Hearers And Doers of God’s Word
March 2025
By: Chap Bettis, Founder Disciple-Making Parent
The Sunday sermon is over. We’ve had a quiet, meditative response time. Then, we are sent home with the benediction of 2 Corinthians 13:14; May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. We’ve done our duty, right? We came to church, listened to a great sermon, and from that we will grow.
Not so fast. According to the Bible, good teaching comes with both a great temptation and a great opportunity.
Surprised? Why do I say this? Because merely hearing the Word of God is good but not complete.
Hearing and Doing
Consider this verse: But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves (James 1 : 22).
That’s rather shocking, isn’t it? Being a hearer only actually leads to self-deception.
This same principle is repeated in other places.
Jesus taught this, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock…. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand" (Matt. 7:24, 26).
In another place, Jesus stated “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it” (Luke 8:21).
Did you notice what was in all three of those verses? Hearing and doing - Application.
A great temptation is that knowledge alone can puff up (1 Cor. 8:1). And a great opportunity is that knowledge plus application leads to spiritual growth.
Three-fold Application
How can we make sure that we apply the Word of God after we have been taught it or after we have read it?
There are several different methods that I have found helpful in my Christian life. But I would like to commend to you one in particular. It involves responding to what you have heard or read with one of the 3 R’s: rejoicing, repenting, or requesting. What do I mean by that? It means that after every time of teaching or reading of God‘s Word I am asking myself, “What is there to rejoice in? What is there to repent of? What is there to request?”
Let’s look at these one at a time.
Rejoice. When I think about this response, I am asking myself multiple questions. What did I learn about God that causes me to praise him? What did I hear or learn where I ought to respond with a thankful heart? Theology should lead to doxology. Learning about God should lead to praise. That praise does not have to be out loud. It can be in our hearts to the Lord. In fact, some of the best praise comes quietly and not for the show of men and women. Hearing truth can lead to praise.
Repent. With this response, I am asking, ‘How do I fall short of what God wants for me?’ I am also asking, ‘ From what I have just heard or read, how does God want me to grow? Repentance includes confession, but it is not limited to it. The word ‘repentance’ means a change of mind that leads to a change in direction. Ask yourself, "What have I learned today that should cause me to stop believing a certain way? Or stop acting in a certain way? What have I learned today that should cause me to begin believing or acting a certain way?" We should never stop growing until we get to heaven. Until then, we should be repenting every day.
Request. What did I hear in today’s sermon or what did I learn in today’s Bible reading that leads naturally to interceding? That prayer can be for myself or for others. If I learned new truth about God, then after rejoicing, I might continue with requesting to know, remember, and apply these truths. Or maybe it leads to praying for different godly characteristics in my family, my friends, or my church. Deep prayer in the Spirit will come as I listen to what the Spirit has said to me in this Word and as I listen to how he wants me to pray for others.
These are simple, really. Repent, rejoice, request. You can use them during that short meditative time at the end of the Sunday service. You can use them in your journal. You can use them as you talk with others. You can use them for your family as you open the Word together.
Let’s not be hearers only deceiving ourselves. But let’s apply the Word and respond to it in our hearts and lives.
