Please consider if your faith is only a belief or if it translates into action. Introduce James 2:14-24 as a passage that directly addresses this.
Scripture Reading:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless[a]? 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”[b] and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.
I. The Illusion of Empty Faith:
- What doth it profit? – “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?”
- Example of the Brother in Need: – “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?” Your actions here illustrates your faith.
II. The Proof of Faith:
- Faith and Actions as Partners: – “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” This is the intertwining of belief with action, akin to a tree and its fruit.
- Abraham’s Example: – “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.”
III. Justification by Works:
- Misconceptions Addressed: – “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone,” complements Paul’s teachings, focusing on works as evidence of faith.
- Rahab’s Faith: – “And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?” Show how her faith was active.
IV. The Challenge to Us:
- Self-Examination: – “But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”
- Action Plan: – This is why we encourage acts of service or charity on the final Eundays to work in service of our Lord.
Conclusion:
- Call to Action: – “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” Let your faith be seen through their works.
Closing Prayer:
- Pray for insight into genuine faith, courage to act on it, and grace to see deeds as extensions of belief, echoing the essence of James’ teaching.
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