to do it. I need to take it with me, meditating on it, choosing to do something about it today. It is my daily choice.

James said the one who hears only is like a man who looks in a mirror and then walks away and forgets what he looks like. I do not want to forget what I have seen and heard. I want to be a doer of Christianity, not just a spectator.