And there it was…this week’s Make Amber Think moment while entering sermon notes into the Google Slides for this week’s services. Let me start by saying that I love the book of James. It’s one of my favorites thanks to its practical applications (is it okay to have a favorite book of the Bible?). It’s full of golden nuggets like this, and it’s full of in-your-face truths that you need to hear and know to follow Christ.
As believers, we don’t get to pick and choose what parts of God’s Word we’re going to live by. It’s all or nothing. The important part here is LIVE by. We can’t just read the words in black and white on Sunday and then close the Bible for the week and revisit next Sunday. Sure, physically, you CAN close the Bible and not open it back up until the next week, but living a Christian life doesn’t allow you to metaphorically do that.
Surely you’ve heard “love is a verb.” And as Christians, it’s something we HAVE to practice. We have to be doers, not just hearers. We can’t expect God’s grace and not offer it to others.
Pastor Bobby said on Sunday, “The Bible doesn’t change you just by looking at it….application of the Bible, and the power of the Holy Spirit is what changes you. Reflection in God’s Word and application of God’s Word leads to transformation in your heart.”
God has to be the foundation of our lives, and we have to go out into the world and show others what his love not only looks like on paper, but what it FEELS like. It’s not enough to come into a building on Sunday, sing a few songs, listen to a message and close up shop for the rest of the week.
We have to go out and be doers. Not because that gets us into Heaven…no, that debt was paid by Jesus’ blood and nothing we do could ever make up for it. But because we need to spread the love of Jesus in our communities and beyond. As Bobby said on Sunday, “We aren’t doers and engaged in action to earn God's love. We are doers and engaged in action because of God’s love.”
Let’s continue to let God’s word and the Holy Spirit transform us, so that maybe we can help be a part of someone else’s transformation story. People can’t love Jesus if they don’t know Jesus. Let’s introduce them.
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