James: Where Faith and Life Meet
Faith and Works
4/1/12
There is a story (I am not sure if it is true or made up) about a chaplain who walked up to a wounded soldier who had been lying on the ground some time without anyone treating his wounds.
The chaplain asked, "Would you like for me to read to you from the Bible?" "No!" came the angry reply. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" the chaplain asked.
"I'm thirsty!" the soldier said. The chaplain gave him a drink from his own canteen.
"Anything else?" he asked. "I'm cold!" came the reply. The chaplain took off his coat and spread it over the soldier.
"Anything else?" he again asked. "My head is uncomfortable!" was his reply. The chaplain took off his cap and arranged it under the soldier's head.
The chaplain asked again, "Anything else?"
The soldier looked up at him and tears came to his eyes as he said, "I think now I'd like for you to read to me from the Bible."
Faith and Works
The paragraph in James we will look at today (James 2:14 – 20) is considered on one hand the most theologically significant statements in this letter and on the other hand it is probably the most controversial topics he brings up in the entire Bible. The example I just read fits perfectly with the theme of this message which deals with faith and works. As you probably noticed in the story; the injured soldier had no desires to hear the words of the God the chaplain served until he saw the God He served was evidenced or present in him through his actions. It reminds me of the words of one of my professors in college, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
The argument James introduces in the passage is that a general carefree or verbal faith with a few good works added in is sufficient to save individuals. Instead he argues that genuine faith of a true believer is clearly evidenced by his good works or deeds. You see one cannot just tack on good works to any old empty or dead faith and think it is sufficient. This kind of faith (as James states) is futile or useless.
This kind of faith reminded me of the Febreeze air freshener commercials on TV. In the commercial people are blindfolded and brought into a condemned house, smelly kitchen or someplace that would not have a pleasant smell. However room has been sprayed down with the air freshener and blindfolded participants respond with how wonderful the room smells only to find when the blindfolds are taken off they are in the disgusting room which should reek of stench. The room may smell nice but it’s still a gross room. The point of the commercial is to show their product can cover up any foul smell. Unfortunately some believe they can do this with their spirituality. They may say, “I am a good person. I believe in God, I go to church occasionally, I try to be honest, and I give some money to the church.” Yet the way they live Monday through Saturday doesn’t always match up to the faith they proclaim. They believe they can cover up their dead faith by doing some good deeds but the reality is a dead faith is a dead faith no matter what you put on it to make it look better.
Verse 14 – James asks two rhetorical questions about faith – 1) what good is it for a person to have a verbal faith but no good works to back it up? 2) Is this verbal faith enough to save someone?
Verse 15 – 16 – Rhetorical question is answered and a negative response is intended … James answers his question by giving an illustration: If one believer sees another believer who is poor, hungry and in need of clothing and their response is a lackadaisical blessing then this faith is not a true faith.
Modern day example: Someone presents an immediate need and you have the means to help them and your response is a flippant, “I’ll pray for you” and do nothing more. It seems as though for many our words “I’ll pray for you or about it” has become our scapegoat for doing nothing.
a. “It is not the form of the statement that is reprehensible, but its functioning as a cover for the failure to act.”[1]
b. It is suggested that the uncaring believer is vaguely wishing well the Christian Brother or sister in need as they go out and find food and clothes.
c. The main point is the believer does nothing to help the other believer in need.
d. Ultimately the rhetorical question is asked… “What good is it to wish one well and do nothing to help?” Answer: No good at all.
Verse 17 – The moral of the illustration… James shows the uselessness of a deedless faith. Faith without action is dead or feeble. James states three times that faith without works is dead in this passage. He speaks of the kind of faith spoken of in the previous verse as not only outwardly ineffective but inwardly dead; thus it is useless. Faith spoken is nothing if there is no evidence to back it up. Empty faith doesn’t work outwardly nor does it work inwardly… it’s a useless faith.
It is important to note that James is not contrasting faith and works as if they were two separate options (i.e. one can have a faith without works and another can have faith with works), instead he contrasts the two kinds of faith. One produces no works which is dead and one that results in action which is genuine. One that is in word only and the other is evidenced by deeds.
Verse 18 – James introduces a hypothetical character in this passage that is referred to by some as the objector (someone) and he argues… You may have the gift of faith and I may have the gift of works. – The objector thinks the two can be separate. However James shows that faith and works are not two separate gifts that a believer may or may not possess. Either one has genuine faith that produces good deeds or he does not have a faith at all. He insists that the objector show him a faith without works (and will reveal a false or futile faith) however the one who is able to show his faith through the good deeds that he produces will reveal a true and genuine faith. The two need each other. Faith and works go hand in hand. If you say you have faith and you have no works it is meaningless. Saying you have faith is not enough.
Verse 19 – James compares the faith of the objector with the faith of the demons. It is an interesting twist but James does not hesitate to make his point. He says, “You acknowledge God is one.” And his response some believe should be read with a touch of sarcasm, “Good for you!” Belief is entry level Christianity. However just having a general belief or acknowledgment that Jesus is Lord or that God is one is not true faith. By doing this you are on the same ground level as the demons. In fact you are probably on a lower level than them because their belief isn’t apathetic like a person who just says he believes. The stunning truth is at least the demons shutter or tremble when they acknowledge God is one or Jesus is Lord. Those who have a futile faith don’t even do that.
Douglas Moo writes, “The demons perfectly illustrate the poverty of verbal profession in and of itself. They are among the most ‘orthodox’ of theologians, James suggests, agreeing wholeheartedly with the Shema (The most basic Jewish belief… God is one)… But James might also want to suggest an ironical contrast between the demons and people who have faith without works: At least the demons display some kind of reaction to their ‘faith’!”[2]
Verse 20 – James refers to this objector as a foolish man. Do you need examples? Well here are two examples of faith from the O.T. about individuals whose faith are evidenced by their actions. This is where things start to get a bit hairy as it would seem at first glance that James contradicts Paul, who states that one is justified by faith and not by works (Romans 3:28). James makes the claim in verse 24 that a person is justified by works and not faith alone.
As I was preparing for the message I decided this is too big of a topic to cover and to put at the end of a sermon; so I decided to push pause on verses 21 – 26 and speak about them next week. It’s fitting since Easter Sunday we will talk about the process of justification as it pertains to the cross of Calvary and his resurrection. We as Christians believe wholeheartedly Jesus died on the cross for the sins of humanity and was raised from the dead three days later for our justification. We’ll look at what this means more closely next week.
Conclusion
A true works based faith is imperative in a believer’s life. One cannot just have faith to be a believer nor can one just do works and be a believer. True Christian faith affects the whole person. When one has genuine faith in Jesus Christ it not only changes the spiritual side of our lives (which it certainly does); it also impacts the outer person as well. Good works will flow a plenty from one who has genuine faith in Jesus Christ. Our faith and our works MUST go hand in hand in order for it to be life changing, genuine and apparent to others.
As I already mentioned our genuine faith affects the whole being thus a person with true faith will endure trials patiently and joyfully, have wisdom in decision making, put no stock in their wealth or status, find their significance in Jesus, overcome temptation and grow closer to God in the process, be quick to listen and slow to anger, practice true religion that does not show partiality to the rich and neglect the poor. Genuine faith in Jesus gushes forth from the believers life and is evidenced by the good deeds we do.
No comments:
Post a Comment