Faith Without Works?

James 2:14-26

¹⁴What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? ¹⁵If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, ¹⁶and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good^a]"> is that? ¹⁷So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

One of my biggest pet peeves is the person who acts like they are everyone’s best friend. Correction: the person who “talks” like they are everyone’s best friend. Let’s call that person Sally. Sally has a story to tell about everyone you seem to know. You mention someone’s name and Sally starts talking about them like they have known each other for 15 years. In actuality, you know that the so called “ best friend” really has only heard of that person – maybe they have had one class together, maybe they ride the same bus, work in the same office building, etc. However, you know that Sally and that person have never shared an intimate conversation, spent long periods of time together, shared stories, or gone out together. Sally is all talk- she doesn’t know the person. She just “knows of” the person. They are not best friends. After all, best friends DO AND SHARE THINGS TOGETHER.

However, I began to think about the verses found in James 2. Here it discusses how faith without works is like the Sally. How can I claim to be a Christian and talk about it like Christ and I are best friends, but never do anything to prove that I am a Christian. I hear it all the time, “Yes, I believe in God. I go to church once in a while. I know God loves me.” Now this isn’t to say that a Christian’s walk is going to be perfect- everyone falters and makes mistakes, but there must be some evidence of your “friendship” with Christ in your life. Without it, you being to become like Superficial Sally who knows a little about a lot of people, but not a lot about one person. You might even know a lot about Christ, but are you proving that you are “friends?” Do you read your Bible, pray, serve others, etc? After all, Christians DO AND SHARE THINGS TOGETHER WITH GOD.

On a slightly different note, I find myself sometimes acting like the person mentioned in James who sends those in need off without actually meeting their needs. Imagine if Sally did have a conversation with that “friend” everyday, but it never went deeper than that. Then maybe we could claim they are friends. But aren’t “true friends” the ones who you can call no matter how you are feeling, the ones you want to spend times with, the ones who would support you? Again, what type of love am I showing if I am only having those surface conversations with those around me? I sometimes quickly dismiss my concern with an “I’ll pray for you” or “I’m so sorry to hear that.” What kind of love is this? CHRISTIANS DO AND SHARE THINGS WITH OTHERS.

Now the question also comes in, do we need works to be saved? The answer is no (see Ephesians 2:8-9). You have been saved by faith, not by works. On the Lies Young Women Believe Website, it is summed up nicely.

“You cannot claim Christ with your works, but works show that Christ has a claim on you. I am so grateful that my works are not what gets me into heaven! My works are like "filthy rags" compared to what Christ did for me. But works are a result of my faith, and if I have no works, then it is likely that I have no faith.”

Put it this way- in my relationship with my boyfriend, I do not expect him to love me for the things that I do. Honestly, I wouldn’t want to be with someone who placed such high expectations on me and only valued me for what I could offer him. However, because I care about him, I am willing to do things to prove how I feel. When you love someone, you do things to show it. Shouldn’t it be the same with God? If my relationship was solely based upon all that I could do for someone (or God in this case), then it would be over as soon as I failed. In the case of Sally, it never existed. However, the time spent with a person, the conversations had, etc. are outpourings of how we feel. Would you believe me if I claimed to be someone’s girlfriend if I never talked to them , talked about them, or interacted with them? Would you believe someone is a Christian if they never talked to Christ, shared the Gospel, or behaved like they should? The answer is probably no. After all, we are so quick to judge Sally who seems to know everyone but doesn’t. Maybe we should examine our lives and see if we have works showing our faith.

Ask yourself: If you are the only Christ people see, what will they know about him?

Surely life wasn't made to regret
And the lost were not made to forget
Surely faith without action is dead
Let Your Kingdom come
Lord break this heart

And I will live
To carry on compassion
To love a world that's broken
To be Your hands and feet
And I will give
With the life that I've been given
And go beyond religion
To see the world be changed
- Lincoln Brewster, "Power of Your Name"