Living by Faith

This illustration is a cliché, yet still a good illustration. If someone told me my house was on fire, but I could not see or smell the evidence, then my actions would depend on whether or not I believed that person. Without any evidence, my trust in them would be based on whether he always told the truth and whether his life matched his words. If I believed him, of course I would get out of my house.

James wrote a letter to the early church warning them that if their faith was real, it would result in a changed life. They would act differently based on what they believed.

If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. (James 2:15-17)

His illustration is a bit odd. There are many people who do not have faith in Jesus Christ and still take care of the needy around them. How can this action then be an evidence of faith?

My quick answer is that James gave more illustrations. He reminded them about Abraham who took his son up a mountain and prepared to sacrifice him because God told him to, and even though it was a test and God stopped him, Abraham didn’t know that. He did it because he believed God.

James also told about a woman who risked her life to protect God’s people. She trusted God and knew that doing right was more important than being worried about her own skin.

Faith in Jesus Christ is more than fire insurance regarding eternity. In fact, that kind of faith might not pass this works-evidence test. Instead, faith is trusting all of life (not just the end of life) to Jesus because I believe He is God in human flesh who died for my sins and rose from the dead. He has credentials. What He says is true. I can base not only my death, but also my life on Him.

James’ illustration about the care of the needy leaves out something that other parts of the Bible fill in — motivation. I don’t know the motivations of pagan philanthropists, but from what Jesus said in Matthew, they do it to be “seen of men” rather than to please God.

Besides that, most of the generosity I see outside the church is from people who have lots of money to give away. Yet James doesn’t qualify his illustration. While God never expects me to give away what is not mine to give, He does ask me to give whatever I have — trusting Him to supply my need. That is the difference. A rich person checks his bank account before opening his wallet, but a person of faith looks up to God who filled that wallet in the first place. Genuine faith knows that He is the source of all we need and He will take care of us. He can fill that purse again.

Using the illustrations James gives, faith is real when God’s people do what He says even though His commands seem strange or immensely sacrificial. Faith is real when we put the lives of His people before our own. And faith is real when He looks at the heart as we empty our purse to supply the needs of someone else and sees the strong conviction that we don’t have to worry about ourselves and our own needs because He will take care of us.

Faith is a gift, but not a gift without substance. It is not “blind” or based on feelings or hunches. Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing the Word of God. The more I listen to Him speaking to me, the more I know about who He is and what He has done, and the more I trust Him. It is only natural that trusting Him means acting like it.