(A continuation of By Faith Alone? I Don't Think So!)
James quotes the exact same passage that Paul uses to support justification by faith (Rom. 4:3), but he uses it entirely differently. Before quoting the passage, James tells us, "Was not Abraham our father
justified by works, when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You
see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works,
faith was perfected." After quoting the passage, James informs us, "You see that a man is justified by
works, and not by faith alone." Twice, he tells us that Abraham was justified by his works. That fact cannot be escaped or ignored.What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, "You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected; and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works, when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead. James 2:14-26
If
you look through the entire Old and New Testaments where someone
appears to be justified by faith alone, if you take a closer look at the
story, you will see that they are also being justified by their works.
Take the woman with the issue of blood, for example (Matt. 9:20-22; Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48).
On the surface, all most people see is her faith. They then attempt to
build their presumptuous conclusion off Jesus' words: "Your faith has saved you." But take a closer look at the story. What do you see? You
see her works saving her as well, just as James points out with regard
to Abraham: "You
see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works,
faith was perfected." She reached out and touched his garments (works) while
believing that doing so would heal her (faith). If she had merely said to
herself, "If I only touch His garment, I will be saved," believing it wholeheartedly, and then turned and went home having
done nothing, would she have been healed? Think about it. "Faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself." The two were working in tandem. You will find the same with every story in Scripture.
Think of it like this: I am hanging mid-air from whatever (cliff, roof, tree), about to fall and hurt
myself severely. You are standing below and you tell me, "Let go and I
will catch you." I can earnestly and wholeheartedly believe that you will catch me with every fiber of my being, but if
I do not let go, all that belief counts for nothing. It is dead faith. By letting go, my
works (letting go) perfect my faith (believing that you will indeed catch me). What we truly believe is always verified by what we do, regardless of what our mouths speak.
John the Baptist, Jesus, and the Apostles preached repentance (works) and belief (faith). If you preached the Gospel to me and I wholeheartedly believed every word of it, but that was it, nothing changed in the way I live, then I am still dead in my trespasses and sins and I will go to hell. If I truly believed the Gospel preached to me (faith), there will be repentance at the same time (works). If my faith in the Gospel is genuine, I will no longer do many of the things I used to once do. The evidence that I truly believed (faith) would be seen in my repentance (works), which perfects that faith. Otherwise, faith alone is dead! Other good works will inevitably follow, but there is always an initial work present with faith in order to perfect that faith, just as James said: "as a result of [Abraham's] works, [his] faith was perfected." It is never one or the other by itself. If we are justified by faith alone, then all I have to do is believe, without repentance, without any following works, without any kind of demonstration of that faith. Sadly, this is what most professing "Christians" in the church today believe. "All I need is faith. I just need to believe. I don't have to repent. I don't need to do any kind of good works. All I need to do is believe and keep that belief to myself, never letting it show."
John the Baptist, Jesus, and the Apostles preached repentance (works) and belief (faith). If you preached the Gospel to me and I wholeheartedly believed every word of it, but that was it, nothing changed in the way I live, then I am still dead in my trespasses and sins and I will go to hell. If I truly believed the Gospel preached to me (faith), there will be repentance at the same time (works). If my faith in the Gospel is genuine, I will no longer do many of the things I used to once do. The evidence that I truly believed (faith) would be seen in my repentance (works), which perfects that faith. Otherwise, faith alone is dead! Other good works will inevitably follow, but there is always an initial work present with faith in order to perfect that faith, just as James said: "as a result of [Abraham's] works, [his] faith was perfected." It is never one or the other by itself. If we are justified by faith alone, then all I have to do is believe, without repentance, without any following works, without any kind of demonstration of that faith. Sadly, this is what most professing "Christians" in the church today believe. "All I need is faith. I just need to believe. I don't have to repent. I don't need to do any kind of good works. All I need to do is believe and keep that belief to myself, never letting it show."
It does not matter what traditions we hold to, it does not matter what system of theology we follow, it does not
matter what denomination we belong to, we must compare all teachings
with the Scriptures and hold the Scriptures as the only authority. I
agree with most of Reformed theology, the doctrines of grace, and
the five solas, but where they do not agree with Scripture, we need
to reject tradition and conform our beliefs to the Word of God.
Reformed theology, the doctrines of grace, and the five solas are not infallible. Any true student of the Word, a Berean at heart,
understands this and will subject these, and all systems of theology, to the scrutiny of
the Word of God. How we were raised, what we were taught, and what we believe must conform to Scripture. Otherwise we are blind, ignorant, disobedient, rebellious fools.