James 1:25 “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”
Those who are “not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work” are those who “hear” the Gospel message and faithfully act upon it. “the work” under consideration here, is our Christian occupation, our daily duty to our Lord! Paul explains “a forgetful hearer” this way, “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.” (I Corinthians 15:33); that is, a flawed or false doctrine leads to bad behavior. But, we are charged to “work out” our “own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12); that is, the truth of “the perfect law of liberty” should be the motivation and guide to faithfully serve and obey our Lord. Said another way, because our Lord Jesus Christ “hath made” us “free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2) we ought to rise each day and prayerfully cry aloud, “What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?” (Psalms 116:12)! In both the Roman and Ephesian Epistles, Paul clearly declared the “doctrine of Christ” (II John 1:9) in the first Chapters, and then went on to tell us how we should behave knowing this “doctrine” to be true. Similarly, it is explained this way, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection;” (Hebrews 6:1); that is, hear, learn, and remember “the doctrine of Christ” and then, taking the joy and strength of the truth “of Christ”, “let us go on unto” faithful obedience in our daily lives. James also explains it this way, “lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls” (James 1:21); that is, “save your souls” from a life of misery, shame, and pain. In transitioning from basic “doctrine” to application of the “doctrine”, Paul wrote, “Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.” (Romans 10:1); that is, “saved” from the misery, shame, and pain they brought upon themselves because they were “going about to establish their own righteousness,” and had “not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” (Romans 10:3). Peter puts it this way, “he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins” (I Peter 1:9). Therefore, let us be “not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work”! He makes it clear that the man who hears the “doctrine”, remembers the “doctrine”, does “the work” of the “doctrine”; “this man shall be blessed in his deed”; that is, “in his” work, he is “blessed” with peace and joy, even in the midst of tribulations.