Introduction
The concluding verses of James 2 must be examined
with great care. In this section we have the age-old
conflict between "Faith and Works".
James says in v 17
Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being
alone. (KJV)
James 2:24 ye
see then how that by works a man is justified, and not
by faith only.
Verse 26 faith
without works is dead.
On the surface it would seem that these
statements are contrary to the great Biblical doctrine
of Justification by faith. They seem to contradict the
teaching of the Apostle Paul.
Rom
3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by
faith without the deeds of the law. (works)
James seems to be saying
that a person is justified by what they do, by their
works. Are Paul and James in conflict over this issue?
If they are, the Unity and the authority and the inspiration
of the Bible are destroyed.
We need to carefully
examine just what James is saying.
The Faith and works dispute
arises when people fail to make a distinction between
the "Requirement for true salvation and the Result
of true salvation.
1. Faith is a key doctrine in the Christian life.
The sinner is saved by faith.
Eph
2:8 for by grace are ye saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Eph
2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
It is impossible for
a person to have the new birth experience, to have moved
from darkness into light, from death unto life.
To have the life of God
dwelling within, and not to produce the fruits of that
new life. The new life in Christ produces a new life
style, new values, and the fruit of good works.
2.
The Believer must walk by Faith.
2
Cor 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
Heb
11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please
him: for he that cometh to God must believe that
he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek him.
Hebrews
11 is the great portrait gallery of Faith, which
records those who acted upon God’s Word, no matter
what price they had to pay, producing fruit for God’s
Glory.
Faith is not some kind
of vague feeling that we work up from time to time.
Faith is being confident
that God’s word is true and having the conviction
to act upon what the Lord says. This will bring the
fruit real blessing.
The Church needs a Faith
that works—a faith with accompanying fruit. Faith
alone saves but faith that saves, is not alone it is
always accompanied by good works.
Illustration.
George Sweating-- in his book on James, "How to Solve Conflicts,"
told the story of Blondin, the great tightrope walker.
While performing on a
cable across Niagara Falls, he asked his audience, "How
many believe I can walk across this tightrope pushing
a wheelbarrow?"
To which the people cheered
loudly. "How many believe I can push the wheelbarrow
across the cable with a man in it?" Again, there
came a loud response.
Blondin then pointed
to one of the most enthusiastic men in the audience
and said, "You're my man, now get into the wheelbarrow!!"
Needless to say, the man made a quick exit.
Faith without fruit is
the burden of James in this section. James shows us
that Faith without fruit is false, futile and fatal.
A
Claim that is False (v 14-16, 19)
In the early Church,
as it is today, there were those who claimed to have
a saving faith in Christ but they did display the fruit
of salvation. Where there is the true, you will always
find the counterfeit and where there is wheat you will
find the tares.
A faith without fruit
is false.
Let us see what Jesus
has to say on the subject we are considering. Matt 7-16-21)
16
Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes
of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17
Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but
a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18
A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can
a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19
Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn
down, and cast into the fire.
20
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall
enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth
the will of my Father which is in heaven. (KJV)
3.
James is not speaking about a man who had Faith,
but
of one who claims to have Faith.
He is saying in v 14,
what profit is there in that? For one to profess to
have faith, and not to show the works of that faith,
the fruit of faith. Can such faith save his soul? No
Mat
7:21 not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall
enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth
the will of my Father, which is in heaven.
Merely claiming to be
a Christians does not make us children of God. We're
not Christians just because we say we are. Many people
claim to have faith, but they have never trusted Christ
alone for salvation, entering into a personal relationship
with Him.
Unless the fruits of
a living faith are evident in the life the claim of
faith is a false one. People with dead faith substitute
words for works.
They speak the language
of a Christian. They talk the talk but do not walk the
walk, for they are still dead in sin. Dead men do not
walk.
A truly converted man
will be a changed man. " If any man be in Christ
he is a new creature, the old things have passed away
all things have become new. This will be evident in
the fruit of his works.
A.
The Principle he Defines.
V 14 A Faith with no
works is a faith with no worth.
B.
The Proof he Displays. V (15-16)
In these verses James
again uses a very vivid, and practical illustration.
Having explained false faith, he proceeds to illustrate
it.
He tells a hypothetical
story of one who claims to be a Christian. He comes
into contact with a person who has a great need of the
basic necessities of life.
This man is not a con
artist; he has a legitimated need. He comes into the
Church fellowship and a man who professes faith in the
Lord says to him after the service.
"Goodbye, have a
nice day, and be sure to keep yourself warm and I hope
that you find something to eat, I will pray for you"
The person, who claims to have faith does nothing about
the needy persons physical needs. All that this man
got was a few pious words but no compassion.
Words would
not keep this poor man warm or his stomach filled. Faith
that stops at words is useless and fruitless.
Faith shows
Genuine Compassion, which comes from a Genuine Conversion.
If a person does not show compassion to those who are
in need, it indicates that their "Faith" is
not a true and living one
Luke 10:30-37----The
Story of the Good Samaritan
A priest, and a Levite,
one of the priestly line, passed by the beaten man.
But a man, who was a Samaritan, went to where the man
was and he had compassion on him.
You see, the first two
were men who wore the title of faith, but the
Samaritan was the only one who demonstrated his
faith. As a man believes, so he is. Lip service is no
substitute for life service.
Gal
6:10 as we have therefore opportunity, let us do good
unto all men, especially unto them who are of
the household of faith.
It is the duty of Christians
to help meet the needs of all men, but especially we
are to help those who are of the household of faith,
our brothers and sisters in Christ
1
John 3:17 But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth
his brother have need, and shutteth up his (his heart)
of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love
of God in him?
1
John 3:18 My little children, let us not love in word,
neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
Christianity
demands a level of caring that transcends human inclinations.
How often do we defend our faith and yet fail to show
compassion to others.
Turn
if you will to (Job 31: 16-22) for here we see
a man who had not only great faith, but he had also
great works.
Here is the reality of
real faith. Would we dare to say such words? What a
challenge and what a contrast to the type of man whom
James has in mind.
B.
The Proof he Displays.
- False Faith
shows no Compassion.
- False faith
shows no fruits of Conversion.
James
2:14 what doth it profit, my brethren, though
a man say he hath faith, and have not works? Can faith
save him? (Can such a faith save him?) Amp.
James is not asking Can
faith save! He is asking Can faith, that is never seen
in practical works be real faith? The only way to know
faith is by its fruit.
Now we are not to judge
whether someone else’s faith is false or not.
Mat
7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged. But we
are permitted to be fruit inspectors.
Mat 7:20 Wherefore
by their fruits ye shall know them.
A person cannot say
that they have faith if the evidence of their life proves
otherwise. This kind of faith is dead.
James
2:17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being
alone. ( The Amp.) So faith, if it does
not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back
it up) by itself it is destitute of power—inoperative,
dead.
It
was John Calvin who wrote. "It
is faith alone that justifies, but faith that justifies
can never be alone.
True saving faith will
never be alone, by itself; it will produce fruit to
accompany it. The Legal profession would be quick to
tell us that it cannot deal with hearsay. They look
for evidence; they look for the facts to prove the case.
False faith shows no
fruits of Conversion. Dead faith is a counterfeit which
lulls people into a false sense of security of thinking
that they have eternal life. It is only he who has the
Son who has life. He that hath not the Son of God hath
not life.
"If
there is no fruit, then there is no root!"
A.
The Principle he Defines.
V 14
A Faith with no works is a faith with no worth.
B.
The Proof he Displays. V (15-16)
C.
The Point he Delivers. V
19
. James 2:19 Thou believest
that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also
believe, and tremble.
1.
False Faith shows no Compassion.
2. False faith
shows no fruits of Conversion.
3. False faith
has no communion with God
False faith believes
in God but has no experience of communion with God.
Friends, demons believe in the existence of God, and
believing they shudder and tremble.
We must ever keep in
mind the reality of demons and the activity of demons.
Jesus often cast out demons. Paul often confronted demonic
forces in his ministry.
In Eph 6 He exhorts the
Christian to put on the whole armour of God, to claim
God’s protection to defeat the spiritual forces
of wickedness.
James is telling us that
demons have faith. They believe in the existence of
God. They believe in the Deity of Christ, and they bore
witness to His deity.
Mark
11&12 and unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell
down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son
of God. And he straitly charged them that they should
not make him known.
Demons also believe
in the existence of a place of punishment. In
Luke 8:28
We have the deliverance
of Legion. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and
with a loud voice said, what have I to do with thee,
Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee,
torment me not.
Luke
8:31 and they besought him (Demons) that he would
not command them to go out into the deep.
Luke
8:33 then went the demons out of the man, and entered
into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep
place into the lake, and were choked.
The Demons believed,
their emotions were moved, and they trembled but they
perished. Why? Because, they still remained demons
Friends a person can
be enlightened in their minds, stirred in their emotions,
know whom Christ is, tremble before Him and still be
lost in the abyss forever.
Why? Because they have
never experienced a saving faith that forgave their
sins and brought them into the place of communion with
God.
Their faith is no more
than head knowledge and not a heart experience. Therefore
their faith is false and futile. True saving faith involves
something more, something that can be seen and recognized.
1.
A Claim that is False
.2.
A Comparison that if Foolish
James 2:18 Yea,
a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show
me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee
my faith by my works.
We have now a snatch of a conversation
between two people who were discussing this whole question
of a genuine Christian experience.
The
Argument—You have faith but I have works.
The conversation goes
something like this. One says to the other " Well
you have great interest in Doctrine, and in theology,
and therefore you put the emphasis on faith. There is
nothing wrong with that, it is fine for you, but I put
the emphasis on the works that I do.
For me, Christianity
is living up to the Ten Commandments and the Sermon
on the Mount. You major on what you believe but I labour
on what I do.
"Surely there is
room for both of us"? This is still the argument
today.
The
Answer-- show me thy faith
without thy works, and I will show
thee my faith by my works.
The word translated "By"
in the Greek, means emerging out of or emerging from.
Friends. How can a dead
person show his faith without works? Can a dead sinner
perform good works that bring glory to God? The Apostle
Paul states.
Eph
2 8 -10 for by grace are ye saved through faith; and
that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Not of works, lest any man should boast.
For
we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them.
Paul is saying,
"that Faith alone is necessary for salvation. That
Grace saves a man through faith unto good works.
Good works is the result
of genuine faith. Paul and James are in fact complementing,
not contradicting each other.
Someone
has said, " Faith is like Calories, you cannot see them, but you can see their
results".
I
will show you my faith by
my works. The Presence of Christ, like works, proves the
Presence of a genuine faith. The absence of works proves
the absence of Faith. Life received will be a life revealed
that has truly changed. Faith in Christ will be displayed
in works.
Illustration.
Two men while they were rowing a lake were debating
this issue that we have been discussing.
One said, "let us
assume that one of these Oars is "Faith" and
the other one is "Works"
Let us take the "Works"
oar out of the water and we will just use the Faith
Oar".. When they did this the boat went round in
circles. After some more discussion they said "
perhaps we have got it wrong.
Let us take the "faith
Oar out of the water and we will just use the Works
Oar. Again they went round in circles. Finally they
put both Oars back into the water and made straight
for the shore. When the Oars worked together there was
balance.
Friends, biblical Christianity
has precisely this kind of balance. Only the person
who has Faith and works, working in perfect harmony
is going in the right direction.
1.
A Claim that is False
2.
A Comparison that if Foolish
3.
A Conviction that Is Firm.
James 2:17 even
so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
James 2:26 for
as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without
works is dead also.
James develops this theme
and we shall look at it again in our next study. There
is no great disagreement between Paul and James.
Paul great theme is –that no one
can produce salvation by the works of the Law.
James great theme is—that no one
can prove their salvation except by the works of Love.
When Paul speaks in
Titus
15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto
them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing
pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
They
profess that they know God; but in works they deny him,
This verse makes it very
clear that Paul and James were on the same wavelength.
May our Faith in Christ
be always displayed in our good works?
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