James 2:14-26
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A faith that saves is a faith that leads to flourishing.
A faith that saves is a faith that leads to flourishing.
James 2:14
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?
James 2:14
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?
What is saving faith?
What is saving faith?
Define the terms:
faith (pistis) = loyalty, embodied trust, allegiance (not intellectual assent)
Faith = An embodied action of trust in God through an on-going loyalty to the Father, Son, & Spirit in response to Truth we hear, know, and accept.
works (ergon) = deeds, works, actions
not works of mosaic law, but repentance, fruit of spirit - both outward actions
Good works do NOT earn your adoption, but reveal it; works do NOT prove your salvation, but they are the way we persevere.
embodied process of deliverance from ways of the world
salvation (sozo) = deliver
components of saving: justification & adoption, sanctification, perseverance. Pauls main writing around justification have to do with why & how gentiles can participate in the covenant.
justification occurs how/when God determines…that His domain. Our domain is to trust He is justifying us and has adopted us when we repented and now respond through ongoing allegiance to Jesus, our saving king, as the Holy Spirit in us is empowering us to be formed in His ways.
illus: sex is not all marriage is…justification is not all that meant by salvation
Salvation is a Biblical term for the deliverance God wants to see occur in our life; delivering us from evil and delivering us unto wholeness through The Spirit who awakens and empowers our embodied trust in Christ.
Salvation is a Biblical term for the deliverance God wants to see occur in our life; delivering us from evil and delivering us unto wholeness through The Spirit who awakens and empowers our embodied trust in Christ.
James 2:15–20— 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?
James 2:15–20— 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?
A faith that flourishes follows through on what it says it considers to be true.
A faith that flourishes follows through on what it says it considers to be true.
James uses the illustration of fellow believer in need, so we pray for them, but don’t meet the need or help meet the need. This doesn’t mean if we just meet the needs of the poor, we will be saved. There are lots of examples we could use to reiterate this…
We are called to a mental assent, but to FOLLOW Jesus. To BE disciples or apprentices. To be with Him, like Him, and do what He did.
Jesus: Salt losing it’s saltiness is tossed out. Lights that are hidden, are not help and anti to their design.
Same with loyalty/faith not expressed; claim but not acting in congruent ways
illus: giving to and serving at CORE
What does believe mean? How is our belief different that a demons?
What does believe mean? How is our belief different that a demons?
Saving faith requires more than a mere mental assent to the truth of the gospel message: as James 2:19 observes, the demons’ correct information about God is not enough to gain them God’s favor. Traditionally, saving faith consists of knowledge, assent, and trust. Believing that certain things are true about Christ must lead to belief in Christ, a personal trust in Christ as Savior and Lord. This initial trust, given in response to the gospel’s announcement, is the first step in an ongoing covenant relationship marked by continuing trust and faithfulness.
Human faithfulness in this relationship is made possible by the faithfulness of God in Christ and the enabling of the Holy Spirit. Some bible interpreters think that saving faith is a gift of God on the basis of Ephesians 2:8–9, so that only some are given the ability to believe. Others think that the “gift of God” in this passage is the entirety of Paul’s statement that salvation is by grace through faith. Nevertheless, clearly, the exercise of saving faith is made possible by the prior work of the Holy Spirit in a person’s life.
Believe: same root as “faith/pistis”…embodied trust.
one of the english words used for this greek word “pisteuo” is believe but also KNOW. Intellectually know something..
John 6:29 “29 Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.””
belief leads to behavior
saving leads to surrender
forgiveness leads to freedom
adoption leads to allegiance
Many of us believe God exists and Jesus is the savior, but so do the demons…and they live in fear and tremble at that…but we just keep living our lives in hellish ways as if we are our own gods of our destiny, and determine right and wrong for ourselves.
We are compelled by paul to work it out with fear and trembling.
Philippians 2:12 (ESV) — 12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,
illus: can’t say i’m married but never go home, provide, or communicate but once a week
James 2:21–25 (NLT) 21 Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. 23 And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. 24 So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. 25 Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road.
James 2:21–25 (NLT) 21 Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. 23 And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. 24 So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. 25 Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road.
Faith is evidence of our hope.
Faith is evidence of our hope.
Embodied loyalty
We use terms at Faith Church like embodied loyalty and allegiance because terms like belief, trust, and faith are not potent in our day and defined improperly.
Hebrews 11:1 (NLT) — Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.
Illus: how many believe eating healthy and some exercise is the right way to live. how many of you embody that belief consistently?
James 2:26 — “Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.”
James 2:26 — “Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.”
The Holy Spirit wants to fill us and form us so we bring faith to life.
The Holy Spirit wants to fill us and form us so we bring faith to life.
body i dead without breath
you are dead without the spirit…that produces fruit that can be seen.
1 Thess. 1:4-10
2 Thess 1:3-5
John 3 is a great realization of what the saving aspect looks like…
Holy Spirit bringing new birth in and then as we are marked by him, god credits us with Jesus account through his atoning work, and we return our loyalty living out this new birth identity.
Abraham was called righteous. That isn’t different than the righteousness God gives you and I...
Yes, we have received the greatest gift, the Holy Spirit…Abraham didn’t…so what is our excuse again?
are you growing in your love and abiding relationship to Jesus?
“At the final judgment, we will not be evaluated on the basis of whether we kept a list of rules such as the Ten Commandments, except inasmuch as genuine fidelity to Jesus the king demanded it. We are not saved by heaping up good works on our eternal balance sheet. We are saved by pistis rendered unto Jesus as Lord, and this involves a qualitative rather than quantitative enacted faithfulness to Jesus in real-life situations”
— Salvation by Allegiance Alone , Matthew W. Bates.
Royal law of Love that sets us free. Does your life look like fidelity to Jesus or loyalty to other gods and cultural priorities?
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PRACTICING THE WAY
As disciples of Jesus, we know our allegiance to Him as King is expressed in our daily practice. We are not pursuing perfection but want to practice our faith each day. These practices will point you toward spiritual formation as an apprentice (disciple) to Jesus.
(1) Start the Bible Recap reading plan.
(2) Recite this prayer/liturgy daily: “The Gospel is the good new that God our Father, the Creator, out of His great love for us, has come to rescue us from sin, satan, death and hell, and to renew all things, in and through the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf, to establish His kingdom, through His people who participate in loyal allegiance in the power of the Holy Spirit. This is for God’s great glory, and our profound joy.”
(3) Talk it Over (with friends, a spouse, or your Group)
The message was about how saving faith becomes a living, flourishing faith. What is one idea from Sunday’s message that impacted you?
Read James 2:14-26. What does this passage teach about God and His Kingdom?
What is saving faith? Describe the difference between general trust and embodied trust.
Read Philippians 2:12. Read Hebrews 11:1 What are these verses trying to teach us?
Read 1 Thessalonians 1:4-10 & 2 Thessalonians 1:3-5. What are some of the characteristics of the believers who demonstrated a flourishing faith?
