True Faith Is Not Alone | Sermon 04/24/2022

Apologia Utah

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

00:02

Please turn with me and your Bibles to James chapter 2, James chapter 2.

00:10

We're going to be in verses 14 through 19 today. The title of this sermon today, church, is

00:18

True faith is not alone. True faith is not alone.

00:26

So starting in verse 14, hear now the inerrant and infallible words of the living and one true

00:32

God. What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith, but he has no works?

00:40

Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, go in peace, be warmed and be filled, and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?

00:56

Even so, faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. For someone may well say, you have faith and I have works.

01:06

Show me your faith without the works and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one, you do well.

01:13

The demons also believe and shudder. Thus ending the reading of God's holy inspired word, let's pray real quick.

01:19

Father, please speak through me today. Please bless the message and the proclamation of your word. Lord, teach your people this afternoon.

01:27

Help us all to be focused on what you want us to learn today, dear God. Lord, help me to speak in a way that is helpful.

01:36

Let it be clear and let it always be true to the glory of Christ. Amen. So I remember when

01:44

I was at school at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, I had become privy to some of the tools that the international mission directors were employing at various organizations.

01:57

They were seeking to vet through some young people who were seeking to become missionaries overseas.

02:06

Short -term mission trips had become in some ways more harmful than helpful, they said.

02:14

A group of young adults, zealous for Christ and probably equally zealous for other cultures would go on these two to four week mission trips.

02:27

And eventually these people in these other countries said, we get to know these people, we get to know them for a short time and they leave us and we're hurt.

02:35

So they had begun to realize long -term missions was what's going to be the goal for reaching the lost in other countries.

02:45

They'd go on these two to four week trips, these young people, to parts of say like Africa. They served the people in the community there, they'd get very little gospel out and they'd try that whole time to adjust to a completely different way of life.

03:01

So much of their energy would be focused on that. Finally, after that short trip, they would come back to the

03:07

States, they'd have photos of themselves with colorful tunics or skirts, with pictures of them with the native people showing that they actually were there and that was pretty much it.

03:19

Their lives would go back to normal at that point after those short mission trips.

03:27

And yet many of these types of young people who claim that their lives were completely changed, they didn't come back and start giving the gospel here.

03:37

They didn't really come back and serve their church here in the U .S. It was a high energy shot of zeal for a few weeks and then back to normal.

03:51

How were these directors to make sure these people were serious about gospel proclamation and not just looking for an international peace corpse type vacation?

04:05

Well, of course, they would go to their churches, they would see what kind of serving they already did.

04:12

But I thought this next thing they did was very, very crafty. These international missions directors to see if these people, these young folks were legitimate, they would go unannounced to their homes, their places of residence, and they'd ask all their neighbors, five upward, five downward, house in front of them, house behind them, you name it.

04:35

And they'd ask their neighbors, has Johnny ever come over and given you the gospel of the

04:41

Lord Jesus Christ? And almost certainly, the neighbor's answer was no.

04:47

I don't even know who that is. They don't even wave to me. No, they've never come over and given the gospel.

04:54

So these young adults expect to give people of other cultures, other languages, and other customs the gospel, but they won't even give it to their neighbors here in the

05:06

U .S. They won't even give it to their neighbors. Because if anything, it's much harder, if you know anything about missions, you have the language and cultural barriers, it's very difficult to get the gospel out at those places, especially in such a short two to four week missions trip.

05:26

But that was their test. That was what the missions board would do.

05:31

Do they have the true desire to get the gospel out? Is it actually something they have, or is it something they don't have?

05:41

Is it just talk? Or are they willing to do it? You see, that's what

05:46

James is doing here in our text today. He is concerned some of these believers simply say they believe, but actually don't.

05:57

They say they have faith in Christ, but demonstrate no works for Christ.

06:03

No fruit is evident. And that is what we're going to be looking at in our section of James today.

06:09

But before we start, I want to remind everyone of something. Something that's on my heart.

06:17

You see, the passage we're about to look at has been one of the most controversial in Christian church history.

06:27

Believe it or not, James 2, this section, has been one of the most controversial in church history.

06:32

And it's been especially something that's thrown around with false religions.

06:40

But the James who wrote 2 .14 -19 also wrote 1 .18.

06:47

And as we study this epistle, I can't help but keep coming back to that verse.

06:54

James 1 .18 says He chose to give us birth through the Word of Truth that we might be a kind of first fruits of all

07:02

He created. So before any mention of being a doer of the Word, any mention of faith without works is dead.

07:11

The Jerusalem preacher, the inspired New Testament writer, James tells us

07:17

God chose us. He chose us. He chose to make us born again by the

07:24

Word of Truth. And if you remember that sermon, born again by the

07:31

Word of Truth meant born by the Gospel of Grace. And this isn't merely grace, this is sovereign grace.

07:40

Before any such work was done, He chose to make us born again. And that is the truth.

07:48

That is the foundation of truth for everything else mentioned in this epistle.

07:54

God's sovereign grace that He chose us. So with that in mind, let's begin looking at our text.

08:01

Starting in verse 14. What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith, but he has no works?

08:10

Can that faith save him? Chapter 2, v.

08:15

14 -26 are no doubt the pinnacle of James' letter. Everything else in the epistle touches back to this.

08:24

Everything else in the epistle has this sort of theme. James has constantly been showing these early

08:32

Jewish Christians what real Christianity looks like. I think right after our passage today, the next section that's also very thorough, has a very thorough idea of faith and works, was touched on in chapter 1, v.

08:49

22 -25. That section said, but prove yourselves to be doers of the

08:55

Word, and not merely hearers only who delude themselves. He said, don't be like the man who looks in the mirror and forgets what he looks like after he steps away.

09:08

So the case to be an effectual doer or one who practices good deeds was made in the positive sense there in chapter 1.

09:16

It was made in the positive sense. But now our passage is saying something very similar, but made in the negative sense.

09:25

Negative sense. Not saying that it's bad, it's saying prove yourselves to be doers, and now he's saying, don't be someone without works who says you just have faith.

09:34

You get what I'm saying? So, this now is the capstone of his earlier appeal.

09:42

This is the capstone. It ties it all together. Two questions are posed to the brethren here.

09:48

Two questions. What does it, in the Greek, aphelos, aphelos, profit, benefit, aid, advantage, if someone says he has faith but not works?

10:02

What use is it, our translation says, if someone says?

10:12

You notice that? I just noticed that. If someone says, what is the benefit, church, of a merely spoken claim?

10:23

This exists only in the spoken realm in that sense. This is critical.

10:28

Many have pitted James against the rest of the New Testament. But he is in no way going against what we know to be true.

10:38

He doesn't say this. He doesn't say, if a man has faith. Does he? If a man has faith.

10:44

He doesn't say that. James knows that there's a difference. He says, if a man says he has faith, that's the difference.

10:53

If a man says he has faith. And it's not what most churches have with like a confession of faith if we're talking about what does he mean by faith?

11:03

It's not just a confession of faith. This isn't a list of beliefs or statements that someone ascribes to in a church.

11:14

This is no mere intellectual subscription. This is the kind of faith that is saving faith that God imparts to His elect which manifests in word and deed.

11:28

Okay? That's the kind of faith that's being addressed here today. You see, it's important for us to define things so that we have proper understandings here.

11:42

What does James mean by works? Works have various meanings in the New Testament.

11:48

Works can be of the devil. Works can be of the law. Works can be something that a man does in his vocation.

11:57

But what James is talking about here is works in the general sense of actions done in obedience to God and His Word.

12:08

So we can restate the question this way. With all that in mind, with all those definitions, with all that in mind, let's restate his first question.

12:17

It would be, what is the benefit of someone merely saying they have saving faith from God, but it never manifests outwardly in good deeds that God desires us to do?

12:30

You see, I could bring up copies of degrees and certificates to show a hospital that I'm a brain surgeon.

12:40

I could tell them in the interview that I'm a brain surgeon. I'm one of the best in the country. But when it comes down to it, and it's time and it's the day of surgery, and I don't know what

12:51

I'm doing, and I don't know what I'm talking about, and I don't know how to actually operate on this person, they're going to say, this man's a liar.

12:58

He's not truly a brain surgeon. Right? I have to back up what

13:04

I'm saying that I am. Christ often speaks of trees.

13:10

He says you'll know a tree by its fruit. You see, me and my wife, we go walking every other night, and we see right now there's all these trees that are just budding.

13:20

There's blossoms everywhere. It really is beautiful. You don't see that a whole lot in Arizona.

13:26

But there's little baby green leaves coming out, flowers. And the fact is, we don't know how to identify them yet.

13:35

Now, you may be an arborist, and you can look at the bark, and you can look at the shape of the tree, and you could probably tell me, maybe, what the tree is.

13:42

But a lot of the time we walk around, we won't know what that tree is till the fruit comes out. Till the leaf comes out in its maturity.

13:50

Oh, okay, that's an oak tree. Oh, that's this. Oh, that's a peach tree. Okay. So we won't know until later.

13:58

Jesus mentions trees often. You'll know a tree by its fruit.

14:04

Fruit trees go dormant in winter. So one could put a tag on the trunk of a tree and write fig tree.

14:11

But after spring comes, and it's supposed to be time for harvest, there's no figs.

14:17

Actually, it's a briar bush. It's a briar bush. It's something completely different. It doesn't matter what was written on the tag that it was a fig tree because it's not a fig tree.

14:25

You'll know a tree by its fruits. That's what He's saying. The fruit of a tree is evidence of what the tree is.

14:34

So is a person who claims they have faith. The claim will be evidenced by good deeds according to Scripture.

14:45

His second question is, can that faith save Him? Can that faith save us?

14:52

Now here's where it's important to understand the Greek articles. The New American Standard Bible, which

14:59

I have up here, translates this correctly. But other translations have it differently.

15:06

It says, can the faith save us? Can the faith save us? Now, I don't think that's accurate.

15:14

And of course, many reputable translations don't think that's accurate as well. You see, scholars have determined the article that is before the word faith has an anaphoric significance, which means it points back to something else.

15:32

The faith of the second question is pointing back to the faith of the first question.

15:38

That's what it means. So the best way to translate the second question would be can that kind of faith that we just talked about, can that kind of faith save someone?

15:49

The faith that has no works. That's what he's saying. Even John the

15:55

Baptist addresses this in Matthew 3 before the inauguration of Jesus' earthly ministry.

16:04

John is there at the Jordan River. He's doing baptisms of people. They're coming down.

16:10

He's wearing camel's hair and he's eating honey, I guess. Sounds like my kind of guy. I feel like I do the same thing.

16:19

But he's baptizing people. And it says here in Matthew 3, but when he saw many of the

16:28

Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, you brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

16:38

And he says this, therefore, bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

16:44

And do not suppose that you can say that you are children of Abraham, that Abraham is your father.

16:53

Don't think you can simply say when you don't bear fruit. He tells the

16:59

Pharisees and Sadducees, don't think you can simply claim you are a child of Abraham. Don't think you can lay claim to an inheritance simply because of lineage.

17:13

Bear fruit, he tells them. Validate your claims, Sadducees and Pharisees.

17:18

Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. James asks, can that kind of faith save him?

17:26

The question is posed in such a way that the reader can come to no other conclusion in the

17:32

Greek. The answer is no. No. A merely claimed faith without works to prove it cannot save.

17:43

Now, some of you are going, whoa, whoa, whoa, Pastor Wade. I remember when we went over Sola Fide.

17:49

We talked about justification by faith alone. What do you mean? I thought we're saved by faith alone, by grace alone, and Christ alone.

17:57

That is absolutely true. Amen. Amen. That is true. So what do we mean?

18:04

What do we mean? You have to listen closely to the words being used, church. Can that kind of faith that is merely spoken, but not acted on, save someone?

18:20

We are saved by faith alone, but saving faith is never alone. You see?

18:27

And actually, that's not originally from me. Many godly men in the

18:34

Lord have said that. We are saved indeed by faith alone, but saving faith is never alone.

18:41

We are saved by faith alone, but saving faith is never alone. One commentator states regarding this passage, faith in God through Jesus Christ is a certainty that flows from our hearts, emanates from our minds, and translates into deeds.

19:01

Vibrant faith of word and deed, spoken and performed out of love for God and love for neighbor, saves us because it is real.

19:10

Because it is real. Now, it may be worth mentioning a little bit about Paul and James.

19:19

Some may be wondering that. Paul and James. Because Romans 4 v.

19:26

5, which actually is something I preached on a couple of months ago, says, but to the one who does not work, but believes in God who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.

19:40

Does the apostle Paul and James, do they contradict each other? Does James 2 go against all that we know to be true in the doctrine of justification by faith that we see outlined by Paul and the other apostles?

19:57

As I said, that has been the claim of a minority group for 2 ,000 years and is especially claimed amongst false religions.

20:06

You know what? I don't think so. In fact, I know it's not. I know they don't contradict. I know that and so do many, many other

20:16

Christians, especially intelligent ones, ones who are far more intelligent than myself. But that is not the reason why

20:23

I believe they don't contradict. I don't appeal to these men who have come before and say that's why

20:28

I don't believe Paul and James don't contradict. I think we're going to see in the text that Paul and James are in complete harmony.

20:39

A simple look at the text reveals Paul is addressing the passive aspect of faith while James is addressing the active aspect of faith.

20:52

The passive aspect and the active aspect. Two different things, church.

20:59

Two different things. According to Galatians, Paul and James were well acquainted with each other.

21:06

Paul mentions James. He mentions he was a pillar. He knew of James, the Jerusalem preacher. They knew each other.

21:14

Some even theorize that James could be trying to fight against known distortions of Paul's teachings on justification by faith that false brethren had espoused in the first century.

21:29

In other words, it's possible what James is addressing is some people have possibly taken the biblical doctrine of justification by faith and they ran with it.

21:39

And they said, look, Paul says we don't have to obey God anymore. We don't have to look like Christians.

21:45

And James is going, ok, let me correct this wrong thought. That's possible. That's what's going on here today in our text.

21:57

But James knew exactly what Paul taught. Paul was defining the high theology of how we are saved.

22:07

That we were dead people. Dead as dead. Completely unable to come to God without divine intervention.

22:16

That by the works of the law, no one can be saved because their works are as dead as they are dead.

22:22

Because you remember, I just said chapter 1, verse 18, this is the foundation of all this letter.

22:29

And what does it say? He chose us to be born again, which means we were dead. So James agrees with that.

22:37

James agrees. We were totally unable. In later letters, like to the

22:43

Galatians, Paul addresses the one trying to earn salvation through his works. They're trying to add circumcision to the

22:51

Gospel. But James is addressing the already confessor who says he has faith, but fails to put that faith into practice.

23:01

Okay? These are completely different categories, brothers and sisters.

23:07

If you want to know about category errors, listen to James White on the dividing line. The man talks about category errors quite a bit.

23:15

There are things that are different categories. And we have to start learning what they are.

23:21

We'll make the same errors that other people do. What puts someone in right standing before a holy

23:29

God? That's what justification means. What puts someone in the right standing before a holy

23:34

God? What saves you? Okay? What saves you? And then what is the external evidence showing the internal reality of that?

23:48

Are two different things. The external evidence of that reality and what saves you, those are two different things.

23:55

Paul attacked any works such as circumcision, Sabbath keeping, festival observing, commandment adherence, anything to quote, earn heaven.

24:08

That's what Paul attacked. He attacked that vehemently. But James is arguing for genuine

24:15

Christian piety. This is what you look like now that you follow Christ. This is what you look like now because you follow

24:23

Christ. It's not answering the question, how are we saved? It's answering the question, what do we look like now?

24:31

Those are the differences. It's laughable that people will accuse the

24:41

Apostle Paul of so -called cheap grace. It's completely laughable.

24:47

If you study the Epistles, it's far from it. Just even a few

24:52

Romans 6, 1 -2, what shall we say then? Shall we continue to sin that grace may abound?

24:58

He says may it never be. How shall we who have died to sin continue to live in it? He says walk in the newness of life.

25:07

You're different now. Look like it. Philippians 1 .27

25:13

Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ. Conduct.

25:20

He's concerned about conduct. In 1 Thessalonians 1 .3, Paul says to keep observing your work of faith and labor of love.

25:29

You see that? He says your work of faith and your labor of love.

25:36

Faith and love are active in the Christian man and woman. Paul and James harmonize so well, they harmonize so well that Paul can say in Ephesians 2, 8 -9, for by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves.

25:55

It is a gift of God, not a result of works, so that no man may boast. He can say that.

26:02

He can say it's by grace alone. Then immediately after v. 8 -9 and v.

26:08

10, Paul then continues, for we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which

26:16

God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. He doesn't just end it.

26:22

He says now that you've been saved by grace, now that God has given you faith and grace, you are to walk in the good works that God prepared beforehand.

26:32

Paul is in complete agreement with what James is teaching here today. Paul isn't just for faith, and James is the works guy.

26:43

Why? Faith and works. They are both for the harmony of faith and works in the life of the believer.

26:51

Each man is battling a different error in the church.

27:00

James had seen too many people claim to be followers of Christ but never demonstrate it in their outward actions.

27:08

And he's not done making that point, so let's continue on in v. 15, 16, and 17.

27:16

If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, go in peace, be warmed, and be filled, and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?

27:33

Even so, faith, if it has no works, is dead being by itself. The Jerusalem pastor loves his illustrations.

27:42

He really is a pastor. He brings up all these analogies and illustrations all the time.

27:47

And once again, James brings up the quality of care for the poor in the

27:54

Christian community. It really must have been a big issue if James keeps coming back to the quality of the poor in the

28:02

Christian community in the early church. So, for being a hypothetical situation, it was probably a very likely one.

28:11

And you can tell, by the way, that it's hypothetical, because it says, if a brother or sister.

28:18

James, when he writes in a definite way, he would say, when a brother is without food, he says, if a brother or sister.

28:27

In fact, the word sister in the New Testament, this is one of the few times it comes up. He brings them both up together.

28:34

If a brother or sister is without food or clothing. So it's a scenario, but it's a very likely one.

28:43

If they are without clothing. This word, without clothing, is the Greek word for naked.

28:51

That is actually gymnos. G -Y -M -N -O -S.

28:57

Gymnos. Which is actually where we get the word gymnasium, because Greek men would do sporting events completely nude.

29:06

And I feel like you could go to some gyms around here and you might get similar things. Lord save us.

29:12

Is there any Christian gyms out there? Gymnas. Make you think twice the next time you say you're going to the gym.

29:21

Gymnas means naked. But here it probably indicates to someone who had a very thin layer of clothing on, maybe just undergarments.

29:33

This person was possibly in rags. They had nothing to cover them.

29:39

Exposed in the hot sun. Freezing in the dead of night. They didn't have adequate coverings.

29:48

Daily food literally means food for the day. Food for the day. It points to being habitually underfed and malnourished.

29:58

This person doesn't eat often days at a time. They are barely surviving.

30:04

That's the dire situation this hypothetical brother or sister is in.

30:13

And then he says, and another Christian, he says, and one of you... He points to the early

30:19

Christians. He goes, and one of you says to them, go in peace.

30:25

Be warmed and be filled. But they don't give them what they need. They don't give them what they need.

30:30

The clothing and the food. And James says once again, what a phallus is that?

30:37

He ties it back to v. 14 with dead faith. Inactive faith.

30:43

He says, what use is that? And did you catch it?

30:49

He says, one of you says go in peace. Be warmed and be filled. And yet you do not. This is someone who once again merely says things but does not do.

31:00

They're good at saying things. They're good at saying I have faith. I have faith.

31:05

And then they are good at telling their brothers and sisters in need, go, be warmed and be filled. And then they don't help them at all.

31:12

They're good at talking. But they're not good at doing. If you remember from our sermon last week,

31:22

James says, so speak and so act. So speak and so act. James never sees these things as divorced from one another.

31:31

Speaking and acting. Speaking and doing. It's almost kind of like a prayer.

31:37

Yes, my brother, be warmed and be filled. Go on your way. It's like, are you kidding me?

31:44

I'm starving, man. Sometimes we need to recognize that we are the ones who need to take action.

31:52

The call came to you. The desperate message arrived to you first.

31:59

Shame on us for passing it off. We pass it off sometimes. We say in our hearts, may

32:07

God provide for them. And then we walk away. But God is saying I will provide for them, and I'm going to use you to do it, so obey.

32:17

I'm going to use you. We need to be careful not to just give our brothers and sisters these empty platitudes, these hallmark sayings.

32:28

Go in peace. Be warmed and be filled. That's nothing. That's empty. That doesn't do anything for anyone.

32:35

We often give these platitudes a lot. We have to give our time, our prayers.

32:43

That means praying with them sometimes instead of just saying I'll be praying for you. Take the time. Pray with your brother or sister.

32:50

I've got to get better at that too. I'll be praying for you. No, pray right now. Pray with your brother or sister now.

32:58

Assist them with their needs. The brother going into surgery on Monday is nervous and needs you to say more than just, well,

33:06

I know you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. That doesn't help him. He's frightened.

33:12

He's worried about going into surgery on Monday. You're going to also give something that's pretty much out of context?

33:21

You can do all things through Christ. He needs more than that. Sit with Him. Open the

33:28

Scriptures with Him. Read the Psalms. The Psalms are very encouraging. They're very real.

33:35

Covering our emotions. Read the promises of God's preservation of the believer. Pray with Him.

33:41

Build up His courage. I dare you to visit with Him after the operation.

33:47

Well, I've got work. We take off work for the stupidest things. We take off work for easy things just because.

33:56

We won't take it off for the brother or sister in need, right? The Christian woman struggling with sin doesn't need for her sister to just be like, yeah,

34:09

I've been through that before. Then they say, don't give the devil a foothold. We hear that a lot.

34:16

Don't give the devil a foothold. What does that even mean? We're just saying these empty things.

34:21

What are we actually doing? What is that woman doing with her sister? She needs to hear that the

34:31

Bible says that sin is inappropriate, number one. And number two, the Bible also shows a solution to overcome that sin.

34:39

So let me show you what it says. Maybe that woman helps her and shows her.

34:45

She loves her so much, she's willing to check with her about that sin. Maybe send her articles or sermons about overcoming that sin.

34:55

She says, I'm going to walk with you the whole way, sister. I'm going to be your accountability partner.

35:01

I'm going to walk with you through this until you've had victory on it. That's what she needs.

35:09

That's what she needs. And that Christian woman would say after that, I've never had someone in the church walk with me like that before.

35:17

I've never had someone love me like that before and tell me the truth, show me God's Word, and walk with me.

35:23

That means everything to someone. I've had men do that for me. Walk with me on stuff.

35:29

It means everything. You see, not providing for our brothers and sisters when they are in need, indeed hurts them.

35:38

It hurts the ones who just receive be warmed and be filled. But it also hurts us. Rather, it raises the question of one's quality of faith.

35:49

That's what James is saying. If we know the commands of our God, and we know the opportunity to obey is placed right in front of us, why wouldn't we do it?

36:00

What use is that? What aphelos is that? So James wraps up his illustration.

36:09

Even so, if it has no works, even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.

36:18

Verse 17. Aphelos, or useless faith, is now fully defined as necross faith.

36:28

Necross. From where we get words in the English language like necromancy, death.

36:34

That's dead. That's necross faith. So a mere spoken faith with no works, that has no feet on it, no action, does nothing, is necross.

36:46

It's dead. What can a dead man do? Dead men can do nothing but rot.

36:55

All the dead man's actions have ceased. The Bible often calls our blood the life.

37:02

The life is in the blood it says often. True faith is like our blood. When we have blood, our bodies can work constantly.

37:13

There's things you don't even see. Your heart is pumping. Your brain is going. Blood is in the body.

37:18

It's working. Your body is constantly working without stopping. When a man bleeds out, his body ceases all functions and activities.

37:30

I remember, you might notice I bring up a lot of gardening things. I used to love to garden in Arizona.

37:37

We had over a dozen fruit trees and vegetables all over the place.

37:42

Wildflowers. We really loved it. But I remember, believe it or not, where we were on the outskirts of Phoenix could get lows into the, what, 26s, stuff like that?

37:55

Mid -20s, Andrew? It could get, you know, that's decently cold, right? So you can really almost grow year -round out in Phoenix, but you have to be aware of those kind of cold, that quick cold three weeks or something.

38:11

I don't know. It's a blip. But when it was too cold to go out in winter to plant direct into the soil with the seeds,

38:22

I would be like a mad scientist. Sarah would be like, what are you doing? And I'd get these trays, and I'd put soil in them, starter soil, and I'd put the seedlings in there in the garage.

38:32

And not just any regular lamp would work, okay? If you just put a regular lamp, one of these lights, something that you put on a desk, nothing would happen, okay?

38:44

It would produce no activity. A regular light bulb cannot produce photosynthesis. But believe it or not, technology, it blows my mind.

38:54

There's now these grow lamps that I could put in the garage that was kind of like, had a pink hue to it, but I'd put it over, you know, all my tomatoes and peppers that were just seedlings, and I'd put the light over, and it could actually grow in the dark of the garage until everything was ready and warmed up outside for me to then transplant those seedlings out there.

39:16

She said, what are you talking about? True faith, I think, is like the correct light.

39:23

It makes things happen. It makes things happen. We are the seedling. The faith

39:28

God gives us is like the sun. Action is inevitable with the sun and a plant.

39:36

With those two elements, you can't help but have photosynthesis and growth in what

39:41

God does in maturing these plants. The seedling does nothing alone.

39:48

A seed does nothing alone apart from what God does through his creation. That is very much highlighted in the

39:56

Gospels when Jesus gives the parable of the soils. You might remember that. The seeds that fell by the wayside,

40:03

I'm sorry, by the roadside, were eaten up by birds. And he says, those are the ones who hear the

40:10

Word, but they do not understand, so the evil one comes and snatches away the seeds.

40:17

He says, the seed that fell in rocky soil sprang up quickly, but then it had withered away.

40:27

It had no promise. It was not deeply rooted down in that gravel.

40:32

That's what he says. This is the one who hears the Word and says to everyone,

40:38

I believe. I have faith. But Jesus says, when affliction comes, he immediately falls away.

40:44

He withers away. Other seeds are choked out by thorns, which

40:49

Jesus says are the cares of this world, which are the desires to become rich. So the seed comes down, the thorns choke it, but they want something else.

40:59

And it's lost there as well. But the one in whom God casts the good seed into the good soil will what?

41:09

Jesus says at the end of that parable, it says they will hear the Word, they will profess faith, and they will produce fruit.

41:17

He says some 100 -fold, some 60 -fold, some 30 -fold, but they will produce fruit.

41:25

They will produce it. Faith having no works is dead. A seedling having no fruit is either dead or will soon be dead according to Jesus.

41:37

Even Paul said to King Agrippa, he was stating his case before King Agrippa as he was on his way to Rome.

41:47

Even King Agrippa says that he knew the Scriptures and the prophecy that Paul was talking about.

41:54

And Agrippa clarifies and he goes, Paul, you almost made me a Christian. You almost made me a

42:00

Christian. So apparently, intellectual faith is also dead faith.

42:07

It's not enough to simply have knowledge. Knowledge of God. Knowing the truth means that you should do something with it.

42:18

And one way to translate katah here is in. So this last word where it says by, by itself, actually a better way to translate that is in itself.

42:29

Even so, faith if it has no works is dead being in itself or in itself.

42:35

So, Moo argues, in other words, the kind of faith that is dead on the outside, which means it does nothing externally, is also dead on the inside.

42:50

Okay? What's even so faith when it has no works is dead on the outside and it's dead also on the inside.

42:57

That's what it would be pointing to. How many times do we hear actually this quoted in our context here doing evangelism all the time?

43:07

Faith without works is dead. Aha. That's what they'll tell us. Gotcha.

43:14

Faith without works is dead. I'm unarmed.

43:21

No, we're very armed by God's grace. Again, they mix categories.

43:27

They mix categories. Mormons are wrong here. Let me say that. We want them to be saved.

43:34

They are dead wrong here. Mormons do not have the truth. And they are wrong here. And we want them to see that desperately.

43:42

Works cannot obtain peace with God. And they'll argue we don't say that, but that's what their doctrine shows.

43:49

That's what many of them believe. That's what they really believe from the heart. But works flow forth from a heart that has peace with God already.

43:59

You hear that? Works flow forth from a heart that has peace with God already.

44:07

Remember, James is not contrasting faith and works for justification of a sinner.

44:13

He is harmonizing faith and works for the believer. So what he is truly contrasting here is dead faith opposed to a living faith that produces genuine

44:25

Christian action. So don't forget that, okay? Don't forget that. When someone brings up James 2 to you in an aha moment, say, you know what?

44:35

This text is not arguing the biblical doctrine of justification by faith.

44:42

James is contrasting dead faith and living faith. Oh yeah, I know James 2.

44:47

He's talking about dead faith and living faith. He's not talking about how we are saved. Okay?

44:54

Not different ways to be saved. So let's move on. Verse 18. But someone may well say, you have faith and I have works.

45:07

Show me your faith without the works and I will show you my faith by my works. Believe it or not, this verse alone has been the cause of much debate.

45:17

It really has. Especially among theologians, this has been very difficult for people to interpret.

45:24

Let me show you why. The big question in verse 18 has been, who is

45:30

James quoting? Who is James quoting? Number two, when do the quotes really end?

45:37

When do the quotations really end? And what is the position this hypothetical person is taking?

45:45

Those are the questions we have to ask ourselves with verse 18. The way in which

45:51

James is using an imaginary opponent likely means he is addressing some false view that has been circulating in the churches.

46:01

Remember, Greek manuscripts didn't have punctuation. They didn't have periods.

46:07

They didn't have commas. They didn't have apostrophes. They had nothing. That's what the translators received.

46:15

And so what you see in your Bible with periods and numbers and all these things and apostrophes, they aren't there in the original language.

46:23

So translators have to determine where the apostrophe ends.

46:30

Okay? The quotations are really the biggest deal here. Everyone pretty much agrees on where they start, but where do they end?

46:40

The New American Standard Bible, which is the translation I have here up on the screen, ends the quotation simply at the end of the verse.

46:48

But scholars have articulated three possibilities that I will explain quickly and then give you the most likely possibility what

46:56

I believe the Bible is demonstrating here. Remember, proper hermeneutics or the way we study the

47:03

Bible dictates that we take the position with the least discrepancies, not with the most.

47:09

We don't make it more confusing. We go with the plain meaning of the text. So, I'm going to be leaning a bit on previously published work here, but I want you to understand how

47:19

I got to my conclusion. For the first interpretation of verse 18,

47:24

James might be citing the opinion of an ally. An ally of his on the question of faith and works.

47:33

So the paraphrase would be, you, the false believer of the illustration, say that you have faith and I have works, but you cannot show me your faith because you do not have works.

47:46

The you would be the person who claims he has faith, but no works, while the

47:51

I would be James or this mysterious ally. However, the phrase, but someone will say points more to a disagreement from his own opinion because he used but right after verse 17.

48:09

Will you go back to the last slide? Zoe, real quick. Look at this. Verse 17 says, even so, faith if it has no works is dead being by itself.

48:18

Go to the next verse. But someone may well say, look, he's going from something in verse 17 that he agrees with.

48:27

He endorses, and now he's moving away from something that he agrees with.

48:33

But someone will say. So that shows us this can't be an ally.

48:39

This is someone who James is saying is deviating away from his thought process. Alright?

48:46

Also, the pronoun someone is used as one James disagrees with in verse 14.

48:52

This someone may be the you which he later calls foolish fellow. Also, you have to understand making a quotation of an imaginary opponent was a way to strengthen one's argument in that time, and it still is today.

49:08

James is quoting an imaginary opponent because he's about to strengthen and bolster his argument.

49:14

Not use an ally that he supports right here. Therefore, it is unlikely this is someone who he agrees with.

49:22

I don't think this is the interpretation. Here's the next one. Second possibility. The person whom

49:29

James is quoting is someone who objects to him or is casting doubt on James' faith.

49:37

It'd be paraphrased like this, Do you, James, really have faith? James would then respond,

49:43

I do have works. And while you cannot show me your faith at all, since you lack works,

49:48

I can show you my faith by those works. But you see, the problem with this is this takes away from the contrast and I.

49:57

See that? You have faith, and I have works. This doesn't seem to be

50:03

James responding in one whole quote. There's a contrast. There's someone who has faith and then it's changing.

50:11

And I have works. This is not one whole thing together. Sorry. Lost my place there for a moment.

50:27

You have that, and I have this. You have that, and I have this. It wouldn't make sense if they were quoting the whole of James in this moment.

50:37

Some have even said that the objector is being quoted all the way through verses 18 and 19, and James wouldn't even respond until verse 20.

50:47

It just doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense, church. I do not think this is the correct interpretation.

50:54

Finally, our last possibility for verse 18. I told you this is a hard one.

50:59

This is a strange one when you think about the punctuation and all those things.

51:05

So, here's what it is. The imaginary objector's words are only captured in you have faith and I have works.

51:17

That's it. The quotations would end where the semicolon is. You have faith and I have works.

51:23

That's where I believe the imaginary objector, that's what he's saying. I'll tell you why. I don't think the

51:30

NASB is correct here. The imaginary opponent says you have faith and I have works.

51:35

James then isn't inserting himself in this, but with the pronouns that are given, he is differentiating between two different people or two different positions.

51:47

One guy has faith and one has works. That's it. One guy has faith and one guy has works.

51:54

One chooses faith. One chooses action. Remember back to Paul and James, people have argued,

52:02

Paul only argues for faith. James only argues for works. That's a mischaracterization.

52:08

That's false. To James, faith and deeds are not separate entities.

52:15

James then brings faith and works together here. When one has genuine faith, it's a natural result or fruit of good works.

52:30

This one has the fewest difficulties. I believe this to be the biblical interpretation so that James' response would be 18b -19, meaning there's the quotations.

52:42

You have faith and I have works. These two hypothetical positions. And James comes back into it and he goes, you know what?

52:48

Show me your faith without the works and I will show you my faith by my works. He harmonizes the faith and the works together.

52:59

So actually, Zoe, would you go to the charts real quick? I wanted to give you guys some illustrations here.

53:05

So, look at this. God's grace, God's unmerited favor plus faith of self,

53:14

I guess, plus good works does not equal salvation. That is unbiblical what you see on the screen.

53:21

It does not. Those things together, add it all together. Good works, doing things right, the faith that I have of God in myself, and then

53:30

God's grace, all those together, somehow will earn me justification before God. Go to the next slide.

53:36

This, it's actually more of a flow. God's electing grace.

53:42

God chose us. Moves to a faith given to us. Ephesians 2 .8 and 9. It moves then to a justification when

53:49

Christ imputes His righteousness to dead people who don't deserve it. Then all of a sudden it flows to God's work in our sanctification.

53:58

He's going to perfect us. He's going to bring us to completion in Christ Jesus. We're going to be presented to the

54:03

Father blameless and holy because of what Christ has done. It's monergistic. Then, then at the end are the good works.

54:11

There it is. That's how it ends up. The good works don't get added to anything to get us salvation.

54:20

This is the proper flow, church. One last verse.

54:27

Verse 19. You believe that God is one.

54:32

You do well. The demons also believe and shudder. The pinnacle of James' argument against the imaginary objector saying faith and works are separate is by comparing that person's faith to the faith of demons.

54:50

That's what's happening. This may even be touching on the

54:56

Shema. You believe that God is one. The Shema was something the Israelites said. They said,

55:03

Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. They said it every day. The Shema.

55:09

So there might even be a hint of sarcasm here. So you recite the Shema so you know creeds and confessions.

55:16

Great. Well, even the demons know that and they shudder. That's maybe how he's saying this.

55:24

Even demons know such truths about God. Wow. Good for you. You know the Shema. You know

55:29

God is one. Here is the merely speaking again.

55:35

The one who says he has faith in v. 14 but doesn't have works. Then the one who simply speaks a blessing but doesn't help his brother or sister in v.

55:44

16. Now in v. 19, someone who can simply recite the Shema, but they don't do anything with it.

55:53

Do you get it? Speaking only and doing nothing. But James says, so speak and so act as those who will be judged by the perfect law of liberty of Christ.

56:04

They go together. They go together. Do something, he says.

56:10

Even demons shudder. Do something. Demons will actually shudder. They'll be frightened. Remember, even the demons recognized before the apostles did that Jesus was the

56:21

Christ, the Son of God. They said, have you come to torment us before the time Jesus, Son of the

56:27

Most High God? They recognized He was the Lord and Savior. Demons knew that, but knowledge doesn't save.

56:35

Mere knowledge doesn't save. We mustn't let our proper theology, like understanding

56:42

God as one, degrade into just a simple verbal exercise.

56:49

God as one should make us do things about that. Amen? Pastors and theologians especially have to be careful with that.

57:03

They can have all this knowledge. We can gain all this knowledge. And eventually, we can grow cold to it.

57:09

We can never lose the wonder. We can never lose the awe of our Lord that He saved us, and He didn't have to.

57:17

He saved people in rebellion to Him. He saved people who would be willing to say crucify

57:23

Him, crucify Him, and I'd put the nails through Jesus if I could back then. He saves people like us.

57:31

We can't forget that. We can't lose the wonder. In the pure and undefiled religion sermon,

57:38

I said your theology ought to inform your religion. That is, your theology, your understanding, your knowledge of God ought to come out in the way that you live your life.

57:49

Simple knowledge puffs up. It's true we must know

57:56

God before we can worship Him adequately, but then after you know Him, do you worship Him? The demons don't worship

58:02

Him. Some just know God. Or better yet, better said,

58:08

I'm sorry, some know of God. Some simply know of God. Those who say they have faith but don't have works are like clouds without water.

58:16

They boast of much rain to come, but fail to nourish the ground. They're clouds without water.

58:26

Go ahead, say God is one. We can all have the right hymns, we can have the right creeds, we can have the right confessions and orthodox

58:33

Christian practices, but are we a church that actually loves other people with the gospel of Christ with deeds and cares and helps with performing the one another's, as I said before?

58:49

James might even be trying to contrast that the man with a faith containing no works doesn't even shudder or fear

58:56

God in reverence or holy terror, but the demons do. The unbelief of the sinner causes them to mock at God, but even demons recognize who

59:06

God is and the judgment to come, and they understand and they shudder. They are frightened. Often the unbelieving man doesn't even do that.

59:15

So I'm wrapping up here, church. This type of man sits in the pews of churches all across the world.

59:25

The man without works who says he simply has faith.

59:32

This type of man says he will pray for others, but never does. He throws barely anything from his income to God's church or God's people, but spends frivolously or builds up his storehouses.

59:45

He passes on all opportunities to help his fellow churchmen, saying the pastor gets paid to do that, not me.

59:53

He brings his family to church, maybe, as it may help his business, and he knows the good old boys do the same thing in their tradition.

01:00:04

He may even read a one -verse daily devotional, checking it off the list to soothe his conscience.

01:00:10

He sits down, he puts the devotional away, and he says, I'm not going to hell. I'm not going to hell.

01:00:16

I'm fine. His faith is dead. His faith is dead.

01:00:23

True faith, though, is born out of love. It's born out of the love that Christ gives us in that death, burial, and resurrection.

01:00:31

Someone who believes in Christ is obedient to Christ. The full -orbed view of salvation is not simply justification.

01:00:40

It's not simply how we are saved. It's also sanctification and glorification. And in those processes, the making of the new creation is carried out.

01:00:51

It's carried out by God conforming us to the image of Christ and having us walk in the good deeds that He's prepared.

01:00:59

That's right, God's intent is to use good works to mature you and complete you unto the day of Christ.

01:01:07

He will use good works in your life until the day you die. True faith loves

01:01:13

God, loves neighbor. But you know what? Real love acts. Am I right?

01:01:19

Husbands know that. Real love is more than just saying, I love you, sweetie. Loving is doing.

01:01:25

But also, they want to hear more of that, so keep saying things to them. That's nice. Love acts.

01:01:33

James says... A bunch of husbands just said I love you. I just heard that. James says,

01:01:42

I will show you my faith by my works. Show me the heart that is pumping without the flow of blood.

01:01:49

Show me a car that works without turning on the engine and making it go. And for those here or who may watch online who don't have true faith, please don't listen to this and think the key is to do more good deeds.

01:02:02

I've just got to look more like them. Don't think that today. That is folly. It won't help you.

01:02:09

All one can do who understands they don't have true faith today, all they can do is cry out to God that He would save them.

01:02:18

To give you a faith that saves, a faith that justifies. A true faith that will result in genuine deeds of the

01:02:26

Christian man or woman. Because in the end, works that are done on the outside of faith are no good works at all.

01:02:36

In fact, Romans 8 makes that clear. Romans 8 says, apart from faith, no one can please

01:02:43

God. That means any works even done that look righteous, anything that's done outside of Christ, it says if they're not done in faith,

01:02:53

God isn't pleased by them. God is only pleased by works that are done in faith.

01:02:59

Works that are acceptable in His sight are the ones that He's prepared beforehand that the saints would walk in.

01:03:05

So take the test. Take the test that James puts here. Do you have a dead faith that simply speaks?

01:03:14

Or do you have a living faith that speaks and acts? Shows that you are saved. But be encouraged, church.

01:03:22

This means when I talked about the Paul and James thing, this means that the inerrant and infallible

01:03:28

Word of God has no contradiction. Amen? There is no contradiction in the Word of God. As much as people have said that in the past.

01:03:37

God justifies the ungodly. Paul and James are in complete harmony. Romans and Galatians aren't against James' letter.

01:03:46

He justifies the ungodly. It is unfathomable. And He also prepares the good works beforehand that we would walk in.

01:03:54

He does both. I save you, and now I give you good works to do. I do both, the Lord says.

01:03:59

All glory to God. Surely our God saves us, He changes us, and He will cause us to run the race and finish it.

01:04:10

So for those who didn't work, and God saved you, get to work.

01:04:16

You didn't work? Good. Now get to work, because God has saved you. And for those trying to work to get

01:04:22

God to save you, stop your efforts and beg our Lord for pardon. Let's pray. Christ, we praise

01:04:31

Your name. We thank You, Lord, for Your most holy sacrifice, that in Your great love in which

01:04:40

You loved us, You laid down Your life for sinners, for people undeserving. We thank

01:04:47

You, God, that You didn't just leave us to lawlessness after we were saved, but You lead us to the cross, and You lead us with the law that You've put upon our hearts.

01:05:00

We are people who now get to look, who get to look like Christ in His deeds and actions, and not just simply in word.

01:05:08

So Lord, please continue to help the saints here to live up to the good word, to perform the deeds,

01:05:19

Lord, that You've prepared beforehand by Your grace, truly by Your grace. Help us to do that,

01:05:24

Lord. And for those, Lord, here or online watching, Lord, who really truly, like us, have nothing to offer, let them recognize they have nothing to offer

01:05:35

You. Let them come with the empty hand and give them faith, Lord, a believing and saving faith.

01:05:42

Thank You, Lord, for Your text, for Your holy word. Please be with us in Christ's name.