Random Thoughts on James

James 1:22-24 states 'Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in the mirror 24 and after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
I personally think this is a complex allegory, after so many years i still dont really get the association right away. What if I am really forgetful or for that matter ugly? But James does a better job with others like 3:3-4 on ships and horses being a metaphor for the ? 3:11-12 has the phrase 'can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? ' Chapter 5 talks about moths eating clothes. With many allusions to nature, James was not a man of abstract theology but a down to earth, simple man of the soil. And if you are like me, you would like the to the point, in your face, style James is written in. It also helps that the book is a total of 4 pages long! So go find out what the metaphors were referring to.