Complete in Our Deeds

Introduction – Famous Duos

What do all these pictures have in common? For those who can’t quite make out all the pictures, or for those listening back to this recording, on the screen we have Kath and Kim from the iconic Australian TV show. We have a delicious-looking fish and chips. We have the caped crusader Batman and the boy wonder Robin. And we have Australian tennis players Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde.

Now what does this eclectic bunch have in common? (p) They are all famous pairs in which you cannot have one without the other. They are always in combination and as a pairing, they make each other complete.

Without Kim, Kath would have no one to look at moi. You’d be left with a gnawing hunger if your lunch at the beach was fish without chips. Without Robin, Batman would not be able to defend Gotham City from the myriad of villains that threaten it. And without each other, the Woodies would not have won the 61 doubles tennis tournaments they did during their incredible career.

In much the same way, the passage we are looking at today from James chapter 2 focuses on two things that go together to complement and complete one another – faith and deeds.

You may have picked up during the Bible reading that the words ‘faith’ and ‘deeds’ occur together over and over again in this passage. In the original language, the word for ‘faith’ occurs 11 times and the word for ‘deeds’ occurs 12 times in the 12 verses we are looking at today.

And so it is clear from this repetition that both faith and deeds, and particularly faith and deeds that are in harmony with one another, are the point of emphasis in this passage.

Context – ‘Faith Made Complete’ Series

SLIDE 2 – Title Slide

And so for this reason, today’s talk is titled ‘Complete in Our Deeds’. It is the third talk in our ‘Faith Made Complete’ series from the book of James. And so that we may appreciate the context of today’s passage and talk, let me quickly recap the main points from the first two weeks of the series.

In the first week, James began his letter by encouraging the believers scattered among the nations to find joy in their trials because trials are like resistance training that strengthens and completes their faith.

And then last week, we heard how James urges believers to be both listeners and doers of the word who do not show favouritism towards the rich. Rather, as those who have been shown mercy by God through the Lord Jesus Christ, we similarly are to show mercy to the poor.

It is this being both listeners and doers and extending mercy to the poor that is the train of thought that naturally continues in today’s passage from James 2:14 to 26. So let’s dive into looking at those verses now, which I’ll be doing under two main headings.

SLIDE 3 – Talk Headings

The first of the headings is ‘Faith with deeds is saving and living’, which will cover verses 14 to 19. The second heading is ‘Faith is made complete by deeds’, which will speak from verses 20 to 26. So first up, ‘Faith with deeds is saving and living’.

Teaching Point 1 – Faith with deeds is saving and living (v14-19)

SLIDE 4 – James 2:14

Reading again from the beginning of today’s reading in James 2:14:

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?

In a style of argument known as diatribe, here James introduces an imaginary opponent, the fictional “someone”, who holds a view that James will then oppose. This style of argument is presented both here at the start of verse 14 as well as at the start of verse 18.

And this “someone” claims to have faith but no deeds. And James’ retort is ‘Can such faith save them?’ You very well may have faith with no deeds he says, but significantly, it is not a saving faith and therefore may not even be worth being called faith at all.

He then goes on the illustrate his point with a practical example:

Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?

(p) Now as Jesus’ brother, I think it’s fair to say that James would have heard his brother tell a parable or two. And it seems like he was paying attention because he’s learned how to tell a good one. We see this in 3 ways.

SLIDE 5 – First part to the illustration

First, he hasn’t strayed too far from the master’s example. You may have noticed that James’ example sounds very similar to one of Jesus’ most famous parables – the parable of the Good Samaritan.

SLIDE 6 – Second part to the illustration

Secondly, James has carefully considered his choice of illustration. As James has just stated in the earlier part of this chapter, those who have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ must not favour the rich to the exclusion of the poor.

SLIDE 7 – Third part to the illustration

And the third way in which James has learned how to tell a good parable is that he’s learned to include the crazy.

Last month, about 10 of the men from our church here joined with Christian men from all over the city for the Adelaide Men’s Convention. And Rory Shiner, the speaker on that day, he shared a good tip for how to understand Jesus’ parables. His tip was to look for the crazy, look for the crazy.

Consider the example of the Parable of the Sower in which a farmer is scattering seed. Some of it falls on a path, some falls among the rocks, some among the thorns, and some on good soil. Now any legitimate farmer would quickly tell you, this is not best agricultural practice. You’re supposed to think – who’s this crazy farmer who is just throwing seeds around willy-nilly without any regard for where they fall?!

And so it is the crazy in parables that is supposed to stand out and grab your attention and by doing so, the main point of the parable comes into view.

And with this in mind, can you spot the crazy in James’ parable? (p) It’s the response of the person who clearly sees the needy person, who in this scenario is not a stranger but rather an insider – a brother or a sister – and yet responds by saying “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” and does nothing about their physical needs.

That’s an unbelievable and crazy response! What good are these well wishes without any action?! Clearly, they are no good at all. And that’s exactly the point.

SLIDE 8 – Faith with/without deeds

Just as empty words with no merciful actions do nothing to aid those in need, likewise empty words of faith with no accompanying actions do nothing. This type of ‘faith’, where there is a disconnect between a person’s beliefs and actions, is not real faith at all, for it is neither saving nor living. In contrast, it is faith with deeds that is both saving and living.

James doubles down on this point as he continues in verse 18 by arguing that it is inconceivable for a person’s faith and deeds to be at odds with one another. He again introduces the fictitious ‘someone’ who says “You have faith; I have deeds.” Sounds similar to the ‘each to their own, that’s good for you but not for me’ arguments of our time, doesn’t it?

James strongly responds with “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.”

Again the influence of Jesus is evident here. We began this year with a series looking at the Sermon on the Mount. In the conclusion to this great sermon, Jesus says these words in Matthew chapter 7 verses 16 and 17 when talking about true and false followers of him. He says:

“By their fruit you will recognise them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”

(p) It is only a fruitful faith, a faith WITH deeds, that is both saving and living. To really ram home the argument of what fruitless faith without deeds looks like, James points to the fact that even the opponents of God, the demons, acknowledge his existence and power. But this does them no good, their ‘faith’ is fruitless and so it is futile and dead.

A fruitless faith with no deeds is futile and dead. But a fruitful faith, a life in which faith is accompanied by deeds, this faith is both saving and living. And it is this faith that James wants his readers to be living out each and every day.

Application #1

(P) As I’ve been preparing for today and reading this passage over and over again, I’ve really been challenged because I know there are certainly times when my faith and deeds have not been in harmony.

Particularly thinking about the example of showing mercy to those who are in need, I must admit this is an area where I have to repent and ask for God’s forgiveness.

We’re very fortunate to live in this great city and great country in which poverty and homelessness are not as widespread as in other parts of the world. It’s certainly not something I encounter on a daily basis and so on the occasions when I do, I must admit I don’t always act as I should.

There are occasions where I have done something to help but more often than not, a flurry of excuses enters my mind. “I’m in a rush and have loads of things to do, maybe if I wasn’t so busy” or “I don’t have any cash, but even if I did, I’m not sure what it would be spent on” or “I’m uncomfortable because I don’t like talking to strangers at the best of times”.

Maybe you can identify with thoughts like these. But at the end of the day, I have to admit that they’re excuses, and they’re not good enough. And so at least one takeaway that I have from today that maybe you will share with me is a commitment to grow in my acts of mercy and compassion.

To extend mercy and compassion to others, just as God has extended his mercy and compassion towards me. To bear good fruit that is evident of a saving and living faith. Will you do likewise and join me in asking the Holy Spirit to assist and guide us in this area as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ?

Teaching Point 2 – Faith is made complete by deeds (v20-26)

SLIDE 9 – Faith is made complete by deeds (v20-26)

(P) So in verses 14 to 19, we see that faith with deeds is both saving and living. And then verses 20 to 26 continue in this theme but with the nuance that faith is made complete by deeds. Faith is made complete by deeds.

To make this point, James calls upon two Old Testament examples of people whose faith has been made complete by their deeds. In connection with the favouritism for the rich over the poor issue expressed earlier in the chapter, the origins of the two examples couldn’t be more contrasting.

On one hand is Abraham. The father of the Jewish people and recipient of great promises from God. And on the other hand is Rahab, a non-Jewish woman who is a prostitute. Yet to demonstrate that God does show favouritism, both are considered righteous because of their actions. For through their actions, they each demonstrated that they feared God and believed in his promises. Their faith was made complete by their deeds.

SLIDE 10 – James 2:22

James expresses this point explicitly in verse 22, where he says about Abraham:

You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.

Our series title is ‘Faith Made Complete’ and as we see here, faith is made complete when both faith and action are present and working together in harmony.

SLIDE 10 - Blank

During the week, Liz and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary. Perhaps I should rather say that we acknowledged our fourth wedding anniversary. Because with a two-and-a-half-year-old and a 4-month-old who’s decided sleeping is for the weak, there wasn’t much energy left for grand celebrations.

But nonetheless, it was a great opportunity to both remember our wedding day and all the joy that it brought us, but also reflect upon everything that has happened in the four years since. But it also made me think that the connection between a wedding day and marriage is quite similar to the connection between faith and deeds.

A wedding day is a line-in-the-sand, status-changing day where two people go from being single to married. It marks a new beginning and it’s worth celebrating. But that new beginning is incomplete if the life of marriage does not follow the wedding day.

It is through the big actions like living together in the same house, having children, sharing the same last name, sharing a bank account and the many small daily actions of love and kindness that married life completes the vows made on the wedding day.

And in the same way, the day you first come to faith in Jesus Christ as your Saviour, the day you put your trust in his work on the cross and not your own works for the forgiveness of your sins, it’s a line-in-the-sand, status-changing day.

The Bible promises that on that day, you crossed over from death to life, from unrighteousness to righteousness, from condemnation to forgiveness. It marks a new beginning. All this calls for a great celebration, just like a wedding day.

(p) But just as a wedding day without the married life that comes after it would be incomplete, so too is faith in Jesus as Saviour incomplete if it is not accompanied by a life lived with Jesus as Lord.

We stand in the great Protestant tradition that salvation is through faith in the redeeming works of Jesus alone. And yet our faith cannot be alone. It is our works that bear witness to whether or not we submit to Jesus as our Lord. And truly, unless Jesus is both your Saviour AND your Lord, he is neither, for he cannot be one without being the other.

So just as Kath needs Kim and fish needs chips, faith must be accompanied by deeds in order for it to be saving, living, and complete.

Application #2

(P) Today’s the 29th of June, almost exactly the mid-point of the year. It’s the perfect time to review the first 6 months of the year and to make plans and set goals for the second 6 months of the year.

And so, by way of response to this message that our faith and our deeds must be in agreement, let each of us now pause and consider… are my faith and my deeds in harmony? Do the words I speak and the actions I perform bear witness to Jesus being both my Saviour and my Lord?

Now I can admit this can be a bit daunting on a ‘whole of life’ scale, so perhaps it’s better to take the approach of breaking the big thing down into smaller pieces, eating the elephant one bite at a time as they say. So, is there one particular area of your life where you need to give attention and energy to your faith and deeds being in agreement? Let me suggest a few possible options for your consideration.

Are your faith and deeds in agreement with how you spend your time? Each week, we gather as a church family to worship our triune God, to hear him speak to us from his Word, to speak to him in prayer, and to “one-another” each other as a community of faith. Do your actions of using your time to be here consistently, and to be here on time, demonstrate that this is something you value and prioritise?

Our actions with our money are another area worth reflecting upon. Is Jesus Lord over your finances? Do you give generously and sacrificially to God and his work in this world as a response to God’s abundant generosity towards you?

Maybe one of these has struck a chord with you. Perhaps it's another area of your life entirely. Whatever it is, let me urge you not to leave here today without setting yourself a goal for the second half of 2025. What actions are you going to start doing because Jesus is both your Saviour and Lord?

For me, in addition to what I mentioned earlier about showing acts of mercy and compassion, I want to grow in my encouragement of and appreciation for others. To be a person who uplifts and builds up others. I made a bit of an effort at doing this earlier in the year, and it has since slipped to the wayside. But I’m recommitting to it now. What will it be for you?

Whatever your goal is, we all won’t get very far without committing ourselves to God in prayer. So let me do exactly that right now.

Heavenly Father,

We thank you for your great mercy and compassion towards us. You sent your son Jesus to die upon our cross so that we might have salvation and life because of his works and not our own. Please help us show that our faith in him is saving, living, and complete by the actions we show in our lives each and every day. We ask that you would do this for your glory and our good.

In Jesus name we pray, Amen.