Not Done Yet

A man waiting outside the church asked someone coming out, "Is the sermon done yet'?" "No," was the reply. "It's been preached, but it has yet to be done." This story from Irving Jensen's Independent Bible Study makes a good point. Bible knowledge gained in church is not complete until it is applied to life.

The apostle James was concerned about believers who heard the Word but did not let it touch their lives. The person who reads and studies the Bible needs to put it into practice. Otherwise he is like an executive who looks into a mirror on the morning of a crucial meeting, sees a big stain on his tie, then forgets that it's there and goes to the meeting.

How can we apply what we learn to life? How can we make sure we are doers of the Word'? Jensen suggests three responses:
1. Confession. Admit your sin and confess it to God.
2. Faith. Believe the truth.
3. Obedience. Do what's right even when you do not understand God's ways.

No sermon is done until we have done something about it. Then it becomes a living sermon that blesses others through us. --DCE

Lord, when i listen to Your Word
Make plain what You would have me do;
May truth and love be clearly heard,
For they alone can come from you

THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF DOCTRINE IS THE FIRST TWO LETTERS