There are 3 kinds of faith, according to several commentators. ( some said there are 5 ??)
1. Natural faith.... everybody has this...
it’s when you switch on a light and have faith that it will come on.
2. Justifying faith.....Paul calls this “saving faith”
3. Serving faith....e.g. David, He did not hesitate, he trusted God to do the work for him, as with Goliath
4. Abraham, as we read further in the chapter, but also in Genesis, God told Abraham to leave where he was and go where God told him to go, Abraham trusted God and did this.
James is talking about this......
A few Sundays ago, a friend touched on the faith James is here talking about....She was talking about Abraham....Abraham, did “faith with works” as he stepped out and left where he lived in obedience to God, even though he did not know where to go. To step out, when the H.S asks you to do something, totally unexpected, is the kind of faith with works.
Works here is not doing stuff for other people, as unbelievers do that too, that is the natural faith....Abraham helped rescue Lot, as any one would have, it does not get a mention as to the “works” he did....only the fact that he was “obedient” so, as obedience is very important it is what we need to be....
“works” here means being obedient to God. Or now, for us, the Holy Spirit's prompting.
Faith without works is dead.
This word “dead” here means “useless” some translations actually say that.
Dead in the Bible does not mean what we today call dead...
Even in the same chapter of Ephesians, Paul starts of with “You were dead in your sins.....( they were not really dead)
The N.I.V. calls this word “dead” as useless....some other translations call it “worthless” also “barren”( what does yours say?)
Again, as in other languages there are more than one word for “dead” one word is “argy” and the other is “NEKRA” which means no work, used by James here.
letting God use you, by obeying when the Holy Spirit prompts you to do something, or where to go....that is “works” and if Christians don't do that, “that” is what James says is a “dead faith....”
You are still saved,
but doing good works can be done by any one.....
even unbelievers do good works, not saying we shouldn't, but we do them anyway...
but that is not what James here is talking about!
In verses 15 and 16 he says: “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,”
yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?
Verse 17.... “even so...” “you saying this to your brother or sister and it does nothing for them”
even so if you do not listen to the Holy Spirit's prompting,,,which is “works” and you don't do it.....
“faith without works is dead” What use is that? Get it? EVEN SO....
( some versions say...”In the same way..”) in the same way you say that to your brother or sister,
in the same way......
not listening to the prompting.....what use is that?
Remember, he is talking to believers who did all those things he mentions in the first chapter...
When Paul writes that “in Christ”we are dead to sin,(Gal2 v 2) he does not mean we have no ability to sin,
what he means is that the Christian is separated from sin. We are no longer ruled by sin....we are no longer in bondage to sin,,,,but we do still sin...as we all know!
Blessings...Yaddy
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