Being shaped by the Word
We all know how important it is to follow the directions when we need to take medication. If we are sick, it doesn’t help us to go to a doctor, get a prescription, listen to how we are to take it, but then put it on the shelf and forget about it. If we are going to get better, we need to trust that the medicine will do what the doctor promises, follow the directions and take our medication.
When it comes to medicine, it makes sense to both listen and do. It is the same for us as followers of Jesus.
We’re delving into the book of James—a text that pulses with practicality, brimming with a relentless challenge. It asks, “If you’ve truly encountered the living God through Christ, what will the evidence of that encounter look like? What will your life, your very essence, become? How will belief in Christ ripple through your everyday existence, altering your reality?” This is the heartbeat of James: a call to examine how faith transforms life on the ground.
In this passage, we are confronted with a profound truth: a genuine relationship with God births a new, vibrant relationship with His Word, the Scriptures. This relationship is not static but dynamic, alive, and marked by three distinct characteristics. You will be humbled by the Word, shaped by the Word, and ultimately liberated by the Word. Let’s explore these transformative truths.
- Humbled by the Word
In verses 17 and 18, we find the divine decree: 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. This new birth is not just a spiritual awakening; it is the Holy Spirit breathing life into the words of Scripture, making them resonate within us, igniting our souls. The Word of God becomes the catalyst for our rebirth, and we are transformed into “a kind of firstfruits.” This term, firstfruits, is steeped in the language of sacrifice—a symbol of the harvest’s earliest yield, wholly dedicated to God, not for our consumption but as an offering.
James makes a radical assertion: a true Christian, one who has felt the Spirit’s breath, cannot live by their own whims and desires anymore. The authority of God’s Word becomes supreme. It is no longer about what we want or how we wish to live. Our lives are now governed, dictated by the Scriptures—a submission that is both humbling and, at times, confronting.
James doesn’t mince words. 19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
Do you recognise yourself in these words? Or do you see someone different?
In verse 25, he shifts terminology, referring to the Scriptures as “the perfect law.”
25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. This is a powerful, even provocative, statement. The Bible, in its entirety—not just its commandments but its narratives, poetry, and promises—becomes the ultimate law, the standard by which our lives are measured. It’s not a book of mere suggestions or advice; it is a divine law that sees into our very being, sifting and judging.
Our culture balks at such a notion. “I decide what’s right for me,” it declares, pushing back against any external authority. But James stands firm, proclaiming that the Word is not just authoritative but perfect—without flaw, without the possibility of being dismissed as outdated or irrelevant. It challenges us, offends us even, but in that offense, it reveals our need for submission. If God’s Word never challenges us, if it never conflicts with our preferences, then perhaps we have not truly encountered its full authority.
- Shaped by the Word
How do you know if you have truly submitted to the Word of God? Verse 27 offers a glimpse: 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. This verse is a mirror, reflecting what a life shaped by the Word looks like. It’s a balance of compassion and purity, justice and holiness.
The prophets of the Old Testament echoed this truth. Real faith, they declared, manifests in caring for the poor and the oppressed. In Isaiah chapter 1, Isaiah thunders against empty worship that neglects justice: “Stop bringing meaningless offerings… Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.” True religion, James and the prophets insist, must advocate for the marginalized, the vulnerable—those whom society overlooks.
But James doesn’t stop there. He also calls for personal purity: “Keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” It’s a dual mandate—care for others and maintain moral integrity. This balance is often lost in the ideologies of the world. Liberal circles may champion justice but overlook the call for personal holiness. Conservative spheres might uphold morality but remain silent on social justice. Yet the Word of God demands both—a harmony that only a life fully shaped by Scripture can achieve.
- Liberated by the Word
But how does this shaping occur? How does the Word of God mold us into the people it calls us to be? James provides a roadmap in verses 23-25, detailing the transformative power of Scripture.
First, he calls us to “look intently into the perfect law that gives freedom.” This is not a casual glance but a deep, penetrating study, akin to Peter gazing into the empty tomb on Easter morning, his mind racing to comprehend the implications. This intense focus, this disciplined study, is the first step towards transformation.
Next, James describes the Word as a mirror, reflecting who we truly are. It’s not just about understanding principles but about encountering a personal, living God who speaks directly to our hearts, revealing our deepest flaws and calling us to change.
Then comes the volitional aspect—the will to act on what we’ve learned. It’s about perseverance, a sustained commitment to live out the truths we discover in Scripture, day after day, year after year.
And the result? Freedom. But this is not freedom as the world defines it—freedom from restrictions. Instead, it’s the freedom to become who we were truly meant to be.
True freedom isn’t the absence of all constraints; it’s the ability to become what you were truly meant to be. Picture this: you are only free when you’ve been released to fulfill your true purpose, to realise your deepest nature. And the perfect embodiment of this idea? A fish.
Imagine a fish—an exquisite creature, with gills designed to extract life-giving oxygen from water, not air. It has fins, not to traverse the land, but to glide effortlessly through the currents. The fish belongs to the water. It is crafted for it, every fibre of its being designed to thrive in that environment.
Now, imagine this fish. It has two worlds before it: the water and the land. If you think freedom is merely the absence of restrictions, you might say, “Let the fish roam both realms. Let it bask in its freedom on the land as well as in the water.” So, you take the fish and place it on the scorching pavement, away from the cool embrace of the water. “Go on, fish,” you urge, “exercise your freedom. Lay there for an hour and savour your liberation.”
But we all know the truth. Without water, the fish is not free. It’s dying. Its gills, so perfectly designed for the water, fail on the pavement. Its fins, meant to propel it through waves, are useless on the hard ground.
True freedom, then, is not living without restrictions—it’s about finding the right ones. Just as the fish is only free in water, we find our true liberty when we live within the bounds of God’s perfect law. In submitting to these divine boundaries, we discover our true selves, our real freedom, and our deepest purpose.
Jesus Christ was the only one who never wavered, never strayed from the Word of God. Every word He spoke was in perfect harmony with the Scriptures. We have 1,800 verses recorded of Jesus speaking, and incredibly,10 percent of those words are direct quotations from the Old Testament. He was so deeply immersed in the Word that it saturated His every thought, His every breath. He couldn’t say anything without the echo of the Scriptures flowing from His lips.
In every moment of His life, He turned to the Word of God. When the Devil himself tempted Him in the wilderness, Jesus fought back with Scripture. When religious leaders tried to trap Him, He responded with Scripture. As He faced the agony of the cross, what did He cling to? The Word. Even in His final moments, as the weight of the world’s sin bore down on Him, He spoke the words of Scripture: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” and “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Both were drawn from the Psalms.
Here was the only man who ever perfectly lived out the Word of God, fulfilling every command, every prophecy, every law. In the Garden of Gethsemane, as the darkness of the abyss loomed, He prayed, “Let this cup pass from me. Yet not my will, but yours be done.” In that moment, He was saying, “Let Your Word be done.” Even as it cost Him everything, He remained utterly submitted to the will of God.
When you read the Word of God, you must see beyond yourself—you must see Jesus, the only one who ever fully fulfilled the law. After His resurrection, on the road to Emmaus, Jesus told His disciples, “Everything in the Bible is about Me.” He wasn’t speaking in metaphors; He meant it literally. Jesus fulfilled the Word of God by living a perfect life and then going to the cross to take on the penalty we deserve for our failures.
There are only two ways to satisfy the law: by keeping it or by paying the penalty for breaking it. Jesus did both. He lived a flawless life, fulfilling the law, and then He died, taking on the curse our disobedience deserved so that we could receive the blessing His obedience earned. “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”
When you look into the Word of God, see the One who perfectly kept it. Only then will the Scriptures not be a source of despair, but of hope. Because of Jesus, there is now no condemnation for you—only grace, only freedom, and a completely transformed reason for living.
James challenges us to a radical life, one that is humbled, shaped, and ultimately liberated by the Word of God. It’s a life that stands in stark contrast to the world, yet it is the life that we, as believers, are called to live. Amen.