Study For Service (At His Feet)

Now, although it would of course be amazing to stay in the position of worship, as Mary did. We also have very distinct calls and purposes on our lives which require us to GO. We are required to ABIDE, which means to remain in him, as we go and do.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. (James 1:22-25 ESV)

Passages like this one in James 1, not to mention The Great Commission in Matthew 28, give us clear instruction on the importance of doing the work of God.

Specifically, James 1:23 really strikes me in that the imagery of looking intently at the Word of God is described as being like someone who looks in a mirror. This gives us yet further insight into the fact that so much of our identity is tied up in the pages of Scripture.

The more we read his Word and understand his heart, the more we long to do what he’s created us for. So it starts with the study, but it doesn’t stay there. The natural response after any of us has learned something is to then go and put it into practice. The practice before the knowing can be limiting in that we’ll only ever get so far without knowing exactly what we’re meant to do and why. Equally, simply knowing without going is even more limiting.

Another phrase to note from our passage is the word ‘perseveres’ in verse 25. It can be easy, after a hard knock or a feeling of difficulty and struggle, to feel like perhaps we’ve got it wrong or that God isn’t actually with us after all, and that is one of the crucial reasons as to why it’s so vital to keep coming back to the word.

Just like we don’t look at ourselves in the mirror once and think to ourselves “well, I know what I look like now, I don’t need to look ever again!” – neither do we look to scripture once and think to ourselves “well, I know what to do now”. Of course, we know this in theory, but it can be harder to walk out in practice.

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them inthe name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:16-20 ESV)

One of the most commonly asked questions for both Christians and non-Christians alike is “What is the purpose for my life?” As believers, we have answers to this not only on a broad scale, but also on a day-to-day basis as we continually revisit what God has to say about what is required of us each and every day.

Knowing this, then we must not simply theoretically know what is required of us; we must also be prepared and willing to walk it out, and we must continue to come back to it in order to be replenished, restored, and rejuvenated for what’s ahead. I hope that this short plan has encouraged you to do just that.