Your Foundation in Christ (Victory Series Book #3): Live By the Power of the Spirit (5 page)

James 2:14–25

Key Point

People don’t always live according to what they profess to believe, but they do live according to what they truly believe.

Key Verse

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.

James 2:18

I
n most English translations of the New Testament, the words “faith,” “trust,” and “believe” are translated from the same root word in the original Greek. However, the common usage of each of these words in the English language can have different connotations. Saying “I believe in that” doesn’t carry the same weight as saying “I trust in that.” Giving mental assent to something is not the same as a demonstrated reliance on it. To “believe in Jesus” and to “trust in Jesus” have the same meaning in Scripture. Many people say they “believe” in the historical Jesus but have
never trusted in Him as the only means of salvation. That is the point James is making when he writes, “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder” (2:19). Although demons acknowledge God, they have demonstrated no trust in Him.

“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?” (verse 14). James is not challenging the apostle Paul’s teaching that we are justified by faith and by faith alone; he is correcting the faulty notion that people can profess to believe in something when there is no evidence in their lives to verify it. To those whose lives bear no resemblance to their professed beliefs, James says, “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds” (verse 18). Remember, people don’t always live according to what they profess, but they do live according to what they believe in their hearts.

Everything you do is an expression of what you have chosen to believe. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled [or satisfied]” (Matthew 5:6). Do you believe what Jesus said? If you believed it, what would you be doing? You would be hungering and thirsting after righteousness!

James illustrates the truth that faith in God results in good works by calling our attention to Abraham, who is often referred to as the father of our faith (see James 2:23–24). Paul uses Abraham as the prime example of justification by faith (see Romans 4:3; Galatians 3:6). James asks, “Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?” (2:21). It seems like Paul and James contradict each other until you continue with James’s argument: “You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did” (verse 22). In other words, Abraham trusted God because of his willingness to sacrifice his only son, which never happened because God provided a scapegoat. So Abraham’s justification came through faith, and his “work” revealed what he believed.

James does not say good works are essential for faith or for salvation. He teaches that our works are the evidence of our faith (see 2:17). According to James, faith can only be demonstrated by what we do—actions speak louder than words. Suppose you were jailed and put on trial for having professed to be a Christian. Other than your words, would there be enough
evidence to convict you? Your life is a testimony to what you believe. Jesus said, “By their fruit you will recognize them” (Matthew 7:16).

What is the difference between believing in something and trusting in it? How does that relate to James’s statement that even the demons believe in God?

In James 2:20, we read, “Faith without deeds is useless.” According to James, what is the connection between faith and works?

How does James say Abraham demonstrated his faith in God? How was his faith “made complete”?

In what ways is your profession of faith different from what you truly believe?

How important is it to you that your life is a mirror of what you believe about God and yourself? Explain.

Faith without works is dead, and works without faith are dead also. For if we have sound doctrine but fail in living, the doctrine is of no use to us. Likewise, if we take pains with life but are careless about doctrine, that will not be any good to us either. It is therefore necessary to shore up the spiritual edifice in both directions.

John Chrysostom (AD 347–407)

Galatians 3:10–14

Key Point

By the grace of God we live by faith according to what He says is true in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Key Verse

Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.”

Galatians 3:11

L
egalists are those who attempt to satisfy the just demands of God by their own works. They have either refused God’s offer of grace or have never heard it, so they have never had the opportunity to understand and believe the gospel. As a result they feel condemned, because nobody has perfectly kept the law (see James 2:10; Galatians 3:11).

Paul says, “The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, ‘The person who does these things will live by them’” (Galatians 3:12). Our understanding of law and grace affects how we live. If we choose to live
under the law, we will seek to know the commandments of God as the Pharisees did and try our best to live accordingly. This results in a community enforcing a lot of rules and regulations. History has shown that traditions are added to the list of dos and don’ts in order to keep us from breaking the law. Trying to keep the law in our own strength only results in defeat, frustration, and burnout. The whole community feels condemned by their inability to keep the law.

The good news is that “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (verse 13). The means by which we live would radically change if we chose to receive this free gift of God. Living under the grace of God is a life concept rather than a law concept. “He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit” (verse 14). Under the grace of God, we receive new life that enables us to live in a whole different way. Under the New Covenant, we live by faith according to what God says is true in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Under the law, we try to change people’s behavior. Under the grace of God, we are new creations in Christ and are transformed by the renewing of our minds (see Romans 12:2). The focus shifts when we become new believers in Christ. Under the grace of God, we seek to change how we think and what we believe because that is what determines what we do. This is why repentance is so important for the new believer. Repentance literally means “a change of mind.” The grace of God is a dynamic enablement. We no longer try to live the Christian life in our own strength. We have received the promise of the Holy Spirit, and we live by His strength.

Trying to change our behavior without changing who we are and what we believe will result in two different outcomes. We will either be driven to try to measure up to external standards but fail, or we will rebel against them. Regarding the former, our external conformity to the law never matches our inner turmoil. Jesus said to the teachers of the Law, “On the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness” (Matthew 23:28). Regarding the latter, the rejection of external standards leads to lawlessness and social chaos. A rule without a relationship leads to rebellion.

What happens in a community when people attempt to live under the law instead of grace? What happens to the people?

What changes in our lives when we receive the gift of God’s grace? How does it affect our attitude and our actions?

Why is repentance important for a believer in Christ?

How has legalism had a negative effect on you?

If you wanted to improve your behavior, how would you go about doing so?

It would not be right that the grace of the Spirit should come to one who was graceless or full of offense. We are blessed first by the taking away of the curse [of the law]. Then, justified by faith, we receive the grace of the Holy Spirit. So the cross has dissolved the curse, faith has brought righteousness, and by God’s own righteousness the grace of the Spirit has been given.

John Chrysostom (AD 347–407)

J
oshua was about to cross the Jordan River and lead God’s people into the Promised Land. Four times in the same chapter God told Joshua to be strong and courageous (see Joshua 1:6, 7, 9, 18).

Shortly after Pentecost, the Early Church was experiencing some major opposition from the religious establishment, which prompted them to pray. “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly” (Acts 4:31). Boldness is the mark of a Spirit-filled believer. “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7
NASB
).

Telling someone to be strong and courageous in this fallen world is a serious challenge, because fear is the number one mental health problem in the world. “Fear not” is the most-repeated command in Scripture, but telling someone to not be afraid only adds guilt to their fear. Fear of anything other than God is mutually exclusive with faith in God. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of God is the one fear that can expel all other fears.

Daily Readings

Isaiah 8:12–14

Key Point

God’s omnipotence and omnipresence make Him the ultimate fear object, which dispels all other fear objects.

Key Verse

It is the L
ORD
of hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, and He shall be your dread. Then He shall become a sanctuary.

Isaiah 8:13–14
NASB

F
ear is the most basic instinct of every living creature. An animal without fear will soon become some predator’s dinner. Fear is the natural response when our physical and psychological safety is being threatened. Rational fears are necessary for our survival. Irrational fears or phobias are based on false perceptions or lies. Anxiety is like fear without an adequate cause. We are anxious because we don’t know, whereas fear has an object. In fact, we categorize fears by their objects. Acrophobia is
a fear of high places. Claustrophobia is a fear of enclosed places. Xenophobia is the fear of strangers.

In order for a fear object to be legitimate, it must be perceived as imminent (present) and potent (powerful). Poisonous snakes might be a legitimate fear object for you, but you are probably experiencing no fear of snakes as you read this, because there are none present. If one suddenly appeared in your room, you would be immediately overcome with fear, because it would pose an imminent and potent danger. However, if the poisonous snake were dead (imminent, but not potent), you wouldn’t have to fear it. A fear object is no longer legitimate if it loses just one of its attributes.

God is the ultimate fear object, because He is omnipresent and omnipotent. “The L
ORD
Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread” (Isaiah 8:13). Normally a fear object is something or someone from which we want to run and hide, but not so with God, for He becomes our sanctuary when we fear Him. We revere God because we have the highest respect for His attributes, but the fear of God goes deeper. God has the power to judge. “If You, L
ORD
, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared” (Psalm 130:3–4
NKJV
).

Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would “delight in the fear of the L
ORD
” (11:3). We should, too, because Jesus took our punishment on Himself. Consequently, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment” (1 John 4:18). Does that mean we no longer fear God? No, because “the fear of the L
ORD
is pure, enduring forever” (Psalm 19:9) and “the fear of the L
ORD
is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10). The wise person fears God, because in fearing God, he or she will have no cause to fear anything else. God is the only fear object that eliminates all other fear objects, because nothing and no one else can be elevated above Him.

We maintain a deep reverence for God because of who He is and because we are accountable to Him. “So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others” (2 Corinthians
5:9–11). Fear is a powerful motivator, and knowing that we are accountable before God should motivate us to do everything pleasing to Him.

What is the difference between rational fears and phobias? Why is fear a natural instinct?

What characteristics make something a legitimate object of fear? What happens if either of those attributes is removed?

Why is God an ultimate fear object? Why should we revere Him?

How has the fear of something other than the fear of God prevented you from having faith in God? Which one is controlling your life?

How has the fear of the Lord motivated you to serve Him?

There is a twofold species of fear. The first kind is accompanied with reverence. This is the type of fear that citizens show toward good rulers and that we show toward God. Right-minded children show this fear toward their fathers. . . . The other kind of fear is accompanied with hatred. This is the type of fear that slaves feel toward harsh masters and that the Hebrews felt. For they made God a Master, not a Father.

Clement of Alexandria (AD 150–215)