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Walking in righteousness
James 1:22 “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”
James is saying that if you do not do as the Bible says you are deceiving yourself. You cannot just read the Bible or hear how to
live a righteous life and then continue to live in sin and believe that you‘re a Christian. You must abide in the teachings of the
Bible or you cannot say that you‘re a Christian.
Romans 2:13 “For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.”
If you are not obeying God’s law or do not even have a desire to, then why would you even call yourself a Christian? Why would
you bother going to church to hear the word of God if you are not going to listen to it? Why would you read the Bible if you are not
going to obey it? You want to become a Christian, right? So what is the point of getting the instructions for something you do not
want to build? If you want to be a Christian, you must be willing to follow God’s law.
1 Peter 1:14-16 “As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which
hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”
You must live in a way that shows to others that you are an obedient child of God. You must fashion yourself to be like Christ and
not like this world. The cloths you wear, the things you say, the music you listen to, the television shows you watch, the activities
that you do, everything you do must be acceptable to God. If you are not living like Jesus, how can you say you are following Him?
You cannot live in a lifestyle full of unrighteousness and call yourself a Christian.
The Bible says in 1 John 3:10 that whoever does not do righteousness is not of God. I do not play baseball, because I am not a
baseball player. I would not call myself a baseball player unless I actually played the game. However I wouldn’t play the game,
because I have no interest in playing. Yet, many people call themselves a Christian even though they do not live the Christian life
or have an interest in following the commandments of the Bible. You cannot say you are a Christian if you are just going to ignore
the commandments of the Bible.
How far would you get with a sports coach if you came in and said you were going to play, but it had to be by your rules? A coach
is not going to let you on his team if you refuse to play by the rules. So what makes you think God will let you on His team if you
are not going to play by His rules?
2 Timothy 2:5 “And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.”
Being on God’s team means, you must play by His rules. The commands I have shown you in this chapter and the other
commands given throughout this book are God’s commands and you must be abiding in them in order to recognize yourself as
a Christian. If you are going to call yourself a Christian, you must be living as Jesus did.
1 John 2:6 “He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.”
Think about the way Jesus lived His life and now look at the way you live yours. How do they compare? Are you living your life as
Jesus lived His, or are you living your life as worldly people live theirs? The word “Christian” was made for those who followed
Christ’s example. So when you ask yourself, “Am I a Christian?” You should be asking yourself, “Do I follow Christ’s example?
Do I live like Jesus did?” Christianity is not a label, it is a lifestyle.
James is saying that if you do not do as the Bible says you are deceiving yourself. You cannot just read the Bible or hear how to
live a righteous life and then continue to live in sin and believe that you‘re a Christian. You must abide in the teachings of the
Bible or you cannot say that you‘re a Christian.
Romans 2:13 “For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.”
If you are not obeying God’s law or do not even have a desire to, then why would you even call yourself a Christian? Why would
you bother going to church to hear the word of God if you are not going to listen to it? Why would you read the Bible if you are not
going to obey it? You want to become a Christian, right? So what is the point of getting the instructions for something you do not
want to build? If you want to be a Christian, you must be willing to follow God’s law.
1 Peter 1:14-16 “As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which
hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”
You must live in a way that shows to others that you are an obedient child of God. You must fashion yourself to be like Christ and
not like this world. The cloths you wear, the things you say, the music you listen to, the television shows you watch, the activities
that you do, everything you do must be acceptable to God. If you are not living like Jesus, how can you say you are following Him?
You cannot live in a lifestyle full of unrighteousness and call yourself a Christian.
The Bible says in 1 John 3:10 that whoever does not do righteousness is not of God. I do not play baseball, because I am not a
baseball player. I would not call myself a baseball player unless I actually played the game. However I wouldn’t play the game,
because I have no interest in playing. Yet, many people call themselves a Christian even though they do not live the Christian life
or have an interest in following the commandments of the Bible. You cannot say you are a Christian if you are just going to ignore
the commandments of the Bible.
How far would you get with a sports coach if you came in and said you were going to play, but it had to be by your rules? A coach
is not going to let you on his team if you refuse to play by the rules. So what makes you think God will let you on His team if you
are not going to play by His rules?
2 Timothy 2:5 “And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.”
Being on God’s team means, you must play by His rules. The commands I have shown you in this chapter and the other
commands given throughout this book are God’s commands and you must be abiding in them in order to recognize yourself as
a Christian. If you are going to call yourself a Christian, you must be living as Jesus did.
1 John 2:6 “He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.”
Think about the way Jesus lived His life and now look at the way you live yours. How do they compare? Are you living your life as
Jesus lived His, or are you living your life as worldly people live theirs? The word “Christian” was made for those who followed
Christ’s example. So when you ask yourself, “Am I a Christian?” You should be asking yourself, “Do I follow Christ’s example?
Do I live like Jesus did?” Christianity is not a label, it is a lifestyle.
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