Sunday Study James 2:

I've read several commentaries on tomorrow's lesson and came to the conclusion that one thing needs to be set straight before we come together tomorrow morning. That is our works. Just let me say from the outset (you've heard me say it many times), I believe without question our works do NOT determine our salvation or the ability to be saved. All that matters is WE BELIEVE that Jesus is God's Son, sent to die for our sins, (Yep, I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings but we have, do, and will sin.) was resurrected, and I will spend eternity with Him because of what HE did.







There are those in the religious/academic world who are at odds with James and his take on works. Some would say that this idea is contradictory to Paul's teachings on works. (I find it rather interesting that James wrote his book before any of the others in the New Testament. James was a leader in the Church at Jerusalem, Paul went there to study. I think we can safely say Paul knew what James stood for.) If we look at a few scriptures, Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, Matthew 7:22-23, John 14:6, and so on we will find Paul and James with Jesus saying we sin, we need to repent, and we need to recognize that Christ went to the cross for our sins so that we could have eternal life. That's it. (I wish I could make that period big enough to make it stand out.)







James is not saying our works give us salvation. He is saying once saved our works are the proof of a life that has been totally changed. Jesus said the same thing in Matther 7:20 "Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions." Anyone can say Jesus is God's Son but the proof is the change we see in our behavior. Our good deeds/works, words, and actions reflect what we really believe.







At the end of this section of scripture James says "faith without works is dead". I don't think James was saying there was a faith that was even alive. He's saying you can tell when someone is just saying the words. The lack of good works shows no faith existed in the first place.



Consider this:

"When we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love." Galatians 5:6

See you in the morning.