tion pronounces a benediction, wishing the needy man better for tune, without displaying and ben eficence. Such pious well-wishing will never put clothes on the naked and food on the table of the desti tute. Beautiful and sympathetic sounding words mean absolutely nothing if they are not followed by action. We again underscore the fact that good works must never take the place of spiritual faith. The two of them, however, go hand in hand. This is James' whole argument. The kind of faith that says, “ I pray that somebody will come to your rescue," but refuses to relieve the impoverishment personally if it can is dead. The only logical ex planation for the absence of good deeds is that the person is still dead in trespasses and sins; he has never really been born again at all. Such constitutes a mere religious pretense without any real spiritual power, or reality. Visible works enable us, as well as others, to see invisible faith. Someone has said, "Faith is like calories: you cannot see them, but you can always see the effects of them." Verse 18 demonstrates that the relationship of faith to good works is not an either/or proposi tion. Both Paul and James agree that works will proceed from a liv ing, dynamic faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour. A one-sided insistence on faith is just as dangerous as a one sided insistence on good works. One is the cause while the other is the effect. One brings sal vation while the other demon strates it. Without works faith can not be proved, and without the faith there is no life with which to do the works. Page 41
Paul teaches that there is a gos pel which is not really the gospel at all (Cal. 1:6-7). John says that there is a kind of love which is not a real love at all (I John 3:18). James deals with the true and the false religion (James 1:26-27). Now he talks about a faith that is not real if it is not accompanied by good works. The inquiry about this is, “What does it profit?" It is a rhetorical question for a faith that does not issue in good works and is not beneficial to anyone. The keyword here is “ say." Such a person claims to have faith, and may even honestly believe that he does have it, but his real spiritual condition must be assessed on the basis of what issues forth from his practical everyday living. Mere in tellectual assent and a cold dead orthodoxy must not be confused with a vital dynamic, energetic, and active faith which believes in Christ unto salvation. This is what issues forth in everyday Christian living and good works. Many people have gone through the motions of receiving Jesus Christ, but the event was merely a profession and not a possession of the Saviour. Yes, genuine faith is always productive in good works. It will lead to transformed behav iour. The way we live must corre spond to a person's faith-belief. Conduct will complement creed. In verses 16 and 17 we are given an illustration of what James means by mere declaration without any deeds to accompany what is said. We see a fellow believer in dire circumstances, lacking the barest necessities of life. He has no food, no clothing, no housing and is in desperate circumstances. The per son who merely professes salva
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