We can’t just be hearers of the Word; we have to be doers of the Word—we must put it into practice in our daily lives. This is a process called application. You’re answering the question, “How can I make this truth from God’s Word become reality in my life?” And I can promise you that there will be innumerable excuses that come up to keep you from applying it. There will NEVER be a convenient time to change how we are doing things.
 

Some excuses that we may come up with are: hurting people’s feelings or offending them, traditions, preferences, opinions, laziness, apathy, etc. James 4:17 says, “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” If we have been revealed truth from Scripture and we say things like, “I know this is Biblical but I don’t think it’s the right time to do it.” That is a VERY dangerous place to be because that means that we are in direct and intentional disobedience to God. We need to work together to deal with the difficult topics and help each other apply Biblical truths in all ways.
 

If we don’t apply God’s Word to our lives and follow its teachings, we’re just fooling ourselves. James 1:22 says, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” Jesus said that those who hear His words and put them into practice are wise and have a solid foundation, but those who hear and don’t respond are foolish people who will collapse when tough times come. Matthew 7:24-27 says, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
 

Let’s be wise! Let’s help one another know what God’s Word says and how it applies to our lives!