Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Faith Works

Morning readings: Psalms 12; 146, 1 Kings 8:65-9:9, James 2:14-26, Mark 14:66-72

Did you know the Book of James was considered suspect by many early Christians for almost 300 years? Or that Martin Luther wanted it out of the Bible? The center of the controversy is the ongoing debate over whether Christians achieve salvation through faith alone, or whether good works are necessary to attain (or maintain) salvation. In his letters, Paul wrote over and over again that faith alone is the key to the salvation God gives freely. James says faith without works is dead (James 2:17).

Could it be possible this argument misses the point entirely? After all, the gospels themselves seem to be far less concerned with this delineation between faith and works. John's gospel is the most specific about justification through faith, mentioning several times only those who believe will find eternal life. But throughout all the gospels, Jesus speaks about faith as it is expressed through action. This message is loud and clear at the end of Matthew 25: in these verses the Lord welcomes into the Kingdom those who clothed the naked, fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, invited in the stranger, and visited the imprisoned … and rejected those who did not. This passage makes it very clear works of mercy are integral – maybe inevitable – to a life of faith.

Works do not save us, but they are a thermometer indicating whether our faith is cold and dead or burning with the flame of the Spirit. If we are not inspired to the work of the Kingdom, we may want to consider that a sign our faith has been uttered from cool intellect rather than an impassioned heart. As James says: "Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, 'Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?" (vv. 15-17). A faith that cares for nothing but our own personal salvation is a hollow and selfish thing, the good china we refuse to serve food on no matter how hungry our guests may be.

Evening readings: Psalms 36; 7

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