"Reading The Bible Only"

"But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." James 1:22

Recently, my dad was telling me about a person he knows. He said that this man will lie to you- he has caught him in several. He said that he is on the lazy side and can't be trusted. You might think that he was gossiping about this man, but everything he said was true, and the reason he brought it up is because he is really concerned about this man's character. Why? Because he also told me something else about the man: 1) he says he is a Christian, a "missionary"- he goes on mission trips all the time; 2) when he's not on mission trips but is at home- all he does is sit at home reading his Bible. My dad knows this personally because he goes to see him regularly.

My dad should be concerned. It concerns me that a person who devotes themselves to reading the Bible all the time- does not watch television, does not play games, does not spend time on the computer, does not socialize or entertain, just reads the Bible instead- has such a poor reputation and lacks godly character.

It does you no good to read the Bible if you are not going to apply its teachings to your life and put into practice what you read. It's just another source of "good reading" if you are not going to let its words transform you. It's not the one who reads the word only that is justified, but those who are doers as well as hearers. God intends for us to do more than just read the Bible. He intends for us to "live" the Bible. It is the governing standard by which we are to live. We are to hide it in our hearts, obey its commands, follow its instructions, conform to its doctrines, and so on. Jesus even said that those who are wise are those who build their lives upon the word.

Are you like this man-- ever learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth? Always reading but never doing? Hearing but not applying? Studying but not learning? Or are you letting the word transform you and remold and reshape your character so that you look like, act like and talk like Jesus would?

Have a great day. Reading the Bible and doing what the Bible says are two different things. You aren't suppose to just read it and not do it. But on the other hand, you can't do it if you don't read it!