FAITH ALONE IS A BIG LIE, A HERESY. Faith alone is not enough. Faith by itself is “dead” (Jas 2:17), “barren” (Jas 2:20), and has no power to “save” anyone (Jas 2:14). In the New Testament the expression “faith alone” occurs only in James, where it is rejected as false teaching. Paul often stresses the importance of “justification by faith”, but Paul nowhere in the New Testament Bible speaks of justification by faith alone (Rom 3:28; Gal 2:15-16; Eph 2:8-9). Does the teaching of Paul (in Ephesians 2:8-9) contradict that of James ( in James 2:24)? Consider the following scriptural passages: Eph 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God not because of works, lest any man should boast.” James 2:24 “You see that man is justified by works and not by faith alone.” Externally, it looks like that what Paul affirms, James denies, and what James affirms, Paul denies. But when we go deeper and scrutinize these two passages ( Eph 2:8-9 and Jas 2:24) in their proper contexts, we realize that Paul and James are not in contradiction at all. In fact, they share a common doctrine on faith and works; they draw attention to different aspects of the same doctrine. Unsurprisingly, they address different pastoral situations in the early Church. First on FAITH, Paul speaks of justifying faith in Eph 2:8-9 (cf. Rom 3:28); he is talking about the faith of the convert that leads to Baptism that is to say, the apostle is making a general statement about how man is brought from sin to salvation. This process begins with faith and leads the believer to Baptism, which Paul teaches is the sacrament of our justification in Christ (1 Cor 6:11; Gal 3:25-27; Tit 3:5-7). James, on the other hand, is dealing with much different situation. He is talking, not about faith of the convert, but about the faith of the professing Christian. He is making a general statement about the believers who already “hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jas 2:1). The point, then, is that Paul and James discuss the role of justifying faith in two different contexts, namely before and after the believer is incorporated into Christ. Second on WORKS, it is significant to observe that Paul, when he rejects justification by works in Eph 2:8-9, is speaking very specifically about the works of Mosaic Law. His point is that no one can earn or merit the free gift of grace by obedience to the Torah. Whether one observes its moral commandments, such as those of the Decalogue, or its ritual and ceremonial obligations, such as circumcision, dietary laws, or Sabbath observance, none of these works – apart from the grace of Christ – can bring about the justification of the sinner. There is no reason to think that James would disagree with this. After all, when James affirms about works of mercy performed by those who are already established in grace (Jas 1:27; 2:15-16). Again, Paul and James are discussing different scenarios. Paul denies the saving power of Mosaic works, performed on the strength of human nature, while James affirms the value of Christian works, performed by the grace and power supplied by Christ. Third on JUSTIFICATION, since Paul in Eph 2:8-9 (cf Rom 3:28) is addressing issues related to conversion, it follows that he is talking about our initial justification in Christ, that is the critical moment when God makes the believer righteous by an infusion of His Spirit and life. Apart from this divine action in the believer, human works – even done in compliance with the Mosaic Law – are simply unable to merit the grace of our first justification in Christ, which is rather the free gift of His grace. James, on the other hand, is not contradicting this teaching when he says that believers are “justified by works” (Jas 2:24). Unlike Paul, he is not talking about the initial justification of the sinner at all; nor is he referring to the works of Mosaic Law undertaken to establish one’s standing before God. Rather, he is discussing the ongoing justification of believers who put their faith into action and strive to live the gospel in practical and charitable ways (Matt 25:34-40; Gen. 4:7; Prov. 11:18;38; Matt. 5:12; 10:42; 25:34; Rom. 2:6; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:8; Heb. 6:10; 10:35; 11:26; James 2:24; Rev. 20:13; 22:7). These are works of Christian obedience undertaken in response to grace of Christ. In this context, where Christian living is made possible by the grace of God, works do indeed contribute to our increase in righteousness and justification. This teaching of James is in full harmony with the teaching of Paul (Eph 2:8-9; Rom 2:13; 6:12-19). Finally, James is correcting those who took Paul out of context and minimized the importance of works as a proper and necessary expression of faith in the Christian life. This is why he stresses that faith in Christ entails the obligation to live faithfully in Christ through good works. Therefore, “FAITH ALONE” is not enough. And every man will be judged according to his good works done in imitation of Christ (Rev. 20:12).
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 02:38:00 +0000
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