23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. (James 1:23 – 24)
Over the last two days, the comments related to Bible Study and our identity have been extremely insightful and encouraging. Thanks to all contributors! As we wrap up our consideration of the Discipline of Bible Study, we turn our attention to the important topic of application.
In the passage above, the parallel drawn between the Bible and a mirror is very interesting, especially in the context of our discussion about the Bible and our identity. Mirrors tell us about our external appearance, but the Bible tells us about our spiritual appearance. If we suffered from memory loss every time we looked in a mirror, we might suffer from an appearance crisis. Based on the passage above, if we don’t apply the word of God, I would argue that we could suffer from an identity crisis.
Please prayerfully reflect on the passage of scripture above.
Something to think about:
Why is Biblical application (as opposed to just knowledge acquisition) crucial for the identity of the believer?