Devotional The Word of God – Truth which sets free. James chapter 1 v 17-25 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. 19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: 20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. 21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. Learning Intentions: We are learning to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. Success Criteria: I can: receive with meekness the engrafted word; look into the perfect law of liberty, and continue therein; be a doer of the work. The above verses are full of verbs for our instruction – directions for us to follow, to do, for successful and blessed Christian living. Before we look at some of these actions, James reminds us in verse 18 that God begat us with the Word of Truth - we are created or “brought into existence” by the Word of Truth. This speaks of our new identity as children of the Most High God; being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever (1 Peter 1:23). So, if we (the church) have been born again of the Word of God, it makes sense that we should abide in the Word so that we can continue to be cleansed and sanctified with the washing of water by the Word (Ephesians 5:26). If there is something in our lives that requires cleansing, "the washing of water by the word" must be actively present – we must abide in His Word, meditating on it day and night, and when we do this, God’s Word says that we will know the truth and the truth will set us free (John 8:32). It took me a long time to fully grasp the reality and the truth of this statement: “when you know the truth, the truth will set you free”. I thought, ‘I do know the truth. I know Jesus, and He is the truth; I know God’s Word, and His Word is truth...’ Yet I knew that I was not free in many areas of my life. At times, I would even constantly have reminded myself of John 8:32 and then became frustrated and confused because it did not seem to be adding up – the ‘truth’ did not appear to be true! However, the truth for me was in fact that I did not KNOW, I did not have a revelation of, God’s Word – His truth about who I was. My mind had to be renewed. The thoughts that I had believed for many years, especially about myself, had to be replaced by the truth of what God said about me. And that was not easy! **Before the truth can set you free, you need to recognise which lie is holding you hostage.** We live in a fallen, broken world and many of us have belief systems which may have been formed and engrafted into us when we were a child, so they have become strongholds which need to be pulled down, and cast out because they exalt themselves against the knowledge of God – in other words, if what you believe or think does not line up with, and cannot be found in the Word of God, then it is a lie. We must bring every thought into obedience of Jesus Christ – chose to believe His Words and replace the lies of the enemy with the truth of our Saviour (2 Corinthians 10:4-5) Receive with meekness the engrafted Word. In order for us to know the truth, the first action to consider from the main scripture in James is receiving the engrafted Word; and doing so with meekness. Why is this important? James continues: because it is able to save our souls. We have been begotten of God; however our souls need to be delivered from the bondages that we might be ensnared in. I have realised that we cannot be freed from bondage until we actually know that we are in bondage: before the truth can set you free, you need to recognise which lie is holding you hostage. Sometimes, however, even when you do know which lie is holding you hostage, you don’t want to accept or acknowledge it because it is easier just to be the way you have always been... That may sound like a strange statement, but it is true - it is easier to make excuses for yourself or maybe for the way you behave, because even though you despise the bondage you are in, it is normal to you and therefore it is comfortable to you. It takes courage and determination and will power to change; it involves effort and discipline to believe what God says rather than the lies which have become your friend; and you must desire to better yourself and to bring God glory. How then can we actually become aware of the bondage that we are in? How can we recognise strongholds and lies as just that? Hebrews 4 v 12 says that the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Therefore, if we receive and believe the Word of God with meekness, just as James says, the truth of God’s Word will penetrate our hearts and separate those thoughts which are soulish and devilish from the truths that we receive from the Word of God. The only way you can know the truth and your soul can be saved is by abiding in His Word (John 8:31-32), and this leads us unto the next section. Look into the perfect law of liberty, and continue therein. James also tells us to look into the perfect law of liberty, which is the Word of God, and we must continue therein. It is not enough to simply read the Word of God. We must meditate in it and we must seek to obey what is written therein. If we are simply reading the Word of God out of habit, to gain brownie points or to satisfy ourselves by thinking that we have done our daily duty so God will be pleased with us, then we are not letting God’s Word penetrate our hearts and we will not recognise the truth that we need to know in order to be free. In some cases, hearing the truth can be hard to take and it may take us some time to want to accept it, but the sooner that we receive it; the faster we can be freed to live a life more abundant through Jesus. In allowing us to see the truth, Jesus does not want to hurt us – it is simply His desire for us to be free. The very reason that he endured the cross for us was because of the joy set before Him, and that joy was seeing us reconciled to the Father and living a life more abundant – just as before the fall. Continue in God’s Word until you receive your healing, deliverance, your freedom that Jesus paid for you to have. Continue in God’s Word by meditating on it all day and all night – discipline your mind to do so, and then make up your mind to obey, to be a doer of His Word and His works so that you can be prosperous and have good success (Joshua 1:8). B e a doer of the work. As all scripture is given by inspiration of God, the last point to consider from our main text dove-tails so neatly with the previous points. James says that we must not be hearers of the Word only, but doers of His Word, deceiving our own selves. At times, we may be able to see the truth of someone else’s situation and not quite understand how or why they are living with such bondage –they cannot yet see the lies that are holding them hostage. It is the same with us. Until we see our own bondage, and the lies that hold us there, we cannot actually do anything about it. This is why it is so vital for us to know the truth according to God’s Word, not according to man. We must receive revelation knowledge, which needs to be planted and cultivated in us so that the lies of the enemy become choked and we can finally put off the old man. Only after being renewed in the spirit of our mind, can we then replace those strongholds by putting on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:22-24). The only way to be and remain free is by abiding in the Word. Discipline yourself. Seek God and His truth. The words which Jesus will speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life - allow Him to renew your mind, and be transformed to prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God; and when you KNOW the truth, the Truth will set you FREE