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We continue the verse-by-verse study of James chapters 1 and 2 here in Part 2, starting with James 1:22.
(22) But [And] prove yourselves doers of the word ["Doers of the word" live righteous lives, as required by God's word, by grace through faith. God's word includes His moral law.], and not merely hearers who delude themselves. [[It is not acceptable, Biblical Christianity for us to be mere hearers of the word of God. We must be doers of God's Word. Cf., e.g., Matt. 7:24-27; Luke 11:28; and Rom. 2:13. I'll quote 1 John 3:7, where the apostle John warns his readers that they must not be deceived. There were many deceivers in John's day, as there are in our day. "Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness [or, "the one who is doing righteousness," which equates with being a doer of God's word, which includes His moral law] is righteous, just as He [God the Son] is righteous." To be righteous as God the Son is righteous is a bold way to speak of our righteousness; it certainly includes the victory over all sin!]] (23) For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror [[The hearer of the word who isn't a doer is the man who listens to the word without making it a top priority to understand the word, to take the word into his heart (to receive the word implanted), and to become/be a doer of the word on a continuous basis (by grace through faith). In this illustration, as the next verse shows, the "man who looks at his natural face in a mirror" considers what he is doing to be a low-priority item; you don't need to remember, meditate on, and act on what you have seen. No problem if you forget!]]; (24) for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of a person he was. [The NIV has, "immediately forgets what he looks like."] (25) But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty [[We are required to make it a top priority to read/hear God's word (with some emphasis on His moral law; James 2:8-12 confirms that the "law of liberty" includes Gods' moral law), to make sure we understand it, and to take it into our hearts with the intention of living according to His word by His sufficient saving, sanctifying grace in Christ by faith on a continuous basis. It is a great blessing for us to be able to keep "the perfect law, the law of liberty."
It is "perfect [or, complete]" because, for one thing, it includes the gospel of new-covenant salvation in Christ Jesus, which enables believers to live as God requires His people to live. (The first five books of the Old Testament, which is sometimes called the Mosaic Law contained a wealth of super-important information along with the laws/commandments.) It is LAW in that includes God's moral LAW (whether found in the Old Testament, in the teaching of Jesus, or in other parts of the New Testament). It is "the law of LIBERTY" in that we are set free from bondage to sin and the kingdom of spiritual death and darkness and enabled to walk in the righteousness and holiness of God. (See, for example, John 8:31-36; Gal. 5:1-25; Rom. 8:1-16). Instead of "liberty" we could translate this Greek noun as "freedom
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