James writes, “if someone says, “I have faith in Christ and yet their life does not show any evidence of the works of Christ.” James then writes in verse 14: What good is that faith?
Anyone can say I have faith in Christ but if there is no evidence of Christ working in you (the love of Christ, the grace of Christ, the patience of Christ, the hope of Christ, the peace of Christ) then James tells us that it is fair to ask the question: is that faith you profess actually faith that leads to salvation?
Now it is important to understand what James’ purpose is when it writes about faith. He is not making a doctrinal statement about how one is saved. This is not a passage about how one comes to place their faith in Christ. He is writing to Jewish Christians who have professed faith in Christ.
His purpose is to remind them and even challenge them that genuine faith will produce a life that reflects Christ – a life that is living out the works of Christ.
When the Holy Spirit is at work in us producing His fruit through us we are are going to be a demonstration of the character of Christ and a demonstrate of the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness. Etc…). We are going to love people in a way that God loves people.
And so if someone professes a faith in Christ and yet does not demonstrate a life of faith that is made known through the works of the Spirit, then it is fair for James to ask the question: is that a faith that leads to salvation.
There may be a challenge in these words in which someone might ask the question: Am I really saved? But I don’t think that is the challenge James is making. He is writing to Christians and challenging them to live in a manner that reflects their faith.
Now when James asks the question: is that a faith that saves–he essentially is saying there are two types of faith: a genuine faith that leads to salvation and false faith that does not?
And so before we are too quick to move past verse 14 and this question from James. I want to answer the question: what is saving faith or what is genuine faith?
Well, the good news is that it is not complicated to discern between a genuine and false faith. Scripture clearly defines a genuine faith that leads to salvation.
Ephesians 2:8-9 Paul writes these words, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Paul says that eternal salvation is not something that we earn, it is not something that we work for. But salvation is offered to us as gift from God. And so when we talk about genuine faith we are not talking about our effort or striving or laboring. The question is not about: am I doing enough? Am I good enough?
In Ephesians 2, Paul is defining a salvation that is centered around a gift that God invites us to receive. And it is a gift that he offers because of the hopeless state that we were all born into.
Romans 3:23 tells us we have all sinned. And Romans 6:23 tells us that, “the wages of sin is death…” And so if we remain in sin when we die, we will spend eternity apart from God in a real place called hell.
But Romans 6:23 goes on to says that God has offered us a gift so that we do not have to die. ‘But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
What is this gift? This gift is described in Romans 5:8 that says while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”
The gift of Christ is that he took the punishment for our sins on the cross, so that we wouldn’t have to spend eternal in hell. He died in our place.
And so we come back to Ephesians 2:8-9 and Paul is reminding his readers where their salvation came from. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
It was through His grace that he sent his son to die for us. Grace is getting what we do not deserve. But here is the thing that is too often missed — this gift of grace, this gift of salvation must be received. This is why some people will go to heaven and some people will go to hell. Not everyone will choose to receive God’s free gift.
When we receive God’s gift of salvation we receive it by placing our faith in Jesus Christ.
And this faith recognizes that I am a sinner in need of a savior and that apart from Christ (and his death and resurrection) my sins condemn me to hell, apart from Christ (and his death and resurrection) my sins cannot be forgiven. A part from Christ, I will remain spiritually dead.
And so when we talk about genuine faith we are talking about someone who comes before God in humility and repentance and says, “God, I am a sinner. Would you forgive me of my sins. I want turn my life over to Jesus and trust him as my Lord and Savior—for I know that he offers forgiveness and that he and he alone can give me salvation.”
That is the heart of genuine faith. You are trusting in Jesus for your salvation.
There are people who have head knowledge of Christ. There are people who have the facts of salvation. But they have never by faith surrendered their life to Christ as the only one who can forgive their sins and give them salvation.
Instead of a salvation by grace that is received through faith, they have a salvation by grace that is received through good works. Or a salvation by grace that is received because they grew up in a Christian family or because they were baptized as a child or because they also believe in the existence of God. That is a false faith—it is a faith in which you are trusting in your own effort or identity.
One of the more sobering passages in Scripture comes from Matthew 7 where Jesus talks about false disciples. He says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”
The sobering part of this passage is that Jesus says there are people who believe that they are Christians when in fact they are not. These are people who would have called Jesus their Lord. These are people who would have been involved in the activities of Christianity.
But they were not trusting in Christ alone for their salvation. They were trusting in their own efforts and works. That was the case that they were making, that was their defense in why they should enter the kingdom of heaven: did we not do thing in your name? Did we not attempt to live a moral and good life? Did we not attend church regularly, pray to you and serve you?
And Jesus says: I never knew you as my own. You were never a child of God. You never surrendered your life to me as Lord and Savior—you were trusting in yourself. You were not trusting in me.
John 1:12-13 tells us how we become a child of God. John writes, “to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— (verse 13 continues) children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. (this is a salvation give to you by the grace of God through faith)
If you want to know if someone has a genuine faith, ask them where their hope is for their salvation.
If they start talking about their church background, their church experiences and their desire to live for God, they may have a faith that is rooted in their own works and therefore a false faith.
The response of genuine faith is this: I know I deserve death because of my sins but Jesus paid for the penalty for my sins and I am trusting in Him for my salvation, I have placed my faith in him as the only only one who can forgive my sins and give me salvation.
That is the testimony of genuine faith.
Now while our salvation does not come by works. Our salvation by faith leads us into works. After Paul tells us that we are saved by grace through faith listen to what he writes in verse Ephesians 2:10, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
When we place our faith in Christ, we get to enter into the work of Christ. These are not works that are earning salvation, these are the works that are a reflection of our salvation.
And so we come back to James. And in the first two chapters, James writes about the works of a Christian, the works of genuine faith. And he gives some examples of the works of God. At the end of chapter 1 he talks about Christians caring for those that God the Father cares for: the widows and the orphans, the neglected and rejected. In the beginning of chapter 2 he talks about how a Christian does not show favoritism but demonstrates to all the love and grace of Christ.
And then he says in James 2:14, “if you say you have faith but it is not demonstrated outwardly through the work of Christ” then your life is not reflecting the genuine faith of a believer in Jesus Christ.
And he gives in illustration in verses 15-17 about meeting the needs of someone in need.
If you tell someone in need of clothes, in need of food – “stay warm and I hope you really eat well today” and don’t actually do anything about their need. James is saying “What good are your words?”
If that is your desire for them and you know that they can’t meet their own needs and you don’t do anything about their needs, then your desire is hollow and empty. Your actions aren’t reflecting your desires.
And so making the connection between his illustration and the subject of faith James writes in verse 17, “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
And so just like a desire for someone to be well fed (if it is not accompanied by action) is a hollow or dead desire, faith in Christ, if it does reveal the transforming work of Christ, is a hollow or dead faith.
Now this idea of “dead” doesn’t mean non-existent, it means inactive.
I believe that James is writing to Christians who have a saving faith in Christ and he is challenging them that their faith should be an active faith. Their faith should be evident in their outward lives. Their faith should reflect the character of Christ, the compassion of Christ. Their faith should reflect the mission of Christ.
If you have placed your faith in Christ but wonder why you are not seeing more of the fruit of that faith it could be because there is a lack of obedience to Christ in your life. You are tipping your hat to the truth of Christ but you are not living in it. You affirm his truth by saying “that is what I believe” but then you turn around live a life a that does not reflect your confession of believe of faith.
This is why James challenges us in James 1:22 to be doers of the word of God not hearers only. When we only hear and not obey, James says we are deceiving ourselves that we are living a maturing, fruitful life when in fact we are not.
This a passage that should lead to a place of personal examination before God: Am I walking by faith in a manner that Christ is made evident in my life? Am I living a life by faith that compels others to know Christ?