“Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” — James 4:17
Not long ago I sat down with my son and told him several things I wanted him to do. The list wasn’t long. He was more than capable of doing every item. You probably know how this went. He chose not to do any of them. He didn’t argue or throw a fit. He just ignored what I had said and went a different way.
I’ll be honest, it stung. Not because the chores mattered so much. It stung because he knew, and he didn’t do. Then the Lord turned that around on me, because I do the same thing.
When we think of sin, we usually picture something we did. James points to something else: the good we know to do and leave undone.
Complacency rarely looks like rebellion. It looks like “later.” The call you meant to make. The person you meant to forgive. The prayer you meant to pray. The step of obedience you have been circling for months.
Jesus asked, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). Calling Him Lord and ignoring His word do not go together.
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22). Notice the word deceiving. We can sit in church, read a devotional like this one, nod along, and walk away unchanged, thinking that was enough.
And the Lord ties obedience to love: “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Obedience is not how we earn His love. It is how we answer it.
What is the one thing the Lord has been asking you to do that you keep putting off? Name it. Confess the delay. Then do it today, or at least take the first step before you go to bed.
Someone Else May Need This Today
If this devotional encouraged you, consider sharing it with someone who may need the same reminder today. Sometimes the simplest way to encourage someone is to put the right words in front of them at the right moment.
You never know how God might use one small act of sharing to meet someone exactly where they are.
Share this devotional with someone who could use the encouragement today.
