Listen To The Word And Obey

But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.” ‭‭James‬ ‭1:22-25‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Hearing something and actually doing something are two different things. You can own a Bible and read it but if you don't do what it says, it is pointless and irrelevant. Owning a Bible, having one displayed in your home, and carrying it with you to church will not change things in your life. You must read it AND do what it says. In the Scripture above, James compares it to looking in a mirror and not doing anything to correct the things that are needful. Mirrors are only as effective as the action of the person beholding themselves. A mirror can only reveal the condition. The person with the condition must take action. Once action is taken to make the necessary changes, the purpose becomes accomplished. God's Word is like a mirror. It shows us our condition. We, the beholder, must look into it's pages, read them, and then take the appropriate action accordingly. When we expose ourselves to what the Word of God says by reading it, hearing it read, or even preached, we behold our spiritual condition in  a mirror. What we do with that image is up to us. If we simply hear it but do nothing in application of it, we ignore it's purpose. The sad thing is this: the person who hears the Word of God and doesn't obey it is foolish. Their lives will reap the consequences. "Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7:24-27‬ ‭NLT‬‬  What consequences do you want in your life? Are you willing to hear the Word of God AND do what it says? The decision is yours.