When Faith Demonstrates

“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds…Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do…You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” James 2:14-26

This passage inspired by God has been misinterpreted in many ways over the years. Many believe that James is saying that our saving faith is not complete without works. If this were true then the work that Christ did on the cross was not enough which contradicts the Bible. James is stating that if we possess true faith then our actions should be the fruit of our faith. Man should be able to look upon our deeds as we walk in faith and see the sacrificial actions of a spirit-filled life. Being justified by what we do apart from our faith means that because of the strength of our faith we walk in deed and action as a result.

My commentary states, ‘James is describing the man who has nothing but a profession of faith. He says he has faith, but there is nothing about his life that indicates it…He is speaking about a say-so faith that is not backed up by good works. Such a faith is worthless. It is all words, and nothing else…In other words, works are not the root of salvation but the fruit; they are not the cause but the effect. True faith and good works are inseparable…The first produces the second, and the second evidences the first.’ p. 2229

We are called upon to live life with a faith that many times mandates sacrificial actions. These are the deeds of faith that will be rewarded and justified by God. These are the actions that will ensure God will credit us with righteousness. We will enter into that wonderful fellowship with others such as Abraham whose faith was justified in the eyes of God. We will be called to sacrifice what means most to us at some point but will inherit the blessings from God for our offering.

“Faith is invisible. The only way others can know you have faith is by a life that demonstrates it.” p. 2229