James 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
James now addresses a counter argument about faith. This response back to James is almost a form of boasting. This someone evidently has been following the law of works but has weak faith. There are examples of people who seem to be strong in obeying the letter of the law. There are plenty of modern Pharisees. At times, their “works” can appear as mere tokens of obedience, however, because their inner spiritual life is dead. They have no faith. Their so-called obedience is tradition or done to avoid shame before family or friends. They have the appearance of being Christian; they may even go to church; but inside, they have not repented of their sins. Their works are all a show. Eventually, their actions will betray them as only being hypocrites who lack the support of inner faith, trust, and commitment. There is some value, however, is such works because they can lead us to faith, but only if we shift from trying to prove our religion to truly trusting in God. How much better would it be if our works were the outgrowth of a relationship with God? Would it not be better if how we lived was a natural bi-product of our faith? This is what James is telling his readers: Let your faith be so genuine and solid that it naturally results in loving action. How can this happen? It must be an act of our will. We must choose, even when this choice is uncomfortable. Even when it costs us something. That is where faith is put into action.
For older posts, click here.