hear-and-do

6 · Diagnoses the contemporary cultural problem: Christians in the information age have developed a dangerous tolerance for accumulating biblical knowledge without application, making James's warning against being hearers-only particularly urgent today

I think this is such a relevant passage for us. So, I mean, I don't know you and what's going on in your life. I mean, as Christians in general in, in the U.S. today, I think it's such a relevant passage because it's about not merely receiving information about God without acting on it. And we are in an age where we are inundated with information, information about God— Bible studies, books, podcasts, YouTube clips, uh, Facebook quotes that people are putting up, what they're learning about the Lord. We just have so much information, blogs about the Bible and Christian truth, so we can become adept at gathering information without making application. We have a very— I have a very high tolerance for receiving information about the Lord and not acting on it. Just taking it in, sort of passively funneling it through. And yet that is a very dangerous thing according to James here.

7 · Signals a shift from exposition to illustration by framing the passage as a warning and preparing the congregation for a narrative demonstration of the seriousness of hearing without doing

In some ways, this passage in James is a warning that he's really bringing. And just to kind of demonstrate the seriousness of this kind of neglect where we are hearers and not doers, I want to read to you a story.

8 · Introduces the source and context for an extended illustration from Chuck Swindoll, establishing the credibility of the borrowed material while acknowledging minor contemporary edits

This is, uh, this is taken from a story, uh, on this passage written by Chuck Swindoll, uh, who happens to preach God's Word just down the street from our church. He's an older gentleman who's still living and pastors in our town in Frisco, Texas. But this is what he wrote. I made a few edits because I think this book was written in the '70s, so like I took out the reference to disco and a few other things, but it's just— you'll be glad, glad to know. So I— it's slightly edited for today's audience, but the point he made in the '70s is very true.

9 · Presents Swindoll's extended hypothetical scenario of an absent business owner whose detailed instructions were studied, discussed, and memorized by employees who nevertheless did nothing, illustrating the absurdity of hearing without doing

This is what he wrote: Let's pretend that you work for me. In fact, you are my executive assistant in a company that is growing rapidly. I'm the owner, and I'm interested in expanding overseas. To pull this off, I make plans to travel abroad and stay there until the new branch office gets established. I make all the arrangements to take my family in the move to Europe for 6 to 8 months. And I leave you in charge of the busy stateside organization. I tell you that I will write you regularly and give you directions and instructions. You get the picture. You're the administrator. You're left behind to run the home office as the owner is away establishing a new office in Europe. I leave and you stay. Months pass. A flow of letters are mailed. Now, I know it would be emailed today, but this is much better that it's letters for the sake of the story. A flow of letters are mailed from Europe and received by you at the national headquarters. I spell out all my expectations. Finally, I return. Soon after my arrival, I drive down to the office. I am stunned. Grass and weeds have grown grown up high. A few windows along the street are broken. I walk into the receptionist's room where she is doing her nails, chewing gum, and listening to her favorite radio station. I look around and notice that wastebaskets are overflowing, the carpet hasn't been vacuumed for weeks, and nobody seems to care that the owner has returned. I ask about your whereabouts and someone says in the crowded lounge that you are down the hall, and that you are down the hall finishing a chess game with the sales manager. I ask you to step into my office, which has been temporarily turned into a television room for watching daytime TV. What in the world is going on? I say. What do you mean? you respond. Well, look at this place. Didn't you get any of my letters? Letters. Oh yeah, we got every one of them. As a matter of fact, we had a letter study every Friday night since you left. We have even divided the personnel into small groups and discussed many of the things you wrote. Some of those letters were really interesting. You'll be pleased to know that a few of us have actually committed to memory some of your sentences and paragraphs. One or two even memorized an entire letter. Great stuff in those letters. Okay, okay, you got my letters, you studied them, you discussed them, someone even memorized them, but what did you do about them? Do? Uh, we didn't do anything about them.

10 · Applies the Swindoll illustration directly to James's argument, making explicit the connection between the business scenario and the spiritual reality of hearing God's Word without obedient response

It's a telling illustration of being exposed to information without response, and that's what James is talking about in this passage of Scripture.

11 · Introduces the sermon's first major movement by stating the first of two main truths from the passage: hearing without doing produces self-deception

I really just want to share two ideas from the passage. The first one is that hearing without doing leads to deception. Hearing without doing leads to deception.

12 · Examines the grammatical structure of verse 22, noting that James places "doers" first in the Greek to emphasize obedient response as the true goal, even though hearing logically precedes doing

Look at verse 22: But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. The ESV translates this, puts doers of the Word first, and that's because that's actually what appears in James' writing, the original writing. He references doers first. Now you have to hear something in this story, in this letter. You have to hear something before you can do something, but doers is referenced first because that's really the emphasis of the passage. It's responding in obedience to God's Word. That's the emphasis.

13 · Clarifies that James affirms the necessity of hearing by referencing verse 19's command to be quick to hear, but maintains that hearing must lead to doing rather than remaining passive reception

Now he's not dismissing hearing, you have to hear as well, and that's why I read earlier verse 19, "Know this, my beloved, let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger." So he's probably talking about there more than the Scripture, that we're to be quick listeners, but he's certainly not talking about less than the Scripture. So we want to be quick hearers, eager hearers, but having heard, we're called to be doers and not what he calls as hearers only.

14 · Defines the contrast James makes: not between quality of listening but between the listener who responds in action versus the "hearer only" who does nothing, with the latter deceiving himself

Now, he's making a contrast here, and he's not making a contrast between being a good listener and a bad listener. That's not what he's talking about. He's contrasting a listener who acts with a listener who does nothing, what he calls a hearer only. And he says to the person that is a hearer but not a doer, what he calls a hearer only, verse 22, that person is deceiving himself or deceiving herself. The person who hears without action is deceiving themselves.

15 · Escalates the warning by showing the ironic tragedy: one can encounter God's infallible Word and nevertheless end up deceived—not because Scripture deceives but because the hearer-only deceives himself through non-response

That's alarming to me. I mean, that's very provocative language. But it's more than provocative, it's really alarming when you think about it because what he's saying there is that it's possible to listen to the Word of God, the infallible Word of God, the authoritative Word of God, the inerrant Word of God, the true. It's possible to actually read or listen to the true Word of God and end up being deceived. Not because the Word is deceptive, the Word is absolutely true in everything that it communicates. But he's saying the person who hears without acting leads himself into self-deception.

16 · Explains the mechanism of self-deception through a Puritan quotation: hearers-only mistake increased knowledge of God for increased maturity in God, wrongly equating information accumulation with transformation when these are fundamentally different realities

And so, the person who hears only is not growing in truth, no matter how much truth they're exposed to, but they're actually deceived. They are self-deceived. They deceive themselves by hearing only. The Puritan Thomas Manton wrote this, he said, "Men are easily deceived into a good opinion of themselves by their bare hearing." What does that mean? Well, I know this experience, and, and so do you, I'm sure, that we can believe because that we have increased knowledge of God that we have increased maturity in God. And we all can sort of subtly believe that, buy into that, that we, we equate learning about God with growing in God. And yet that is not necessarily the case, is what James is saying here. We, we can hear a sermon about Jesus, we can read the Gospels about Jesus, and assume that because we've done that, we're now more like Jesus. But that is not necessarily the case. To have increased knowledge of Jesus and to be more like him are two different things. Growth in knowledge without application does not equal growth in holiness. More knowledge, more information about the Bible, about Christ, more knowledge about Him without application does not equal growth in holiness.

17 · Applies the deception warning directly to the congregation, confronting the ironic possibility that seasoned Christians might dismiss this very passage because they "already know it," illustrating the subtle pride that prevents heart engagement and leads to false assurance

And so we can be deceived into wrongly assessing ourselves, that we can be hearers only, and that can lead to a self-awareness, a sense that, well, I am growing in the Lord, or I am maturing in the Lord, or I know that. I mean, the temptation potentially could have even been when I opened up this text today, you go, oh, I know that, I've known that for years, I've heard that for years. How ironic would that be that, oh yeah, I'm just hardly even listening today, and if I am listening, what am I going to do? I know all that stuff. That's the temptation for the seasoned Christian. So yeah, I know that. Without engaging our hearts and asking the Lord, listening and asking the Lord, What are you wanting to do in me? How are you wanting to change me? How are you wanting to form your character in me? Hearing the Word without responding can even lead to a false assurance.

18 · Extends the deception warning to its most serious application: it is possible to be a regular hearer of God's Word and assume conversion without ever having experienced genuine faith, repentance, and new birth—the ultimate false assurance James addresses

Now I don't think that's the main point of this text, though it does come up in the letter. And by that I mean, it's possible—and Jesus makes this very clear in a number of places in the Gospels—it's possible to be a hearer of God's Word God's Word and to assume that we are Christians, that we've been converted, and yet not know Him at all, not be converted. It's possible to hear God's Word but never really believe in Jesus alone as the substitute for my sin, never really repent of my sin and lean wholly onto Him so that I've never even been initially converted because I've been a hearer, I've been exposed 'but I have never experienced the new birth.' That is possible. That's why he says, 'Even the demons believe.' He's wanting to undermine in this letter— that's 2:19— he's wanting to undermine false assurance. Someone that assumes because they have heard.

19 · Applies the false-assurance warning specifically to parents in Bible Belt contexts, cautioning against the danger of raising morally decent children who have heard much about Christ but never genuinely believed, repented, and submitted to Him alone for salvation

And, uh, where I live, I, I live in probably some of the last vestiges of the Bible Belt in our country. And you are in the Midwest, so this certainly isn't the Northeast, you are certainly not living in Boston or Seattle yourselves. There is some vestiges in our culture even of knowledge of God. And so I just find that it is such a danger that many have heard the Gospel and assume that their hearing makes them genuine followers, genuine disciples, those who have genuinely experienced spiritual rebirth, the new birth. And sometimes that is not the case. It's especially something we want to be alert to with our children, because it's possible to grow up in the church to hear all kinds of stuff about Christ, but never to really believingly respond, never to really submit one's life to Him in a wholehearted way, saying, "I really do believe. I'm trusting You alone. I'm not trusting my works, my actions, my church attendance. I'm not trusting that I'm better than a lot of the really bad kids." at school, or in the neighborhood, or on my part-time job, or whatever. I'm not like those really bad kids, and so I, you know, I'm a pretty decent kid. Pretty decent kid. So, there is a danger in raising pretty decent kids. Pretty kids who on the moral spectrum of our culture are on the good side. It is possible to do that because they have heard, but never genuinely responded.

20 · Urges parents to pray actively for the next generation's conversion, maintaining hopeful expectation while avoiding presumption, recognizing that genuine faith is often exposed only when children make independent choices apart from parental oversight

And so, we want to be in prayer that asking the Lord to open the eyes of the next generation, that we don't take for granted, that we should be leaning forward expecting God to save them. I believe that. But we shouldn't take that for granted in a presumptuous way. We should be asking the Lord and asking them and asking the Lord to really open their eyes to see their need. Because oftentimes that need's not really— this isn't really exposed until they're on their own. And then when they're on their own making their own choices, in a more independent manner of their parents' leadership and oversight and care, that then the real heart is sometimes exposed.

21 · Refocuses the sermon from the secondary application about conversion to the primary audience and concern: James addresses believers, calling them to move from hearing to doing or face deception

So I think this passage does relate that, that the hearer must believe to, to begin with. And so we want to be aware of that. But the main, the main point of this is he's not addressing unbelievers, even though that's relevant. He's addressing believers, and he's calling them to be a hearer and a doer, because if they don't, they will be deceived.

22 · Confronts the natural resistance to admitting deception by showing the logical contradiction: if deception presupposes unawareness, then confident denial of deception may itself be evidence of deception, making self-examination impossible without God's help

Now, I don't know about you, but I can hear that and say, no way I'm deceived. I mean, there's just no way that there are pockets of deception. I mean, maybe here or there, something, but there's no way there's any significant pocket of deception in my life. And here's the thing about deception, uh, deception presupposes that we'd be unaware of it, right? I can't be deceived and know that. So for me to say, oh yeah, that's great, that must be really applying to that guy who's been going to church and is just living like the devil the other 6 days a week, that, that couldn't apply to me, I am not deceived. But the reality is that deception presupposes our unawareness.

23 · Illustrates the nature of deception through a news story of an Icelandic woman who joined a search party looking for herself, perfectly demonstrating how deception prevents self-recognition—she had no idea she was the missing person being sought

I read a story— this is from almost 2 years ago— about a lady which I think really proves this point out in kind of a stark way. This happened a couple years ago in Iceland. I'm just going to read you the account from the news. It says a woman who went missing in Iceland over the weekend was reportedly found safe and sound by herself, according to the Reykjavik Grapevine. That's the newspaper, perhaps you subscribe to that one, I don't know. But, uh, the not-so-missing woman, a tourist, even participated in the intense police search over the weekend. She was searching for herself near Elgin Canyon in the county's— in the country's southern volcanic region. The mix-up apparently occurred when, during a sightseeing trip Saturday, the woman broke off from her tourist group and changed clothes, the newspaper reported. When she returned to the bus in a different outfit, the rest of her tour group did not recognize her. Then, when a description of the missing person was offered— Asian, in dark clothing, and speaks English well— the woman seemingly also did not recognize the description of herself. So she began to assist the others in the search. The Coast Guard had prepared a helicopter to help with the search. Hours later, around 3 AM Sunday, the search party finally realized that, alas, the woman they were looking for was with them all along, and the search was called off. I love that sentence. They found out she was in the search, was called off. Just, that's a brilliant piece of data. As if they continue, oh, there she is, but let's keep looking. The search was called off. Chief of Police, I can't pronounce his name, he told the news source that the woman simply didn't recognize the description of herself and, quote, "had no idea that she was missing." That's the way being unaware, being deceived, living in a false reality, that's the way it works. I had no idea I was missing, she said.

24 · Applies the deception principle to corporate worship, showing how emotional stirring during singing, communion, and preaching can create the false impression of transformation when nothing is applied and change is left "in the room

And that is true for us as well. Here's how that can work. We can come to a meeting like this and we can feel wonderful things. We can sing a song. Oh, I love that song. You know, we sang great songs this morning. I love that song. So we can feel things emotionally. We can have communion and be stirred by that. We can hear a sermon and be challenged or encouraged, convicted, relieved by the message of grace that we hear. We can have all kinds of experiences when we hear God's Word, and yet, yet we can leave it in the room and walk out and assume that somehow that that changed us, but change comes when we hear and we apply in some way what we hear.

25 · Applies the deception principle to personal devotional life, confessing the common experience of completing morning Bible reading without retention or application, leaving God's Word "in the recliner" rather than carrying it into the day

Or we read the Scripture, we can assume that it's good to have, and it is, we should assume this, it is good to have a regular devotional life, that is a reading of the Scripture and prayer. But I don't know about you, sometimes I can get up in the morning, even get up early, and read through the Scripture, And if you called me at 10 AM, 11 AM, noon, and said, "What did you read this morning?" Sometimes I'd be, "It was in the Bible, I know that. New Testament. A story about Jesus." Maybe I could remember, "Yeah, well, I remember I was reading about some account of Jesus." But if you asked how that was changing me, How my belief, how I was stirred in faith today, what I confess, how am I seeking to apply what I learned today, what difference is it making? Many times if I could tell you where I read, and usually I could, but I might have trouble telling you how I'm applying it because I may have just left it there in the recliner that I read my Bible in in the morning with my cup of coffee. I may have left it right in that recliner. And not walked out with any sense of, I want to apply, I want to do, God's calling me to some type of response.

26 · States the core deception mechanism: wrongly equating the practice of devotional reading with spiritual maturity when true maturity requires response to what is learned

So then I can make the assumption that because I'm having a regular devotional life, I am maturing. Yet maturity is tied to responding to what I learn of God.

27 · Introduces James's mirror illustration, beginning to unpack the comparison between the hearer-only and someone who looks in a mirror and immediately forgets what they saw

Now he gives a wonderful— we could call it a parable— he gives a story here, an account, an illustration, uh, that's very telling. Verse 23 and 24, he says, for if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. So he said anyone who's a hearer only, it's like someone who wakes up in the morning, which we've all done, you're here, wakes up in the morning and looks in the mirror.

28 · Develops James's mirror illustration by observing the congregation's presentable appearance as evidence that everyone looked in a mirror this morning and took action based on what they saw—the normal human response to mirror feedback

This is a very— I'm looking around— it's a very nice-looking, very presentable-looking group. Good-looking church. I'll send Matthew an email about that. I was with your church on Sunday. They were very attractive, good-looking, clean-cut, nicely well-presented people. You all are. I— that's because before you showed up here, you looked in a mirror and you woke up this morning and you assessed the damage from the night before. And based on what you saw, you— here's the point of the illustration— you took some action. You did something. Nobody has that just rolled out of bed look. And the young people who do have that, they work very hard to get that look with the right product in the hair. No, no, they're not really doing that. They're not really showing, I just rolled out of bed. No, you were— you picked that wrinkled shirt. You even wrinkled it up and sprayed a little water and wrinkled it up so it would look just, just, uh, as, as used as you desire it to. That fashion is really more about a presented look probably than literally just rolling out of bed. So you did something. I mean, you shaved, or you, uh, perhaps you put on makeup, you combed or brushed your hair, you washed your face. You did something to present yourself today.

29 · Completes the mirror illustration by imagining the congregation arriving unchanged after looking in a mirror—an absurd scenario that would prompt concern and questions, perfectly paralleling the spiritual absurdity of hearing God's Word without response

And what he's saying is, if to be a hearer only is like waking up— or he didn't say waking up, but looking in the mirror and not changing. So I don't I don't think it's a stretch to say waking up. Waking up, looking in the mirror, seeing what you look like, and then walk out. And he says once they go on, he looks at himself, goes away, and at once forgets what he looks like. So what if I was looking at a room full of people that woke up this morning, did nothing, and just showed up? Didn't brush your teeth, didn't do anything with your hair, didn't whatever you do to get ready, didn't wash your face, didn't get the stuff out of your eyes, didn't do anything, didn't put on any makeup, didn't do anything. You just rolled out of bed in your PJs and just showed right up here and just assumed that, hey, everything's great. How you guys doing? Uh, better than you. There's a bathroom. Can you please go take care of business over there? And you would just— what's wrong? They just showed up. Is it an emergency? Did you not— did the power go out? No water in your house? What happened? You would assume something happened. But what if they just came and said, what are you talking about? Everything's great. You would just think Oh, wow, you looked and saw something, but you immediately forgot what you saw.

30 · Applies the absurd mirror scenario directly to spiritual life, showing that reading Scripture or hearing a sermon and walking away unchanged is equally absurd because we are encountering God's voice, which always calls for response

That's the picture of me when I read my Bible, when you read our Bible in the morning and then go into our day and completely forget. That's when we go and hear a sermon and by Tuesday couldn't tell you anything about it, couldn't tell you a single application or anything I'm praying about. I mean, honestly, there's been sermons I've preached whereby probably Tuesday I know, but by Thursday or Friday I'd have to A few seconds to pull up the text. So I know as a hearer that happens. And he's saying that kind of person is like the person who looks in the mirror and goes about their life, and the truth is that if we hear the voice of God, which we do, anytime we read His Bible, we are hearing the voice of God. It is the God-breathed word, 2 Timothy 3 says. We are hearing God directly speak as we read. Whenever we hear, God is wanting to help us see Him and know Him and receive respond to him in some way, and that's where life change happens.

31 · Transitions from the first major movement (deception) to the second (blessing) by restating the first truth and introducing its positive counterpart: hearing and doing produces blessing

So hearing without doing leads to deception. But look at the second point. The second idea in this passage, the second truth in this passage, is that hearing and doing— not without, but hearing and doing— leads to blessing. So one leads to deception, one leads to blessing.

32 · Introduces the second half of James's contrast by reading verse 25, which presents the one who looks into the perfect law and perseveres as a doer, promising blessing in the doing

Look at verse 25. The one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets, but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. So this is a different scenario. In this situation, it reveals someone who looks perfectly into God's Word, the law. It's described here as the law of liberty, which I'll talk about in a second. But the perfect law, the law of liberty, someone who looks carefully into this in response, the result is very different. He will be blessed in his doing. So God will— there will be a blessing in the response, in the application of God's Word. There's a promise. So there's a warning, and then there is a wonderful promise.

33 · Explains the cultural context of ancient mirrors made from polished brass rather than reflective glass, showing why James's language of persevering in looking made sense to his original audience who needed sustained attention to see themselves clearly

Now, this may sound a little strange to us that he looks at him— it says, "The one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres." The NIV says, He continues to look. He looks and continues to look. So that's a little strange to us. Like if somebody's in the mirror, if you were just going in there just doing that number, just looking all around, you think, wow, you might think that's a vain person or something, or just trying to look. You trying to see something there? Is it trying to fix something on your face, or what are you doing? But that's because we have mirrors that folks in this day would not have had. I mean, we have so many modern conveniences that we just don't— I don't think about. One is a mirror. So there was not a reflective glass like what we have in their day. A mirror in the time, in biblical times, would have been polished brass or something like that. They would take brass, polish it up, so you would have gotten the best image you could. So it would take necessarily more work to assess one's appearance or to get a look at oneself. They probably didn't do as much themselves as we do anyway, but still, there would be just to look in a mirror and see, you would have to look a little bit because it just wouldn't be as clear as what we see. So this person is looking intently. This person is continuing to look. This person, ESV says, is persevering in looking.

34 · Summarizes the parallel structure James creates, contrasting the two mirror-lookers through their sequence of actions: look-leave-forget-deceived versus look-continue-do-blessed

And so there's kind of two differences here in the two accounts. One is that looking and continuing to look versus looking and going on about your business. And secondly is looking and acting. That's the primary difference. Verse 25 says, being no hearer who forgets, but a doer who acts. Not a hearer who forgets, which we can all relate to that story, but a doer who acts. So look at the pattern. The first person looks, leaves, forgets, and is deceived. So it looks, leaves, forgets, deceived. The second person looks, continues looking, does— responds, we could say— responds and is blessed in his or her response.

35 · Highlights James's descriptive enrichment in verse 25, noting that while verse 22 simply says "word," verse 25 calls it "the perfect law, the law of liberty," introducing the concept of Scripture as revelation that produces freedom

Now, one thing that's wonderful about this passage is that in verse 25, we get a little bit different description of the word. Verse 22 just says, "Be doers of the word." Verse 25, it's a parallel statement, but it's a little more descriptive. The perfect law the law of liberty. So, he's saying the person who looks and continues looking will be looking into the law of liberty. What a wonderful term for the Bible, the law of liberty, the revelation, the truth, the teaching of liberty, of freedom.

36 · Explains why Scripture is called the law of liberty: because all Scripture ultimately reveals Jesus, the hero and heart of the Bible, whose gospel work brings liberation and rescue from sin

Now, how is that? Well, that is because when we look into the Scripture, we will ultimately see Jesus. Wherever we are reading, we will see something, in any chapter of the Bible, Old or New Testament, we will see something of the grace of God, something that teaches us or that could point us in some way to Christ, and in him there is liberty. Jesus is the hero of the story of the Bible, and his work in the cross and the resurrection, The Bible calls that the good news or the gospel. That is, gospel means good news. That is the whole heart of the Scripture. Jesus is described as a liberator, one who brings freedom, a savior. Savior means rescuer. Jesus is called the Savior in the Bible, and to save means, doesn't mean to store up, not that kind of saving, it means to rescue.

37 · Develops the mirror metaphor by showing that persevering in God's Word reveals both uncomfortable truths about ourselves (the damage assessment) and the liberating good news of Christ, making Scripture simultaneously confronting and freeing

So when we look into the Scripture, and we persevere in looking, as it says, we continue to look, not only will we see things about ourselves, we may see— I use the image of assessing the damage when you wake up— we may see horrific things about ourselves, things we don't want to see about ourselves, sins that we wish weren't there, attitudes that we thought went away a long time ago and wouldn't want to really own up to, thinking and actions that we hope no one else is looking over our shoulders seeing that about us in the mirror, that this is our little secret. We may see many things about ourselves, but ultimately when we look into the Word, we will see the— we will see liberty, the law of liberty. Ultimately we will see good news, because ultimately we will see Christ.

38 · Presents the full gospel message: Scripture's holiness reveals our sin and condemnation, but the good news is that Jesus, fully God and man, lived perfectly, died as our substitute bearing God's judgment, rose defeating sin, and offers new life and liberty to all who turn from sin and trust Him alone

And Christ liberates us, redeems us, frees us from our sin. The message of the Bible is that all of us are sinners, and that if we take a real look in the mirror, of God's Word. His Word is perfect, it says the perfect law. His Word is perfectly holy because it reveals a holy God. So when we look in here, the Bible, we will see the holiness of God. And the holiness of God shows that we're sinful, that we have not kept His Word perfectly. We have not obeyed God in all of our thoughts, all of our attitudes, all of our actions, all of our intentions. We have not obeyed God. And the Scripture makes clear that we are to be judged for that. That's called sin, and we're to be judged for our sins. That we are to be separated from God for eternity, that once we die, the person who is apart from God and pays for his own actions will go to hell. We are condemned for our sins. But the good news is that Jesus, who is God and man, totally God and totally man, he comes, lives a perfect life, he keeps the perfect law, the Bible, he keeps it, he dies for sinners, he dies in our place, taking our sins upon himself, paying the price that we should pay, paying the penalty that we should pay. He's acting as our substitute. He's in our place. Like I'm the substitute teacher today, substitute preacher rather. He's the substitute sin bearer. He's paying for our sins. He's taking the sentence. He's paying the penalty. He's dying for our sins which are placed upon Him. The Father pours out His judgment for our sins on the Son. Jesus is buried and He raises on the third day. He's raised on the third 3rd day defeating sin. And anyone who would turn, if we would turn from our sin and believe in Him alone, turn with our whole life, really trust, really lean on Him alone to forgive us of our sin, then we receive new life, and that is liberty.

39 · Counters the misconception that biblical obedience restricts freedom by arguing that true liberty comes from seeing truth in Scripture (including our sin and Christ's gospel), responding in faith and obedience, and being changed by the Spirit—contrasting the freedom of the one who looked and acted versus the bondage of the one who remains unchanged

See, there is a total misconception that if I read the Bible, and I think about the Bible, and then I try to go obey the Bible, that will just really cramp, and that will be really limiting. To my life. No, that will be freeing. That's the law of liberty. Who's the freer person? The person that looked in the mirror this morning, like all of you, and did something about it and showed up? Or the person that rolled out of bed and came in here looking like a mess and not even knowing it and not even caring? Who's the freer person? The person who saw truth and responded. The person who sees Jesus and follows him. The person who looks at Jesus and finds forgiveness. Finds power for change, finds hope, finds his Spirit filling and changing us. This is absolutely freeing. The greatest freedom imaginable is to look into the Word, look into the mirror, see ourselves, but also see the law of liberty, the good news, the message of Christ, the person of Christ, and then to respond and to be changed by Him. That is freedom.

40 · Affirms God's transformative intent for believers, describing sanctification as a process where Scripture and Spirit work together as gifts enabling us to see ourselves, see Christ, and by grace respond and change

God wants to change us. God wants us to make progress. God wants us to be different, to be mature, to follow Him. And that happens through the gift of His Scripture, through the gift of His Spirit, as we look, as we are convicted of our sins, as we see Him, and as then by His grace and with His power, seek to respond and change, as opposed to being the one who looks in the mirror, walks away, and does nothing.

41 · Signals the transition to practical instruction by humorously noting the meta-level nature of applying a passage about application, preparing the congregation for concrete guidance on how to apply Scripture

Now, let me close with this. I want to make a couple of, really just two, applications about application. This whole sermon is about application. Now I'm going to make some application. This is like a dream within a dream. You could make a movie about this sermon. But this is an application about our application. Application. If that's confusing, don't— just don't worry about it. Just listen up here.

42 · Introduces the first practical application—make growth your goal—by carefully explaining that while God's ultimate glory is the highest aim, we glorify God through the transformation process of being conformed to Christ, which Scripture and Spirit produce in us by grace

Okay, number 1. Now I want to explain this, so don't— uh, if you're like super theological, don't overreact to this. I'll explain it. Make growth your goal. When you encounter the word of God, make growth your goal. Now the ultimate goal, I believe, from all of scripture is the glory of God. So we are to sing for the glory of God, think for the glory of God, live for the glory of God. You'll go to your job tomorrow and work for the glory of God, and you can bring just as much glory to God on your job tomorrow as you are right now. All of life, live for the glory of God. You go home, put your kids to bed tonight for the glory of God. You'll exercise perhaps sometime this week for the glory of God. We'll go home and feast over the game today, hopefully for the glory of God. So all of life is to be lived for the glory of God. But we cannot live a life for the glory of God if we are not having the person of Christ— we are not being conformed to the person of Christ, if we are not having Christ formed in us. The good news of the Gospel is to produce something in us. And that is why the Scripture says, "Walk," which means live, "walk in a manner worthy of the Gospel." We are totally saved by grace, we are totally saved by the work of God, from nothing we did. And then the Spirit of God comes in us, makes us a new person, we have new life in Christ, and now by His grace we respond and He changes us over the course of our life. So as we are growing, we are glorifying God in our actions. So when we read the Bible, we want to make growth. Or you could say that a number of ways. You could say growing in sanctification. You could say growing in holiness. Uh, you could say, uh, becoming more like Jesus. You could say being transformed into his image as we see him and know him and respond to him. You can say walking around, or however you want to say it, but encountering the Bible is to produce life change. For the glory of God by the Spirit of God, by the grace of God. That is what God's goal for us is.

43 · Warns against making Bible-reading itself the goal rather than Christ-knowing transformation, showing that completing a reading plan without application can actually lead to the very deception James warns against

Growth comes from hearing and doing. So when you wake up in the morning, maybe this year you said, this is the year I'm going to read through the Bible. That's wonderful. I think that's great. Don't make reading through the Bible your goal for 2015. Make knowing Christ and being transformed into His image your goal. And your daily Bible reading is going to be a means towards that end, God is going to use that. But the goal is not Bible, it's not just to read over the Bible, because, and if this wasn't the Bible I'd feel scared to death to say this, because you can go read the Bible and it can lead to deception. Not because the Bible is deceptive, it's totally true, but because I didn't apply it. And if I'm a hearer only, I'm deceived. I'm deceiving myself.

44 · Extends the warning about misplaced goals from personal Bible reading to corporate worship, commending church attendance while insisting that the true goal is transformation that continues when the congregation scatters—the sermon "begins" when it ends and application starts

So it's not just a Bible— don't make just coming to church your goal. I'm so glad you came. If you're a guest today, thank you for being here. For where I'm from, like, you braved a snowstorm to get here today. Like, where I'm from down in Texas, like, wow, is church canceled today? No, it's 37 degrees. Oh, okay. So you braved the elements to be here today. I am glad that you're here. Don't make church attendance, don't make I stayed awake the whole sermon your goal. Don't make just hearing the sermon the goal. In many ways, the sermon begins in about 5 minutes or however much I got here, about 5 minutes when I dismiss you or Dave dismisses you. That's when game on. We encountered God for a purpose so that as we worship Him in this moment, we listen in this moment, we glorify, but it's when we go from here that we live a life that we're lights in the darkness, that we're cities set on a hill that we walk out our discipleship, that we follow the Lord in our lives. It's happening not just here, but out there. So it's a great goal to make it to church on Sunday. Yes, I don't diminish that. If you've got little kids and they all made it here and they have their shoes on, man, that's a huge goal. I can remember just making it to church was a huge goal when our kids were little. So I commend you for being here, but let's set a higher goal, not church attendance, but maturing, growing, glorifying Jesus because the Spirit is making my life more like His over time. Over time.

45 · Traces the progression of the Word's work through James 1, showing how God brings conversion by the Word (v

That comes by grace. And it comes through His Word. There's a progress. If we were doing this whole chapter, we could look at some other things, but there's a progression of the work of the Word in our lives just in this chapter. Back in v. 18, it says, "Of His own will He brought us forth by the Word." by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures. It's saying you became a Christian by the word of God. He brought us forth. He brought us into life by the word of truth that we would be firstfruits of His creatures, believers in Christ. So He did that through His word. Verse 21, he says, therefore put away all filthiness, rampant wickedness. How do we do that? How do we turn from those things? Receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. That's probably referring to sanctification there, not just our conversion, but it saves our souls. There is a saving of our soul that as we are conformed more and more to His image, part of our salvation, that's part of our salvation. We're saved in a moment when we're converted, we're saved over a lifetime as we're conformed to His image, and we're ultimately saved when He returns and brings us home or when we die, whichever comes first. Comes first. But we're ultimately saved when our bodies are glorified and we're resurrected. So he's saying receive that word, it's the word, and then hear it and do. So he brought you forth, it's all him, by the word. Now turn from these things and receive that word implanted. Trust the word of God implanted in you and hear it and respond to it. That is the pattern of growth.

46 · Clarifies the cooperative nature of sanctification, guarding against both self-reliant bootstrapping and passive quietism by showing that growth requires God's initiating grace and our Spirit-enabled responsive obedience working together

So it is by his grace. I've been very intentional to say that this isn't a picture pick yourself up by your bootstraps, go get 'em, this isn't the Super Bowl locker room speech, go team. No, we should walk out of here very aware of our need for God, very dependent on the grace of God. He saved us through His Word, He implanted the Word, we are hearing Him, it's by grace that our eyes are opened. But our growth in holiness, we do cooperate with Him. Once you are a Christian, your growth pattern is a cooperation, it's by grace as we respond. So it's our response to His grace. It's our dependent obedience. It's not just us. But it's also not just Him, that we're passive and never do anything and He just, whoo, just changes us magically. We never do anything or respond. No, it's we hear, He by grace opens our hearts, opens our eyes, works in a billion ways that we don't even know, and then as we ask for help, "Lord, help me respond," that's grace. Help me. And then we respond and put into action what he is speaking to us that we may grow.

47 · Calls the congregation to approach Scripture with expectant faith, believing God will speak personally and work transformation, moving from passive information-gathering to active encounter with the living God who desires to change us

So make growth your goal. Expect to hear from God. Expect to listen carefully. Expect God to speak. Expect to encounter God. When you wake up, if you read your Bible in the morning, or maybe you do it at night, but whichever, if it's tonight or if it's tomorrow morning, open the scripture expecting to hear God. God is going to speak to me. God wants to change me. God loves me. God is at work in me for his glory. God can radically change me. He's not leaving me or forsaking me. So, Lord, speak to me. Expect God to change you.

48 · Introduces the second practical application—make application simple—by arguing from pastoral experience that unfocused multiple-point application prevents action, while singular focused response enables genuine life change

So make growth your goal. And secondly, and we're done here, make application simple. Make application simple. Now, this is— the text doesn't directly say what I'm saying. It says be a hearer and a doer. But here's my experience. From being a human now for 50 years and from knowing a lot of people, from being a pastor, pastoring a lot of people over a lot of years, is that if it's not focused and simple, we will never apply it. So when you encounter a text, don't find out 10 things to do. Don't find out 5 things to do. I wouldn't even find out 3 things to do. I would find one thing to respond to. One thing.

49 · Supports the singular-application strategy with David Powlison's principle of connecting one bit of Scripture to one bit of life, warning that ambitious five-point applications typically fail while specific single applications succeed

I love what biblical counselor David Powlison says. He says, in Life Change, connect one bit of Scripture to one bit of life. Don't listen to a sermon and say, okay, here's the 5 things I'm going to do this week, because I can almost assure you when I call you on Tuesday and say, what are those 5 things, you're probably not going to know. It's ambitious, it's wonderful, but it just doesn't happen. And so what typically happens is we take— if you take notes, and I do, that's good. I'm not going to chastise for that. But if you take notes, we got all this stuff down. Often we don't even look at those things. And if we do look at them, if it's just a transcript of the sermon, what do you do with that? I think application, if it's very specific, is better.

50 · Explains the preacher's methodology of offering diverse application points to address varied life situations (shotgun approach) while not expecting any individual listener to apply everything—the diversity serves the congregation's diversity, not one person's to-do list

Now when I preach normally at my home church, I'll give like a number of— throughout the message I'm giving a number of points of application, but I'm not expecting everyone to take I have to be diverse, so I say something that would relate to a junior high girl. I say something that would relate to a 40-year-old man. I say something that would relate to someone who's suffering. I say something that would relate to someone who's prospering. So I'm trying to say I'm kind of shotgun. I can't be bullet. I'm kind of shotgun trying to shoot a lot of things out there because people are at different places in their lives. But it doesn't mean that I'm thinking everything I'm saying that everybody's going to do exactly what I say. That the Lord's speaking to them to do all of that stuff at once.

51 · Illustrates the singular-application strategy through the to-go bag metaphor: take one item from the sermon meal rather than trying to carry everything, because 48 single applications over a year will produce more transformation than 48 forgotten multi-point note collections

Here's like— here's how I like to think about either a devotional time or a sermon. If, if this sermon is a meal, okay, and there's some stuff left on the table, then get a to-go bag, but just put one item in the to-go bag, okay? Don't put the chicken and the rice and the salad. Just put the chicken in there and go with one item in your to-go bag. If you can visualize that— I got my one item Am I to go back? Because here's the thing, if you're a regular church attender, you're sick twice a year, you're on vacation twice a year, then maybe you're going to hear on a good year, that's 48 sermons. What's going to really change our lives? 48 sermons with a pile of notes that I can't remember anything that was said, or 48 single applications that worked in my life? That will change— God will radically conform you. Into the image of Christ. Really, one thing? What's that? That's huge! That's huge!

52 · Provides a series of concrete singular-application prompts (one trust, one repentance, one conversation, one confession, one service, one truth to believe, one example to emulate) demonstrating how to identify and pursue focused response in various spiritual domains

Or in my devotional time, that's huge as well. So, what is one way God is calling me to trust Him? I read a Bible verse from my devotion, what is one way He's calling me to trust Him? What is one thing God is calling me to repent of? Oh wow, I feel overwhelmed. Well, the Lord's probably got His finger on a singular thing, What is He calling me to repent of? What is one conversation God is calling me to have? How could I hear a message and walk out, what's the one conversation I need to go have with someone to get right with them, to get reconciled, if that was what the sermon was about? What is one confession He's leading me to make? Confessing a sin. What is one way He's calling me to serve another person? Don't listen to a sermon and say, I've got to love all of humanity. Yeah, good luck on that one. How about here's one— a sermon on love— here's one person and one practical way I can go express the love of Christ this week. That'd be huge. That'd be much better than nothing. That would be huge, especially to that person you love. What is one truth God is calling me to believe? Oftentimes application means believing something. I find that. But it's not just believing something, it's believing something in an applicable way. So we might say it like this: What is one thing God is calling me to believe about him, about the Holy Spirit, about the work of the gospel? What is one thing that God is calling me to believe from the scripture about him, and how will that truth help me grow in patience? How will it help me grow in faith? How will it help me grow in peace? How will it help me grow in joy? So maybe I learned that God is sovereign. Then this week, what— maybe the sermon's on the sovereignty of God. Then, then I might want to write that down, and this week I seek to memorize that verse or remind myself of that verse, study that verse, and apply that truth when I am feeling anxious. So I battle anxiety, but this week I learned that God is sovereign, so I'm thinking that's my application. I'm believing that. I'm telling that to my own soul so that my heart is trusting God and is at rest. What is one example from the text that God's calling me to emulate, something I learned about him. So just make it a singular, singular thing.

53 · Applies the singular-application principle to note-taking practice, arguing that focused minimal notes with one highlighted application produces more transformation than extensive transcription, because the goal is doing not documenting

And I think that's helpful when we think about note-taking as well. I mean, this is super practical, and this is, uh, I'm not saying thus saith the Lord on this because this isn't in the text, but it's how to apply the text. I think for many of us, notes can be helpful. For me, even if I never look at them, it's helpful for me to take notes because I'm using a different thing. I'm using my ear, but I'm also I'm also using my thumbs if it's on my phone or my hand, whatever. I'm using two different ways as I'm hearing, and I'm ensuring that I'm an active and not a passive listener. So for me, it's helpful to take some kind of notes. Even if I never look at them, I will have heard better. That's just me. But if you are a note-taker, it's better to be, in my mind, not to get a transcript of the sermon, but to get key points, truths about God, truths from the text, or truths that you can apply, just something very simple. So I would rather if I'm taking hand notes, I'd rather walk out of a sermon— it'd be better to walk out with a quarter of a page of notes with a couple of bullet points and one application highlighted. That's better than 6 pages of notes that I never do anything with. Much better. If you write down one sentence, but that's what you trust the Lord with this, and that's what you revisit, wonderful! The goal is not to just get everything down. I'm not giving a pop quiz at the end of this. But the Lord does give a lifetime pop quiz on are we hearers and doers. So it's better to be a doer of a little bit. So be focused and clear. So if you can take a lot of notes and then just underline and highlight the point you're walking out with, great. That's really good because it can help you.

54 · Illustrates singular focused application through the story of Matthew Henry's father teaching him to meditate on one verse of Psalm 119 daily, showing how sustained attention to small portions produces deep transformation

Let me give you an example. A couple weeks ago I was preaching on, uh, and make it personal to you. A couple weeks ago I was preaching on, uh, Psalm 119, and I told the story about Matthew Henry. I read this, that Matthew Henry is a great Bible commentator He was a Puritan. This is something his dad taught him, to love the Word of God, because Psalm 119 is just loving the Word of God. It is all about a heart for the Word and a dependence on the Word. And this is what he told him. It is 176 verses. So his dad said, "Take 1 verse of Psalm 119 a day and meditate on that." And you will go, he probably did other reading, but at least do that as part of your part of your study. Think about that one verse during the day and you will go through Psalm 119 twice in a year. You will develop a love for the Word of God by exposing yourself, meditating, and responding to a verse a day. So again, he read other parts of the Bible. That was one study he did as a kid and it gave him a love for the Word because he got the psalmist's heart. Wonderful, wonderful.

55 · Demonstrates the power of singular application through three real responses to his Psalm 119 sermon: dinner table verse study, automated daily verse reminders, and visual art meditation—showing how different people took one simple idea and made it their own

So the next week I have guys come up to me and one guy tells me, hey, guess what, uh, we heard that. So what we did is we, in our dinner conversation All we did was look at one verse of Psalm 119 each night. We're going to try to go through the whole 176 dinners, we're going to try to go through the whole book doing that. Wonderful! I preached like this morning, I preached 50 minutes. Here's what the guy did, he read one verse with his kids each night. Huge! That's a small application that could revolutionize his kids' lives and his. That's huge! So I don't know if he got 6 pages of notes or what, but he did one thing. I had another guy say to me, hey, and I can't even explain this one, hey, like I'm a computer guy and all this kind of, I can write code and do whatever. So I wrote this thing and it takes Psalm 119 and it does a verse a day and it just shows up. So on my to-do list each day, whatever day it is, the next verse pops up. So all day long I'm looking at my to-do list and whatever I've got here, it shows up. And then the next verse shows up the next day. So I've got that, I'm reading it in the morning and then I've got it all day with me on my to-do list, great. Another guy, so he's a computer guy. Another guy in our church is an artist. I didn't give any of these illustrations. The other guy is an artist, he comes up to me and he shows me, "Hey, look at this picture." It is this cute, it is kind of caricature cartoony drawing and it is Psalm 119:1. He said, "Every morning on a whiteboard I am getting up, I am meditating on the verse, I am drawing a drawing that has to do with the verse and so when the kids come down they see the drawing and we talk about it at breakfast, but they get a visual because I am an artist." So I got an artist guy, I got a computer, they are just taking the truth of God and trying to apply one thing. I said a ton of stuff in that sermon, and one throwaway illustration that I spent, I don't know, a minute on was the application that those three men took to their lives. That's the goal.

56 · Concludes the practical instruction by reiterating the main call (hear and do), reframing obedience as the pathway to freedom and joy rather than burden, and expressing hope that the singular-application approach relieves rather than adds pressure

Hear and do whatever the Lord calls you to do. Hearing and doing by God's grace is the pathway to freedom and joy. It's not a burden. Hopefully some of your burdens are relieved. Wow, if I can get one thing, I can do that. So hopefully your burdens are relieved.

57 · Prepares the congregation for silent reflection by asking them to identify one singular application from the sermon before he prays, embodying the very practice he has been teaching

So here's— I'm going to pray. So let's close now. I'm going to pray, but here's what I'm going to do to kind of make a point here. I think I'm supposed to be done 3 minutes ago, so I'm going to go a little bit longer. Dave, I went over by 3 minutes, but it's okay. Here's what we do. We're going to pause in silence for a moment, and I want you to just think about this text. I mean, you can keep your eyes open if you want to look at the text or this sermon And I want you to think about one application for you to walk out of here with. Something you do tonight, tomorrow, this week, may affect your devotional life, may affect how you, how you come next week for the sermon and how you respond. I don't know, but let's just take a moment and be quiet so that we can all think, what is a singular application that God could call me to make from this today? And then I'll close us in prayer in just a moment.

58 · Closes in prayer by thanking God for His transforming grace, asking for eager listening hearts, celebrating God's mercy that awakens us from hearer-only deception, and requesting that the congregation would leave with gospel hope and grow as hearers and doers who experience blessing

Lord, thank you for your grace to us, that you are changing us, that you are helping us to learn and to apply. We pray that, Lord, you would help us to be who are eager for your word, quick listeners who are eagerly receiving. And thank you that you change us. Thank you that you give us new mercy every morning. Thank you that when we've been hearers only, you awake us out of our deception and put us on the right path because you love us and you're gracious and you care about us and you're making us to be like your Son, Father. So we thank you for that. I pray that everyone would leave with hope in the gospel, that as we look, we're looking into a law of freedom, that you want us to be to be free to enjoy and know and follow you. Lord, have your way in us. Thank you for this wonderful church, and I pray that you would help them, each member of this church, each attender here today, that to help us to all grow as those who are hearer, hearing and doing. And we just trust you for this verse, that we would be a doer who acts and that we will be blessed in our doing. Lord, bless us with you and just your gracious presence presence and encouragement as you change us for your glory. In Jesus' name, amen.