James 2:14-26

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Faith Without Works Is Dead

There’s a word from the lord, coming from the book of James
James Chapter 2 verses 14-26
And you should find these words as printed
14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?
17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by [b]my works.
19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God.
24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
25 Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
That’s enough, I want to talk for the next fleeting moments with the help of the holy spirit
I want to talk about
:FAITH WITHOUT WORKS”
Someone has well said that faith is not “believing in spite of evidence, but obeying in spite of consequence.” That’s a good word!
ETS: James declared the difference in a professor of salvation and a possessor of salvation.
ESS: Biblical faith is always accompanied by bountiful fruit.
OSS: Let us examine our faith, proclaim our faith, and practice our faith.
James Merritt said, “If your religion has not changed your life, you better change your religion.”
Our faith must not only be heard, but it must also be seen.
John MacArthur wrote, “Genuine, transforming faith not only should, but will, produce genuine good works.
James is saying that the fruit of salvation is works.
Works is not a requirement for salvation, but is a result of salvation.
Faith is a lot like calories. We never see calories, but we always see the results of the calories.
And so, In this passage we see some discoveries about biblical faith.
I. An examination of faith (vs. 14–20)
(A.) In our profession (vs. 14)
“What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?”
James first of all examines our profession.
He opens this section with a probing question.
James is saying, ‘what good is it, what effect does it have?” Notice James asks what good is it if someone says that they have faith.
Heard the saying, “Talk is cheap!” No truer statement when it comes to faith.
Many in our day say that they have faith. Many in our day are professors of salvation, but are not possessors of salvation.
If works do not accompany our profession of faith, then our profession was useless and our faith is dead.
James continues, “Can faith save him?”
What James is saying is ‘Can that kind of faith save him?’ This is a rhetorical question that demands a negative answer.
That type of faith can not save anyone.
Great Biblical Truth: Biblical faith will always be accompanied by bountiful fruit.
Warren Wiersbe wrote, “People with dead faith substitute words for deeds. They know the correct vocabulary for prayer and testimony, and can even quote the right verses from the Bible; but their walk does not measure up to their talk.
But We need to examine our profession, to make sure our faith is Biblical faith.
John MacArthur said, “A profession of faith that is devoid of righteous works, cannot save a person, no matter how strongly it may be proclaimed.”
Luke 6:46, “But why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord; and not do the things which I say?”
Is what you say about Jesus and what He’s done for you show in your living?
If not, you have the wrong type of faith!
James is saying that just because someone says that they are save does not mean that they are saved.
In verse 14 we’ve seen that we need to examine our faith in our profession.
In verses 15–16 we see we need to examine our faith:
(B.) In our practice (vs. 15–16)
“If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?”
James gives a basic illustration of those in need.
Those who refuse to give to those in need, shows that they do not have the saving and Biblical faith that James proclaims. James is saying that if our practice doesn’t line up with our profession, then we need to check our profession.
When Jesus is Lord of our lives we will bear much fruit and bless others by our faith.
The early church practiced what they preached!
Acts 2:44–45, “Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.”
Acts 4:32–35, “Now the multitudes of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.
And great grace was upon them all. Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.”
What does this say to us ,
If we see a need and have the resources to meet the need and then we refuse to meet the need, it is because our faith is a dead faith which is defective.
Is your faith defective today?
Illustration: When we buy some product and bring it home and find out that it is defective we immediately make plans to return the item to get a new one, because we do not want a defective product.
In the same way many have a defective faith that they need to trade in for the real thing!
Jimmy Draper wrote, “If we shared our faith with those we believe are lost, our churches would be overflowing.
But we are not doing that. We say we believe, but we don’t.
We are not proving it by our lives. We are just giving lip-service to it.
We have created an entire , where we say we believe things, that we are not practicing. If we believe in doing God’s will, then let us do it.”
When we do not care for those around us that are in need, then we show that we do not have the proper faith.... in Jesus Christ.
James says that this person might have said a good word to them, but they did not do a good deed to them.
Beloved, Our faith must be seen as well as heard. Our works must be in the name of Jesus and for the glory of Jesus Christ.
J. Ronald Blue said, “Work-less faith is worthless faith; it is unproductive, sterile, barren, dead!”
How’s your faith today?
READ MATTHEW 25:31–46
Matthew 25:31–46 (NRSV)
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ 41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
But here James gives us an examination of faith in our profession, in our practice and
next we see:
(C.) In our production (vs. 17–20)
“Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”
James is saying that we need to examine our production or our lack of production in connection with our faith.
A faith that will not help the needy is dead!
Dead: word means barren, useless, or without any value.
That type of faith, does not profit anybody with anything!
That type of faith, does not help those who need help or those who have this deficient faith.
The type of faith James mentions in verse 17 is not Biblical saving faith.
Faith that is genuine and real will never be alone or by itself.
John Calvin said, “It is faith alone that justifies, but faith that justifies can never be alone.”
Jimmy Draper said, “James is not saying that any man with works is saved, but that any man without works is not saved.
If our lives do not reflect the presence of God in the way we live, we have not met Jesus Christ.”
Illustration: An old country preacher used to say: ‘There are two parts to the Gospel. The first part is believing it, and the second part is behaving it.’ The hearer only is the one who is satisfied with just believing without behaving. That is what James describes as dead faith.
Is your faith in Jesus Christ alive, active, and life changing?
There are so many who profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work.”
Verse 18 James says that those who say they have faith without works, are deceived because they only say they have faith and never show they have faith.
James says that he will show that he has faith, by his works.
James is asking what our faith is producing and we need to examine daily what our faith is producing.
James says in verse 19 that even the demons have that type of faith.
The devil and the demons of hell are orthodox in their beliefs about God.
They believe in the authority of Scripture, they believe that Jesus is the Son of God, they believe that Jesus died on the cross and that He rose from the dead.
Demons have a deficient faith, not a saving faith.
James says, ‘You believe there is one God.’
They believed in the facts about God, but they did not have a personal relationship with Him.
James Merritt said, “Faith is not accepting a logical proposition, but committing to a Living Person.”
James says, ‘even the demons believe and tremble.’
The demons believe and fear at the presence of the Lord.
God calls for our faith to be fruitful!
In verses 14–20 we’ve seen an examination of faith.
In verses 21–25 we see:
In part one of Biblical faith we saw that James gave an examination of faith.
Our faith is examined in our profession (14)
in our practice (15–16),
and in our production (17–20).
James now turns to two Old testament figures to give us:
II. An example of faith (vs. 21–25)
(A.) Faith that is sacrificially demonstrated (21–22)
“Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?”
James gives an example of two Old Testament characters that displayed life changing and soul saving faith.
James uses the illustration of a revered patriarch and a redeemed prostitute.
James asks the question that demands a positive answer! Abraham was justified by his works when he offered Isaac on the altar!
Abraham’s faith was sacrificially demonstrated, because he trusted God and was willing to give up his son.
In verse 23 James quotes Genesis 15:6, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” Genesis 15 covers God’s covenant with Abram and God calls him His friend.
40 years later in Genesis 22 Abraham’s faith is confirmed by his actions.
In Genesis 15 Abraham declared his faith in God. In Genesis 22 Abraham demonstrated his faith in God.
Warren Wiersbe wrote, “By faith, he was justified before God and his righteousness declared; by works he was justified before men and his righteousness demonstrated.” Remember James is teaching, ‘If faith justifies the man, what justifies the faith?’
See, God made a covenant with Abraham that would be a father of many nations and that his descendants would be like the stars in the sky.
Abraham was 99 years old and his wife Sarah was ninety. God was faithful and they had a child, Isaac, and in Genesis 22 God called Abraham to offer Isaac up as an offering to the Lord.
Abraham’s faith was sacrificially demonstrated.
James Merritt said, “Real faith lays everything on the line for God!”
Abraham laid his family on the line, his fortune on the line, and his future on the line!
What have we laid on the line for God?
John MacArthur wrote, “Abraham’s and Rahab’s justification by works was not demonstrated by their profession of faith, their worship or ritual, or any other religious activity.
In both cases, it was demonstrated by putting everything that was dear to them on the line for the Lord, entrusting it to Him without qualification or reservation.”
If we have saving faith like Abraham, we would lay our family, fortune, and future on the line.
Jimmy Draper said, “Abraham had the kind of faith that said, ‘I believe God! I trust God with my life, my children, my future, my reputation.’ And God tested him. His obedience could cost him his reputation, his standing in the community.
He would lose everything he had worked all of his life to maintain in the way of credibility, integrity, and character.”
Abraham believed God and his faith was evident in the offering of his only son.
Abraham’s works was a proof that he had the kind of faith that pleased God.
Abraham’s faith was tried and true!
Adrian Rogers said, “A faith that cannot be tested, cannot be trusted.”
----
James 2:22, “Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect.”
R. Kent Hughes wrote, “The imperfect tense of ‘working together’ tells us that his faith was not an isolated event in the offering of Isaac, but that faith and works were continual characteristics of Abraham’s life before and after the event.”
James is saying that works does not acquit the person, faith does that, but works vindicate the person.
James says, “and by works faith was made perfect?”
James is saying that ‘by works our faith is made complete.’
And you know, Something is lacking in a profession of faith, that has no practice to it.
Great Bible Truth: We prove that we believe God when we practice His principles, obey His standards, and walk in His ways.
verse 23: James quotes Genesis 15:6 and says that Abraham believed God and Abraham was called the friend of God. When we have true genuine faith in Jesus Christ we are friends of God.
When we were lost we were dead in our trespasses and sins and we were at enmity with God.
When we trusted Jesus Christ He forgave us and brought us into the family of God.
In verse 24 James gets as clear as he can get. “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” Those who say they are saved but do not show they are saved should not have any assurance at all.
Saving faith, will always be shown through the sacrificial demonstration of the believer.
This is very important for us to understand. Faith is more than agreeing with or mentally accepting the facts about Jesus, faith is accepting the person of Jesus into your life.
A person who says they have faith but does not have works does not have Biblical faith.
We see that Abraham’s faith was sacrificially demonstrated.
Is your faith sacrificially demonstrated?
In verse 25 we also notice:
(B.) Faith that is steadfastly dedicated (vs. 25)
“Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?”
James now turns from the revered patriarch to the redeemed prostitute.
The Hebrew’s faith was sacrificially demonstrated, the harlots faith was steadfastly dedicated.
The story of Rahab is found in Joshua 2 & 6.
Rahab hid the two spies sent into Jericho to spy out the land. The spies entered the house of Rahab, who received the spies and hid them from the king and the army of Jericho.
Rahab had heard about the children of Israel and the God that they served.
She had heard about all the mighty miracles that God had done and she trusted in God.
She asked the spies to remember her and her family when they came to conquer the city.
Rahab’s faith was in God in spite of her life being endangered by hiding the spies. She showed her faith in God by her works.
Great Bible Truth: Rahab’s faith was steadfast in the midst of opposition and trials, uncertainty and danger.
Abraham and Rahab believed God and obeyed God.
Warren Wiersbe wrote, “Being a Christian involves trusting Christ and living for Christ; you receive the life, then you reveal the life.”
That’s exactly what Rahab had done.
Is your faith sacrificially demonstrated before men?
Is your faith steadfastly dedicated to God?
In this section of Scripture we’ve learned about the examination of faith, the examples of faith and in verse 26 we see:
III. An exclamation about faith (v. 26)
“For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”
James closes with a great exclamation concerning Biblical faith.
James again gives an easy to comprehend illustration.
The body without the spirit, is dead, useless, unproductive, lifeless, and good for nothing.
So too faith without works, is dead, useless, unproductive, lifeless and good for nothing.
Illustration: In the ancient world when someone was found that was thought to be dead a doctor would be called to examine the person. The doctor carried a handheld mirror with him and would place the mirror below the person’s nose to see if any marks of breath would show up on the mirror. If no marks were evident the person was considered dead and would be buried.
A body that is dead must be buried! A faith that is dead must be buried!
James referred to the Word of God as a mirror. We need to take the mirror of God’s word and examine our lives with it to make sure there are marks of life and faith that saves.
We must examine ourselves by the authority of the Word of God.
James again closes this section out by hammering home the point, “so faith without works is dead also.”
Is your faith a dead, demonic, or deficient faith or is your faith a dynamic faith that is a soul saving faith?
Jesus calls for you to come to Him for salvation!
Jesus calls some to activate their faith in their lives!
Jesus calls for some of you to bury your dead faith and truly trust in Him!
Would you do that today? Would you come and be changed by Jesus?
God’s word has spoken and we must respond! How would you respond today?
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