Not Saved by Works!

Justification by Faith Alone and James 2

Does James chapter 2 refute justification by faith alone? The purpose of this video is to address the issue of justification by faith alone, and I'm not going to do a huge survey of all the verses and all of the argumentation that usually goes along in discussions like these.

Rather, I want to focus in on the portion of scripture that is usually touted by Roman Catholics who suggest that James chapter 2 is a kind of knockout punch to the Reformed doctrine of justification by faith alone.

I don't think that it is. We will often hear by Roman Catholics something to this effect, The Bible does not teach that we are justified by faith alone. Instead, the only place in scripture where the words faith alone appear is in James 2 24, and it reads the following,.

You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Many Catholics will also be quick to point out that Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformer, believed that the book of James disagreed with his precious doctrine of justification by faith alone, and so he rejected the book of James.

However, regardless of what Martin Luther believed about the book of James, this is irrelevant. The real point is whether the Bible itself teaches the doctrine, and I'm quite confident that it does. So, how do we deal with James chapter 2 and what appears to be a quite explicit statement that one is justified by works and not by faith alone?

Well, I think context is key, and we need to recognize that the biblical word justified or justification is used in multiple places throughout scripture, and they are not always used in the same sense all the time.

So whenever the word is used, we need to allow the context of those passages to define how that term is being understood. Now, that's why it's not enough to merely read out loud James 2 24 and say, see, James is not teaching justification by faith alone.

Let us look at the context of James 2, and we'll begin back in verse 14. And here's what it says. What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, go in peace and be warmed and filled without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?

So also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, I have works. Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe God is one.

You do well. Even the demons believe and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar?

You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works. And the scripture was fulfilled that says Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness, and he was called a friend of God.

You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. That's our key phrase. And in the same way, was not Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?

For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead. Now, the Reformed position wholeheartedly affirms that faith without works is in fact dead. We would not dare deny that since that's what the passage, that's what the text clearly says.

Vertical and Horizontal Justification

However, we need to understand what's going on here. Catholics tend to have a problem with the distinction that Reformed interpreters make between justification as understood horizontally and justification as understood vertically.

Now, vertical justification is the idea that we're justified before God by faith, right, that vertical, and faith alone. Our works are not the basis upon which we're justified before God, right, that vertical.

This vertical justification is what Paul talks about in much of his letters and discussions on this very topic. For instance, Romans chapter 4, verse 5 says,. This clearly refers to the vertical aspect of justification since Paul says, Who justifies the ungodly?

Well, God does. So the vertical element there is clearly seen. However, in James 2, it's clear from the context that justification is being spoken of in that horizontal sense. That is to say, James is speaking of how we are justified before men.

How do we know this? Well, verse 18, This is clearly speaking in terms of men before other men. This makes perfect sense since James really is concerned more about practical issues and focusing on how believers are to live and relate to others.

You see, Paul, on the other hand, has a primary focus on justification in the legal sense. That's to say, he dealt mainly with the question of how one is made right before God. Now, if I can borrow from Martin Luther, the Protestant reformer, you know, keeping his views on the book of James aside, I think at least he got this right when he said, I'm saved by the grace of God through faith, which is itself a gift of God.

Philippians 129. And my works are the evidence of a changed or regenerated heart. They're not the prerequisite for gaining salvation or maintaining salvation. Good works are the fruit of regeneration, not the root of it.

Salvation by Christ's Work, Not Ours

Praise be to God that in saving me, I am saved by works, the work of Christ, not mine. Now, I know more can be said here, and I know there are other counterpoints to be made, but I hope this at least clarifies some things up for folks that are having difficulty understanding the reformed position.

Paul, thank you for listening.