a big to-do
"Act on this word. If all you do is listen to it, you are deceiving yourselves." —James 1:22
Some of you have been reading this booklet, One Bread, One Body, for years. You have read hundreds and thousands of Scripture passages. You are greatly blessed. The Lord is not expecting us to remember all these Bible verses or to know how to interpret them all. He does expect us to live them all by His grace.
Knowing God's word demands doing His word. On Judgment Day, the Lord will not ask us what we know of His word, but how we've lived it. "For it is not those who hear the law who are just in the sight of God; it is those who keep it who will be declared just" (Rm 2:13).
So let's not kid ourselves. Let's take every word of the Bible to heart and to life. "Humbly welcome the word that has taken root in you, with its power to save you" (Jas 1:21). The Lord will never give us a commandment without empowering us to do it.
Jesus promised: "Anyone who hears My words and puts them into practice is like the wise man who built his house on rock" (Mt 7:24). "He is no forgetful listener, but one who carries out the law in practice. Blest will this man be in whatever he does" (Jas 1:25). Jesus also promised: "My mother and My brothers are those who hear the word of God and act upon it" (Lk 8:21). Do the word.
Prayer: Jesus, by obeying Your word may I be Your mother, brother, and sister (Mk 3:34-35).
Promise: "Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees which I am teaching you to observe, that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you." —Dt 4:1
Praise: Praise Jesus, the Word of God, Who is "gentle and humble of heart" (Mt 11:29).
Rescript: †Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, February 11, 2009
The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.