{"id":5823,"date":"2014-11-12T00:33:46","date_gmt":"2014-11-12T00:33:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/?p=5823"},"modified":"2014-11-19T01:45:43","modified_gmt":"2014-11-19T01:45:43","slug":"james-214-17-faith-without-works","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/?p=5823","title":{"rendered":"James 2:14-17\u2014Faith without works"},"content":{"rendered":"

What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, \u201cGo in peace, be warmed and be filled,\u201d and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.<\/em>\u00a0 James 2:14-17<\/p>\n

James opened a can of worms with this question: \u201cCan faith without works save you?\u201d Upon first glance, he seems to contradict the message preached by the apostle Paul found in Ephesians 2:8-9. \u201cFor by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast<\/em>.\u201d How can both be true and coexist within the New Testament?<\/p>\n

You are saved by grace through faith; it is a gift from God. You are not saved as a result of your works\u2014no amount of good deeds on your part could ever grant you entrance into Heaven when you die. No matter how<\/em> good you\u2019ve been, you have need of Jesus who bore your sin and the punishment for it. You receive redemption through your faith\u2014also a gift from God. This is the very bedrock of the Christian message.<\/p>\n

However, as the young church was learning about the grace of God through Paul’s revelation, James wrote a powerful letter declaring that faith without works is dead. Was the early church divided along these lines or were they just doctrinally schizophrenic? The answer, as far as the teachings of Paul and James are concerned, is neither<\/em>.<\/p>\n

You are <\/em>saved by grace through faith and that not <\/em>of yourself. And<\/em> faith without works is <\/em>dead. These seemingly contradictory truths do not negate one another; instead, they complement and complete each other, offering a full-orbed view of the proper operation of faith in the life of a believer.<\/p>\n

James asked, \u201cWhat use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?<\/em>\u201d In other words, saying<\/em> so doesn\u2019t make <\/em>it so.<\/p>\n

When I was a little girl, my sister and I would put petticoats on our heads and \u201csway in the breeze\u201d, singing \u201cI\u2019m a flower.\u201d Were we flowers? We played that game all the time, but we never underwent photosynthesis. We never grew roots. We couldn\u2019t. We were humans.<\/p>\n

Likewise, merely saying I\u2019m a Christian<\/em> doesn\u2019t make it so any more than a child singing I\u2019m a flower <\/em>turns her into a plant. A trade<\/em> must first take place\u2014you lay your sin at His feet in exchange for His cleansing forgiveness and righteousness. Without this deliberate choice on your part, you do not become a Christian, no matter what you call yourself.<\/p>\n

If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, \u201cGo in peace, be warmed and be filled,\u201d and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?<\/em><\/p>\n

Being saved by grace through faith truly changes you. You are born again and receive the Father’s nature. The imprint of eternity is forever emblazoned upon your heart, and the fire of His Spirit warms and brings light through your life. Although you may stumble in your decisions from time to time, the conviction of God urges you onward, willing and working within you for His good pleasure (see Philippians 2:13).<\/p>\n

When I get up in the morning, I pull out one of the cold, empty coffee mugs that sit in my cabinet. Each mug looks lovely, sturdy, and welcoming, but not one of them can warm my hands or awaken my groggy body or soul until it receives the infilling of steaming coffee, fresh from the pot.<\/p>\n

Once filled, that mug takes on the warmth of the brew which fills it, and as I sip its contents, my taste buds smile. The rich liquid within is constant: it always warms, it always fills the room with rich aroma, and it always delivers what it promises.<\/p>\n

Similarly, before you receive Jesus, you may be helpful, appealing, or sweet; however, something is missing\u2014a relationship with the One who lovingly created you. But once you become filled with God by faith in Christ, you take on the characteristics of the One who indwells you. Mugs filled with hot coffee become hot; people filled with Christ become Christ-like.<\/p>\n

As a believer, you behave like the One who indwells you. When Jesus sees a brother or sister in need of food or clothing, He does something about it. Therefore, as His vessel, you likewise take action as He works in you to help those who have need. Hot coffee warms up cold mugs. The living Christ within a person prompts loving action. If no one is helped by your life, as James said, what use is that?<\/em><\/p>\n

Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.<\/em><\/p>\n

If a mug doesn\u2019t feel hot to the touch or emit a rich coffee aroma, there\u2019s a good chance it isn\u2019t filled. If a professor of faith lives for himself alone and not at all for others, there\u2019s a good chance he<\/em> is not filled. Such a faith\u2014which never reaches out to others\u2014is empty, devoid of the One it professes.<\/p>\n

You are saved by grace through faith, not as a result of your own works. When Jesus takes up residence in your heart, you emit His warmth, aroma, and giving nature to those around you and they are helped.<\/p>\n

If you discover that you\u2019re doing nothing to minister to needs of anyone else, then go back to the Source, hold up the cold, empty mug of your life to Him, and by faith, receive the piping hot infilling of the One who died for you. Then pour out into the lives of others.<\/p>\n

Dorothy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, \u201cGo in peace, be warmed and be filled,\u201d and yet you do […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5823","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-james-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5823","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5823"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5823\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5826,"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5823\/revisions\/5826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5823"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5823"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.firstofallpray.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5823"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}