James 2- Faith Without Works? Sermon notes

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This teaching of James, , is probably his most famous, yet most controversial teachings , and it might be one the most debated teachings in the Bible. James is teaching us “Faith without Works is Dead” Meaning someone who claims to have faith in Christ, yet doesn’t live their life in faith , is a fake, just like that guy dressed in a gorilla suite, he was a fraud, well someone who claims to be a Christian, yet never acts like a Christian is a fraud. Remember ealier James taught “Be a Doer of the Word and Not Just a Hearer of the Word”

Remember what Jesus said “Somebody who is a doer of the Word, is like a wise man who builds his house on the Rock” but “Someone who doesn’t actually apply the Word of God to their lives is a foolish man who builds his hous on the sand”  

Now the great theologian Martin Luther, who you may remember as the leader of the Reformation Movement, the founder of the Luthern Church, he hated this teaching by James so much, that He proposed the book of James be removed from the Bible. He called the book of James “an epistle of straw” So why are guys like Luther and others so opposed to James teaching here? Because some misinterpret this teaching to mean that works saves you. Not only is this not true, this is a total misinterpretation of James is saying here

Some even claim James and Paul are in contradiction with one another, but I will demonstrate they are not….

Well you might say, if we are not saved by works, then why is our faith dead without works? Lets dive into this teaching….

Faith Without Works?

14What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

James begins by questioning if someone claims to have faith, yet shows not signs of their faith, are they really saved? James gives a good example here, suppose you see one of your brothers or sisters in need, now notice this a brother or sister, this is a member of the Church, imagine if there is a member of the Church, and they have no food, they are in desperate need, and you do nothing to help them, what kind of faith is this?

You tell them a good word about Jesus , but you don’t do anything to help them, did you really help them? Is this what Jesus really wants from us? To just be words and no action?

But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? 1 John 3:17

Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality. Romans 12:13

Jesus said:

35for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 

37“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ (Matthew 25)

Just Believe

18But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [f]your works, and I will show you my faith by [g]my works. 19You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is [h]dead?

There are many Christians who will just save , we just Believe in Jesus and do nothing, but the real question is , is this true faith? If you truly believe who Jesus is, but don’t do anything Jesus tells you what to do, do you really have faith in him? Consider what Jesus said “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15) It’s easy for us to just say we just believe in Jesus, 

James uses the example here “Even the demons believe, and tremble” The demons believe and know Jesus is the Son of God, you see this throughout the gospels, however does that mean they are saved? Of course not, they have never repented , they have never submitted to Jesus as Lord.  

“What do You want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have You come here to torture us before the appointed time?” (Matthew 8:29)

“What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24)

23And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was [j]accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. 24You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. (James 23-24)

James then uses Abraham as an example of being saved by His faith, the Apostle Paul also uses Abraham alot as an example of saving faith. Abraham believed God and it was credited to him. However what did Abrham do then? He responded to Gods calling, He left his homeland and pursue the promise land , which we call Israel today, Abraham was obedient to God in whatever he asked him to do, this is real faith.

Consider what Jesus says 

Known by Your Fruits:

16You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Matthew 7:16-20

Jesus said We will be known by our fruits, 

Going back to the Apostle Paul here

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

The Apostle Paul says we saved By Grace Through Faith in Christ, not by anything we do. Its a gift of God, not by our works, by the works of Christ on the cross, so none of us can boast or brag. 

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

However as we are Born Again in Christ, as we are filled with the Holy Spirit, God is working through us. If the Holy Spirit is living inside of you, then you should see evidence of the Holy Spirit living inside of you….consider the fruits of the Holy Spirit

Conclusion:

  1. Faith Without Works is Dead- Don’t be a hypocritical Christian
  2. If we truly believe , then our lives should reflect this- even the demons believe
  3. Abraham is a model of our faith
  4. You will be known by Your Fruits- Your actions (works)
  5. Fruits of The Holy Spirit

Faith and works are bound up in the same bundle. He that obeys God trusts God; and he that trusts God obeys God. He that is without faith is without works; and he that is without works is without faith. Charles Spurgeon

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

As a Christian, when you truly put your faith in Christ, you will recieve the Holy Spirit, which the Spirit will give you gifts, which these Gifts will enable you to produce works, but all this comes back to grace by faith in Christ

The true works are of Christ, who died for your sins on the cross, and rose again on the 3rd day to give you eternal life, put your faith in Christ alone and Christ will work through you, Amen!

Zechariah 8- The Temple of God

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“Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Behold, I will save My people from the land of the east And from the land of the west; I will bring them back, And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.’ Zechariah 8:7-8

Wow, what a prophetic message for today! While this scattering and gathering of Israel has historically happened before, as the prophet Zechariah is calling the Jews back to rebuild the Temple of God, this is also a future message, as God is not done with Israel yet! (Romans 9-11)

Notice God promises to “save My people” this is a promise of divine protection, while Israel has been punished for its past sins and disobedience, God has not cast them away yet! The Lord will gather His elect and destroy His enemies at the final battle of Armegeddon, is the stage set for our time period?

And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon. Revelation 16:16

“I (God) will save My People (Israel) from the land of the east and the land of the west, I will bring them (Jews) back” While the gathering has been fulfilled in some sense, the final gathering has not been completed yet!,  When have the Jews been dispersed across the entire world? The prophetic gathering has begun in 1948 , when Israel once again became a nation in one day (Isaiah 66:8) 

They (Israel) shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, God is bringing back His remnant of Jews to Israel, specifically Jerusalem, the same place our Lord and Savior will physically return to save Israel (Zechariah 12-14)

And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, Making a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south. Zechariah 14:4

You say , “this is all coincidence, the world just happens to hate and want to destroy Israel, there are no such thing as coincidences, the prophecy and will of God will be done, regardless if you believe it or not. As Jesus said to Satan in the wilderness “It Is Written, It Is Written, It Is Written! (Matthew 4)

“Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Let your hands be strong, You who have been hearing in these days These words by the mouth of the prophets, Who spoke in the day the foundation was laid For the house of the LORD of hosts, That the temple might be built. Zechariah 8:9

Once again God is calling back His remnant, to listen to the words of the prophets, including Zechariah and Daniel, to come back to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple. While the Temple as rebuilt a second time, it was utterly rejected by Christ 

And He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ” Matthew 21:13

Israel will need to learn the one they crucified is The Lord, He is the Living Temple of God, Christ is the ultimate sacrifice of sin (John 1:39) our High Priest (Hebrews 4:14-16) The Word that became Flesh (John 1:14) Once the spiritual blindness to Israel is removed, they will understand and receive him as Lord and King

“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. Zechariah 12:10

For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. Romans 11:25

But after the spiritual blindness is removed, they will understand Jesus Christ is the true Temple, the Messiah, our Lord and God, Amen!

Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” John 2:19

Introduction into the book of Revelation

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Title: Revelation of Jesus Christ = Apocalypse = revealing, uncovering = Final Victory of Christ

Author:  Apostle John – (Rev, 1:1, 4, 9, 22:8)

Gospel of John, The Epistles of John- confirmed by Irenaeus and Justin Martyr

Common Themes- Christ is The Word, Christ is the Lamb

Date:  Early or Later Date? Majority believe it was written the end of the first century AD 94-96

Why is this significant? Destruction of the Jewish Temple 70 AD = Held by primarily Preterist

Strong evidence for a later date:

  •  Irenaeus – Church Father, disciple of John, affirms late date
  • Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Victorinus, Eusebius, Jerome -all affirm later date
  • 7 Churches of Revelation = point to a later date = example Church of Ephesus

4 Views of Revelation:

  • Preterist- Believe everything in Revelation is fulfilled by 70 AD- (hence the importance of the early date)
  • Historical View– Believe Revelation is a symbolic view of the Church history
  • Idealist View – View Revelation as symbolic of the cosmic world between good and evil
  • Futurist View – View events from Chapters 6-22 are still futuristic , and those chapters literally and symbolically depict real events, including the second coming of Christ, the Millennial Reign, Final Judgement ect

James 2- Love Your Neighbor -v1-13- sermon notes

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Back during the first century in Jewish culture traditionally Jewish Synagogues you had to buy your seat in the synagogue. So obviously the one who had more money, was going to get a better seat in the synagogue. That’s what James is talking about here in the scriptures . James is saying…

My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. (or show favoritism) That’s why here at Church, everyone sits wherever they want. This is the New Covenant in Christ, this is what the Church, the Body of Christ is about, we are all equal or one in Christ. You can sit wherever you want here free of charge.

So then James tells us a story, basically if a rich guy walks in your assembly (Church), he has nice clothes and jewelry, and you give them the best seat in the house, you are showing favoritism. While the poor person walks in and you tell them , you better go sit back there

have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? (4)

So we are making judgements based on peoples physical appearance or social status, ect. And this happens all the time in life, doesn’t it? Even in Churches, One Sunday during our worship service a woman came in here, track marks up and down her arms and legs, high as a kite, and she sat there for most of the service. And we were glad to have her here, because we want her to get saved, we want her to encounter Jesus Christ, but the reality is most Churches from my experience, would probably have thrown her out. Lets be honest, or I hear all the time people are afraid to take their kids to certain Churches because they get scolded or dirty looks, and I’m not up here trying to say we do everything perfect, but what I will say is I never want to be a stumbling block for someone to come to Christ. 

So James is trying to teach that the New Covenant in Christ is not the same as the world or even the Old Covenant. We are all One in Jesus Christ, we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, we are a family of God

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28

Love Your Neighbor

If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well; (v8)

What a concept , James quotes his brother Jesus. The royal law he calls it , Love your neighbor as yourself, this means if you want to be treated equally with respect, then treat others equally with respect. This is why Christianity is so radically different from the rest of the world. Because our identity is in Jesus Christ, therefor we are one in Christ. Think about everyone in this room, there are people of different ages and backgrounds, but we are united in Jesus Christ. 

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14

Consider Jesus story about the Good Samaritan..Luke 10

30Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among [i]thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. 33But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. 34So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35On the next day, [j]when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ 36So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”

37And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.”

Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors. (9)

But James continues to warn here, listen if you guys keep showing favoritism , you guys keep elevating some people over another, within the Church, you guys are in sin, you guys are breaking The Law of God, because what did Paul just say “Love your neighbor is the fulfillment of The Law” 

Keep The Law

For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. (10-12)

Now I know alot of us are thinking, man I judged certain people, I’m guilty of this myself, I have broken the Law of God, I’m a sinner, yeah welcome to the club. Remember a little earlier in chapter 1 James said the “Word of God was like a mirror” The Ten Commandments, the Law of God reveals to us we have all fallen short, we are all sinners, it reveals to us all we need a Savior. The Good News is God provided that Savior for us Jesus Christ

James brings up a good point here, he says you can try and keep the whole Law of God, you can try, but if you mess up in one spot, your guilty of breaking the entire law of God. This is where you need to understand , its only by the grace of God in our faith in Jesus Christ, that we are saved. You are not going to save yourself, your going to stumble and fall, put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ for salvation

Show Mercy

For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. (13)

Mercy triumphs over judgement, this is actually for us to comprehend as humans. We don’t like showing mercy to people, lets be honest. But James warns there will be judgement with no mercy, for the one who shows no mercy. Consider what Jesus says about this…

Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. (Matthew 5:7)

Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful. (Luke 6:36)

Conclusion:

  1. There is no favoritism in the Church, the Body of Christ
  2. Love Your Neighbor as Yourself
  3. We are all sinners
  4. Mercy over Judgement
  5. We Are One In Christ

For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread. I Corinthians 10:17

I think this is a great text for Communion this morning, to the world we are all seperated by class and race, but in Jesus Christ we are One Body, there is no favoritism in the family of God.  Everyone is welcomes to The Lords Table, you have a seat there , that nobody can buy, but your place at The Table was bought with the blood of Jesus Christ. Through Christ you have been unified by his body and blood, Born Again in the Holy Spirit,  Amen