But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.  (James 1:22)

Shayna loved going to church, mostly because of the music. She was the first to sign up for every women’s conference, had an entire library of Joyce Myer books and at least fourteen Bibles scattered around her house. She considered herself a great Christian because she knew so much truth—but that’s where it stopped. Shayna did what most professing Christians today are doing: she created her own religion out of the verses she liked and ignored the rest. She soaked up the feel-good, energizing, you-can-do-it tweets and memes, but when strong challenges from God’s word confronted her, she quickly scrolled past.

Apparently, people were doing that in James’ day too, so he dealt with it. This verse reminds us that we can become like stagnant ponds, filling up with truth from a hundred venues but never letting it flow out. We sit though a sizzling sermon on holiness—and remain unmoved. A loving brother or sister confronts our open sin with God’s word—and we’re offended. We fool ourselves into believing that because we have some truth in our heads, we must be okay. James says “Not so.” In fact, he adds the chilling words “you are deceiving yourselves.” Those are the most loving words James could say to us because they’re a truth warning: Bible interest, Bible knowledge, and Bible appreciation count for nothing without Bible obedience.

Final Thought:  Are you a doer of God’s word or merely a casual hearer? Hearers only are deceiving themselves.

Prayer: Father, how much of your instruction am I ignoring? Show me how surrendered to you I really am because I don’t want to deceive myself. The stakes are too high. I am ready to be a doer of your word and not just a hearer. In Jesus’ name, Amen.