JAMES 2:14-26
FAITH WORKS GENUINELY
FAITH WORKS #9
In this day and age there is a growing difference between what is real or genuine and what is imitation. Licorice is one of my favorite kinds of candy. But these days, to get real licorice, one has to read the label carefully. What some people try to sell as licorice is imitation and not genuine.
Having coffee with friends one time the wife explained that she had perked coffee because the instant she had purchased at the store tasted so bad. Being a label reader, I asked to see the jar, and sure enough, it wasn’t instant coffee at all. It was a coffee substitute. It was only imitation.
The former governor of New York, and vice-president of the United States, Nelson Rockefeller was an art collector. He collected genuine pieces of art, and then had copies made. He then sold the copies. Although Rockefller’s copies were expensive to buy, they were still only imitations. They were not genuine.
People can also be imitation and not genuine. Often people pretend to be what they are not. They put up fronts to impress people, or to get what they want. When I was preparing this sermon the words of a secular song came to mind:
Paper roses, paper roses,
Ho how real those roses seem to be
But they’re only imitation,
Like your imitation love for me. Words & Music by Janice Torre & Fred Spielman, 1955
In our church life in America there is much that appears to genuine, but is only imitation. There are many people walking around who claim to be believers or born-again Christians, but they are only imitation.
They say that they are saved but they are not genuine.
As you know, just saying something doesn’t necessarily make it so. And all too many people make professions with words which are not backed up by their lives.
After a long layoff, we are returning to our study of James.
The theme of James is “Faith Works”. Tonight we want to see that Faith Works Genuinely. True faith is genuine faith.
If you can learn to identify real faith, it will be easier for you to spot imitation or artificial faith. This will also help you to examine your own life to see if your faith is the real thing, the genuine article.
When bank tellers are trained to spot counterfeit bills they are not shown all different counterfeits, but they are made to spend hours with the genuine article. This is why they can easily spot the imitations. This evening let’s examine the genuine article of faith. As we get to know the real thing we will be able to spot the imitations. When it comes to genuine faith we will find:
GENUINE FAITH IS NOT JUST WORDS – Vss. 14-17
GENUINE FAITH IS PROVEN BY ACTION – Vs. 18
GENUINE FAITH IS MORE THAT JUST MENTAL ASSENT – Vss. 19-20
GENUINE FAITH IS DEMONSTRATED BY BIBLE CHARACTERS – Vss.21-26
GENUINE FAITH IS NOT JUST WORDS – Vss. 14-17
Words alone don’t save.
Vs. 14 – We have in our churches today entirely too much “easy believism”. If I just say I’m saved; if I just go through the motions of baptism, I’m okay. I have eternal life.
James is refuting this easy believism claim.
Stating that you are saved; giving personal testimony of your faith in Christ is important. But stating your faith in Christ aloud is to be a reflection of something that has really taken place in your heart.
Romans 10:9-10 - That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. [10] For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Paul is saying that if a man has truly put his faith in Christ in his heart, he will confess it before men.
Unfortunately, easy believism bypasses the heart and just goes to the mouth. No work has taken place in the heart but a person is saying he or she believes with his mouth.
Jesus warns in Matthew 7:21, Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Let us understand what James is saying in verse 14.
James is saying that if a man or woman has truly been saved, his life will show it.
There will be more than words. There will be action.
Works will accompany a man’s profession.
Works don’t save you. As Paul says, salvation “is not of works, lest any man should boast.”
But works do indicate that change has take place. The Gospel is a Gospel of change.
2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
1 Thessalonians 1:9 gives an example of that change taking place after people place faith in Christ: For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;
Anyone who is genuinely saved is genuinely changed from what he was, and from what he would be if he hadn’t been saved. Some of you were saved at a very early age. Praise God, you didn’t have to live a long life of sin before coming to Christ. But you can look back and say, I don’t remember any dramatic changes in my life because I was so young.
I suggest that you are the ones who can look back and say, “If God hadn’t saved me, I’d be doing this, and this, and this. Thank God I was spared.”
Others of you who were saved later in life will better identify the changes that took place in your life after coming to the Savior.
“An evangelist visited a man in a pottery district who, in his younger days had been an infidel. The visitor gazed upon two magnificent vases contained in a glass case. ‘What lovely vases’, he remarked. ‘I suppose they are very valuable?
“’Yes’, was the reply
“’How much would you sell them for?’ (asked the evangelist.)
“With a shake of the head the man turned to his questioner.
‘All the money in the world wouldn’t tempt me to part with either of them,’ he answered.
‘Years ago I was a drunkard, a gambler – one who sold his soul to the devil. One day I was persuaded to attend a revival meeting. I did so, and on going home I passed a rubbish heap. I saw there a piece of clay. Evidently someone has thrown it away as being useless. I picked it up, took it home, kneaded it and molded it. Then I went to the wheel and out of that worthless piece of clay I made those two vases. I thought to myself that if I could do such a thing as that, then God could do so with me. And thereafter I placed myself into his hands, and He has made me a new man!’” Source Unknown
Faith is more than words.
Vs. 14 – James asks what profit is there in words of faith that are not backed by good works? He asks can faith without works save a man?
James was not eliminating faith. The question “Can faith save him?” is actually in the original, “that faith”.
James was simply asking, “Could faith that has no evidence of good works be true faith?” The implied answer, of course, is “no”.
Titus 3:5 - Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
Note that salvation is a result of being born again, which we know is placing one’s faith in Christ.
Titus 3:8 - This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.
The salvation described in Titus 3:5 is to be followed by the works of Titus 3:8.
James and Paul are showing us that a person who has truly been born again will evidence a true change by the way they do good works.
Vss. 15-16 – James gives us an example that the genuine article of faith is more than words. James mentions a brother or sister believer without proper food or clothing.
Along comes someone else in the congregation who gives words. He tells the person “Go in peace! Be warmed and filled!” That’s like saying, “May the Lord bless you real good!”
There’s nothing wrong with those words, but James says that without helping these people, “What good have you done?
Vs. 17 – James concludes that a faith that is all words and no action is a dead faith, because there is no evidence of a change in life-style.
“A minister was talking to a man who professed conversion.
‘Have you united with a church?’
‘No, the dying thief never united with a church and he went to Heaven’ was the answer.
‘Have you ever set at the Lord’s Table?’
‘No, the dying thief never did and he was accepted.’
‘Have you ever been baptized?’
‘No, the dying thief was never baptized and he went to Heaven.’
‘Have you ever given to missions?’
‘No, the dying thief did not and he was not judged for it.’
‘Well, my friend,’ said the minister, the difference between you two seems to be that he was a dying thief, and you are a living thief.’” Source Unknown
GENUINE FAITH IS NOT JUST WORDS – Vss. 14-17
GENUINE FAITH IS PROVEN BY ACTION – Vs. 18
Vs. 18 – James makes an excellent point here.
One man says “I have faith.”
Another man says, “I have works.”
He says, “Show me your faith without works, and I’ll show you faith with my works.
It has been said that faith is like calories, you can’t see them, but you can certainly see their results.
Just think of the various actions which prove our faith.
One might say, “I have faith that God answers prayer.”
Great! Do you pray and not worry as Philippians 4:6-7 tells us to do.
You might say, “I have faith that Christians are supposed to be thankful.”
Great! Are you continually thankful?
You might say, “I have faith that the unsaved are going to hell.”
Good! What are you doing to show you believe that? Are you inviting them to church and witnessing to them personally.
Read Hebrews 11 and discover that the heroes of faith were men and women of action. And their actions proved their faith.
GENUINE FAITH IS NOT JUST WORDS – Vss. 14-17
GENUINE FAITH IS PROVEN BY ACTION – Vs. 18
GENUINE FAITH IS MORE THAT JUST MENTAL ASSENT – Vss. 19-20
There are still very few atheists in this country.
Mostly all believe in God.
And if you ask them, many will say that they believe in Christ. But genuine faith is more than mental assent to the existence of God or Christ.
Vs. 19 – James says “you believe in God and you are doing well.”
But James then adds this zinger – the devils believe, they know God exists and they tremble!
The demons are scared, but they still aren’t saved.
What is the difference between mere intellectual belief and true belief?
True belief or faith is trust.
Phillips Brooks gave this acrostic for faith – “Forsaking all, I trust Him.”
A person who has true faith in Christ as Savior trusts Him alone for eternal life. He is relying on Christ alone.
Imagine, if you will, a wire stretched between the bank building and the city hall on the square in our town. A lone individual stands atop the bank building and announces his intent to walk across the wire to the other building. Of course, a crowd has gathered below because what he intends is a bit strange (needless to say). The tightrope walker asks the crowd if they believe he can make it across. They nod in assent (who would be dumb enough to try without a reasonable chance?).
Carefully, slowly he teeters his way across almost falling. Reaching the other side he holds up a wheelbarrow and asks the crowd if they think he could push it across before him. Some nod in assent. Some shrug their shoulders in response. The tightrope walker then singles out a man and yells down to him, "Sir, do you think I can make it?" The response is affirmative so the walker says, "Then prove your faith by riding in the wheelbarrow." Christ calls to us personally, saying He will guide us over life with its dangers. Would you ride in the wheelbarrow? James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) p. 190. Biblical Illustaror 3.0
Vs. 20 – James concludes that the faith that is just belief with the head is the faith without action. This is not true faith. Remember true faith or trust in Christ will produce change.
GENUINE FAITH IS NOT JUST WORDS – Vss. 14-17
GENUINE FAITH IS PROVEN BY ACTION – Vs. 18
GENUINE FAITH IS MORE THAT JUST MENTAL ASSENT – Vss. 19-20
GENUINE FAITH IS DEMONSTRATED BY BIBLE CHARACTERS – Vss.21-26
In verses 21-26 James is showing examples of two Bible characters who had genuine faith.
First, they believed God and then they showed it by their actions.
Vs. 21 – The first example is Abraham. Notice that it says he was justified by works.
We normally think of justified as meaning to be “declared righteous”. And indeed, the only way someone can be declared righteous is by faith.
Romans 5:1 - Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
The word justified can also mean to “vindicate” or “show to be righteous”.
In believe that James is saying that the works of Abraham when he offered Isaac on the altar at God’s command vindicated him, or showed that his faith was real.
Vs. 22 – His faith and works went together. First Abraham had the faith, then he proved that faith with the works of offering Isaac. This work made his faith complete. Abraham showed how real his faith by obeying God.
Vs. 23 – 30 years earlier before the offering of Isaac, Abraham was declared righteous on the basis of faith.
That Scripture was shown to be true by his action with Isaac.
Vs. 24 – James is simply saying that this proves that there must be works if there is truly faith.
Vs. 25 – How did the children of Israel know that Rahab had faith in the God of Israel, and wasn’t trying to deceive them?
Her works of hiding the spies, and helping them escape were the works that proved her faith was genuine.
Vs. 26– James concludes with a challenge. “Faith without works is dead, just like the body without the spirit. A man who has no spirit is a dead man. A faith that has no works is a dead faith.
Perhaps a good way of looking at this is that we are justified before God by our faith. We are justified before men, they see we have faith, when we show our works.
Both are needed. For it only by our works that men can that our faith is real.
GENUINE FAITH IS NOT JUST WORDS – Vss. 14-17
GENUINE FAITH IS PROVEN BY ACTION – Vs. 18
GENUINE FAITH IS MORE THAT JUST MENTAL ASSENT – Vss. 19-20
GENUINE FAITH IS DEMONSTRATED BY BIBLE CHARACTERS – Vss.21-26