James 2:14-26 A Faith That Doesn’t Work…Won’t Work

While preparing the texts for the upcoming sections in Mark, I realized this week that we will be discussing the suffering and humiliation of Jesus on Easter Sunday. Since Resurrection Sunday is the day set aside for rejoicing in the risen Savior and celebrating the completion of our eternal salvation, we will pause our study in Mark until after Easter. Last week, Glenn did a wonderful job encouraging us to respond to trials with endurance and joy because God uses them to strengthen our faith. In his introduction, Glenn mentioned how many claim there is a contradiction between James and Paul. In Romans 4-5, Paul states that we, like Abraham, are justified by faith alone, while James seems to say that Abraham (and us) are justified by faith along with works. Glenn correctly pointed out that there is no contradiction whatsoever, but I thought it would be helpful to examine what James says about faith and works to see why there is no contradiction from the text itself. When we study James 2 closely, we find not only that it aligns with the Bible’s teaching of salvation by faith alone, but also that it helps us understand the power of God through faith to change hearts and lives, allowing us to base our eternal assurance on what God says. So, this Sunday, we will preach on James 2:14-26 and celebrate Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday. Afterward, we will return to finish the gospel of Mark. I. A Faith Without Works Is Useless (James 2:14-17) II. Faith Is Shown By Its Works (James 2:18-25) III. A Faith Without Works Is Dead (James 2:26)