Sunday, August 09, 2015
What is Faith Without Works?
What is faith without Works?
Faith without works is like a bird without wings; though she may hop with her companions on earth, yet she will never fly with them to heaven. ~ Francis Beaumont
Scripture: What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 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? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. James 2:14-26New International Version (NIV)
Growing up in the church and being a student of the word, I have come across this passage of scripture on several different occasions. Many Christians have heard a multitude of explanations of what it's actual meaning is. Before I dive in and make my point, please indulge me a moment as a share a bit of doctrine. The bible is divided up into various sections. The two main parts are the old and new testaments. And then those two sections are further broken down into sections. In the old testament they are:;The Pentateuch - Genesis to Deuteronomy History - Joshua to Esther, Poetry and Wisdom - Job to Song of Solomon and the Prophets - Isaiah to Malachi. In the new testament we have; History -Matthew to Acts, Letters - Romans to Jude and Apocalypse – Revelation.
The book of James comes from the section entitled letters. The letters were a group of books that were actually instructions given during the early formation of the Christian churches that these newly forming churches should follow. Now the book of James was considered a book of Wisdom. And as a matter of fact, the section that this passage comes from has often been subtitled as “Wisdom to be sought by God.” Now that we have that out of the way, let me return to my previously scheduled message.
Under the New Testament doctrine, the laws that had been set before the people to obtain grace and favor in the Old Testament had been eliminated and we were justified and saved by grace through the Blood of Christ Jesus. Unfortunately, some people think that by taking away the law, there were certain obligations to , God that we do not have to follow. WRONG! There are still expectations from Christian or in the body of Christ that have to be met. Yes, we believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior and that he died so that we could live. Yes, we believe there is nothing that we have to due to earn favor, grace and mercy.
However, No matter how much faith we have, if it is not put into action to help not only ourselves but also to help others than it does us no good. We must stop living in world that only looks out for itself. We must stop believing that the ills of the world are not our problem. We must stop thinking that it is every man or woman for him/herself. We must start to make a difference in the lives of others by gestures both big and small!
A few days ago I posted a plea for help for a young man who needed help to get back into college. This young man had to leave college two years ago not because of bad grades or bad behavior or the other sad reasons our children have for leaving college. He left because he had to come home and get a full time job to take care of his mother who had a stroke and his siblings. And now that his mother is feeling better, he is simply trying to get back to the goals he had set in his own life. I have shared his story with over a hundred thousand people who are moved by it, but apparently not moved enough.
His story has been shared fifty-eight times but only four people have contributed. He doesn't need a lot, just more than I have. (And no, this is not my child or even a family member). Even if the one hundred thousand people on Facebook who this story has been shared with had given him one dollar, his goal would have been met tenfold. Even if the four thousand nine hundred and ninety-two people who are my friends gave a dollar, we would have more than doubled his need. Even if the fifty-eight people who shared his message had given twenty dollars, he would be halfway there by now.
Please Help.
Be blessed and most of all, be a blessing!
To find out more about this young man's story or to help, simply click on the go fund me link below.
http://www.delmarvanow.com/story/sports/basketball/2015/07/16/trevante-morris-college-basketball/30272377/
