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James 1:22 - Living the Word.

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

James 1:22 (NLT) But dont just listen to 
Gods word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, 
you are only fooling yourselves. 

INTRODUCTION

It is important to listen to what God's Word 
says, but it is much more important to obey it, to 
'do' what it says. We can measure the 
effectiveness of our Bible study time by the effect it has 
on our behavior and attitudes. Do you put into 
action what you have studied? [Life Application 
SB] 

COMMENTARY PEARL

Your Quiet Time Doesnt Have to Be Boring
   When something is dynamic, its 
energetic and productive. It has a kind of life force 
that leads to change. Did you know that your 
Bible study times can be dynamic?  
   But how does that happen? How does 
something that we often call a quiet time become 
a dynamic time? 
   Things become dynamic when they become 
specific. So for your Bible study times to become 
dynamic, they need to become specific. In other 
words, when you read Gods Word, you need to look 
for the specific things that God wants you to do 
now. You need to focus on the truths that God 
wants you to apply to your life today. 
   Heres a habit to help you do that: 
After you read your Bible, write a one-sentence 
application of what youve just read. Itll help you 
become a doer of the Word, not just a hearer. 
 
   A good application sentence has four 
characteristics: 
   1. Its personal. You cant write an 
application for somebody else. Its not about what the 
world needs to do or what your spouse needs to do 
or what your kids need to do. Its about what 
you need to do! 
   2. Its practical. Your application 
should be something you can actually do and 
something you are able to make a plan to do. Broad 
generalities wont help you. In fact, generalities will 
produce little action and will make you feel 
helpless.  
   3. Its possible. If you cant 
actually accomplish your application, youll likely 
get discouraged. If your application says that 
you need to pray five hours a day, you wont 
do it. Its not practical! But, on the other 
hand, if your application says that you will not 
go a day without prayer, thats practical. 
Its something you can realistically accomplish. 
 
   4. Its provable. In other words, you 
can set a deadline for accomplishing the goal. 
If you dont set a specific goal with a 
deadline, then its just a dream.  
   You can make an application sentence with 
any portion of the Bible youre reading. And 
when you do, youll obey what the Bible says in 
James 1:22: But dont just listen to Gods 
word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are 
only fooling yourselves (NLT). [Daily 
Devotional by Rick Warren: 
https://pastorrick.com/devotional/] 

COMMENTARY

Questions to Help You Chew on Scripture
   When you meditate as a Christian, you 
think about Scripture. You meditate on Scripture 
in the same way a cow chews her cud - by 
chewing on it and chewing on it and chewing on it. 
   To help you chew on Gods Word, 
Ill share with you one of the strangest 
acrostics Ive ever used: SPACEPETS. Each letter in 
the acrostic reminds you of a question you can 
ask of Scripture.  
   1. Is there a SIN to confess? Does 
Gods Word make you aware of something you need to 
make right with God? 
   2. Is there a PROMISE to claim? Ask 
yourself if the passage youve read contains a 
universal promise. Ask whether youve met all the 
conditions of the promise. Every promise has a 
premise! 
   3. Is there an ATTITUDE to change? Is 
there something you need to think about 
differently? Do you need to work on a negative attitude, 
worry, guilt, fear, bitterness, pride, apathy, or 
ego? 
   4. Is there a COMMAND to obey? Is there a 
command you need to obey, no matter how you feel 
about it? 
   5. Is there an EXAMPLE to follow? Are 
there positive examples to follow or negative 
examples to avoid? 
   6. Is there a PRAYER to pray? In the 
Bible, Paul, David, Solomon, Ruth, Esther, Elijah, 
and Isaiah, among others, pray. You can use 
their prayers and know that theyll be answered 
because theyre in the Bible and in Gods will. 
   7. Is there an ERROR to avoid? We dont 
have time to make all the mistakes ourselves! So 
what can you learn from the mistakes of people in 
Scripture? 
   8. Is there a TRUTH to believe? Often, 
well read something in Scripture that we cant 
do anything about. We simply have to believe 
what the Bible says about God the Father, Jesus, 
the Holy Spirit, the past, the future, heaven, 
hell, and other topics. 
   9. Is there SOMETHING for which to praise 
God? You can always find something in a passage 
you can be grateful to God for, like something 
God has done or protected you from.  
   Each question in this list is associated 
with something you do. Write these SPACEPETS 
questions on a note card to keep with your Bible. 
Then, every time you meditate on the Bible, 
theyll help you be obedient to James 1:22: But 
dont just listen to Gods word. You must do 
what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling 
yourselves (NLT). [Daily Devotional by Rick Warren: 
https://pastorrick.com/devotional/] 

CLOSING THOUGHTS

The people must understand that it is not 
the hearers of the Word but the doers of the 
Word that will have eternal life. EV344 

Hearers of the Word will be doers of the 
Word IF they have an active, growing relationship 
with Christ. 

LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY 

James 1:22 - Living the Word!

http://www.abible.com/devotions/2022/20220224-1045.html 

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT

https://abible.com/links/