Introduction:

Dr. Alfred Adler, a psychologist, once said, when dealing with people, “Trust only in movement, life happens at the level of action.” In fact, Adler went on to say, “We are not what we say but we are what we do”. What we do,” he says, “is the real key to our intentions.” He has observed in human behavior that the only real revelation of a person is through that person’s behavior. I don’t know if he was a believer but he would agree with the concept of James. To sort of paraphrase James, faith plus nothing equals nothing. You must put in some effort in order to get some return.  

James describes the kind of faith that equals nothing he calls it “dead faith” in verse 17, verse 20 and again at the end of the chapter in verse 26…dead faith. Now inevitably, people with dead faith always substitute words for deeds but if there is no true rebirth you have no spiritually and with no spiritually there is no works.

We talked last time about an Unprofitable Faith now James speaks to us about…

I. A Demoniac Faith vv.18-19.

1. Perhaps to shock his complacent readers, James reminds us that even “demons” have the kind of faith that some people claim – but they have no salvation. It’s not saving faith. In Matthew 8, one of the demons said to Jesus, “And, behold, they cried out, saying, what have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?

Do you remember that statement? Do you know what that tells us? The demons have a very good eschatology. They also have an orthodox Christology. Jesus I know and Paul I know, but who are you? The demons believe but we know they are not saved.

2. So, James says: “You believe in God, right? You believe in the Bible, right? You believe all of this is true? Well, the demons are one up on you. They believe it too – and they tremble! They fear God. They understand the full implications of what they believe”. So the demons are one step above the person who has a “dead faith”. They tremble in fear one better than most men. That word “tremble- “fris’-so” means to bristle, to have ones’ hair standup. They are in a high degree of terror. Men have intellectual faith – follow this – demons have emotional faith. Men say, “I believe that,” and it stops. Demons say, “I believe that,” and their hair stands on end, because they understand the implications. Now, they don’t have hair per say but it implies fear. They have no hope of salvation. Their judgment is certain.

It is entirely possible that a person may be enlightened in their mind, and even stirred in their heart, and still be lost forever!

3. Note James says: “Show me your (so-called) faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works (emerging out of my works)”. Finally, having dealt with what does not constitute real faith, he turns our attention to three examples of …

II. A Prolific Faith vv.21-26.

1. Abraham was the father of the Jews; he was a godly man; he was the friend of God; I wonder just what went through Abraham’s mind when God said, ‘sacrifice your only son.’ All we know is he was obedient to God’s command no matter what he was thinking. Abraham demonstrated his saving faith by his works – vv.21-24. – Romans 4:1-5 / Galatians 3:5-9

2. Again, James is not contradicting Paul. Paul refers to the events recorded in Genesis 15 while James is referring to Genesis 22. Paul was speaking of Abraham’s initial experience of justification and James of an experience occurring some 30 years later. James is not saying Abraham was saved by works, because he says in verse 23, And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed [credited] unto him for righteousness…

3. The satisfying of his faith was the offering of Isaac on the altar found in Genesis 22:1-14. In the Genesis 15 passage Abraham’s faith was imputed unto him. The word imputed (Gk. lo-geē’-zo-mī) means “to put on a person’s account” or “credited.” True, saving-faith, then, leads to action. It changes the whole life. If your life is not changed, it’s not that you have faith, but lack works – you can’t have real faith at all!

4. James is pointing out that Abraham’s faith was accompanied by verifying good works evident in his willingness to offer his only son Isaac as a sacrifice. Abraham was justified by faith before God but he was justified by works before men. Do you see the difference? That’s the whole point James is making. Works are the only way his faith can be seen and verified as real saving faith by himself or any other man. The only way I can know I’m genuinely redeemed is to see the pattern of my godliness, the evidence. Therefore, rather than contradicting each other they complement each other.

5. James chooses another person because she is so remarkably unlike Abraham. Get this, Abraham was a Jew, Rahab was a Gentile. God is not a respecter of person!

Abraham’s a man, Rahab is a woman. Abraham is a good man. Rahab is an immoral woman. Abraham, a noble Chaldean, Rahab a corrupted Canaanite. Abraham is a great leader, Rahab a common follower. Abraham is at the top of the social order, Rahab at the bottom. Do you notice every conceivable contrast? Abraham is the recipient of much divine leadership and divine guidance…Rahab a total pagan.

 Rahab had been a sinful woman, a harlot! Rahab had belonged to the enemies of God! Rahab demonstrated her saving faith be her works – vv25-26. What did they have in common? Both exercised saving faith in God! Abraham and Rahab both had a dynamic (God-given) faith that justified them for all time and eternity and it produced remarkable works and deeds.

6. In Joshua chapter 2 is the story of Rahab. Rahab was a harlot living in Jericho. She ran an inn. These were brothels and she had women in her inn to sleep with men and that was how she made her living. So comes to the Canaanites are God’s people by the swarm and they are there because God’s going to give them Canaan. They arrive at Jericho. The spies come and Rahab declared, “He is God in heaven above and in earth beneath.” Now when she believed that, she was justified before God. She believed that God was the true God.

She believed that God was the God of miracles who had led His people out of Egypt. She had heard all God had done for the Sons of Jacob. This is where she believed and it was counted for righteousness and in verses 15, 16 her works proved her salvation. She hid the spies and helped them escape and did not report them.

We don’t justify the lie she told, it was still her fallen way. The time would come when she would understand the value that God puts on truth and she would trust in God instead of her own ability to get out of things. Rahab did something to demonstrate her faith in God she put her very life on the line. 

James concludes with a final analogy, the analogy of a corpse. “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” With both cases “if so” the Greek is (hü’-tō(s) who toasts) (in this manner) if the second member is missing, the result is death. If the spirit is missing from the body then there is death. If works are missing from faith it is dead. 

Faith is like the wind you can’t see it but you see it in the tress branches moving and it effect upon a flag blowing.  It’s like radio waves you don’t see them because they are invisible but their effect is experienced in sound and music. Faith is like your computer you don’t see the processor but you experience its’ potential as it computes incredible feats, math and research.

Conclusion:

Now may I say that no one is saved by works? Eph. 2:8, 9 states, No one is saved by works–listen carefully–but no one is saved without producing works. Note verse 10, we hardly quote it, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. That’s the issue. Without producing works we exhibit a dead faith not one that men can ascertain true salvation.

It is important that professing Christians examine their own heart and life, and make sure that they possess true saving faith, which is a dynamic faith.

What about you? The question that derives from all this is begs to ask, “Is Your Faith Real?

Has there been a real change in my life? Do I maintain good works, or are my good works occasional and weak? Do I seek to grow in the things of the Lord? Can others tell that I have been with Jesus? Do you have a belief without behavior? Do you believe but not obey?

These are the questions James’ text begs to ask us. The test of true, living faith is in the critical moment of life’s pressures when everything is at a crossroad, do we choose to honor God no matter what the cost?