Living by Faith: Faith Demonstrated

A disciple of Jesus should live each day by faith, but what does that mean? What does it mean to have faith? Often we equate faith with belief. We think that we faith if we believe the right things about God or if we do the right religious activities. While there is an element that is true: belief influences our behavior and traditions point us to the right path, it also misses a very important part of faith. We need to start understanding faith in terms of a relationship and not just as belief. Faithfulness is an essential part of a healthy marriage. When we are faithful in marriage we believe the best about the other person, we trust their actions, and we are confident that they have our best interest at heart. In a relationship we also begin to pick up on the habits, the preferences, and beliefs of the other person. As we are faithful to God, not only will we trust him and be confident about his character, but we will also adopt his character. This means a person of faith will demonstrate God’s merciful and gracious character in the world. Text: James 2:14-26 Bottomline: A disciple of Jesus will show compassion as an expression of faith. Challenge: Show compassion. Who can you help this week?