Bible Study for Today

If salvation is by faith in Christ alone, how can James write “faith without works is dead” (2:20)?

“Do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?” Literally, “empty, defective.” The objector’s claim of belief is fraudulent, and his faith is a sham. James is not contrasting two methods of salvation (faith versus works). Instead, he contrasts two kinds of faith: living faith that saves and dead faith that does not (1 John 3:7–10).

“Was not Abraham our father justified by works…?” (v. 21). This does not contradict Paul’s clear teaching that Abraham was justified before God by grace alone through faith alone (Rom. 3:20; 4:1–25; Gal. 3:6, 11). For several reasons, James cannot mean that Abraham was constituted righteous before God because of his own good works: 1) James already stressed that salvation is a gracious gift (1:17, 18); 2) in the middle of this disputed passage (v. 23), James quoted Genesis 15:6, which forcefully claims that God credited righteousness to Abraham solely on the basis of his faith (Rom. 1:17; 3:24; 4:1–25); and 3) the work that James said justified Abraham was his offering up of Isaac (Gen. 22:9, 12), an event that occurred many years after he first exercised faith and was declared righteous before God (Gen. 12:1–7; 15:6). Instead, Abraham’s offering of Isaac demonstrated the genuineness of his faith and the reality of his justification before God. James is emphasizing the vindication before others of a man’s claim to salvation. James’s teaching perfectly complements Paul’s writings; salvation is determined by faith alone (Eph. 2:8, 9) and demonstrated by faithfulness to obey God’s will alone (Eph. 2:10).

“And by works faith was made perfect” (v. 22). This refers to bringing something to its end or to its fullness. Just as a fruit tree has not arrived at its goal until it bears fruit, faith has not reached its end until it demonstrates itself in a righteous life.

November 21

Reading for Today:

Ezekiel 33:1–34:31Psalm 130:5-8Proverbs 29:1James 2:1-26

Notes:

Ezekiel 33:2–9 watchman. Such men as Jeremiah and Ezekiel (3:16–21) were spiritual watchmen (33:7–9), warning that God would bring a sword on His people so that they had opportunity to prepare and be safe. This analogy came from the custom of putting guards on the city wall watching for the approach of danger, then trumpeting the warning.

Ezekiel 33:4 his blood…on hisown head. Once the watchman did his duty, the responsibility passed to each person. Each person is accountable for his own response to God’s warnings, whether to die in judgment or to live as one who heeded and repented. Ezekiel had been a very faithful and obedient “watchman.”

James 2:1 the faith. This refers not to the act of believing, but to the entire Christian faith (Jude 3), which has as its central focus Jesus Christ. the Lord of glory.Christ is the One who reveals the glory of God. In His Incarnation, He showed only impartiality (Matt. 22:16)—for example, consider the non-elite people included in His genealogy, His choice of the humble village of Nazareth as His residence for 30 years, and His willingness to minister in Galilee and Samaria, both regions held in contempt by Israel’s leaders. partiality.Originally, this word referred to raising someone’s face or elevating the person, but it came to refer to exalting someone strictly on a superficial, external basis, such as appearance, race, wealth, rank, or social status.

James 2:8 royal law. This is better translated “sovereign law.” The idea is that this law is supreme or binding. love your neighbor as yourself. This sovereign law (quoted from Lev. 19:18), when combined with the command to love God (Deut. 6:4, 5), summarizes all the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 22:36–40; Rom. 13:8–10). James is not advocating some kind of emotional affection for oneself—self-love is clearly a sin (2 Tim. 3:2). Rather, the command is to pursue meeting the physical health and spiritual well-being of one’s neighbors (all within the sphere of our influence; Luke 10:30–37) with the same intensity and concern as one does naturally for oneself (Phil. 2:3, 4).

James 2:19 You believe that there is one God. A clear reference to the passage most familiar to his Jewish readers: theShema (Deut. 6:4, 5), the most basic doctrine of the Old Testament. demons believe. Even fallen angels affirm the oneness of God and tremble at its implications. Demons are essentially orthodox in their doctrine (Matt. 8:29, 30; Mark 5:7; Luke 4:41; Acts 19:15). But orthodox doctrine by itself is no proof of saving faith. They know the truth about God, Christ, and the Spirit, but hate it and them.