Following Through

CORE PRACTICE #91: Remember that people are watching to see whether your actions and attitudes match your words.

You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. —James 2:22

Lauren

Have you ever struggled to “walk the walk” instead of simply “talking the talk”?

Tony had to face the consequences of falling short very publicly in 1999, his fourth season with the Bucs. Despite playing extremely well in a matchup against the New York Giants, the Bucs lost 17–13, due in part to a bad call by a referee near the end of the game. Tony criticized the officiating following the game, and he was fined for his remarks. Worse yet, he realized that his post-game criticisms didn’t live up to his objective of building a culture of accountability and class. Tony was concerned that his remarks had undermined the very values he’d been advocating since coming to Tampa.

We all have reacted poorly to a situation, whether in front of our spouse, children, or friends. Often it’s a sign that we need to better safeguard our hearts and minds by staying close to the Lord through regular Bible reading and prayer. In our own strength, it’s impossible to “imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1); but these two spiritual disciplines keep our hearts aligned with His.

If you struggle with walking your talk, a good Scripture to study is James 2. There, James, the brother of Jesus, reminds believers that true faith is accompanied by Christlike actions. In chapter 2, verses 21 through 26, James points to two biblical examples whose words and actions were in harmony. The first is Abraham, who lived out his faith by his willingness to sacrifice Isaac if God commanded it. The second figure held up as a model may surprise you. Rahab, a prostitute from the ancient city of Jericho, is praised for hiding the Hebrew messengers who had come to scout her city just before the Israelites entered the Promised Land.

Rahab told the spies that all of Jericho’s inhabitants had heard about how God had delivered the Israelites from the pursuing Egyptians at the Red Sea, as well as how the Israelites had defeated two Amorite kings. Then she proclaimed, “The LORD your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below” (Joshua 2:11).

James isn’t commending her for her words alone. Amazingly, even before she made her public declaration, she had refused to turn over the Israelite messengers when the king demanded that she do so.

The writer of Hebrews explains how her faith and action worked together: “It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies” (11:31).

While we should strive to be like Abraham and Rahab, we will fall short sometimes. After all, each one of us has been guilty sometime of talking the talk but not walking the talk.

Adventure Application: Is there an area with which you have struggled to make your actions meet your words? Pray with your spouse about it.