What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 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? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

–James 2:14-26 (NIV)

We continue our series of looking at what the Bible says about the nature and character of God, and about what he expects from us in terms of our relationship with him and each other. In today’s passage we get a better understanding of what God expects to see in a living faith. Specifically, how will a living faith play itself out in our relationships with others?

There seems to be great confusion among Christians over this idea of works and faith. Are we saved by good works or by faith? The answer, of course, is both. 🙂

Say what?

Well, actually we are saved by grace through faith, but as James reminds us here, a real, living, and saving faith always manifests itself in works. For example, what would we expect to see in terms of behavior if we saw someone who believed passionately in free enterprise? Would we expect to see that person going about advocating government intervention in the markets? Would we expect to see him actively involved in a business enterprise to earn a profit? Well, “no” and “yes” to both questions respectively. Given normal circumstances, behavior always flows logically from beliefs.

That is why you must change beliefs before you can change behavior.

Likewise with the Christian faith. Folks who have a living faith in Christ have a changed heart and an outward orientation, an orientation that is passionate about other folks. They understand they have been given an immense and immeasurable gift in the cross of Christ and it changes them. They know the ineffable Presence of the Holy Spirit living in them, transforming them into Christ’s very image and it changes them. It makes them want to be like their Master and do the kinds of things Jesus did–in other words, good works.

This doesn’t mean we get it right all the time because we are weighed down mightily by our body of sin. But more often than not, we will see the Christian faith manifest itself in good works, works done for the welfare of others. James’ example above about feeding a hungry person instead of just talking about it says it all. If we have a real and life-giving faith, it will always manifest itself in works consistent with that faith and it will be noticeable to others (and sadly not everyone will appreciate it). And contrary to popular belief, working for the welfare of others does not always equate to giving them what they want. It means giving them what they need in terms of God’s economy.

In sum, we are saved by grace through faith and our faith will always manifest itself in works. That is the kind of faith God expects to see in and through us. Is your faith living or dead?