James 2:14-26
One of the common answers to the question, “What does it mean to have faith?” is believing in something that we cannot see. We tend to equate belief with knowledge of something. We know that God exists even though we cannot see Him, therefore we have faith. James is going to take that belief and stomp all over it.
We come to one of the more well-known parts of the book of James. Verse 18 is often quoted, and we will get there in a few moments, but the context for James’ argument is everything we have looked at up to this point. James’ point cannot be understood without understanding everything James has said up to this point in his letter.
All the talk of endurance, all the talk of being quick to listen and slow to anger, all the talk of not showing favoritism, all the talk of being lawbreakers, and even all the talk of mercy triumphing over judgment is going to come to a head right here.
In verse 14, James starts by asking a couple of questions. First, what good is faith if it does not have some measure of works? Second, can such a faith save? Greek has a way of writing a question that gives the expected answer. The expected answer here is “no.” James does not believe that such a faith can save. How does this make you feel?
Does James contradict Paul in the belief that works don’t save? Paul says in Eph 2:8-9 we are saved by grace and not works. This is where James has been misunderstood, something I think intentionally. James never once says that the works are what saves someone but rather the works are what show the pure, undefiled faith that he has already spoken about. If you remember from an earlier session (James 1:27) what undefiled religion looks like is looking after orphans and widows in distress and to keep oneself unstained from the world. It is not getting to choose one or the other but to do both.
If we can convince ourselves that James is wrong then it gives us the excuse to not do anything, to not help people, because that is not how we are saved. But James does not accept that line of thinking. Next he gives a real world example of how this is supposed to look
In verses 15-17 James argues if someone has a need and you not only don’t meet that need but go so far as to point out the need to them, that is not showing mercy or kindness. The person already knows they have a need, they don’t need to be reminded of it. What they need is someone to help them meet that need.
The body has needs. We are not simply spiritual beings. These bodies may be temporary but while we inhabit them they do have needs. Those needs need to be met. If the person cannot meet them by themselves then someone else needs to meet them. According to James, that should be the person who professes faith in Jesus Christ.
It can be easy to overlook people like this because their need is constant. We want them to do something for themselves but often that is not possible. James is not saying here we give anyone anything they want all the time. The point is we don’t ignore them or tell them to fend for themselves. What they need might be a helping hand and to be taught how to meet their needs.
I like how the NLT renders verse 17. “So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” Faith isn’t enough does not mean faith in Jesus is insufficient but rather the idea that faith that is merely belief in something unseen is insufficient. If we truly believe in Jesus then that must impact our actions.
In verse 18-9, what James is addressing though this hypothetical questioner is the idea that there are different paths our faith calls us to travel. Some might be tempted to think that these works are not their calling. They have been called to teach or to study, but James’ point is everyone is called to be merciful and help others.
His answer is shocking. He says, “You believe that God is One. Good.” He is speaking to the intellectual Christian here. The one who believes in that which he cannot see. The one who insists that because they are saved by faith and not works they do not have to do any works. James tells such a person “Good. Even the demons believe that.”
Having ones faith compared to that of the demons is intended to shock them. Without directly saying it, James is calling that kind of faith demonic. I don’t want my faith to be on the same level as the demons. Look at how the demons react with this level of faith – they shudder. The KJV says they tremble before God. They fear God and not in the holy, reverent fear. They are truly afraid of God because they know their faith is insufficient.
Such a person is senseless in verse 20. The KJV gets to the heart of what the word means here. Vain means to have excessive pride in oneself but it can also mean to have no value, to be useless. Not exactly the label you want when you are supposed to be a servant of the Lord Jesus.
James ends here with a couple of examples of what true faith looks like in verses 21-26. What we need to see here is that believing in God is great and important, but we must do something with that belief.
Do we trust God enough to act? That is what both Abraham and Rahab did. They did not take the safe, easy road but trusted God when He said to do something. There has to be a measure of action to accompany our belief. That is what it means to have a saving faith.