![]() ![]() ![]() Jesus isn’t saying that our acts toward the poor and needy are what save us. There were those who didn’t feed, clothe, and show compassion to the “least of these.” There were those who failed to demonstrate the kingdom of God through the way they treated others, especially the vulnerable. Then Jesus continues on, showing the reverse of that scenario. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.” Then the righteous will answer him, saying, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?” And the King will answer them, ”Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:34-40). Then the King will say to those on his right, ”Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. In Matthew 25, Jesus speaks about the final judgment. If all we do is say, “Good luck! I hope you find what you need!” but we don’t help, that shows an anemic-and even a dead-faith. We covered this a bit last week, and here again, James reminds his readers that true faith acts on behalf of the poor and oppressed. What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.įor the Jewish people, providing and caring for the poor was fundamental for living out the command to love God and love others. Faith Without Works is Dead: James 2:14-17 Both agree that an inactive faith is really no faith at all. We’re going to look at three aspects of James’ argument-first, his example of how we treat the poor, second, his argument about demons, and third, what he means by “justified.” As we look at each of these components of his argument, I think we’ll see clearly that James doesn’t disagree with Paul. ![]() But does our faith really require works? What does he mean, and how can we hold this to be true if we also hold what Paul says to be true? ![]()
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