BOLDNESS BEYOND BELIEF
James 2:14-26
NEW LIVING TRANSLATION
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say
you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can
that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a
brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and
you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm
and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person
any food or clothing. What good does that do?
17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it
produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have
faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can
you show me your faith if you don’t have good
deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there
is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe
this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish!
Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is
useless?
21 Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham
was shown to be right with God by his actions when
he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see, his
faith and his actions worked together. His actions
made his faith complete. 23 And so it happened just
as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and
God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”
He was even called the friend of God. 24 So you see,
we are shown to be right with God by what we do,
not by faith alone.
25 Rahab the prostitute is another example. She
was shown to be right with God by her actions when
she hid those messengers and sent them safely away
by a different road. 26 Just as the body is dead
without breath, so also faith is dead without good
works.
Here‟s an interesting and thought provoking truth; demons
are not atheists… They are not even agnostic… In fact it is
well documented in the text that on several occasions
demons recognized, regarded, and even reverenced the
authority of Christ (Mark 1:24; 3:11; 5:7,9,12; Luke
4:41). On one particular occasion in the 5th chapter of
Mark verse 12 the bible says the demons had a 6000
(legion) member corporate prayer meeting, all on one accord
saying/begging for the same thing from Jesus and Jesus
heard their prayer!
Now here is a thought that ought to make saints shudder and
deeply ponder the possibilities.
If demons praise, pray, and proclaim Jesus, what is
it that separates us and them?...
Is it a little unnerving to think that on any given Sunday
morning, in any given local church you could very well be
sitting and shouting with a demon…even now?…
Demons do believe…
What‟s really ironic is that the evil spirit that is primarily at
work in the atheists and the agnostics really believes in God,
Jesus, and the Holy Spirit…
But you see that‟s why I‟m really not worried about the
atheists and the agnostics…what troubles me is the
preaching demons that mount pulpits…praising demons that
occupy the choir…praying demons in the pews…
What concerns me about these demons is the fact that when
they get through praiseing, praying, and proclaiming,
they are much more enthusiastic about possessing souls
than saints are…
They are not going to go home and eat and go to sleep…
No, no they‟re not just going to be satisfied with a few
minutes of service in the building… They are going to go
home and get on the phone… As a matter of fact they may
already be on the cell phone…
But what does that tell us as saints of the Most High? Well it
ought to remind us that there is something beyond belief
that we need to be pressing toward…
Now I am not, will not, and cannot take anything away from
Mark 16:16; John 3:16, 18,36; 5:24; 6:40,47; 20:31;
Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9 (to name a few). These passages
represent the word of God and in most instances the voice of
Jesus.
And yet the Lord would have us to know that this same word
belief (pisteuo in the Greek from which we get pistis
meaning faith) when received as a result of the gospel of
Jesus is like the agrarian lifestyle of planting and
producing…
This is some “farmology” I got from my earthly daddy… He
told me about how he has taken an apple and put it in the
sun allowing it to dry rot; then afterwards he planted it in
fertile soil. And then afterwards watched it come up as a
tree.
Now notice, what goes in the ground is not the same as what
comes out. What goes in the ground is perished and
putrefied but what comes up out of the ground is productive
and profitable…
The difference between us and the demons is that we‟ve been
set in the Son… …and the old nature has been putrefied and
purged having been planted in the soil of the good news of
Christ Jesus. We, then, come up productive and profitable
for the kingdom of God… We’ve got faith that produces
new life, new liberty, and new love!
This Faith Breaks Through in Behavior
Yes I know I „m saved because God says I‟m saved…
However I also know I‟m saved because God shows me my
salvation. There is something in my nature now that goes
against my earthly inclinations…
The earthy part of us would keep us beholden to a terrestrial
mindset…
You ever wonder why you like to hear a little bit of dirt
sometime. Well it is because you still have a dirt affinity or a
dirt attraction that results from the shell of your design but
oh bless the Lord today and tell yourself that it‟s only a
shell…
At the core of your shell there is a surge going on…and every
time you hear the Gospel of Jesus preached…something
blows…
So while I may look like dirt…because of the power surge I
ain‟t dirty…(Ain‟t? Yeah I need to say it like that!)
Those earthly inclinations would provoke us to fear but just
about that time that fear would fuel, faith detonates… Fear is
transformed to reverence to God…
Earthly inclinations would hold us hostage to envy, jealousy,
hatred, and strife but thank God through Jesus there is a
power surge…
This faith won‟t let me do what dirt demands and at the same
time it keeps me transforming to the will of God in Christ
Jesus.
This Faith Breaks Through in Boldness
With this new love and new life, we have a holy boldness
(Acts 4:13) that attest to the fact that we‟ve been and
remain with Jesus… This boldness or confidence is an
internal attribute that breaks through in behavior so
that others can behold.
The fact is we don‟t have to prove anything to anybody but
our lifestyle ought to be proof positive for all to perceive that
we are people of promise.
Peter and John preached, praised, and proclaimed. But
there was something about them that was unique to them.
Others looked upon them and could see that they were not
scholarly and academic but it didn‟t really matter. When you
looked at Peter and John it wasn‟t about what was on them,
it was all about who is in them. The Bible says even their
enemies knew they had been with Jesus. The Bible reminds
us that when a man or woman’s ways please the
Lord He will make even his/her enemies to be at
peace with them (Proverbs 16:7).
Education is a valuable commodity. Academic
accomplishment is a fruit to be desired and not denied.
Intellect is a pathway of preparation that favors successful
pilgrimage. But in the course of it all I don‟t know about you
but I want to be clothed in a confidence that communicates
conviction of the conformation of Christ… In other words a
faith that bears fact that I‟m a child of the King…
This Faith Breaks Through in Benevolence
In this passage of scripture, James paints a portrait of a
would-be man and a woman having just left the worship
experience, they are conversing about the blessings of their
faith.
This man and woman appeared to have it going on by faith.
They begin to talk about the fact that they had everything
they needed.
They had good health, wealth, and no want for anything. But
just about the time they begin to start shouting and praising
God all over again an old man dressed in torn rags, who
looked like he had been sleeping in a junkyard all night long
walked up; and with a tremble in his voice begin sharing his
story.
He said, ma’am/sir life hasn’t been so good to me. He
said, just last night I counted the stars to preoccupy
my mind so that I would not think about my empty
stomach while I fell asleep. Truth is I haven’t had a
decent meal in three days and I really don’t know
what the future holds for me.
The man looked at this old man with a sentimental sigh and
said, I’m going to put you on my prayer list; I’m
going to tell Jesus all about your troubles; I’m
going to call on the name of Jesus on your behalf.
For what He’s done for me He’ll do the same for
you—go on now, go back to where you came from,
sleep well, and be blessed.
But just as the old man began to walk away the woman said
with excitement and enthusiasm in her voice, sir I’ve
already been praying for you. I prayed for you last
night. I couldn’t see your face and I didn’t know
your name but I’ve been praying for you a little
while. I have got your groceries in my back seat.
I’ve got a building right around the corner. I’ve got
a closet full of nice clothes just for you.
The old man with a startled look said, ma’am, how did
you know what I needed? The woman looked at him
with tears in her eyes and said, I DIDN’T KNOW; BUT
I’VE FINALLY LEARNED THAT TRUE FAITH IS
NOT ABOUT TELLING JESUS ABOUT SOMEBODY;
TRUE FAITH IS ABOUT SHOWING JESUS TO
SOMEBODY…
Oh brothers and sisters somebody still needs to see
Jesus… The world is still hungry for the living bread
lift Him up…
And I, if I, be lifted up from the earth I’ll draw…