Applying the Word to Your Life

Is it possible to meditate on and memorize God’s Word yet actually miss the point? Absolutely! God warns us, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22). As that passage continues, God emphasizes listening and looking into His Word. But if we stop there, we’ll deceive ourselves and miss the point altogether.

To take this one step further, according to Jesus, we won’t just miss the point; we’ll miss eternal life (Matthew 7:21–23). Many people who claim his name will be shocked to stand before him and hear him say, “I never knew you. Away from me.” These are people who professed Jesus but didn’t follow his words.

There’s a sense in which the devil would delight for us to meditate on and memorize God’s Word, so long as we do nothing about it in our lives. This is a recipe for not only personal deception but for eternal destruction. Of course, no one obeys God’s Word flawlessly, so we shouldn’t expect perfection. But for those who have God’s Spirit living in them, there should be evidence that the Word is gradually transforming their lives.

As followers of Jesus, a new heart lies at the core of who we are. The Holy Spirit lives in us, transforming everything about us from the inside out. The Spirit of Jesus in us transforms our minds to think like him, according to his Word. In turn, Jesus changes our affections to want what he wants and hate what he hates. The more we think as Jesus thinks and desire what Jesus desires, the more the Holy Spirit transforms our will to walk as Jesus walked. Then, the more we live as Jesus lives, the more we will love as Jesus loves, and this transforms our relationships with others. In all of this, Jesus revolutionizes our ultimate purpose for living. Our deepest desire is to follow Jesus and make him known from our neighborhoods to all nations.

So today, let us consider the importance of applying what we learn in the Word to every layer of our life, asking God to lead us according to his will.

Pray

God, keep me from merely hearing your Word and deceiving myself; help me to apply it by the power of your Holy Spirit to every layer of my life. Amen.