Written ~ 11-17-2023
James 2:14-20
14 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Wow! What an awesome and challenging passage from the Apostle James. If we look closely at verse 2:14 it should make us want to scrutinize our own lives very closely. Did we have the faith to become Christians? Did we put our full trust in the truth of Jesus Christ and the entirety of God’s Word? If we did, do our actions show that decision in everything we do? Or have we continued living our lives as though we never made that decision? Verse 2:14 says,
14 “…if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?”
Anyone can say they have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, but guess what? It’s by their actions that show proof they truly are a follower of Jesus Christ and are pursuing their life as a mirror image of Christ. Verse 2:17 says,
17 “So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.”
Our genuine faith will produce in us an attitude of service to the Lord, we should want to show the love of Jesus wherever we go. Verse 2:17 says, “…faith by itself isn’t enough…” Our witness or testimony that says one thing but does another won’t be productive! In Verse 2:17 it says our faith will be “dead and useless” when our actions don’t show goodness, kindness, love and a servants heart. So if you are trying to be an example of Christ’s love to non-believing family or friends and to the world, but you are failing to walk closely in the footsteps of Christ and to learn all you can to become more like Christ, it’s quite possible your faith will not seem genuine or desirable to those around you. Look at the example James gives us in verses 2:15-16,
15 “Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?”
What great imagery… this example shows kind words, but the actions are empty and unproductive, look at the end of verse 16, it says, “What good does that do?” Visualize this… you’re at the grocery store, you’re courteous, say thank you and give well wishes with a smile, but then in the parking lot you have a road rage incident with those very people you were just giving well wishes. By those two different actions, which one do you think those people will remember the most?
Take a look at verse 2:18 in the NLT and the MSG,
18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.” (NLT)
18 “I can already hear one of you agreeing by saying, “Sounds good. You take care of the faith department, I’ll handle the works department.”
Not so fast. You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove.” (MSG)
So if you and I are professing to be believers and followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we cannot separate our faith from our actions. We can’t say we have faith in the Lord and be a rude, obnoxious person and railroad someone else so you can seem more important. Our faith in the Lord creates a new person within us! And our actions should want to follow the example of Christ. If our actions do not fall in line with what Christ would do? Guess what? Yep, you guessed it, it’s time to look within our hearts and seek forgiveness for those faithless actions. Why would we want to continue with dead and useless actions? As a believer we should want nothing more but to shine the light of Jesus – in everything.
Now look what it says in verse 2:19,
19 “You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you!
Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.”
It’s not enough to say you believe there is a God, and it’s not even enough to say you place your faith in that fact, because what does verse 2:19 say? “Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.” Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is evident by our actions. Even the demons have action in their belief, they tremble in fear.
Verse 2:20, sums up this passage,
20 How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Let’s not be fools to believe our actions don’t mean anything. If we decide to live as though we still belong to this world, what good is it to have faith in Jesus?
Obeying the Word of God means our faith and our actions should work hand in hand.
My prayer today is that our actions would fulfill the purpose Jesus had by dying on the cross. He saved us from sin and death and provided a way to have eternal life, it is our faith in that truth and that promise that should give us the motivation to live our faith out loud!
~AMEN~