1 00:00:01,560 --> 00:00:03,920 Welcome to the Islands Christian Church podcast. 2 00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:06,600 Subscribe to hear a new episode every week. 3 00:00:06,960 --> 00:00:12,440 Thanks for joining us. All righty, we're going to jump 4 00:00:12,440 --> 00:00:14,320 into our talk now. If you have your Bibles, James, 5 00:00:14,320 --> 00:00:17,720 chapter 2 verses 14 through 26 is where we're going to be. 6 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:20,520 So I like to say something about myself. 7 00:00:20,680 --> 00:00:23,880 I think it's quite honest. I like to say that one of my 8 00:00:23,880 --> 00:00:28,520 biggest problems that I have as a person is I talk a good game. 9 00:00:29,360 --> 00:00:32,159 Anybody want to agree with that? So yes, Steven, you talk a good 10 00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:36,480 game, like one of my biggest easy Claire, OK, like one of my 11 00:00:38,880 --> 00:00:40,200 somebody Claire's looking for a place to live. 12 00:00:40,200 --> 00:00:42,600 No, I'm just kidding. But, you know, here's the thing, 13 00:00:42,800 --> 00:00:46,160 I talk a big game. I, I can, I can do this, right? 14 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:49,480 I just matter of fact, when I was growing up, I always had 15 00:00:49,480 --> 00:00:51,920 friends of mine that were bigger than me, you know what I mean? 16 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:54,640 And so like I would, I would, I would run my mouth with them 17 00:00:54,640 --> 00:00:56,800 because I feel like I was safe, you know, because I could talk a 18 00:00:56,800 --> 00:00:59,240 good game and then I could, I could run and they would take 19 00:00:59,240 --> 00:01:02,880 care of the business. The problem is, is, you know, 20 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:05,400 talk is cheap, right? That's what we say in our 21 00:01:05,400 --> 00:01:08,720 culture, talk is cheap. We even have another saying you 22 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:11,840 can talk the talk, but can you, right? 23 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:16,240 We all know it, right? We just kind of know it on some 24 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:18,280 level. We all live with this tension 25 00:01:18,280 --> 00:01:22,000 inside of us. We say things like my marriage 26 00:01:22,320 --> 00:01:26,840 is very important to me, but then our actions betray that 27 00:01:26,840 --> 00:01:30,000 statement. We say things like I'm going to 28 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:33,120 be a great, I'm going to be a better father for my children. 29 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:36,800 But then we spend more time with our buddies than we do with our 30 00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:42,080 kids, right? So we understand this tension, 31 00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:45,760 this tension of claiming something but never producing 32 00:01:45,960 --> 00:01:49,560 any visible action to support those claims. 33 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:54,560 And if nothing ever materializes from your claims, then it is 34 00:01:54,560 --> 00:01:58,400 right for you and for others around you to question those 35 00:01:58,400 --> 00:02:00,480 claims. In other words, if I tell my 36 00:02:00,480 --> 00:02:03,880 wife Marianne, I'm going to be a better husband, I'm going to 37 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:06,720 start doing this and I'm going to do the dishes more and I'm 38 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:08,680 going to do this more and I'm going to. 39 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:12,640 And then two or three weeks go by and I make 0 movement towards 40 00:02:12,640 --> 00:02:16,320 those claims. It is in her right to question 41 00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:19,600 that, right? It is normal for us to question. 42 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:24,720 Now, in our text this morning, James directly confronts this 43 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:28,840 tension. He doesn't do this this morning 44 00:02:28,840 --> 00:02:32,640 in a way that shames us. He doesn't do this in a way that 45 00:02:32,640 --> 00:02:35,160 tells us to try harder or to be better. 46 00:02:35,360 --> 00:02:37,360 We all know that those are not useful things. 47 00:02:37,360 --> 00:02:39,200 And I know that for a lot of you, that's what you think 48 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:41,080 religion is and what Christianity is. 49 00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:44,360 But Christianity is not try harder and be better, and James 50 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:48,440 is not going to do that today. What James is going to do today 51 00:02:48,440 --> 00:02:53,240 with the text is he's going to encourage you to look inwardly 52 00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:58,800 and ask hard questions about yourself, questions about the 53 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:03,720 claims that you believe and how your actions are aligning with 54 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:06,640 those claims. All right, he just got James is 55 00:03:06,640 --> 00:03:09,280 going to say to us, hey, take a little inventory of your life 56 00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:13,200 and decide if the things you claim you believe, are they 57 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:15,960 aligning with the actions of your life. 58 00:03:16,520 --> 00:03:20,000 Now, last weekend we said that God is the one who plants the 59 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:24,080 gospel in US and we are the ones who care for or tend to our 60 00:03:24,080 --> 00:03:25,480 faith. That's what we said. 61 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:28,520 We tend to our faith and we talked about the ways we tend to 62 00:03:28,520 --> 00:03:32,080 our faith, right? Well, today this is what we're 63 00:03:32,080 --> 00:03:35,000 going to see. We're going to see that when you 64 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:39,600 care for your faith and you tend to your faith, your faith will 65 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:43,320 be visible. Your faith will be visible. 66 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:45,600 So that's the big idea. So if you take notes, if you 67 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:47,320 write things down, that's it right there. 68 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:50,600 A faith that's cared for is visible. 69 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:53,640 A faith that's cared for is visible. 70 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:55,840 You see it and other people see it. 71 00:03:56,560 --> 00:04:00,280 Remember, for James, the question is not, do you believe 72 00:04:00,280 --> 00:04:03,360 in Jesus? No, the question for James is, 73 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:07,520 has the gospel taken root in your life and has it produced 74 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:11,360 any fruit in your living? Has the gospel produced? 75 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:14,040 Has the gospel taken root in your life and has it produced 76 00:04:14,040 --> 00:04:16,959 any fruit in your living? All right, so James chapter 2, 77 00:04:16,959 --> 00:04:19,760 verses 14 through 26, we're just going to read through this. 78 00:04:19,959 --> 00:04:22,240 I know it's a chunk of Scripture, but when you're 79 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:23,960 preaching through a book of the Bible, this is what you have to 80 00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:25,640 do unless you want to take two years to do it. 81 00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:26,880 So this is here we go, you ready? 82 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,520 14 through 26 it says What good is it, my brothers and sisters, 83 00:04:32,800 --> 00:04:35,320 if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? 84 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:40,040 That's a question. What good is it, my brothers and 85 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:43,480 sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds, can 86 00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:47,520 such faith save them? Another question, suppose a 87 00:04:47,520 --> 00:04:50,320 brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 88 00:04:50,720 --> 00:04:54,560 If one of you says to them go in peace, keep warm and well fed, 89 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:57,960 but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 90 00:04:59,080 --> 00:05:03,880 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied 91 00:05:03,880 --> 00:05:08,720 by action, is dead. But someone will say, well, you 92 00:05:08,720 --> 00:05:12,920 have faith and I have deeds. Well, show me your faith without 93 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:15,760 deeds and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 94 00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:19,520 You believe that there is one God good. 95 00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:25,440 Even the demons believe that. And shudder, you foolish person, 96 00:05:26,280 --> 00:05:29,040 do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? 97 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:32,640 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he 98 00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:35,200 did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 99 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:39,720 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, 100 00:05:39,840 --> 00:05:44,600 and his faith was made complete by what he did and the Scripture 101 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:47,080 was fulfilled. That says Abraham believed God 102 00:05:47,080 --> 00:05:50,920 and it was credited to him as righteousness, and he was called 103 00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:53,520 God's friend. You see that a person is 104 00:05:53,520 --> 00:05:57,000 considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. 105 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:01,560 In the same way, was not Rahab the prostitute considered 106 00:06:01,560 --> 00:06:04,880 righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies 107 00:06:04,880 --> 00:06:06,480 and sent them off in a different direction? 108 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:11,440 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds 109 00:06:11,840 --> 00:06:13,760 is dead. By the way, it's just a 110 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:16,760 rhetorical masterpiece. Like if you like to, it's just, 111 00:06:17,320 --> 00:06:19,600 it is a rhetoric. Like read it over and over again 112 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:22,120 those sections. It's just a piece of rhetorical 113 00:06:22,120 --> 00:06:24,000 masterpiece. So there's three ideas we're 114 00:06:24,000 --> 00:06:26,280 going to unpack from this text. So if you take notes, here's the 115 00:06:26,280 --> 00:06:32,040 three ideas #1 faith is visible #2 faith goes beyond right 116 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:35,600 doctrine, so #1 faith is visible #2 faith goes beyond right 117 00:06:35,600 --> 00:06:39,280 doctrine, and #3 faith pursues obedience. 118 00:06:39,480 --> 00:06:41,800 Faith pursues obedience. So faith is visible. 119 00:06:42,080 --> 00:06:44,760 Faith goes beyond right doctrine, and faith pursues 120 00:06:44,760 --> 00:06:46,960 obedience. So #1 faith is visible. 121 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:52,640 Verses 14 through 17 So faith the claims that you believe in 122 00:06:52,640 --> 00:06:55,920 Jesus and believe in God, all the claims we have, If it has no 123 00:06:55,920 --> 00:06:59,680 accompanying action, then according to James, it is 124 00:06:59,960 --> 00:07:01,760 useless. It is no use at all. 125 00:07:01,760 --> 00:07:04,160 I don't know if you guys know this or not, but psychologists 126 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:08,120 have discovered that our brains have the ability to trick us and 127 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:12,600 to think we're making progress. They have discovered that just 128 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:17,080 by saying you're going to do something out loud gives you a 129 00:07:17,080 --> 00:07:20,640 little dopamine hit that lets you believe you've already made 130 00:07:20,640 --> 00:07:23,600 some progress towards that thing you're going to do. 131 00:07:23,800 --> 00:07:26,640 So for example, you could say I'm going to get in shape, I'm 132 00:07:26,640 --> 00:07:31,920 going to get fit, right? And you by saying it out loud to 133 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:34,480 another person or even to yourself, your brain already 134 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:37,360 gets a little dopamine hit for you to kind of feel like you've 135 00:07:37,360 --> 00:07:39,680 made some progress to getting fit and getting in shape. 136 00:07:40,040 --> 00:07:43,160 You could say, I'm going to read more books this year. 137 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:45,920 And like just the saying, it tricks your brain. 138 00:07:46,720 --> 00:07:50,840 And here's the thing though, if I never actually go get in 139 00:07:50,840 --> 00:07:55,240 shape, if I ever actually go and work on my fitness, have I made 140 00:07:55,240 --> 00:07:57,480 any progress towards that? Absolutely not. 141 00:07:57,640 --> 00:08:01,760 If I don't start reading more books in the year, I've not made 142 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:05,360 any progress towards that. And so while I'm making a claim 143 00:08:05,360 --> 00:08:07,920 and I'm feeling a bit of a dopamine hit, like I'm making 144 00:08:07,920 --> 00:08:11,760 progress, the reality is we all know instinctively that if I 145 00:08:11,760 --> 00:08:14,600 don't go to the gym or if I don't start eating better and if 146 00:08:14,600 --> 00:08:17,400 I don't start reading more books, then I'm, it doesn't 147 00:08:17,400 --> 00:08:19,840 matter what I feel, right? It doesn't matter what what the 148 00:08:19,840 --> 00:08:21,960 dopamine's doing inside of me. It doesn't matter how good I 149 00:08:21,960 --> 00:08:25,280 feel about myself. If I'm not taking some action, 150 00:08:25,640 --> 00:08:30,280 then the claims are useless. This is what James is saying. 151 00:08:30,560 --> 00:08:34,280 James is saying the same thing happens spiritually. 152 00:08:34,559 --> 00:08:38,000 He says if I claim to have faith but nothing visible, I mean 153 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:42,360 nothing visible ever emerges from that faith, then my claim 154 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:44,760 is useless. It doesn't matter if when I tell 155 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:47,040 somebody I believe in Jesus. It doesn't matter if I say, 156 00:08:47,120 --> 00:08:48,760 well, I go to church and I believe in God. 157 00:08:48,880 --> 00:08:52,040 It doesn't matter if that makes me feel good for James. 158 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:57,080 If there's no visible nothing visible to exhibit that faith, 159 00:08:57,400 --> 00:09:01,080 then the claim is useless. And then James, remember, this 160 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:02,760 starts with a question, all right? 161 00:09:02,760 --> 00:09:04,000 And then he has another question. 162 00:09:04,000 --> 00:09:09,200 He says, can such faith save? Wow, what a hard question. 163 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:10,920 Like that's an in your face question. 164 00:09:11,680 --> 00:09:13,760 Can such faith save? What is James doing there? 165 00:09:14,640 --> 00:09:19,200 OK, he says faith without visible manifestation, without 166 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:21,400 visible action. He says that faith is dead. 167 00:09:21,560 --> 00:09:24,280 It's useless. It's basically non existent. 168 00:09:25,120 --> 00:09:28,480 And then he asked the question, can that faith save? 169 00:09:28,480 --> 00:09:32,760 And the implied answer is what? No, it can't. 170 00:09:33,440 --> 00:09:37,560 Well, why not? Because for James, faith without 171 00:09:37,560 --> 00:09:40,440 visible manifestation is not faith. 172 00:09:41,200 --> 00:09:45,120 It's more it's we say it's dead. No, that means it doesn't. 173 00:09:45,360 --> 00:09:48,320 What is something that's dead? Something that's dead is not 174 00:09:48,320 --> 00:09:51,280 existent. So for James, such a faith can't 175 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:55,200 save because such a faith doesn't exist at all. 176 00:09:55,680 --> 00:09:58,560 Then James, after he asked that question, can such a faith save? 177 00:09:58,720 --> 00:10:01,840 Well, he says no, that a faith that's not visible can't save 178 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:05,440 because a faith that's not visible is not faith, period. 179 00:10:06,080 --> 00:10:08,760 All right. And then he has this analogy 180 00:10:09,160 --> 00:10:12,320 where he uses this analogy that we all instinctively understand. 181 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:17,000 He describes someone without clothing and without daily food. 182 00:10:17,000 --> 00:10:19,920 I love the fact that he uses the word daily there without daily 183 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:21,680 food. In other words, the situation is 184 00:10:21,680 --> 00:10:24,560 dire, OK. And he says this person doesn't 185 00:10:24,560 --> 00:10:27,160 have clothes and so they're naked and hungry. 186 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:29,800 And the assumption is they're going to be hungry tomorrow 187 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:32,480 unless someone steps in and helps them. 188 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:37,920 OK, And the the analogy, the the person who sees them naked and 189 00:10:37,920 --> 00:10:41,720 hungry in the analogy, what does the person say to them? 190 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:44,120 To this naked hungry man? What is what? 191 00:10:44,120 --> 00:10:45,200 What does the person say to them? 192 00:10:45,680 --> 00:10:52,040 Go in peace, keep warm and well fed. 193 00:10:54,560 --> 00:10:56,120 It's like a spit in the face, right? 194 00:10:57,720 --> 00:11:00,920 You're naked and hungry. Go have some peace. 195 00:11:02,160 --> 00:11:05,760 Now this is an an analogy, all right, so check this out. 196 00:11:07,520 --> 00:11:10,640 These are compassionate sounding words. 197 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:17,080 They the sentiment of the person who said go in peace, keep warm 198 00:11:17,080 --> 00:11:19,920 and well fed. That sentiment is probably 199 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:23,040 genuine. They genuinely feel empathy. 200 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:29,320 But James uses this analogy to say this Words are cheap. 201 00:11:31,760 --> 00:11:36,040 Words are cheap. If there's no visible action 202 00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:39,560 that follows those words, then those words are useless to a 203 00:11:39,560 --> 00:11:44,280 person in need. Now James is using this analogy 204 00:11:45,280 --> 00:11:48,920 about how useless the words are to a person in need. 205 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:54,080 To say the same thing is true about our faith, your faith, and 206 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:58,480 my faith. Even if it feels, feels a lot. 207 00:11:59,120 --> 00:12:01,440 We are all into feelings, right? In our culture, we love 208 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:02,880 feelings. It's all about feelings. 209 00:12:03,320 --> 00:12:08,800 Even if my faith feels a lot. Even if my faith talks a lot. 210 00:12:10,560 --> 00:12:14,680 I mean, I'm a preacher. We talk a lot, OK, So even if my 211 00:12:14,680 --> 00:12:17,560 faith feels a lot, even if, even even if my faith is talkative 212 00:12:17,560 --> 00:12:21,000 and speaks a lot. But if my faith never moves, 213 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:25,520 James says, it is as useless as a man who looks at a naked 214 00:12:25,520 --> 00:12:30,640 hungry man and says go in peace, be fed and keep war. 215 00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:35,960 James is saying that faith that never becomes visible is 216 00:12:35,960 --> 00:12:38,800 useless, and this is the point of the analogy. 217 00:12:39,040 --> 00:12:42,240 It's not mainly about compassion, though certainly we 218 00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:45,040 as Jesus followers should be compassionate toward other 219 00:12:45,040 --> 00:12:47,400 people. The point of the analogy is 220 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:51,200 about the visibility of faith and the visibility of 221 00:12:51,200 --> 00:12:53,800 compassion. So, so my point, the point is, 222 00:12:53,920 --> 00:12:56,760 hey, if you claim to have compassion, then you'll have 223 00:12:56,760 --> 00:12:59,640 some action to go with it. If you claim to have faith, then 224 00:12:59,640 --> 00:13:01,280 you'll have some action to go with it. 225 00:13:01,280 --> 00:13:03,960 This is what James is saying. Eventually, your faith will 226 00:13:03,960 --> 00:13:06,920 become visible. Real faith will change the way 227 00:13:06,920 --> 00:13:10,960 you speak. It will it will change the the 228 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:14,520 way you treat people. It will change the way you 229 00:13:14,520 --> 00:13:17,800 respond to God's promptings in your life. 230 00:13:18,280 --> 00:13:20,440 It'll change the way that you trust God. 231 00:13:20,560 --> 00:13:25,120 It'll change the way you obey. You see, faith is more than 232 00:13:25,120 --> 00:13:27,400 sentiment. Faith is visible. 233 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:33,080 So first of all #1 faith is visible. 234 00:13:33,640 --> 00:13:36,920 When we tend to and we care for our faith, it will be visible. 235 00:13:36,920 --> 00:13:41,080 That's number one. Number two, faith goes beyond 236 00:13:41,080 --> 00:13:43,120 right doctrine. When you tend to and care for 237 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:45,960 your faith, you will see that faith goes beyond right 238 00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:47,600 doctrine. Verses 18 and 19. 239 00:13:48,040 --> 00:13:51,040 In verse 19, James says this great saying. 240 00:13:51,040 --> 00:13:56,200 He says you believe that there is one God good. 241 00:13:57,880 --> 00:14:00,160 Even the demons believe that and shudder. 242 00:14:00,520 --> 00:14:04,880 Now, what's he, what's he's doing here rhetorically is in 243 00:14:04,880 --> 00:14:07,560 the middle of this little section, he's kind of throwing a 244 00:14:07,560 --> 00:14:09,920 bomb. He's throwing a rhetorical bomb 245 00:14:09,920 --> 00:14:12,320 right in the middle of his writing to say, hey, notice 246 00:14:12,320 --> 00:14:13,920 this, pay attention to what I'm doing. 247 00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:15,760 I'm trying to get your attention. 248 00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:20,040 So what James is doing is he's saying, hey, it's possible for 249 00:14:20,040 --> 00:14:24,320 you and I to know true things about God and still not actually 250 00:14:24,320 --> 00:14:29,120 have faith in God. That's hard to hear, I know. 251 00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:35,920 So it's possible to to know good doctrine and not have trust in 252 00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:39,560 your heavenly Father. What James is saying is that 253 00:14:40,120 --> 00:14:46,000 demons are not atheist. Demons are not atheist. 254 00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:50,440 They're not. They're not confused about 255 00:14:50,440 --> 00:14:52,320 whether God exists. They're not confused about who 256 00:14:52,320 --> 00:14:54,280 Jesus is. They know God is real. 257 00:14:54,320 --> 00:14:56,360 They know he's powerful. Go read the Gospel of Mark. 258 00:14:56,360 --> 00:14:59,200 There's a couple scenes where Jesus interacts with people who 259 00:14:59,200 --> 00:15:06,280 are possessed by demons and they say Jesus, son of the Most high, 260 00:15:06,280 --> 00:15:07,520 what are you going to do with us? 261 00:15:07,520 --> 00:15:10,880 Like everybody else is trying to figure out how to figure out who 262 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:14,360 Jesus is, the demon possessed people or like we know exactly 263 00:15:14,360 --> 00:15:24,290 who you are. So James is forcing us to make a 264 00:15:24,290 --> 00:15:31,450 distinction between believing true things about Jesus and 265 00:15:31,450 --> 00:15:35,720 trusting Jesus with our lives. These are two different things. 266 00:15:37,520 --> 00:15:39,400 You believe there's one God. In other words, you have good 267 00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:41,920 doctrine. You you're orthodox, you have a 268 00:15:41,920 --> 00:15:43,280 good understanding of the Scriptures. 269 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:45,120 You know a lot of stuff about God. 270 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:47,320 You've read the Bible, You have good understanding. 271 00:15:48,560 --> 00:15:52,800 Yes. So do demons that that is not 272 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:55,600 equal trust in Jesus. That is not equal 273 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:57,280 transformation. That is not equal. 274 00:15:57,280 --> 00:16:01,280 A life submitted to Christ. Now, I want to be really clear 275 00:16:01,280 --> 00:16:03,920 here because I don't want you to walk out hearing something I 276 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:06,880 didn't say. James is not saying doctrine 277 00:16:06,880 --> 00:16:08,760 doesn't matter. He's not saying that at all. 278 00:16:09,440 --> 00:16:14,920 Doctrine matters deeply. What you believe about God, sin, 279 00:16:14,920 --> 00:16:17,920 salvation, grace, the cross, what you believe about the 280 00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:21,840 resurrection, all that matters because what we believe shapes 281 00:16:21,840 --> 00:16:24,880 how we live. It shapes what we understand. 282 00:16:24,920 --> 00:16:29,520 It shapes everything. This is not one of those moments 283 00:16:29,520 --> 00:16:32,640 where you need to hear me saying, oh, doctrine doesn't 284 00:16:32,640 --> 00:16:34,400 matter, just go out and be a good person. 285 00:16:34,400 --> 00:16:36,680 That is absolutely not what I'm saying. 286 00:16:37,280 --> 00:16:43,640 Doctrine certainly matters. What you believe is important. 287 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:50,400 But James is warning us that we can confuse right doctrine with 288 00:16:50,400 --> 00:16:53,400 transformational faith. We can assume. 289 00:16:53,400 --> 00:16:55,800 We can assume that because we have the right beliefs about 290 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,200 stuff that will have transformation in our lives. 291 00:16:59,640 --> 00:17:01,280 If you take notes, write this down. 292 00:17:02,440 --> 00:17:04,200 I think this sums it up in a sentence. 293 00:17:05,319 --> 00:17:08,200 Correct doctrine is necessary for faith. 294 00:17:09,960 --> 00:17:14,800 It's necessary for faith, but it is not sufficient for faith. 295 00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:21,040 It is not sufficient for faith. Living faith is more than just 296 00:17:21,040 --> 00:17:24,640 knowing true things about Jesus. Living faith trusts Jesus, 297 00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:27,280 follows Jesus, surrenders to Jesus, obeys. 298 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:32,320 Jesus doesn't just understand the truth, but moves because of 299 00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:34,800 the truth. So first of all, faith is 300 00:17:34,800 --> 00:17:37,560 visible. And secondly, faith is more than 301 00:17:37,560 --> 00:17:40,560 right doctrine. And then lastly, faith will 302 00:17:40,560 --> 00:17:44,960 pursue obedience. Verses 20 through 26, faith will 303 00:17:44,960 --> 00:17:50,520 pursue obedience. DA Carson says faith becomes 304 00:17:50,520 --> 00:17:55,440 true faith or complete faith when it is joined to obedience 305 00:17:55,960 --> 00:17:59,320 to Christ. And this is exactly what James 306 00:17:59,320 --> 00:18:01,800 is arguing in verses 20 through 26. 307 00:18:02,040 --> 00:18:04,400 Faith in works cannot be separated. 308 00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:07,440 You can't say well I have faith and well I have works. 309 00:18:07,440 --> 00:18:09,480 No, James is saying they can't be separated. 310 00:18:09,480 --> 00:18:14,400 They belong together, not because your good works create 311 00:18:14,400 --> 00:18:18,120 faith, but because living faith produces good works. 312 00:18:18,120 --> 00:18:20,120 Let me say that again, because I think he can go by us without, 313 00:18:20,400 --> 00:18:23,440 without thinking. Good works and faith are, are 314 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:25,240 inseparable. They're, they're, they're 315 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:29,840 together not because our good works create our faith. 316 00:18:29,840 --> 00:18:33,560 No, the opposite. They are inseparable because 317 00:18:33,560 --> 00:18:37,360 faith will always produce good works. 318 00:18:37,520 --> 00:18:41,640 Always. Living faith produces obedience. 319 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:45,960 Obedience. What is that? 320 00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:50,200 If you can narrow it down to just one statement, obedience is 321 00:18:50,200 --> 00:18:55,720 simply radical trust in God. It's just radical trust in God. 322 00:18:56,240 --> 00:18:59,320 It's believing that God is good, that God will come through for 323 00:18:59,320 --> 00:19:02,840 me, that God is wise, that I can rely on God. 324 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:07,040 And then I can trust God so much that I will order my life around 325 00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:09,480 His ways of doing things. I will be convinced that His 326 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:12,320 ways of doing things are the best ways of doing things. 327 00:19:13,520 --> 00:19:15,160 I'll trust him and I'll be obedient. 328 00:19:16,560 --> 00:19:22,000 This is what James is saying. Faith pursues obedience to God. 329 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:25,960 And then he gives 2 examples which are the strangest thing to 330 00:19:25,960 --> 00:19:29,280 me. Again, rhetorically genius, 331 00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:33,680 strangest thing. Of these two examples, one 332 00:19:33,680 --> 00:19:39,360 example is a guy named Abraham. Can we all agree Abraham's kind 333 00:19:39,360 --> 00:19:42,720 of a big deal? Come on, we all grew up Father 334 00:19:42,720 --> 00:19:46,040 Abraham who sung this had many sons. 335 00:19:46,520 --> 00:19:50,040 Many sons had father Abraham. And I am 1. 336 00:19:50,320 --> 00:19:52,040 Abraham's kind of a big deal, right? 337 00:19:53,440 --> 00:19:56,680 That's one example. Father of the faith left Irv, 338 00:19:57,000 --> 00:19:59,200 you know, and went to a land I will show you and, you know, 339 00:19:59,200 --> 00:20:05,440 just champion of the faith. And then the other example is a 340 00:20:05,440 --> 00:20:10,360 Gentile prostitute. There's a song about her. 341 00:20:10,960 --> 00:20:13,920 Rahab. Rahab I don't, I don't anybody 342 00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:20,640 sing a song about I don't know what a crazy thing, just think 343 00:20:20,640 --> 00:20:24,160 about writing for a second. He uses 2 examples. 344 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:27,080 Who could not be more different. Abraham, the father of the 345 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:28,920 faith. Rahab, the gentile woman with a 346 00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:32,360 really complicated past. Abraham is respected. 347 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:36,480 Rahab is completely unexpected to show up in the book of James. 348 00:20:38,000 --> 00:20:40,680 Abraham is the center of Israel's story. 349 00:20:41,400 --> 00:20:44,800 Rahab is someone that some of you here are going, I don't know 350 00:20:44,800 --> 00:20:49,240 who that is. You know who Abraham is, but 351 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:52,560 you're not sure who Rahab is. But here she is showing up. 352 00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:55,000 You should go read. You should go read about her. 353 00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:59,160 Google her here. She is showing up in the book of 354 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:02,560 James. And James puts them side by side 355 00:21:02,560 --> 00:21:06,000 because Abraham and Rahab show us the same thing. 356 00:21:06,120 --> 00:21:12,360 Ready Abraham and Rahab show us that living faith always results 357 00:21:12,360 --> 00:21:18,920 in visual obedience. Faith always results in visual 358 00:21:19,520 --> 00:21:25,360 trust filled obedience to God. Abraham offered Isaac in 359 00:21:25,360 --> 00:21:27,520 obedience to God in Genesis chapter 22. 360 00:21:27,520 --> 00:21:31,040 Now this is important. Genesis chapter 22, he offers 361 00:21:31,040 --> 00:21:35,000 Isaac in obedience to God. But it is in Genesis 15, it is 362 00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:38,640 in Genesis 15 that Abraham is declared righteous before God 363 00:21:38,640 --> 00:21:40,520 based on his faith. OK? 364 00:21:40,920 --> 00:21:44,760 So it is not his act of offering Isaac in a sacrifice that makes 365 00:21:44,760 --> 00:21:47,720 him righteous. No, that's not that's not what's 366 00:21:47,720 --> 00:21:51,400 going on here at all. In Genesis 15, he's declared 367 00:21:51,720 --> 00:21:56,560 righteous because of his faith. When he offers Isaac, that's not 368 00:21:56,640 --> 00:22:00,360 him becoming righteous, that that's him revealing his faith. 369 00:22:00,360 --> 00:22:04,080 That's not him getting faith, that's him showing his faith. 370 00:22:05,440 --> 00:22:08,400 He obeyed because he trusted God. 371 00:22:09,400 --> 00:22:12,440 He believed he had all that happening internally, but it 372 00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:17,080 resulted in an action. This is why James says Abraham's 373 00:22:17,080 --> 00:22:19,280 faith was made complete. Go back and read this. 374 00:22:19,400 --> 00:22:21,320 It says his faith was made complete. 375 00:22:21,560 --> 00:22:24,000 That's interesting to me. It was made. 376 00:22:24,040 --> 00:22:25,960 It was made complete by what he did. 377 00:22:25,960 --> 00:22:29,640 By offering Isaac and a sacrifice, his faith was made 378 00:22:29,640 --> 00:22:32,560 complete. Notice that James didn't say his 379 00:22:32,560 --> 00:22:35,960 faith was generated or created or his faith started. 380 00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:38,880 His faith didn't start with his obedience. 381 00:22:39,000 --> 00:22:42,040 His faith was made complete or brought to fruition or made 382 00:22:42,040 --> 00:22:45,080 visible or brought to maturity through his obedience. 383 00:22:45,560 --> 00:22:49,920 In other words, Abraham's faith was not just an internal belief. 384 00:22:50,320 --> 00:22:54,760 It became visible in obedience. And Rahab shows us the same 385 00:22:54,760 --> 00:22:58,040 thing. She trusted the God of Israel. 386 00:22:59,040 --> 00:23:00,880 And how did that trust become visible? 387 00:23:02,960 --> 00:23:06,400 When she protected the spies? They came into her home. 388 00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:12,080 She risked her life for them. She put forth visible obedience. 389 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:17,040 So James is not saying this is important. 390 00:23:17,360 --> 00:23:21,520 Hear me say this. James is not saying that we earn 391 00:23:21,520 --> 00:23:23,560 our salvation through good works. 392 00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:29,760 He is saying that our works and our deeds spring forth from our 393 00:23:29,760 --> 00:23:32,840 faith. Our works and deeds do not 394 00:23:32,840 --> 00:23:36,400 produce or create our faith. They are the result of our 395 00:23:36,400 --> 00:23:39,640 faith. Works are the root of your 396 00:23:39,640 --> 00:23:42,160 salvation. They are the fruit of your 397 00:23:42,160 --> 00:23:45,080 faith. And this is how James and Paul 398 00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:49,520 fit perfectly together in Ephesians chapter 2 verses 89 399 00:23:49,520 --> 00:23:53,960 and 10, Paul says this for it is by grace you have been saved 400 00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:57,040 through faith. And this is not from yourselves. 401 00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:01,120 It is the gift of God. The faith is a gift from God, 402 00:24:01,400 --> 00:24:04,880 not by works so that no one can boast. 403 00:24:05,480 --> 00:24:10,360 And then in verse 10, Paul says, for we you are God's handiwork 404 00:24:10,360 --> 00:24:14,280 created in Christ Jesus to do what everybody say it to do what 405 00:24:14,600 --> 00:24:17,960 good works you were created in Christ Jesus to do what? 406 00:24:17,960 --> 00:24:24,680 Say it again, good works which God prepared in advance for us 407 00:24:24,680 --> 00:24:32,320 to do. So Paul and James write 2 very 408 00:24:32,320 --> 00:24:37,560 different things it seems, but they're not different. 409 00:24:38,160 --> 00:24:39,880 They're not contradictory at all. 410 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:43,920 Paul is focusing on how faith is received. 411 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:48,520 How is faith received as a gift? God plants faith in you. 412 00:24:49,600 --> 00:24:53,120 Faith is a gift from God. That's what Paul focuses on. 413 00:24:53,360 --> 00:24:56,440 James, on the other hand, focuses on what that faith 414 00:24:56,440 --> 00:24:58,800 produces. So for Paul, it's like, how did 415 00:24:58,800 --> 00:25:01,360 you get faith? God gave it to you as a gift. 416 00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:03,960 For James, it's like when now that God gave you this faith, 417 00:25:04,040 --> 00:25:06,080 what's happening? What's going on? 418 00:25:06,080 --> 00:25:08,400 How is it visible? What is it producing? 419 00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:15,800 Paul says works do not save us. James says saving faith never 420 00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:24,080 remains without good works. In other words, Paul says you 421 00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:26,520 can only be saved by placing your faith in Christ. 422 00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:29,480 And James says and if you've placed your faith in Christ, 423 00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:31,880 your faith will be visible in your life. 424 00:25:33,480 --> 00:25:35,840 These two writers are not enemies. 425 00:25:36,640 --> 00:25:40,840 They are are two sides of the same gospel truth. 426 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:45,200 So the call on believers life is for you and I not to try to 427 00:25:45,440 --> 00:25:48,520 manufacture some type of righteousness for God or try to 428 00:25:48,520 --> 00:25:51,440 convince people we're good. No, the call on your life today 429 00:25:51,440 --> 00:25:54,880 is simply to trust God deeply, to believe that He's given you 430 00:25:54,880 --> 00:25:58,160 the gift of faith, and then trust Him deeply enough to move 431 00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:00,720 in that faith and obey Him where He's leading you. 432 00:26:01,280 --> 00:26:03,480 Abraham did that, Rahab did that. 433 00:26:03,600 --> 00:26:06,840 And by the grace of God, my friend, through the faith that 434 00:26:06,840 --> 00:26:09,200 God has given you, you can do it as well. 435 00:26:09,320 --> 00:26:12,640 You can trust God deeply and your faith will be visible. 436 00:26:13,480 --> 00:26:18,640 Not perfectly, not instantly, and never to convince him you're 437 00:26:18,640 --> 00:26:22,960 good enough. But as you trust God, your faith 438 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:24,640 will move. It will become visible. 439 00:26:25,200 --> 00:26:30,520 It will, it will pursue obedience because that's what 440 00:26:30,520 --> 00:26:34,520 faith is cared for does. It happens over time. 441 00:26:34,880 --> 00:26:37,960 I've been following Jesus a long time, and I long for obedience 442 00:26:37,960 --> 00:26:41,680 more now than I did just six months ago and six years ago and 443 00:26:41,680 --> 00:26:46,120 10 years ago, because that's the work the Spirit is doing inside 444 00:26:46,120 --> 00:26:49,200 of us as we care for and tend to our faith. 445 00:26:50,040 --> 00:26:55,280 Our faith will pursue obedience. As we wrap up. 446 00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:58,800 The book of Hebrews in chapter 12 tells us this. 447 00:26:59,600 --> 00:27:03,760 I love this. It says 1st 2. 448 00:27:03,760 --> 00:27:05,960 It says fixing our eyes on Jesus. 449 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:11,920 Hebrews chapter 12 verse 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus the 450 00:27:11,920 --> 00:27:14,000 pioneer and perfector of our faith. 451 00:27:15,200 --> 00:27:19,320 For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its 452 00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:22,040 shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 453 00:27:25,360 --> 00:27:28,040 The writer of Hebrews says that Jesus is the pioneer and 454 00:27:28,040 --> 00:27:34,440 perfector of our faith. He's the founder, He's the 455 00:27:34,440 --> 00:27:37,120 author. How's that? 456 00:27:39,040 --> 00:27:41,480 Well, it's because Jesus did exactly what we're talking about 457 00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:46,320 today. He walked in radical obedience 458 00:27:46,320 --> 00:27:50,760 to his Father, even to the point of death. 459 00:27:51,360 --> 00:27:59,680 And death on a cross. You see, for Jesus, he believed 460 00:27:59,840 --> 00:28:03,800 his Father was trustworthy to a ruthless extent. 461 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:12,040 He was staring down Calvary, and he placed his life fully in the 462 00:28:12,040 --> 00:28:18,440 hand of his heavenly Father. Where Adam failed to trust God, 463 00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:24,200 Jesus trusted him completely. Where I struggle to obey, and 464 00:28:24,200 --> 00:28:27,360 where you struggle to obey, Jesus obeyed perfectly. 465 00:28:29,000 --> 00:28:35,160 And now because of his trust in God, he not only saves you from 466 00:28:35,160 --> 00:28:40,480 your sin and saves me from my sin, but Jesus leads us into 467 00:28:40,480 --> 00:28:43,200 deeper trust in our Heavenly Father. 468 00:28:44,960 --> 00:28:50,280 So this morning, whether your faith is weak, feeble, or if 469 00:28:50,280 --> 00:28:54,160 your faith feels strong and deep, you need to know this. 470 00:28:55,320 --> 00:28:58,800 Jesus is the author of your faith. 471 00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:03,800 He is the perfector of your faith. 472 00:29:04,840 --> 00:29:09,400 In other words, because you have faith in Jesus Christ, he is 473 00:29:09,480 --> 00:29:16,440 working in you right now to produce something that in you 474 00:29:16,440 --> 00:29:20,440 that can only be produced by him, by his work in you. 475 00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:25,480 And it's not perfection. So don't pursue perfection. 476 00:29:29,080 --> 00:29:33,240 It's not performative. It's not to convince anyone else 477 00:29:33,240 --> 00:29:36,440 that you're a good Christian, die to that. 478 00:29:40,760 --> 00:29:45,920 It's not works to convince God you're a good person. 479 00:29:47,920 --> 00:29:54,280 So much deeper. It's Christ Jesus himself 480 00:29:56,200 --> 00:30:03,320 working in you because He loves you and wants nothing but the 481 00:30:03,320 --> 00:30:09,200 very best for you, and He's leading you to that place. 482 00:30:13,520 --> 00:30:18,560 This is the work Jesus is doing in you, and one day you will 483 00:30:18,560 --> 00:30:27,480 arrive to this place in your walk with Him where you find 484 00:30:27,480 --> 00:30:32,400 that you genuinely love all that is good and holy, where you 485 00:30:32,400 --> 00:30:36,800 genuine, genuinely love all that is righteous, all that is 486 00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:40,360 aligned with Christ's heart. You would genuinely love that 487 00:30:41,040 --> 00:30:44,280 and despise the evil and the darkness. 488 00:30:47,080 --> 00:30:54,080 That's the work He's doing. Your role is to tend to it, care 489 00:30:54,080 --> 00:31:02,720 for, trust him ruthlessly. Can we stand together and pray? 490 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:16,280 Father, I'll thank you for these men and women who sit in this 491 00:31:16,280 --> 00:31:19,000 room and, and, and, and. Let me teach them. 492 00:31:19,000 --> 00:31:26,000 I'm honored and grateful. I'm so thankful I get to do 493 00:31:26,000 --> 00:31:31,320 this, and I pray that we might be men and women who just trust 494 00:31:31,320 --> 00:31:37,200 you deeply, Jesus. They remember that you are the 495 00:31:37,200 --> 00:31:40,280 author and you are the pioneer. You are the founder. 496 00:31:40,480 --> 00:31:42,320 You are the perfector of our faith. 497 00:31:48,960 --> 00:31:54,440 You will have what's yours, Jesus, and I'm so thankful that 498 00:31:54,440 --> 00:32:00,440 you will, because I am yours. We are yours. 499 00:32:02,880 --> 00:32:09,440 Go with us as we leave this place today, help us to be men 500 00:32:09,440 --> 00:32:16,040 and women who do not make claims of faith, but who have faith 501 00:32:16,040 --> 00:32:19,720 that's visible and faith that pursues obedience. 502 00:32:21,120 --> 00:32:24,920 We pray this for us in the name of Christ, Amen. 503 00:32:25,640 --> 00:32:28,320 Thank you, friends, love you. See you back here next Sunday. 504 00:32:30,760 --> 00:32:34,040 If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe so you 505 00:32:34,040 --> 00:32:37,760 hear a new episode every week. You can also worship with us in 506 00:32:37,760 --> 00:32:41,880 person in Savannah, GA or watch our live stream on Facebook and 507 00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:45,480 YouTube every Sunday at 9:15. Have a great week.