Spiritual Smoke and Mirrors

Bill Brown ... Xiamen University
"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like." James 1:22--24

"The heart of the wise should reflect all things without being sullied by them." Confucius

"For now we see through a glass darkly." 1 Cor. 13:12

Spiritual Smoke and Mirrors James was quite blunt in saying that we deceive ourselves by "merely" listening to sermons, or reading the bible, or having faithful daily quiet times. If we only hear but do not do, these things are worse than useless; they are downright dangerous because these outward observances can lull us into a false sense of spirituality that deadens us to the inner reality of who we really are--like the man who looks at himself in a mirror but immediately forgets what he looks like.

Pop Psychology, Pop Religion Pop psychology says to be positive, think good thoughts, know your self-worth. And these affirmations are indeed useful but they do not, in themselves, actually change us. In the same way, adherents of pop religion listen to weekly upbeat sermons and bible studies, and listen to "spiritual" music, as if this in itself will change us.

I Am or I Do? Both pop religion and pop psychology have a point: changed attitudes usually precede changed behavior. That's why Paul urged us to "take every thought captive" (1 Cor. 10:5), and in Philippians 4:8 said, "whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely...think on these things." But mere thinking is not enough.

Like James, Paul said "not the hearers of the law are justified before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified." (Romans 2:13). We must go beyond affirming "I am" to become one who can say "I do"--and not just for a sprint but for the long haul.

Persistent in Doing Each year, countless people come out of motivational seminars fired up and ready to change the world, but a year later are still unsuccessful, and disillusioned. Many are professional participants, trekking from one seminar to the next. But hearing about success does not make one successful unless the principles are not only put into practice but done so persistently, over the long haul. Success is not a 100m dash but a marathon. The same goes for our spiritual walk. We must not just do what we hear but keep doing it until we finish the race and attain the prize (1 Cor. 2:24). As James wrote in 1:25, immediately after the "mirror" analogy,

"But the one who looks at the perfect law of freedom and remains committed to it-thereby demonstrating that he is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of what that law requires-will be blessed in what he does."

Now that is real motivation, not seminar hype--with a real promise!

Hearing, and Doing Like participants in highly charged success seminars, we too can immerse ourselves in spiritual activities, soaking up the word from sermons and bibles studies, and deceive ourselves into fancying that we are spiritual when in reality we live no differently than those who never crack open a Bible. We must of course hear first, but then we must do.

Today, I will think positive, as advised by Norman Vincent Peale, Robert Schuller, and pop psychologists. Even Paul urged, "think on good things." But after fortifying myself with food for thought and positive attitudes, I'll put them into practice. I'll probably blow it too, first thing out the gate. I'll remind myself to show the fruits of the spirit--gentleness, patience, and self-control--and then want to lay an Oral Roberts headlock on the first Henan Chinese taxi driver that cuts me off the road as we engage in China's "Darwinian Driving" (Survival of the Fastest). But I'll persist in doing, in spite of my missteps.

And happily for me, not only do my attitudes affect my behavior but my behavior will also reinforce my attitudes, and the adrenaline from running the race may clear my head so I can not only remember who I am but Whose I am, until the day we no longer see through a glass darkly but face to face. (1 Cor. 13:12).

"Know Yourself." Sunzi's Art of War
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