Tuesday April 19, 2022

Scripture James 2: 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.

Life Lesson: Our faith in God is demonstrated by our responses to God, to God’s Word, to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and in our reactions to what we are experiencing in life.

– Here in this portion of the letter James writes, “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.” James is drawing a distinction here contrasting those who say they have faith with those whose lives bear witness to their faith.  The assertion, “You have faith; I have deeds”, is a misnomer or an incongruity/absurdity.   

– James message is not in any way opposed to the writings of Paul as some might suggest. Paul himself wrote often of the natural manifestations of faith or the works prompted by faith, 1 Thess. 1: ³ We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”  In other words faith will always produce works, or a response!

– Paul also wrote in Eph. 2: ⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”  So then we are not saved by works, however our works demonstrate the authenticity of our salvation! 

– We must all understand the importance of this teaching.  Many might wrongly assume they have saving faith, yet they feel no compulsion whatsoever to act upon that faith in Jesus’ name!  Therefore, for such people it is no problem to claim faith in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins, yet to also live in irrational fear of what might happen on a day to day basis.  So we have faith that our eternal soul is safe and secure in Christ, but our health, our personal safety, or our trust that God will provide is almost always in question???

– James writes, “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.”  The reality is no one can show you their faith without deeds, yet many want to claim this is possible. Or they qualify their belief saying, “It’s a personal thing”.  Yes faith in Christ is personal, however that personal faith will always be evident by how you live!   Church!  James tells us that such meaningless attestations of faith are less credible than the belief of demons!  How?  In what ways?  The fact that demons believe in God, yet their belief in God causes them to shudder!  Their belief evokes a definite response! So then the response of demons to their belief in God is a far more compelling witness than that of many who falsely claim to have faith!  How many today say, “I believe in God”, yet that so-called belief is contradicted by how they live? True faith in God is worked out in fear and trembling, for it is God who works in us to will and to act in order to fulfill His purposes, Phil. 2: 12-13!