Doing VI

 Faith generates works. It’s a simple concept to wrap our minds around, but somehow difficult to come to terms with for some. It’s also what James asserts when he says show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

There are works that honor God, and there are works that do not. Faith generates works that honor God. You know which is which by whether or not it honors God or honors man, whether it shines the spotlight on His kingdom or our own. Many claim to serve and honor God when their singular purpose is to elevate and glorify themselves. It’s all about their ministry, their calling, their purpose, their vision, and their mission, and rarely, if ever, about Him.

If a man boasts of himself, in himself, drawing attention to his deeds, insisting that he is the gateway to truth, that man is to be avoided at all cost because what he is creating is adoration for the creation rather than the Creator.

There is a difference between striving to build something and striving to serve someone. When striving to build something, you’re always looking out for your own interests, positioning yourself for the greatest return on your investment, whether that investment is time or resources.

When striving to serve someone, your singular focus is on your Master’s best interest and whether what you are doing is honoring Him and building His kingdom. It’s why those of the primary church were so successful in spreading the gospel throughout the world. They weren’t looking to build the ministry or brand of an individual; they were looking to bring glory and honor to God. It didn’t matter to them what people thought of them, how many signed up for their newsletter, how wide of an audience they had, or what their social media engagement was like. They did the work. They preached the gospel. They walked in authority rightly theirs as servants of God rather than self-serving imitators of something they heard about via third-hand retellings.

They were not interested in accolades or praises. Their singular desire was to be useful to the God who had redeemed them, and if that meant dying martyrs’ deaths, they did so joyfully and unabashedly. If God hasn’t changed, and we know He hasn’t because He changes not, then it’s the quality of servant that has diminished over the centuries. Today’s servants see servanthood as stepping stones to something greater rather than their lifelong duty, and it shows in their reticence to speak the hard truth for fear of offending those who might otherwise help finance their dreams.

The easier you make it, the more of an audience you will have. Eventually, it becomes so easy that it borders on the absurd, wherein even if you want nothing to do with God, He’ll put you in a chokehold until you pass out, then drag you to heaven against your will.  

James 2:19-20, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe - and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”

Even though demons believe and even tremble, their works do not honor God. It’s a heady thing to realize that demons understand, perceive, and believe the reality of God more than most people walking the earth today. They tremble because they understand God's righteousness, for they know that their judgment is near.

If you believe that Jesus is the only way, the only truth, and the only life and have come to the conclusion that salvation is obtained through Christ alone, yet your life has not changed, you have not been transformed, and you pursue the selfsame destructive passions you did before you came to know of Christ, then your faith is dead. I say know of Him because if there is no change, transformation, repentance, or turning, you do not know Him but simply know of Him. Intellectual acknowledgment does not true, abiding, and transforming faith make. If it were so, then the demons that believe would have a shot at redemption.

In case anyone thought to accuse him of speaking out of turn, James backs his claims with biblically historical precedent and proof. It’s not as though what he is saying is new and never before uttered; it’s something that those to whom he was writing could look back on and verify for themselves in the historical and religious text of their day.

James 2:21-24, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.”

When we look at the example James puts forth, we realize that the works he speaks of is unquestioning, unflinching, complete, and total obedience to the will of God in your life, without drawing back, obfuscating, or attempting to change His mind. God spoke, and Abraham obeyed. Anyone who doesn’t think that Abraham loved Isaac and that’s why he was willing to offer him up has never been a parent. Abraham loved Isaac, as any father would love his son, but he loved God more. That’s a lesson worth pondering for each and every one of us.

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea, Jr.