A Nugget from New Life Network
(by Dr. Larry Ollison)
Scripture for the Day Feb.25, 2019
Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. (James 2:17)
I am going to share with you one of the most important truths of the Bible for the Christian. This one bit of knowledge, this one nugget, this one truth, if applied to your life, can take you from sickness to health, from poverty to prosperity, and from bondage to freedom.
Jesus said in John 8:31-32, “If you abide in My Word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
What will make us free? Well, according to Jesus, it’s not just the truth that will set us free, but it’s knowing the truth. The Greek word used here for “know” is ginosko, which means “to have an intimate relationship with,” “to be one with,” “to have a close understanding of.” In other words, to know the truth so well, to be so positive of it, to understand it so completely that you act on it instinctively, without hesitation. Let me explain.
In Luke chapter 6, Jesus tells the story of two men who built houses. One house was built on a rock foundation and one house was built on sand, without a foundation. When the storm came, the house built on the rock withstood the storm while the house built without a foundation, the one built on the sand, was completely destroyed. (vv.47-49.)
Jesus then explained the parable by saying that the man who built his house on the rock was like a man who heard His sayings and did them. And the man who built his house on the sand was like a man who heard His sayings and did not do them. Notice that both men heard the sayings of Jesus. Both men heard the Word. But even though both men heard the Word, only one knew the Word. Only one man understood it and knew it so completely, that he acted on it. It’s when we hear and do the Word that faith can be present.
There are many good people who spend a large amount of time reading the Bible and hearing the Word. A lot of these people even believe what they read and hear. However, it doesn’t matter how much you read or hear, and it doesn’t even matter how much you believe; if you don’t act on what you have learned, it will profit you nothing. If we only hear and believe, then we will perish when the storms of life come. If we hear the Word, believe, and act on our belief, then our house will be built on the Rock – Jesus – and we will weather every storm (1 Corinthians 10:4).
Once a lady told me that she had read the Bible through seventeen times. The only problem was this woman didn’t have a lick of faith. To her it was only history. She thought that everything in it was just knowledge about the past or a prophecy about the future. She even told me that nothing in it applied to her today. Sadly, this woman fell into the category that Jesus was talking about in the parable of the two men. Reading or hearing the Word and not acting on it is like knowing about God but not knowing God.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying that we are to live by works instead of faith. What I am saying is that without works, faith is dead (James 2:17). And living with dead faith leaves us unshielded against the fiery darts of the evil one (Ephesians 6:16).
The point is we must hear the Word, believe the Word, speak the Word, and act on the Word. Only then will our faith be living faith.
