What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that – and shudder.
You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,’ and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. (James 2.14-24, NIV)
My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality (v1): Don’t combine your faith in Jesus with giving more honour to the wealthy and well-dressed, whilst despising the poor. I suppose this is a generational attitude, but I don’t like the current fashion of dressing casually in Church, I believe we should wear our ‘Sunday best’, giving honour to the Lord in how we dress. Having said that, the Bible is very clear, God looks at our heart; whilst man judges by outward appearance (1 Samuel 16:7).
Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? (v5): Our ‘richness’ is based on our faith, and how we live out that faith. We are heirs of the Kingdom! The Kingdom is a real place, and God has promised us our reward in that Kingdom for those who remain faithful.
If you really fulfil the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself,” you do well (v8): As far as I am aware, this is the only time in Scripture this command is referred to as the ‘royal law’, to love our neighbour as ourselves. James goes on to say that if we offend the law in one area, we are guilty of all (v10). The Scripture is clear, all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23). There are no good or bad sins, large or small, or slight transgressions. We ALL need forgiveness and salvation.
What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? (v14): Faith without the accompanying lifestyle is dead; faith is evidenced by the life we live. Show me your faith without works, and I will show you the depth of my faith by what I do. It is easy to talk the talk, but we must walk the walk. I believe in the power of prayer to heal the sick, this is evidenced by the fact that God has miraculously healed me of cancer twice.
‘You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!’ (v19): Most people say that they believe in God, but even the devil believes there is a God! The devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness; he recognises who God is. Our faith must go beyond recognising and believing in God, into something that is real and purposeful.
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also (v26): Faith without works is dead! Abraham ‘believed’ God and was justified by his action. Abraham’s faith in God was translated into obedience; his faith was evidenced by his works, therefore he was justified by his faith and his works. The same is true of Rahab (v25); her family were saved by the actions she took because of her faith in who God is.