ODJ: a thousand words
October 20, 2011
Don’t just listen to God’s Word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves (v.22).
READ: James 1:18-25
In a cartoon strip, a typist asks an artist: “Why is a picture worth a thousand words?” The artist replies, “Hmm, how fast do you type?” “About 25 words per minute,” answers the typist. “That’s it! When I finish my drawing in 40 minutes . . . you would have already typed 1,000 words.” That’s funny, but (obviously) it’s not what the adage means. Rather, it refers to the idea that a complex concept can be conveyed with just a single, still image.
The Bible presents numerous “still images” to illustrate its wisdom: lamp/light (Psalm 119:105); hammer and fire (Jeremiah 23:29); sword (Hebrews 4:12); silver and gold (Psalm 119:72); food (Job 23:12); and milk (1 Peter 2:2).
James used three metaphors to describe what God’s Word is and does. The Bible is God’s “true Word” (James 1:18), resonating with what Jesus taught earlier: “Your Word . . . is truth” (John 17:17). Reflecting perhaps on the parable of the sower (Luke 8:5-15), James next spoke of “the word God has planted” (v.21; Luke 8:11). And finally, James likened the Bible to “a mirror” (James 1:23).
James also used three metaphors to describe the Bible’s role in our salvation. Using a word picture from nature, James said that God’s Word ”give[s] birth to us” (v.18). Our new life is everlasting because “it comes from the eternal, living word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). From the world of agriculture, the implanted word “has the power to save [our] souls” (James 1:21). God had made good His promise to write His Word deep within our hearts (Jeremiah 31:33). And speaking aesthetically, God’s Word is the mirror showing us what we are, enabling us to correct the flaws it reveals (James 1:23-25).
God’s Word gives us a new life, and it helps us live it out. But we will have to “do what it says” (vv.22,25). —K.T. Sim
What is God’s Word telling you to do today?
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