by Kevin Burton
I hope you make a point of attending a church that preaches the true gospel message, and I hope that message sinks in.
A good preacher will engage the audience and could be said to be entertaining. But God’s word is not given out for entertainment purposes.
A good sermon should be labelled, “action required.” Here’s how James put it:
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 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 22-25 NKJV).
I’ve written about my Bible memory verses a few times on Page 7. I am up to 38 sets of verses, 11 to a set. On a good day I can recite most of the verses on the first try.
Bible memorization is a good practice because you will have the verses on the tip of your tongue when you are witnessing to unbelievers or encouraging fellow believers.
That’s all well and good. But in the Jamesian sense, would I be closer to a hearer or a doer of the word? Am a better at memorizing the Bible or following instructions?
Action required is the thrust of a recent message from Alistair Begg, speaker on the Truth For Life radio ministry. We don’t cover new ground here, but it’s an excellent reminder for the likes of me, and maybe you too.
“If we have received Christ Himself in our inmost hearts, our new life will display its intimate acquaintance with Him by a walk of faith in Him,” Begg writes. “Walking implies action. Our Christian life is not to be confined to our closet; our belief must be revealed in our practice.”
“If a man walks in Christ, then he must act as Christ would act; since Christ is in him—his hope, his love, his joy, his life—he is the reflection of the image of Jesus; and men will say of that man, ‘He is like his Master; he lives like Jesus Christ.’”
“Walking signifies progress, so walk in him. Proceed from grace to grace; run forward until you reach the ultimate degree of knowledge that a man can attain concerning Christ. Walking implies continuance. There must be a continual abiding in Christ,” Begg writes.
“Many Christians think that in the morning and evening they ought to come into the company of Jesus, but regard the rest of the day as their own: But this is poor living; we should always be with Him, treading in His steps and doing His will.”
“Walking also implies habit. When we speak of a man’s walk and conversation, we mean his habits, the constant theme of his life. Now, if we sometimes enjoy Christ and then forget Him, sometimes call Him ours and then lose our hold, that is not a habit; we do not walk in Him. We must keep to Him, cling to Him, never let Him go, but live and have our being in Him.”
“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him. Persevere in the same way in which you began. And, just as at the beginning Christ Jesus was the trust of your faith, the source of your life, the principle of your action, and the joy of your spirit, so let Him be the same until life’s end, the same when you walk through the valley of the shadow of death and enter into the joy and the rest that remain for the people of God,” Begg writes.
“O Holy Spirit, enable us to obey this heavenly precept.”
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