As a follow up to last week’s post, this week’s post teaches the importance of “works” in faith.
The Holy Spirit through Apostle James, tells us that faith without works is dead (Jas. 2:17). He poses a question, asking what the point of faith is without deeds (vs. 14). There is a dangerous circular with poor doctrinal basis that is going round. A lot of believers are being deceived into thinking that faith alone is enough. But this is the thing; your faith is between you and God. What others see, what unbelievers see are your deeds.
“Your faith is between you and God. What others see, what unbelievers see are your deeds.”
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You cannot carry the identity of a believer and live, talk or act as the unbelievers. What you do must be consistent with what you profess.
“What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.”
James 2:14, 17 NLT
Many of us confess that we love the Lord but fail to keep His commandments (Jn. 14:15). We say we love Him and still find it hard to extend that love to others around us. Apostle James tells us to show our faith by our deeds (Jas. 2:18). There is no such thing as “I’m into faith” or “I’m into deeds”. They are two peas in a pod. That is, faith and works must go hand in hand. .
Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
Jas. 2:18
To show you that deeds and faith go hand in hand, Jesus left us with a commandment. When He was ascending, He told us how men would know that we belong to Him; by the love we have for one another –the love we show to one another. That is a deed…born by faith. (Jn. 13:35)
Furthermore, we bring our faith into completion by the actions we take. Abraham took action on his faith and the scripture tells us that his faith was made complete. (Jas. 2: 21-22)
Imagine a person who says one thing but does another. That’s what we look like when our deeds do not reflect our faith.
Our faith in Jesus must produce fruits that tell the world that we believe in and belong to Him. If we believe in Jesus then our principles must reflect His. Jesus wants us to lay hands on the sick, cast out demons, bring hope to the world through His word, show kindness to others and not grow weary of doing good (Matt. 10:8; Acts 1:8; Gal. 6:9). These are things He has done as well. These are His principles. And if we say we believe in Him, we must be found doing those things that attest to that fact.
“Works is the spirit of faith because just the body is dead without the spirit, faith is dead without works. “
James 2:26 paraphrased
You can add works to your faith by doing those things that are consistent with the faith. Devoting more time to personal bible study and prayer is a good start. Helping the needy, forgiving those who have wronged you, acts of kindness, giving and intercession are all deeds that make our faith come alive.
Doing what the word says is another way to put deeds on our faith. Many people go to church and hear the word of God and nod and agree with what the pastor says. But when it comes to the “doing”, they refrain from it or give excuses. James 1: 23- 24 tells us that such people who only hear but refuse to do what the word says are like those who look at themselves in a mirror but soon after leaving, forget what they look like.
In essence, faith is a lifestyle. It is not just in words but in action as well. What really makes our confession of faith come alive is when we act upon it. Works make our faith more than a mere confession.
Prayer: May we receive the wisdom we need to put our faith to action in Jesus name.
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