Ministry of Grace Church

Because, if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man studying his natural face in a mirror;

Truth to Learn

We can learn a lot about God and about ourselves by looking intently into the Word of God.

Behind the Words

The word translated “studying” is a form of the Greek word katanoeō, which is a compound word made up of kata, which means “down” but is used here as an intensifier and noeō, which means “to perceive with thought.” So, this word means “to intensely observe” or “to visually study.”

“Face” is translated from the Greek word prosōpon. This word is made up of pros, which means “toward” or “in the vicinity of” and a form of ops which literally refers to the “eyes.” Hence, this word refers to that which is in the vicinity of the eyes. It is the Greek word generally used to refer to the face.

The word translated “mirror” is a form of esoptron, made up of eis, meaning “into or unto” and a form of optomai, which means “to look” or “to perceive.” So, quite literally it is “a look-into thing.” Early English translations of the Bible translated this as “looking glass” which we refer to today as “a mirror.”

Meaning Explained

James has just instructed us to be doers (performers) of the word, not just hearers and he is now going to explain by way of example in the form of a simile. He says that if you hear the word and do not put it into practice, you are like a person who is studying himself (or herself) in a mirror. Do you ever do that? No, I don’t mean simply looking at yourself, but studying yourself. You know, checking out the blemishes, trying to decide what color your eyes really are, surveying the new laugh-lines that seem to have recently appeared, or perhaps counting the gray hairs.

The person who is not a hearer of the word doesn’t do that. They see someone else in the mirror. Instead of thinking, “Wow, God’s talking about me in that passage, I better listen up,” he or she thinks, “I wish so-and-so could hear this, they really need to hear what the Bible says about them.”

How many times have you walked out of church not remembering a thing about what the preacher just said? We’re all guilty of that at times. But how many times have you walked out of church thinking what a great message you just heard, that God was speaking directly to you? Hopefully, that happens to you on a regular basis. If so, then you are a hearer of the Word. If not, before you start church hopping in search of a better preacher, you might want to spend more time in prayer asking God to make you a better listener.

But, just because you regularly hear good preaching based solidly on what the Bible teaches, doesn’t mean that you put it into action. James is talking about a “put it into action” person.

Application

The Bible is like a mirror, indeed. It lets us see ourselves more clearly the way God sees us. And, fortunately, He is a God of grace and mercy. But the Bible also reveals to us what God wants us to be. When was the last time you saw yourself in the mirror of the Word? Do you remember what you looked like? How does that compare with what God wants you to look like?