seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 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? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
18 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. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 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. 24 You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.
25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.
Here's the link to the commentary.If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food: To fail in the most simple good work towards a brother or sister in need demonstrates that one does not have a living faith, and we can only be saved by a living faith in Jesus.
Be warmed and filled: To say this means you know that the person in front of you needs clothing and food. You know their need well, but offer nothing to help them except a few religious words.
Rahab the harlot: Significantly, James used two examples of a living faith — Abraham (the father of the Jews) and Rahab (a Gentile). James perhaps is subtly rebuking the partiality that may have developed on the part of Jewish Christians against the Gentile believers starting to come into the church.
It's James relationship with Jesus that comes to mind this morning. What if, when they were little, Jesus told His little brother James that He, Jesus, was the Son of God. At first, little James must have looked up to Jesus, because his big brother was the "bestest brother". But then, as James grew up... Jesus being the Son of God... didn't jive with the world. What if James had to choose, call his big brother a liar, or insane, or be with the "in crowd".
We know from the scriptures Luke 4:14-30 that Jesus was taken, by his family, to the brow of the cliff for preaching "Christ Saves" in the synagogue in Nazareth. James was one of the family. When Jesus walked through the crowd, James would have been one of the crowd Jesus left on the cliff.
I would think James would have a lot of anxiety about what he did that day. When James saw his big brother feeding thousands and thousands of people with a few fish and a couple loves, he must have had some awe inspired guilt. When James heard that Jesus brought Lazarus back from the dead.... James must have realized Jesus was indeed the Messiah.
It's one thing to believe that his brother was indeed the Messiah, but it's quite another to stand with Jesus on the cliff's edge. If James had declared his faith in his big brother Jesus out there on the cliff's edge... they might throw the two of them off the cliff.
So, James may very well be lamenting his own lack of faith and action. It's one thing to accept that your big brother is the Son of God.... it's quite another thing to admit it, knowing people will think poorly of you... or worse yet... jail you for blasphemy.
I believe that action, a public confession of faith, is like standing up with Jesus on the cliff that day back in Luke 4. I don't think "works" is required... I mean how many "works" do I have to do to get God's attention? If I am required to do 99 "works" and I die before accomplishing that 99th deed, do I lose my spot in the family?
James didn't stick up for his big brother that day on the cliffs. He hung with the crowd... and now, in this letter, in these verses... James regrets it deeply.
James let his big brother down...
