Sometimes it appears that persons who most need to hear a word do not hear it, though they appear to be listening. Anything contrary to the grain of their well- chosen ways is filtered out. They transfer the word to others who need it more. This makes them feel more righteous. Truly hearing would require saying, “I am wrong,” which they will not do. It takes humility bent on obedience to truly hear God’s Word and heal the soul.
But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.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; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.James 1:22-25 (NASB)
From “In The Steps of The Shepherd”, by H. Lamar Smith
