Saving Faith works

Intro

Good morning rivertree. It is a joy to be with you this morning as we continue our study in the book of James. If you have your bibles go ahead and open up to james 2 and we will start in verse 14 in a moment.

As you turn there it’s good to remeber the context of what’s happening. James the half brother of Jesus who has gone from Skeptic to servant(radical transfromation) is writing to Jewish Christians who have been scattered throught the world.

They are facing trails, temptations and suffering from every side.

James is writing them to show what it means to be Christian in the world

and in the section we are going to look at today he shows us the relationship between our faith and works(good deeds)

he does this from a pastors heart. He is obsiouring something in people who claim to have faith but their is no works, no good deeds, no evidence that they have expierenced real saving faith.

He writes with great concern because he doens’t want people to be decived. He knows what’s on the line. He understands that mere faith in God will not save anyone.

The early church needed to be born of the Word of God to have a living an active faith.

and for those who decived he is helping them understand they are still enimies of God, thier faith is usless, they have not been justified and their destatintion is hell and eternity seprerated from God

and it’s with this concern he writes. The reason this is worth the price of your attention is because their are many since james time and in our day today who believe in God but do not have saving faith.

It was the story of early Jewish people who went to church, it was the story of pastors

and it could be the story of some of you

and the reason this is important is because many people have what they might call a “faith” but it’s not real and they are deceiving themselves

my hope for everyone this morning is you would see the transformational power of true faith

you would allow saving faith to change you and you would believe in Jesus and do what he says.

Let’s read James 2:14-26

James 2:14–26 ESV

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So 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 apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

James starts with a retoricale question and says what good is it if you “say” you have faith but don’t have works? can that faith save him

so right away James is saying their is a saving faith that is born out of the word of God and there is a false faith.

His first limtus test for saving faith is how you treat someone who is poorly clothed or lacking in daily food

and what i apperciate right out of the gate is james makes this simple for his listners. Surely in James day poverty was wide spread. It is also true in our day

and if you are anything like me it’s easy to see how wide spread suffering is and feel overwhelmed. Feel like you’ve been flooded by too much information and it’s in those moments maybe you wondering what diffiernce can I really make? liike there is so much pain so much sufferin gwhat could I possible do to hlep. You wonder should ministry to end world wide hunger? Or even start something so everyone has clothes

but then you think I lack the time and resources to do this. And maybe that is the answer for some of you

but it’s not what james is talking about

He says suppose you see “a” brother or sister.

His exapmle is one person. And he is specfic in this case someone who is a brother or sister in Christ.

and here is the test. If you see them and they are in need and you say peace be with you be warm and filled without doing anything your faith is dead.

It’s also constent with what’s taught scriputre

John the baptist says in

Luke 3:10–11 ESV

And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?” And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.”

One time I was in New York City preaching at a shelter. It was an increadible expirence. Everyone there was so kind and so welcoming.

and the message went great. At the end of it I’m walking back to meet up with the missions team on to our next project. And one of the guys there tlooked at me and said Hey can I have your shirt. And wanting to obey scripture I said sure! and write there gave him my shirt.

I had an undershirt on but it was still a little suprising to those I was with.

this is not exactly what James is talking about. Where my desire to obey came from a good place it also came to ease my couscious a little

James is inviting us to something more. He starts to break down the realtionship between faith and works.

he saying they go together and they aren’t separte.

He is saying your faith in Christ is always evident by your works.

and you might ask what is the work I am suppose to be doing.

Jesus was asked this question in John 6 Jesus was asked what mus we do to be doing the works of God and

John 6:29 ESV

Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

and that almost seems to contridict what James is saying in verse 19

James 2:19 ESV

You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

but it doesn’t because he’s drawing from Duetoronmy 6 the shema. Which says to love the lord God with all your heart, mind soul and strength and love your nieghmbor as yourself

but simple they haven’t put their faith in Jesus. They haven’t expirenced saving faith.

and the evidence of this is they look over brothers and sisters most basic needs. food and clothing

I apperciate james calling it daily food. this might remind you of a few places in scriputre when Jesus teaches his dispcles to pray he tells them to pray

give us this day our daily bread.

and we know God can do this. In the book of exodus while people while wandering in the wilderness good made food from heaven for them to eat daily

but could it be that at times God intends to answer that prayer through you and me. Could it be that we are resourced enough to help brothers and sisters in christ with the most basic needs.

It’s what we see around the feeding of the 5,000

Jesus could have just done it all on his own but he looks at his disicples and says

Mark 6:37 ESV

But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?”

and then he asked what do you have? fish and loaves. He took those fish and loves and multpilied them to feed thousands.

He can do the same with whatever our gifts are when they are offered back to him and used for him those who are hungry and not well clothed can be meet by God through us

that’s amazing

but the tension the text holds out is

even the demons believe and they shudder.

don’t miss what he offers the readers. He reminds them that ever single demon in Scripture belived in Jesus. They had mere itlluctal assent but they weren’t saved.

they shuddered. That word shuddered would show the picture of a cat when it get’s scared.

James makes it clear that is not faith at all. In fact someone who lives like this is foolish.

Someone who says I can ahve faith but how I live doesn’t matter is incompatable according to james

this kind of life is one that a study out of the university of North Carliona called

Moralistic Therapeutic Deism consists of beliefs that say there is

1. “A god exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth.”

2. “God wants people to be good, nice, and fair to each other, as taught in the Bible and by most world religions.”

3. “The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about ones self.”

4. “God does not need to be particularly involved in one’s life except when God is needed to resolve a problem.”

5. “Good people go to heaven when they die.”

and this kind of faith is foolish. The reality is faith apart from works are usless but faith completed by works is useful

It’s what Paul holds out in

Ephesians 2:8–10 ESV

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

This is so amazing and so exciting. We are saved by faith alone through grace alone in Christ alone. And God loves us so much that on the other side of saving faith we can know we are his workmanship(masterpiece)

created to do good works for God

Which he created beforehand.

that means there is something for you and I to do. That’s good news. Long before you or I were even born God had things he wanted us to do.

You know what that means? Your life has purpose. Your life matters.

What The bible holds out is this

The first idea is that we are not just saved from something, i.e. hell or God’s wrath, but we are saved for something and into something.

The other idea was the way we make salvation small. We often think about it as being forgiven and justified. But James talks about salvation as something bigger, fuller, and life involved. To be saved means we have now incredible purpose, and incredible things to do.

and what I love next is James shows us in the life of 2 people how this plays out.

The first person we see is Abaraham.

Maybe you would recognize that name as the figure held out as the father of the nation of Isreal but what James does here is so significant when he wasy abraham our father. He is saying the christian faith is what is the faith the faith

CHrisitanity is not just some new thing that came with Jesus. know Jesus has alwasy been the way.

This was always Gods plan to bring many to himself through his son Jesus.

James holds out Abraham to illustrate to his readers that because Abraham belived God and God made him rightousess

This moment in Abrahams life was so special. as an old man he had no heir he had no son and in this day that’s signficant.

and in his complete heartbreak God sees him and comes to him.

He asked abraham to come outside and look at the stars and told him that’s how big your family will be one day.

and he believed.

what’s really special is you and I can step outside and look to the stars knowning they are the same stars Abraham saw and in your faith is in Christ you know that you are part of the fullfilment of that promise

it was from that rightousess standing that he obeyed God. I love that verse 23 says he was called a friend of God.

How awesome is that. Abraham walked with the lord and allowed his faith to be active through obdience with a God who was greater, more powerful, more holy more amazing then he could imagine but a God who was also his friend

our faith births friendship with God.

Jesus confirms this in the gospels when he says in

John 15:15 ESV

No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

He said Abraham in faith looked forward to his day. and it was this belief this saving faith that completely transformed abrahams life

Abraham even when offering his son Isaac up believed God had the power to raise the dead.

because he was looking forward to a city whose builder and architect was God

James agrees with scriputre that faith is completed by works.

It makes us who God intends us to be. That’s why in James one he says when you are tested you will be complete lacking nothing.

It’s the same thing Rahab expirencd in her own faith.

In Joshua 2 we are told when the Joshua and Caleb come to Jericho they meet Rahab. She recounts how everyone had heard about God. How they knew how powerful and how amazing he was but she was the only one who bleived.

and her belief was confirmed by her action when she sent the messengers out another way.

and the contrast between Abraham and Rahab coulndn’t be more clear

Abarahm the father of the faith

Rahab had prostitue

abraham a man, Rahab a women

Abraham nation of Isreal

Rahab a foreinger

but they have things in common also

and what they both have in common is this. It was a saving faith that was alive and active.

10 generations after Abraham Rahab is grafted into the family by marrying one of his great great grandsons…her life was forever changed.

They are both in the lineage and family tree of Jesus

how awesome is that. Through a saving faith, through a living faith, through an active faith her life and her future familys life was changed forever.

Sometimes we think obedience doesn’t matter. But let the testomony of scripture remind you it does.

It matters this morning and it will matter for generations to come.

James ends this section by illustarting all he has been saying so far in chapter 2

he gives us of a body without a spirit.

he says it’s still a body but it’s dead. It’s hallow

we’ve probably all been to a funeral with an open casket. We see the person. There body is there but we know there is no life in them. they are dead.

and if you are here today and your life feels hallow. Your life feels dead. You don’t have any fruit or works in your life that shows you have an acitve faith allow God who loves you save you and give you faith

Ask him for this today.

its what the writer of hebrews holds out in chapter 11

Hebrews 11:1 ESV

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:6 ESV

And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

This is what God invites you into. and the way we can have this kind of saving faith is because of the work Jesus did on our behalf.

He came and he did the work you and I could never do. He died on the cross for the sins of world

and he ross again defeating death and sin once and for all.

that’s who Abe and Rahab looked forward to in faith and that’s what we get to look back to

and that is the kind of faith that we still need today

for some here in this room it’s saving faith. The bible says who ever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. and if you are hear today and your faith is dead will you turn from your sin and trust in Christ today.

If you do that his rightousness will be credited to you

if you have done that continue joing God in his activity in the world. Next time you see a brother or sister in need remeber how your faith shapes that coversation and how you get to partner with god in loving them and meeting them were they are.

it’s not because you are trying to be saved but it’s because you are and you are being made compete by allowing your faith to work

because saving faith works like it really does.

but it also does good works

Let’s pray