As I have stated in prior posts, and firmly believe, it is crucial when trying to understand a passage of scripture that you acknowledge at least some of the following criteria: Who is writing the passage? Who is it written to? What is the reason it is written? I bring this whole topic up because in our recent bible study we were led back once again to James 2:17 which has the famous phrase “faith without works is dead”. This is one of the most controversial passages in the Bible because many do not know the proper interpretation of the verse. Many see this verse as contradicting the verse in Ephesians 2:8 when Paul writes that “By Grace are you saved through faith and not of yourselves.” Now on the surface these verses seem to contradict one another. However, we know that the Bible is the inspired word of God and does not contradict itself. Anyone, and I mean anyone, who tries to tell you the Bible is contradictory is doing the work of Satan himself and I don’t care what earthly title or degree he or she may hold.
So, since the Bible never contradicts itself, yet these verses on the surface appear to be opposites, we need to go below the surface and run these verses through the criteria I mentioned. Let’s examine the passage in James. First, James is the writer and he is a Jew. He is writing to fellow Jews. The reason he is writing this message to them is to exhort them to righteous living and good conduct. In biblical times Jewish people always required a sign before they would believe. How do I know this? Scripture tells us in 1 Corinthians 1:22 “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom.” This is the reason the temporary gift of tongues was given … to give the Jews a sign. This is the primary reason Jesus performed so many miracles during His earthly ministry.... to help them believe that He was the Messiah (and even after all of that many still failed to believe). Remember doubting Thomas? He would not believe it was really Jesus he was seeing until Jesus showed him the nail pierced hands. Remember what Jesus told Thomas? In John 20:29 Jesus said, Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
The reason James is telling his fellow Jews that faith without works is dead is because he understood that Jews required a sign to believe anything. In order for a person back in biblical days to have someone truly believe they were a follower of Christ, they needed to have good works in the way they lived their lives as evidence of their faith. Now, we need to also define two words here … “works” and “dead”. What kind of works is James talking about? Keeping the law? Of course not. He is talking about good works such as showing love and kindness for a fellow person. It ties in with what Jesus said the two most important commandments were… “Love God with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself”. What does dead mean? In the Bible, dead does not mean non existent, it means separation. Spiritual death does not mean the person ceases to exist. It means they are separated from God. In like manner, faith without corresponding action is separated and that person has no outward appearance of being a believer in Christ.
In a nutshell what James is saying is if we have authentic faith in Christ that we should have corresponding actions that accompanies that faith. Lack of corresponding works does not mean that a person’s faith is illegitimate. It means they are not living as they ought. Good works are a visible sign that other people can tell you are a follower of Christ without even knowing you personally. We as people see the outward appearance of others and focus on their actions. God sees the inner man. 1 Samuel 16:7 states But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
We can be deceived by outward appearance. Think of Judas. Outwardly, he seemed to be one of the best of the disciples for he was the treasurer and only a well thought of person is left in control of the money. However, when the rubber hit the road his true colors were found out that he was not a believer at all. We can get ourselves in a whole lot of trouble if we try to determine who is a Christ follower and who is not simply based on their actions. You may want to read the parable of the wheat and the Tares that Jesus told in Matthew 13:24-30.
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