Faith With Works
James 2.14-19
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
18 But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds."
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
One of the great theological contentions among scholars is the falsely presumed debate over faith by grace vs. faith by works. Paul explains to the Romans that "we have been justified through faith" and that "we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand" (Romans 5.1-2a). Yet in James we read that "faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." What are we to make of this? Many Christians live their lives on either of the extremes. The one side abuses grace through a lifestyle which does not exemplify God by proving no evidence of Him in their life. The other side seeks to use their works of faith as a payment for grace itself. But neither of these views necessitate the mission of the Gospel in and of themselves. They are supporting revelations from two apostles that, when combined, reveal the whole of faith itself.
In James' short discourse on faith with works, his sole focus is to educate his audience on the necessity of works as a supporting evidence of faith. This is the ticket to James' subject on faith. Our works are not what compose are faith: they accompany it. James teaches that "faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." Beloved, if we are completely committed to the Lord and are trusting Him every step of our lives, our faith will abound in works. My pastor has told stories of so many uncountable miracles that after a while it is not the miracles which astound us, but God's continuous hand of providence upon His people. Our faith, if we place it fully in God--if we pray daily with Him, walk with Him, trust Him in all our ways--will be "credited to [us] as righteousness" just as it was Abraham (Romans 4.3). God will see the goodness and willingness of our hearts to serve and will begin to place people and circumstances in our lives that will bring glory to Him through our actions. This sort of faith can't help but sew miracles. You see, the works of faith are the echoes we hear back from the mountain upon which we are shouting: they are not the effort itself, but the confirmation to us that our voice brings an affect.
What voice are you raising today? Is your faith strengthened? Are works abounding in your life because of your faith towards God? James challenges us: "Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds." Beloved, when we turn our whole heart over to Jesus and are submissive to all He wants to do for us, we too can boast in humbleness like James that we can show others faith by our deeds. May those deeds bring eternal glory to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment