Previous               Next

James, Part 8

Right Faith Produces Righteous Work

Of all the problems in Biblical understanding, which have plagued teachers in the Christian world, one of the most persistent is the relationship between faith and works. It has been said that the great reformer, Martin Luther, having discovered the doctrine of faith as the avenue to justification, in the book of Galatians, wanted to take the book of James out of the Biblical canon, because he thought James was teaching a works salvation here in the second chapter. I have known many teachers and preachers who have taken James' words to mean one has to strictly obey all the legal rules of the Bible in order to be justified. Those who hold these views misunderstand James.

There is no conflict in the teachings of Paul and James. In the book of Ephesians, Paul says, "By grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast". James is not arguing against this. He is not saying man is justified by his works, but that true faith (which justifies) produces good works. The works do not justify. They authenticate the faith, which justifies. Even Paul argues this in a different way. Ephesians 5:6, "The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love". Paul here qualifies the kind of faith he is talking about. It is faith which expresses itself through love, and love causes one to act in ways which express love.

Paul, as we have said earlier, was preaching the broad principles of Christianity, which included justification by grace through faith, and not by obedience to the law. James, on the other hand, was applying these great truths to the daily lives of those for whom he was responsible. He was not denying the power of faith to justify. He was simply defining that faith. It was not a faith of simple belief. He pointed out that even the devils had that kind of faith. It was a faith that changed the person, and caused him to behave in a different way. 

Back to top

James even makes brief reference to those who are proud of their deeds and seek to be justified by them. Then he uses Abraham as an example, and says that faith and works must operate together, and faith is made complete by what it produces in the person who has it. The bottom line is simple. Claiming justification on the basis of a faith that only means you accept the facts of the historic Gospel, is an empty hope. Also, expecting to be justified because you do good works is just as false. The only deeds that are righteous are those motivated by a deep faith in Jesus Christ, and the only faith that is worth anything is the kind that causes you to be a different, caring, serving person, because of your faith.

There are two classes of people who nullify the grace of God by their teaching. One teaches that we are only justified when we obey exactly all the rules and regulations which they find in their interpretation of the Bible. This, of course, places man's salvation in his own hands, and makes him legally responsible for all points of the law. Paul spent a great deal of time pointing out the impossibility of such a doctrine. No one can keep the law perfectly, and the law only justifies the innocent. Obedience, then, does not justify, but indicates that the one obeying has faith in God, and does His will as a result. Only the grace of God can justify, and none of us can say that failure to keep any specific law will nullify that grace. God alone is the judge of this, and we should stay out of the judgment business.

The second class of people nullifying the grace of God are those who rely on their claim that they are "born-again" Christians to justify themselves, but make no real changes in their daily lives as a result. Many are being duped by the current preachers and teachers who say, "God wants me to be rich and happy", but find no reason for moral discipline, nor dedicated service in their definition of Christian faith. It is to these last ones that James' words are addressed. "Show me your faith without your deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds".


Back to top