A Faith of Works.

Steve Gentry

[0:00] If you have your Bibles, go ahead and open them to James chapter 2 verses 14 through [0:04] 16, excuse me, through 26 is where we’re going to be this morning.

[0:10] There are times in life when, for those of us that are followers of Jesus, where we come [0:17] to Scripture and it confronts us just so harshly with negative truths about ourselves. [0:27] Things that do not line up with what God says life should look like. [0:33] In those moments, it is hard to believe that we need to change.

[0:41] But it takes a great deal of faith to believe that the Scripture does not need to change, [0:48] rather I do. [0:50] And this morning is kind of one of these moments where we come to a section of Scripture that [0:55] is actually one of probably the most popular sections of Scripture for people to memorize [1:01] and for pastors to look at people and quote. [1:06] But it’s one of those past sections of Scripture that are hard for us to live.

[1:10] It’s one of those moments where we look at it and we say, does it really mean that?

[1:17] Surely he’s over speaking. [1:19] Surely this is some type of hyperbole. [1:22] But this morning is one of these moments where, as a pastor, I want you to know this morning serves as evidence that I love you. [1:30] Because it’s one thing to want to grow a large church and do that by telling people what they want to hear. [1:38] That really tells you I don’t love you. [1:41] I love this organization.

[1:44] But this morning, what I want to talk to you about is I want to show you that I love you and I love you so much, [1:49] I’m not afraid to tell you something that may make you want to leave. [1:54] And so this morning, that’s probably what I’m going to be saying the next 45 minutes doing. [1:59] Is I’m going to be telling you some things that will undoubtedly make some of you angry. [2:05] And I’ll be quite honest, when I read this Scripture, what it does sometimes is it kind of rips my heart out and makes me take a good gander at it. [2:12] It’s one of those moments when you look in the mirror and you don’t like what you see.

[2:16] And sometimes, I’ll be honest, most of the time when I look at this section of the book of James, [2:23] it’s not that I don’t like what I see there, it’s that I don’t like what it shows me about me. [2:31] Because what it shows me about me is the truth that sometimes I am not faithful. [2:38] And that quite often I do everything that I can to be unfaithful to the God who loves me. [2:44] And who’s always faithful to me. [2:48] And this relationship between myself and God, which Scripture frequently equates to the relationship of a spouse,

[2:57] I am the one that is running away from the love of my life to find lesser loves.

[3:05] And this morning, what I really want to do is I want to show each and every one of you, [3:10] that there are places in your life where you are chasing a lesser love than the love that your Father in heaven, [3:21] who we are His bridegroom, the church.

[3:26] That we are chasing lesser loves and there is more available in Him than we could ever find in the infidelity that we often chase after. [3:35] I was talking to a group of leaders this morning in the church and I was talking about what we are going to be talking about today. [3:41] And I likened it to James is fighting a battle in chapters 1 and the first half of chapter 2. [3:47] And he is showing us what the Gospel looks like in our life. [3:51] This is what our lives will look like in the Gospel if the Gospel is true for us. [3:55] And then he comes to 2.14 and there is the movie Clash of the Titans.

[4:00] I love the preview. I have never seen the movie. [4:02] I probably should before I say this, but I haven’t. [4:05] And he gets this point in the previews in Liam Neeson’s character. [4:08] It’s like, release the Kraken! [4:10] That’s what James is going to do to all of us right here. [4:14] He is releasing the Kraken on us.

[4:16] So go to James chapter 2 and look in verse 14. [4:20] But by way of review, we have just finished a section in chapter 2 where he tells us [4:28] that we are as believers, as Christians, as followers of Jesus, [4:34] that we are now to be judged not by the law of Moses, but rather by the law of liberty. [4:42] Which is one of those things in Scripture that most of us, we never really look at. [4:46] We just kind of gander and we pass over it.

[4:48] We know what law is. [4:50] So we think, okay, the law of the Old Testament, we are being judged by that. [4:52] But the law of liberty is something else. [4:55] It’s the Gospel. [4:56] What James is telling us, those of us who are following Jesus, [5:01] who now have this transformation in which we are Christians,

[5:05] in which God has reconciled us to himself, [5:09] the standard by which our lives, the microscope that we are held under, [5:14] is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. [5:17] And that we live and are judged and will go through the Gospel. [5:23] And that that is the means by which we can look and say, [5:28] am I living for God?

[5:30] Am I worshipping God? [5:32] Or am I worshipping self? [5:33] Or am I worshipping any number of other idols that I might or might not have in my life?

[5:40] James directs us and he says, look to the Gospel, [5:42] because you are now being judged by the law of liberty. [5:46] And then he says, and understand that mercy triumphs over judgment. [5:50] In other words, we will never measure up to any standard that God gives us, [5:55] but it is the mercy of God through Jesus Christ that triumphs over any condemnation that we feel [6:04] because we don’t measure up.

[6:06] And everywhere in the book of James when we see that this is what you are supposed to do, [6:11] and then we look and we say, but that’s not really what I do. [6:13] James constantly always draws us back and he says, [6:16] the Gospel is so much bigger than that. [6:20] You will never measure up. [6:23] That’s why the Gospel is so huge.

[6:24] I cannot speak of how big and how great the Gospel is.

[6:31] But then, there is always that but, you know. [6:35] But then he comes to verse 14, and then he says, [6:39] but let’s take a look and find out who we really are. [6:43] Let’s be honest with ourselves. [6:45] In a society in which we are filled with nothing but lies of vanity [6:49] and lies of who we really are, where image of who I am can never show any humility,

[6:54] but I must be proud in who I am. [6:56] James does a very unpopular thing here, and he says, but let’s look at who you really are. [7:01] Let’s be honest about who you are deep down inside of you.

[7:06] And in verse 14, he just goes ahead and he has at it. [7:10] He says, what good is it, my brothers, [7:13] if someone says he has faith but does not have works,

[7:19] can that faith save him? [7:22] It’s very interesting that he starts with this question. [7:25] It’s a very simple question. It’s a very straightforward question. [7:28] Much of the book of James is just straightforward. [7:30] Take it for what it says. [7:33] But we, of course, need the explanation because we are like,

[7:35] but it doesn’t really mean that, right? [7:38] I used to be a teacher in a high school, and I taught Bible. [7:42] And frequently, I would get the question, [7:47] can I do this and still be saved? [7:50] And the question was never, how much can I give God because he’s so good? [7:55] And that’s like the question you want from a teenager,

[7:57] but then you get that question, and it ends up he’s the weirdo that doesn’t really get anything. [8:02] But the majority of kids come to you and are like, [8:06] seriously, with my girlfriend, how far is too far? [8:10] Is there like a line? No? Okay. [8:15] But what they really want to know and what even as adults, let’s be honest, [8:18] what we want answered for us is this question.

[8:20] Okay. In my life, how much does God really want?

[8:28] What can I do and still be saved? [8:31] How much can I get away with? [8:34] How much can I just live for me? [8:37] And then I can give God this over here, and that’s good, right? [8:42] What can I do and still say I’m saved, have this eternal security I keep hearing about, [8:49] have total assurance of my salvation, what’s enough?

[8:54] And so James is going to nail that question with us right now. [8:57] And we’re not going to like his answer.

[9:01] Can that faith save him? [9:03] And then he just gets into it, and he gives us this great explanation. [9:08] He says, if a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, [9:14] and one of you says to them, go in peace, be warmed and filled, [9:18] without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? [9:23] So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

[9:27] He gives us this example, and I’ll make it even more extreme. [9:30] You’re walking down the road in the city, and you see a really good friend of yours, [9:35] and the person is stark naked. [9:37] And it’s 30 degrees outside, and they look like they haven’t eaten in days. [9:41] They’re bruised, they’re bloodied, it looks like someone has just beaten them senselessly. [9:46] And you look at them and you say, man, you look rough!

[9:52] Have a great day.

[9:54] James asks a question. [9:56] What good did that do that person?

[10:00] It did the no good!

[10:03] To actually do them any good, you need to step outside and just kind of say, [10:09] hey, dude, you ain’t got any clothes on. [10:12] Want to go get some? [10:14] And you actually take them, and you get them some, or you take them to the hospital. [10:17] You care for them. [10:18] And surely, you need to, if you know the Scriptures,

[10:20] your mind is going to the story of the good Samaritan in this instance, [10:25] who actually does those things.

[10:29] But James uses this example to equate what faith, [10:34] without a lifestyle that is based on that faith, [10:38] how good that type of faith is doing you. [10:42] And James, I can’t put it any better than that. [10:47] James just tells us straight up, he says, faith without works is dead. [10:54] In other words, worthless.

[10:59] In other words, fake.

[11:03] In other words, not real.

[11:07] James is telling us, faith without works is dead.

[11:14] And to that, we all respond, but what does that really mean?

[11:21] Well, this is what it means. [11:23] Even though I don’t think you need the answer that much, [11:28] I think you know what it means. [11:29] But I don’t think we want to believe that.

[11:33] Because if we say, faith without works is dead, [11:38] then we must also say, are there any works in my faith? [11:46] And I think that’s often the question that most of us avoid.

[11:51] Because if faith without works is dead, [11:54] the opposite of that must then therefore be true, [11:56] that faith with works is alive, right? [12:00] But James doesn’t put it that way, does he?

[12:04] James does not say this in a positive way, [12:07] rather he says the negative. [12:10] And here’s why. [12:13] Because if he says it the other way, it would be even more troubling. [12:19] So let me unpack why he says it this way, [12:21] and then I’ll unpack the other one first.

[12:23] Why is faith without works dead? [12:25] Why does he use this example? [12:27] Why doesn’t he simply say, faith without works is worthless? [12:30] He goes to the extreme and he says dead. [12:33] Here’s why. [12:34] Look to Ephesians chapter 2, verses 1 through 3,

[12:36] and we rarely put these two side by side and put them together. [12:39] In Ephesians chapter 2, starting in verse 1, he says,

[13:04] James is pointing out that reality. [13:11] James is saying, if you come and you say, I believe in Jesus, [13:18] I believe he’s the Son of God, [13:21] I believe that he died for the sins of mankind, [13:25] I believe that he rose from the dead, [13:29] I believe all of those things,

[13:31] and then in your life, you live to the contrary of that. [13:40] Which is a great majority of people, [13:44] where we say we believe this, [13:47] but we base our life on something completely different.

[13:54] James is not saying you’re backslidden, [13:57] to use church language, I guess you could say. [14:01] James is saying you are dead in your sin.

[14:06] James is using the analogy that is used all throughout the New Testament, [14:12] because you’ve got to realize all these guys knew each other, [14:16] whereas in our sin, without Jesus bringing us to life, [14:24] out of death in sin, we’re still dead.

[14:30] And he says, faith without works is dead, [14:33] because you cannot believe the gospel and then not live for the gospel.

[14:46] And that’s where it gets complicated, right?

[14:49] Because then you go, of course, to where James started. [14:52] Well, how much is necessary?

[14:57] And I ask the same question all the time.

[15:01] See, nobody’s been inoculated to this type of conviction. [15:06] I don’t wake up on Monday morning and just immediately say, [15:09] okay, gospel all day, every day. [15:12] I wake up on Monday morning just like you do and say, [15:15] oh, what do I have to do?

[15:18] Again, no.

[15:21] There are times when it’s just like the Bible is dead.

[15:26] When I come to it and it’s like, you know, you always get, [15:29] this is the word of life, you know, Jesus calls it, he says, [15:31] man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. [15:36] And it’s like, wow, that means the scripture’s sustenance. [15:39] It is what actually brings life to me. [15:42] And I come to it and I read it and I’m just like, okay.

[15:48] Sports center.

[15:54] There’s so many mornings where I’m praying.

[15:58] And of course, there are many mornings where I’m not. [16:00] But there are many mornings when I am praying. [16:04] And within five minutes, sometimes five seconds, I’m hungry.

[16:12] I’m hungry.

[16:15] And, you know, some of you, what we do is we come to church [16:18] and we all look so good. [16:20] And you guys do. [16:21] You look great every Sunday morning when you come in here. [16:23] And you try to give off this impression as if that’s not you. [16:27] You know, you’ve been fasting all week, I’m sure.

[16:30] You know, you haven’t eaten in days.

[16:34] But if we’re really honest, this is where we live.

[16:39] Is that when we look in verses like that, it comes right into our heart. [16:44] And we look at it and we say, am I even saved?

[16:50] Do I even know Jesus? [16:53] Because, man, I’m telling you, sometimes my faith doesn’t… [16:56] I’m not living this. [16:59] I’m not living this. [17:00] I’m struggling. [17:01] I want to so bad, but I just don’t…

[17:04] I’ll go weeks and I’ll forget that I even have a Bible.

[17:09] I’ll be struggling on Sunday morning because I want people to see me [17:13] carrying my Bible into church, but I don’t know where I put it. [17:16] Or better yet, it’s under your seat in your car where it was last Sunday [17:20] so that you know you won’t forget it for church. [17:23] And there’s that one Sunday where your wife cleaned the car out [17:26] and you’re like, oh, where is it?

[17:29] And James hits us right where we actually live and tells us [17:33] and uses the harshest language that he can possibly use. [17:37] And he gives us this nail in our coffin when he’s… [17:41] I’ve already been feeling rough enough as it is about the sins [17:44] that I’m struggling with in my life. [17:46] And James looks at me and it’s as if he’s saying,

[17:48] oh, you still struggle with sin? [17:50] Hmm, you’re not saved.

[17:55] And I’m like, wait a second. [17:58] The Gospel is good news, correct? [18:01] It’s about what Jesus did, not about what I do, correct?

[18:06] I thought there wasn’t any effort necessary in me [18:09] to earn my salvation with God, correct? [18:13] Yes. [18:14] So what in the world could James possibly be talking about right here? [18:18] And I’ll tell you, that type of mental game and fight [18:21] that we all have inside of ourselves,

[18:24] that’s why one day the great theologian Martin Luther, [18:26] who, I mean, his works on grace changed everything in the history of the church [18:31] and every denomination outside of Catholicism exists because of him.

[18:38] He…the story goes, through the book of James on a lake one day, [18:43] it drove him so angry with this text.

[18:48] Because he had spent years focusing on texts like Ephesians 2, verses 8 and 9, [18:54] which is just a little bit later, that says, you know, [18:55] it’s by grace through faith, not of works, so that no man can boast.

[19:04] And James seems to totally undo all of that. [19:08] The half-brother of Jesus, you know, what in the world is he thinking? [19:11] He comes in and totally gives us a different story. [19:14] Or is he?

[19:17] And I don’t believe that he is. [19:20] Because here’s how it works. [19:22] Look back at James chapter 1, verse 22. [19:25] The text that we covered a couple of weeks ago in James chapter 1, verse 22, [19:29] James writes, but be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. [19:38] Okay?

[19:39] And we built a few weeks ago a foundation on top of that text that said, [19:48] you become doers by starting as hearers. [19:53] Okay? [19:53] The Gospel is not something that you work for or you work at [19:59] or that you earn like it’s a paycheck for a job well done. [20:04] What the Gospel does, and we see this in Romans chapter 10,

[20:08] where it says, anyone that calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. [20:10] And then it says, and how will they hear unless someone tells them? [20:13] It’s news to be informed of. [20:16] I’m not involved in most of the news that I hear about, because it’s news to me. [20:21] It’s something that someone else did, and in the Gospel it’s something that Jesus did [20:28] that draws me in, but it’s his finished work.

[20:33] But on top of that news, it’s unlike any other news that’s ever existed. [20:40] And the word Gospel, in the original language, eungelion, did not exist for this news of Jesus Christ. [20:48] It existed for Rome. When they would win a battle, [20:51] they would send a Gospel bearer back to Rome to bring the good news of victory for Caesar. [20:59] But over the past 2,000 years, do we ever hear the word Gospel used of anything outside of Jesus Christ? [21:07] No. And if you do, it’s rare. And it’s an over speaking.

[21:11] Because the reason that the news of what Jesus Christ had done was completely different than any other type of news, [21:17] and it’s gotten its own verbiage now for itself, is because there is no news bigger than this, [21:23] that we are sinful, that we are dead in our sins, and rather than lay the penalty for that onto us, [21:31] which would be justice, God has redeemed us through his Son, Jesus Christ, [21:36] and does a work inside of us that transforms us based on his good works.

[21:45] But therein lies the problem. Is that term that we constantly find throughout the New Testament, [21:53] or the idea rather, transformation. Conversion. [22:02] The reason that faith without works is dead, is because inside of Christianity, [22:07] we constantly have this idea that you are being converted from one thing to another thing.

[22:17] You’re being changed. Bishop J.C. Ryle once said that, [22:21] I do not know what conversion is outside of change. If there is no change, then there is no conversion.

[22:29] Whenever, you know, if you are in any type of office work now, there’s all these changes to everything going digital. [22:35] If you work at a school, or if you work in any type of medical records, everybody is going to digital information. [22:42] And what most offices call that is a conversion. Why? Because you are changing something.

[22:48] So you convert hard files to digital files.

[22:55] In scripture, what the Gospel does, is it finds us in the state that Ephesians 2, verses 1 through 3, [23:02] shows us that we are dead in our sins. In other words, there is no spiritual life inside of us at all. [23:09] We are completely unpleasing to God. Isaiah says that our righteousness, [23:13] anything that exists as good in us is as filthy rags compared to God. [23:18] Is there a difference between being dead and being alive? Yeah. [23:24] Been to a funeral? Dead people don’t really do anything.

[23:29] I remember, and I’ll just bring it home. When I was 14 years old, my grandfather passed away. [23:35] And I went to the funeral. It was the first funeral I had ever been to. [23:38] Not necessarily the funeral, I went to the viewing. I didn’t go to the funeral because I was 14. That freaked me out. [23:41] But I went to the viewing, and this is why I didn’t go to the funeral, because I went to the viewing. [23:45] And I actually saw my grandfather there, and I loved my grandfather. [23:50] And he was laying there, and he had been embalmed, and he had the rouge on and the stuff.

[23:53] And he was laying there, and he was dead.

[23:58] And it doesn’t take long to figure out my grandfather’s not really there.

[24:04] There’s a big difference between what he was and what he now is. [24:09] And so we think life then death. But the Gospel shows us something different. [24:14] Death then life. And Jesus does this magnificently in the life of Lazarus, [24:20] His friend who died and passed away, and then Jesus comes and he weeps because it’s his friend and his friend has died. [24:28] But then Jesus goes before the tomb on the fourth day when they really counted someone dead, [24:33] because they didn’t have the technology that we have now. And Jesus goes before the tomb, and he says, Lazarus, come forth.

[24:40] And he does this as a great expression of the Gospel.

[24:44] In this literal event, we find this great allegory for what takes place in the Gospel. [24:49] We are dead in our sins as Lazarus was physically dead, and Jesus comes in the Gospel, [24:57] and he sends the Spirit, and he comes and he says, live!

[25:03] And we raise, and we’re alive! And we’re not dead anymore!

[25:10] And now we are not dead to our sin, but rather we are alive to faith in Jesus. [25:16] Look further in Ephesians chapter 2. If any time you struggle to remember what the Gospel is, [25:23] or you struggle to put it into words, what is the Gospel? [25:26] Ephesians 1-10. Just read it and just memorize it. It is the Gospel. [25:34] Starting in verse 4 where he’s just said we’re children of wrath, we’re dead in our sin, [25:39] and he says, but God, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us,

[25:46] even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. [25:53] By grace, you have been saved. [25:56] What he’s telling us is that life is found in Gospel faith. [26:02] In other words, what Jesus does in the Gospel brings us to life, and that life will be different.

[26:16] But how different?

[26:20] Look further in James chapter 2. [26:23] Look in verse 18.

[26:26] I love it. I like James because he constantly gives the objections that people will say. [26:33] But someone will say you have faith and I have works. [26:37] Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

[26:45] You ever heard a statement like, well that’s where the rubber meets the road, the proof is in the pudding, [26:49] you know, don’t talk the talk, walk the walk, all these phrases. [26:51] Just use all of them there. That’s what James is saying.

[26:57] And here’s where he really, you believe that God is one, you do well. [27:04] Even the demons believe and shudder. [27:09] Do you want to be shown, foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? [27:18] He makes it so it’s been our face that starts calling us names there.

[27:23] Here’s what he’s saying. [27:25] Do you believe that Jesus is God? Most of us will say yeah. [27:29] Do you believe he rose from the dead? Most of us will say yeah. [27:32] Do you believe that he died on the cross for the sins of the world? [27:34] You say yes. [27:36] Do you believe that Jesus is right now at the right hand of the Father?

[27:40] That’s where preachers really start preaching that’s Jesus. [27:42] We’re like, yeah, amen, you know, we get really excited. [27:45] And then James says, oh, you’re really excited? Awesome. [27:48] Satan believes all that.

[27:52] Good job.

[27:55] I mean, James is ruthless.

[28:00] He’s just, you’re doing great. [28:03] You believe all the right stuff. [28:05] You can get an A in Sunday school. [28:08] You’d go to Awanas and you’d be the grand champion.

[28:14] The demons believe all that stuff. [28:17] And what good is that going to do them?

[28:22] And some of you might be saying, some? No. [28:27] I’ve read the back of the book. [28:29] I skipped ahead to the end, all right. [28:31] And there’s this part where Satan is thrown into the lake of fire for eternity. [28:36] And James uses the most extreme example possible to say you can believe all of the facts.

[28:49] And you’re lost.

[28:58] And that for me, someone that values academics and intellect,

[29:09] it’s just very sobering because it lets me know there’s something else.

[29:16] And James is letting them know that if they believe everything that’s on the paper, [29:19] they’re doing a great job. [29:22] He’s not negating that importance, but what he’s saying is there’s something else.

[29:29] What is it that Satan is missing? [29:33] Because most of us are right there where we know all the good stuff, [29:37] but sometimes we just can’t live it. [29:40] What is it that Satan’s missing? [29:41] Satan doesn’t love God.

[29:45] Satan doesn’t love Jesus.

[29:49] The demons in hell have zero desire for a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. [29:56] They do not want to be reconciled to the Father. [30:00] They do not look at the cross and say, thank you. [30:04] They do not look to the cross and say, I deserve hell, [30:08] but God loved me so much that he sent his Son for me.

[30:13] There is no desire inside of Satan to worship God.

[30:21] You say, what does that mean? [30:23] And I’ll just give you this example quickly.

[30:27] I love my wife. [30:29] She had to leave. My son’s been sick all week. [30:31] Actually, we went to a couple of, you guys are here, a couple of members of our church who just had a baby. [30:35] We took them to dinner this week. [30:36] We were being such good Christians that day. [30:39] My son puked all over their living room.

[30:41] It was quite embarrassing. [30:44] My wife had to take him home, but I love that woman. [30:47] To say you can date a lot of women, and when you meet your wife, it’s like, whoa, that’s life changing, right? [30:57] Well, if I had met my wife the many years ago that I met her, [31:02] and I had never wanted to spend any time with her, [31:05] I’m talking even when we were dating,

[31:08] I never wanted to spend any dough on her. [31:11] I never wanted to take her out to dinner. [31:14] I never wanted to do anything with her. [31:16] I never wanted to show her any type of affection whatsoever. [31:20] And I love the women in here. [31:21] Sounds like my husband now.

[31:24] I remember the good old days, ladies, you know, way back when. [31:28] All right. [31:30] But even when we started dating, I just didn’t care about any of that stuff. [31:35] And then I said, but I love her. [31:38] Most of you would say, liar, you do not.

[31:44] You don’t have a good definition of love, dude.

[31:49] But that is how we treat God.

[31:55] No person that is a Christian or claims to be a Christian would ever look to us and say, [32:01] I don’t love God, and I show it by the way I live. [32:05] No, we’re just, because I do love him. [32:09] I just, you know, I’m busy.

[32:14] She would have never married me if I had done that to my wife.

[32:22] But let me use this example. [32:25] Here’s where the religious ones of us are. [32:27] Here’s where some of us, we have works, but we don’t have faith.

[32:32] John Piper uses this example. [32:33] He says, let’s say I was one day I’m driving home from work and I just go by my wife a dozen roses. [32:41] And women love getting flowers. [32:42] I don’t know why. [32:44] They die quickly. [32:46] There’s literally no return on that investment.

[32:51] Like within three days. [32:53] And I’m like, huh, well, you’re welcome. [32:56] But I come home with all these flowers, and my wife, she’s had a tough day. [33:01] I mean, she’s a great mother, and she works, and she’s just a wonderful woman. [33:05] And I come home and I hand her a dozen roses, and she’s like, oh, thank you. [33:09] That’s awesome.

[33:09] My wife loves flowers. [33:11] She’s like, thank you so much. [33:13] She’s like, what made what? [33:15] Why did you do this? [33:16] Because she always asks that. [33:18] What overcame you to give me flowers?

[33:20] And then you’re like, yeah, come up with a good answer. [33:23] And I look at her and I say, dear, that’s the duty of a husband. [33:29] We’re supposed to do stuff like this. [33:32] It’s in the rule book.

[33:36] I mean, it’s worse than if I hadn’t gotten her anything. [33:40] And all you women are like, yeah, that’s right.

[33:44] Because what did I do right there? [33:46] I just did something out of duty because I was supposed to do it. [33:49] It’s why teenagers do homework, because they’re supposed to. [33:52] Not because it fills our hearts with joy. [33:56] But then think about this. [33:57] I do the same thing, I mean, the same action.

[34:00] I bring my wife a dozen roses, and then I give them to her. [34:04] I’m like, here, baby. [34:07] And she’s like, why did you do this? [34:09] I said, you’ve got to understand, honey.

[34:14] When I do something for you, it’s because it fills my heart with so much joy to see a smile on your face. [34:25] It makes me happy to do small things to show you how much I love you. [34:32] All right? [34:33] That’s where the love music comes on. [34:36] The candles are lit. [34:39] I mean, that’s what women dream of.

[34:40] That’s a John Cusack film, folks.

[34:45] Chicks dig it, rent one, guys.

[34:49] But she’s overcome because I showed her tangibly how much I loved her. [34:54] But better than that was the attitude that came with the roses. [34:58] The attitude that her happiness gives me joy.

[35:07] Satan takes no joy in anything that he believes about God.

[35:18] And so even if he were to do the most religious looking of activities,

[35:24] faith without works is dead. [35:26] The works James is talking about is not some type of acidic self-denial in which you’re not doing what you really want to do. [35:38] James is informing us of the reality of what life in the gospel actually looks like. [35:44] That God comes and finds us living our lives for lesser joys than he himself has to offer through his son Jesus, [35:54] which is the worship and adoration and glorification of him because we actually get to know who he is. [36:01] And he finds us and he gives us that joy.

[36:04] And he says, live for me because outside of that is lesser joy. [36:09] You’ll never find joy like you’ll find in living for me. [36:12] And he gives us everything. [36:13] Ephesians 1 says he’s blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. [36:19] And he says, live for my joy.

[36:25] The faith that works is a faith filled with the same desire that I have to show my wife my love for her. [36:35] Not because it’s some denial of me doing that, but because in my relationship with my wife I find everything I’ve ever wanted in a woman.

[36:44] And in my relationship with God I’ll find everything I’ve ever wanted in a god. [36:48] But often times I spend much of my life filling myself with false gods.

[37:01] This is why in Matthew chapter 11 verse 30, Jesus makes a very interesting statement that most of us struggle to understand. [37:10] For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. [37:13] Because when many of us come to the church we’re like, oh there’s a lot of burden here, right? [37:16] A lot of work to be done?

[37:20] Jesus says that because the burden of Christianity is the burden of self sacrifice. [37:29] Of sacrificing lesser joys for greater joys that we have in God.

[37:37] Because works emerge from faith.

[37:43] You can’t put the cart before the horse and say, I’ll do all the work and it’ll earn me some faith. [37:51] No. You hear the news, then you react to it. [37:55] And here’s how he says, verse 21.

[38:05] You see that faith was active along with his works. [38:09] And faith was completed by his works. [38:12] And the scripture was fulfilled that says, Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness.

[38:19] In other words, the scripture says in the book of Genesis, when God comes to Abraham and makes his covenant. [38:24] Abraham comes out and one of the times where he’s struggling, later after the Abrahamic covenant, Abraham comes out and he’s like, God I’m struggling to believe this. [38:31] This is a big thing for me to believe. [38:34] And God comes to him and says, Abraham let me put it to you this way. [38:36] And he makes the same covenant with Abraham again. [38:38] And he tells him, he reveals his promises to him again.

[38:41] And then Abraham says, and he believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness. [38:45] That’s gospel belief. [38:47] Where we look to the promises of God and we say, I actually believe he’s going to deliver on that. [38:52] That’s gospel belief. [38:54] But what James’ point is, he says, look at the life that emerges from that belief in Abraham’s life. [39:00] He actually uproots his entire family and moves to a land he never knew before.

[39:07] He actually lived his life in belief of what God said life was supposed to look like.

[39:16] And he says, his belief was shown by his works. [39:21] But then you look at the life of Abraham and you see that Abraham, he screws up a lot.

[39:28] And here’s where I want to comfort some of you. [39:32] Because this is one of the, and should be, if you’re not convicted by this passage then you’re lost.

[39:39] This is one of the most convicting passages in scripture. [39:42] And it should be. [39:44] And some of you are struggling in sin. [39:47] Some of you have habitual sins in your life that you just want freedom from. [39:52] And you’re like, but I just struggle. I fall over and over and over again.

[39:59] I want you to understand that inside of that struggle is where faith lies.

[40:10] Not the false lying thing. [40:13] It’s sitting there. In other words, I should have used a different word.

[40:17] That’s where faith is. [40:19] And you say, what do you mean? [40:20] I say it this way. [40:22] Why do you think James has to tell us this?

[40:28] Because we’re strugglers, man. [40:32] We don’t know what to believe. [40:33] It has to be spelled out to us. [40:35] Look over to Colossians.

[40:38] Chapter 2. [40:39] And this is how Paul puts it. [40:41] Paul says, Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, [40:47] rooted and built up in Him, and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. [40:53] I want you to focus on that walking thing. [40:56] Why do we have to constantly be reminded of the scriptures?

[40:59] Why does Paul at the end of his epistles sometimes say, I write this by way of reminder? [41:05] Or in Philippians he says, I don’t mind that I have to write this and remind you of this again. [41:09] Because everybody in the church is struggling somewhere with faith being lived out. [41:17] So he’s not saying, if you’re not perfect, you’re not saved. [41:21] What he’s saying is, faith without works is dead. [41:25] And you are working to show the faith that you have and to build your life on the gospel.

[41:31] And to have a vision in your life that is entrenched by the gospel in every area. [41:37] Where you’re redeeming everything. [41:39] Where you’re rooting redemption in your life in all these places. [41:42] But then some of you are struggling to do that.

[41:49] This is a good place for you to struggle.

[41:53] It’s a good place.

[41:57] I care deeply what your sins are.

[42:01] But not so that I can kick you off the volunteer team.

[42:07] I care deeply what your sins are because you can’t do this alone.

[42:13] James is writing to a church where people are struggling with persecution. [42:18] They’re struggling with illness. They’re struggling with sin. [42:21] And he says, struggle together.

[42:26] If you fall into a sin that you struggle with all the time, [42:31] it will not kick you out as long as you struggle.

[42:35] It’s not those of you that are struggling that I’m worried about. [42:37] But it’s those of you in here that aren’t struggling at all.

[42:43] It’s those of you in here that are self-righteous and don’t think that you have any sin to struggle with that I worry about. [42:49] Because if you’re here and you’re struggling with something, stay here. [42:54] Join a community group.

[42:57] Please, I beg you. [42:59] Come at 8.30 on Sunday mornings as we have a prayer team. [43:02] Go to that prayer team and they’ll pray over you. [43:05] They’ll lay hands on you. They’ll pray for you.

[43:12] Struggle here. [43:14] Struggle with your sin. [43:15] Stop believing the lie that is not faith, that you have to pretend everything is okay when it’s not.

[43:23] Struggle here.

[43:26] Whatever it is, it’s a safe place to struggle. [43:30] But be sure that you’re struggling.

[43:34] Because some of you are not.

[43:38] And you’re just pretending everything’s okay. [43:40] And as long as you come to church, everything’s okay. [43:44] And you don’t want to change anything in your life. [43:46] And you want to have this divide between church and the rest of your life. [43:50] And when you’re at church you say, everything’s okay. [43:52] I’ve got faith. I believe the gospel. Hallelujah.

[43:54] But then you go out and you just live a life in denial of the gospel where you’re earning your own righteousness in some things. [44:00] And you’re a wicked sinner in other things. [44:02] And you’re not struggling.

[44:07] You are not saved.

[44:11] And you need to be saved.

[44:16] Because you need to struggle.

[44:21] Because works reveal true faith. [44:26] Look at what he says here. [44:29] And he finishes starting in verse 24. [44:34] And he says, you see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. [44:40] In other words, God comes and transforms us and then we live our lives for the gospel in every area of our lives.

[44:48] He says, and in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way. [44:56] And then listen to this. [45:00] For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead. [45:05] He puts a bookend on it. [45:07] But he uses this great example. He says, as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead. [45:13] And he’s defeating this idea that was a Gnostic heresy back then.

[45:17] That Jesus didn’t have a real body. He was just a soul. [45:20] And that we’re just souls that inhabit these pods on earth. [45:23] But no, James is saying, no. [45:27] Jesus didn’t come. [45:29] And here’s where you religious people and even you strugglers this morning, you need to hear. [45:34] Jesus did not come to save part of you.

[45:38] But some of us live as though he did. [45:41] Jesus didn’t come to redeem the spiritual side of you, but the physical side of you is to be lived for everything else.

[45:48] You don’t have your church life and then your financial life, your family life, your career, all that other stuff. [45:55] There’s this sacred, secular divide that all of us have lived in for a long time and we’re very comfortable with it. [46:00] Where not everything is spiritual and some things are physical and some things are spiritual. [46:04] What James says right there, the body without the spirit is dead.

[46:10] In other words, Jesus didn’t come to redeem half of us and let the other half be satanic.

[46:16] Because that’s what that belief really is. [46:19] Jesus came to redeem whole people. [46:22] Jesus came to redeem everything in your life. [46:25] Jesus came so that you could have every joy you didn’t even know you were capable of having in your life because it’s found in him. [46:34] And he came to redeem every aspect of your life for himself.

[46:41] And some of you don’t have that type of redemption. [46:43] You have a religious type of redemption and some of you are just sinning a lot and you need to be redeemed because you have no victory over your sin because you don’t know Jesus.

[46:52] But understand that there is no sacred, secular divide. [46:55] Jesus came to kick that wall down, read the whole book of Ephesians.

[47:01] Jesus came to redeem all of you so that you could have the best life that God has to offer. [47:10] Not pain free, but painful.

[47:17] And in that pain, you’ve still got everything you’ve ever dreamed because you have God. [47:26] Jesus came and gave us the gospel so that we would build our entire lives of redemption on top of it. [47:33] Not so that we could constantly make excuses. [47:35] Not so that we could constantly come up with reasons why we can’t have what everybody else has. [47:41] Not so that we could be second class Christians and first class Christians. [47:45] But because all of us are supposed to find our identity in Jesus.

[47:52] And some of us are not.

[47:58] Does your faith work? [48:00] Does it work?

[48:03] Do you have in your life a passion for God? [48:08] Have you ever had affection for God? [48:13] Have you ever looked to God and just had love in your heart? [48:18] Some of you say, no I’m trying but it’s not there.

[48:24] You can have it.

[48:27] You can have it. [48:29] God wants to make you alive through Jesus Christ today.

[48:37] Faith, for that works, is dead. [48:41] Do you have gospel faith?

[48:47] If you do not, please trust Jesus today. [48:56] And you can begin to live a life of worship. [49:02] Where your struggle is part of your worship.

[49:07] Rather than just struggling to fit in. [49:12] You struggle because you found the love you’ve never had before.

[49:18] Right now, I want to transition into a time where we take communion. [49:23] I want you to understand that there is no freedom apart from the gospel.

[49:29] There’s no freedom available outside of Jesus. [49:32] Just drudgery in either sin or religion. [49:35] And neither one of them are going to do you any good.

[49:38] If you want to trust Jesus, do it today.

[49:44] Come up here and talk to me. Go to the back. [49:47] Talk to someone. It will not embarrass you, I promise. [49:51] For those of you that do believe, [49:53] I want you to spend a few moments looking at your faith and saying, [49:57] where am I living as if my faith is dead? [49:59] And where does repentance need to take root in my life?

[50:02] Where do I need to start struggling?

[50:06] And then I want you to come and proclaim the death of Jesus to each other. [50:11] If you believe.

[50:14] Father, we love you. [50:17] We praise you. [50:18] We ask this morning that redemption would take root in all of our lives.

[50:27] Or that this passage would become our battle cry.

[50:32] That we have been accepted by you, we’ve been reconciled to you through Jesus, [50:36] and in that we find freedom to live for you.

[50:41] In you we find joy. [50:43] May you awaken that desire inside of us. [50:46] And may our souls actually sing this morning of a love that we have for you. [50:53] And I pray for some in here.

[50:57] That you would take them from death and give them spiritual life.