DCLM DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL FOR OCTOBER 27, 2023 (DOERS OF THE WORK)
TOPIC: DOERS OF THE WORK
Text: James 1:16-27 (KJV)
16 Do not err, my beloved brethren.
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.
21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.
27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
KEY VERSE: “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” – (James 1:25)
MESSAGE
Charles Spurgeon said, “When you see a man with a great deal of religion displayed in his shop window, you may depend upon it if he keeps a very small stock of it within”. In other words, men are great in acting religion but much less in practising it. The message of James to believers is to first become hearers of the word and then go ahead and do what they have heard. Until then, they will be fake professors at best.
Their willingness to do what God says every time is the way to spiritual blessings. The things God expects them to do are clear from the passage. They should be good listeners who are slow to respond to criticisms. They should bridle their tongues, keep themselves unspotted from the world and take care of the fatherless and widows.
When Christians hear but fail to do what the word of God says, they bring ridicule to the name of the Lord. Paul says bluntly, “For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written” (Romans 2:24), in reference to people who only hear but fail to do what God wants them to do. It is not enough to call oneself a Christian; it is more important to obey the word of God always. People will listen to Christians more if we conduct ourselves in more dignifying manners.
The man or woman who fears the Lord is a living testimony anytime, anywhere. It is not enough to read and listen to the word of God. After reading and hearing, we must go ahead to do what the Word says.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Christian character is best expressed in those who hear and do what God says.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Jeremiah 15-18
Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM) written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi. It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.
