A DEAD END

"Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." - James 2:17

The relationship between faith and works is confusing to many people.  To make things worse, heretical teachers and cults have polluted our culture with theological error, making this subject misunderstood.

It is wrong to state that Christians do not believe in works.  We strongly believe in good works, however, we need to be careful about how we understand the nature of good works.  We do not do good works in order to get saved.  Neither do we do good works to remain saved.   We do good works because we are saved. 

Many cults and heretical teachers misinterpret James 2:17.  In his epistle, James wrote, "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone."  According to these false teachers, our good works is, at least in part, required for our salvation.  They teach that there are things we must do to be acceptable to God.  They proclaim that salvation is a cooperative work between God & man, with God providing salvation & man providing sufficient good works.

We need to refute such heretical teaching.  In Ephesians 2:8-9, the Bible says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and THAT NOT OF YOURSELVES: it is the gift of God: NOT OF WORKS, lest any man should boast." (Emphasis added).  Salvation is of the Lord.  He is the author of our faith ... and we are not co-authors with Him.  Salvation is a gift from Him.   The Father planned our salvation, the Son purchased our salvation and the Spirit provided our salvation.  Jonathan Edwards once said, "You contribute nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it necessary.”

So if our good works is not part of our salvation, what is the role between faith and good works?  We need to understand that God saves us by His grace.  Grace is God's unmerited favor.  If salvation is based, even in a small part, upon our works, then salvation is merited.  Here's the truth:  we don't possess any goodness, yet alone enough to merit God's favor.  Salvation is provided by grace alone.  This grace is applied through faith in Him.  We are saved by grace through faith.

Genuine saving grace produces good works.  Notice how I phrased that.  Our good works is not mixed with God's grace to produce salvation; God's grace brings salvation that produces good works.  Saving grace produces a changed heart that is capable of honoring God with good works.  Saving grace changes our attitude.  When we are genuinely saved, we have an attitude of gratitude.  We seek to honor God out of gratitude for what He has done for us.

In Philippians 2:12, the Apostle Paul wrote, "Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling."  Some argue that this verse teaches that our works produce salvation.  Keep in mind, Paul is writing to those who are already saved.  In this verse he is stating that in inward salvation will produce an outward work.   He didn't teach them to work in their salvation, but work out their salvation.  A genuine salvation is an internal work that God produces.  Such a salvation should provide an outward manifestation that honors God & is obvious to the world. 

A "faith" that never manifests spiritual fruit is a counterfeit.  James wrote that such faith is dead.  A living faith produces living works.  A dead faith produces no works.  Think of it this way.  A dead man never works.  The absence of movement is a natural response of a dead man.  However, if a man is alive, there is activity.  A living man has a diaphragm that moves up and down as he breathes.  When he is awake, the living man moves and is active.  A dead man does not move.  His diaphragm is motionless.  He will never be active.  When a man is spiritually dead, there is no spiritual fruit.  His life is void of spiritual life.  However, when saving faith resides in a man, it is obvious.  His faith is vibrant and visible. 

Faith without works is a dead faith.  A genuine faith in the living Christ is a living faith, an active faith.

A dead faith is a false faith.  It is deceitful faith.  It is a fatal faith.  If your religion has not changed you, you need to change your religion.  A genuine faith in Christ changes people.  A man who gets saved becomes alive because the living Christ enters his life. 

Anything less is a dead end.