Be Doers—Not Just Hearers
1 True Christians today take to heart the Bible admonition to be doers of the word, not just hearers. (Jas. 1:22) This sets them in sharp contrast with those who, although professing to be Christian, render mere lip service to God. (Isa. 29:13) Jesus clearly stated that only those doing the will of God will be saved.—Matt. 7:21.
2 Worship without godly works is meaningless. (Jas. 2:26) So we should ask ourselves, ‘How do my works prove that my faith is genuine? What shows that I truly live in harmony with what I believe? How can I imitate Jesus more fully?’ Honest answers to these questions will help us to see what progress we have made or still need to make in doing God’s will.
3 As followers of Jesus, we must have the same primary goal in life as that expressed by the psalmist: “In God we will offer praise all day long, and to time indefinite your name we shall laud.” (Ps. 44:8) Christianity is a way of life that manifests itself every day and in everything we do. What satisfaction we find as we demonstrate in all our activities our heartfelt desire to praise Jehovah!—Phil. 1:11.
4 Giving Praise to Jehovah Involves More Than Living an Upright Life: If fine conduct were all that God required, we could simply concentrate on refining our personality. However, our worship also involves declaring abroad Jehovah’s excellencies and making public declaration to his name!—Heb. 13:15; 1 Pet. 2:9.
5 The public preaching of the good news is one of the most important works we perform. Jesus devoted himself to this work because he knew it meant everlasting life to those who would listen. (John 17:3) Today “the ministry of the word” is no less important; it is the only means by which people can be saved. (Acts 6:4; Rom. 10:13) Realizing the far-reaching benefits, we can appreciate why Paul admonished us to “preach the word” and to “be at it urgently.”—2 Tim. 4:2.
6 To what extent should praising Jehovah occupy our lives? The psalmist said that it was on his mind all day long. Do we not feel that way? Yes, and we will regard every contact with another person as a potential occasion to speak about Jehovah’s name. We will look for appropriate opportunities to direct our conversation toward spiritual matters. We will also endeavor to share regularly in field service activities organized by the congregation. Those whose circumstances allow can give serious consideration to the pioneer service, for this helps us to put the preaching work foremost in our life every day. God’s Word assures us that by being persistent doers of God’s will, we will be happy.—Jas. 1:25.