Faith, Works, and Grace
“For just as the body apart from the spirit is dead, thus also the faith apart from works is dead”, James 2:26.
Faith is defined by Scripture in Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the substance of that which is hoped for, the conviction of accomplished deeds not see.” Since faith is the very basis of hope—and hope is always grounded in a promise—faith produces action because it involves taking a person at their word: believing the promise given, and therefore acting upon it.
If a person claims to have faith but demonstrates no actions in relation to what they say they believe, how can we see that they truly believe what they claim? Faith is not merely words, a slogan, or a noble ideal to be agreed with in theory while ignored in practice. If we believe God, then our lives will reflect that belief through works. If someone says they are a Christian but lives a lifestyle that is contrary to the character of a Christian, do they actually have faith?
Therefore, a man is justified in his claim of faith by his actions, not merely by his words. Abraham offered Isaac on the altar because he believed God. Knowing that Isaac was the son of promise—and that God had declared Abraham’s seed would be called through Isaac, not Ishmael—Abraham concluded that God was able even to raise him from the ashes (James 2:21; Hebrews 11:17–18). Rahab the harlot believed that God was with Israel; therefore, she hid the spies sent by Joshua to search out the land and sent them away unharmed, saving herself and her family by her actions (James 2:25; Hebrews 11:31).
The intended end of faith is action—faith perfected. Therefore, by one’s faith works are produced (James 2:22). These are not works for salvation, but works that result from taking God at His word.
When it comes to salvation, it is offered by grace through faith. This offer is not based upon works of righteousness that we have done, but upon God's mercy (Titus 3:4). If salvation were based upon works, then it would no longer be by grace (Romans 11:6). Grace is God’s attitude whereby He gives a benefit without consideration of merit. Works do not bring salvation, nor do they maintain our salvation, because we are saved through belief in Christ’s death on behalf of sins and His resurrection three days later (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). Our works of righteousness have nothing to do with obtaining salvation, and we do not start by faith and then become perfected by works of the flesh (Galatians 3:3–4).
In Matthew 7:15–20, Jesus warns Israel of false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing, declaring, “You will know them by their fruits.” In 2 Peter 2:1, the apostle informs us that today there are no longer prophets, as we now possess the full revelation of Scripture; instead, we face false teachers. These individuals bring in destructive heresies, denying the Lord who bought them. Many follow their destructive ways, for through covetousness and deceptive words they mislead many. In Matthew 13:24–30, Jesus shares the parable of the wheat and the tares, which He then explains in Matthew 13:36–43. The tares represent the sons of Satan whom Satan has sown among the sons of God. Jesus refers here to the time period during which the Church exists on earth. Satan dispatches his ministers, disguised as ministers of righteousness, into the churches to sow heresy (2 Corinthians 11:15). Just as the fruit of a tare is poisonous, so is the fruit produced by these sons of Satan, who are energized by him to appear as ministers of righteousness (Ephesians 2:2).
Just as with the wheat and tares, there are only two times in their growth that we can tell them apart; likewise, it is with the sons of God and the sons of Satan. When the wheat and tares initially sprout from the ground, you can identify them. Similarly, what a person bases their salvation upon is a marker indicating whether or not they are saved. Scripturally, salvation is based solely upon believing that Christ died on behalf of our sins and was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). The sons of Satan teach other gospels: “Accept Jesus into your heart,” “Confess your sins,” “Make Jesus the Lord of your life,” “Learn to be a friend of Jesus,” and similar teachings. The only other time these two groups can be distinguished is by their fruit. A Christian will produce fruit relating to salvation, whereas a tare will produce fruit aimed at gaining or maintaining salvation. The fruit of a Christian is the natural result of their identity in Christ as they live out from faith. In contrast, the fruit of a son of Satan includes teaching step-by-step methods for righteousness, building self-confidence through works of law, giving money to gain favor with God, treating godliness as a means of gain, and such like, while these teachers live a licentious and covetous lifestyle (Jude 3–19).
In James 2:26, he is not saying that in order to have faith we must have works, or that if we do not have works our faith is dead; rather, if one has faith, the natural result will be works. These are not works for salvation, but works that pertain to one who is already saved. If someone is a hearer only—he attends church, listens to Christian music, and follows “Christian” speakers—yet does not apply the truth to his life, he is like a man who observes his face in a mirror; for as soon as he goes away, he immediately forgets what kind of man he is. This is the kind of person who claims to be a Christian, yet lives a lifestyle resembling a child of the devil—marked by fornication, idolatry, and lust. But the one who looks into the mature law of liberty (the law of grace) and continues in it is not a forgetful hearer; his life will manifest the truth he hears because he believes God, producing works that show he has faith (James 1:23–25).
What are the works that relate to salvation? The simple answer is that they are works produced by faith—that is, by taking God at His word.
One of the aspects of our salvation that greatly impacts our actions is that we have been taken out of Adam and placed into Christ. All humans are part of a creation; they are not individually created beings. Therefore, the condition of their head impacts all those in the body. When Adam trespassed and sinned, he brought spiritual and physical death upon all of humanity (Romans 5:12, 17). In Adam all die (1 Corinthians 15:22). When God raised Christ from the dead, He made a new man—the Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). When we believe the gospel for salvation, the Holy Spirit washes and regenerates us (born again), and immerses us into the Christ (Titus 3:4; 1 Corinthians 12:12–13). Therefore, Christ’s death and resurrection have been imputed to the grace believer. Thus, when a person is taking God at His word, they will apply the truth and have victory over their sin nature.
The sin nature is the nature we inherited from Adam, which is bent toward doing wrong. In Christ, we are part of a new man who is created in righteousness and the piety of the truth (Ephesians 4:24). The truth is the doctrine by which we have victory over the sin nature: know, reckon, yield. Know that you have died with Christ and are raised to walk in newness of life, thereby rendering the desires from the sin nature ineffective in your life, because you are no longer its slave (Romans 6:4–6). Instead, we are slaves to righteousness (Romans 6:18). Count this to be true in your life (Romans 6:11). Yield your members to righteousness (Romans 6:13). Therefore, one who is taking God at His word will begin to have victory over sin in their life, producing righteous works.
A person who is living out from faith will produce works because they are being filled up where they lack by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). This filling enables them to produce the character of Christ in their lives: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, objectivity of mind, and self-control (Galatians 5:22–23). These are the ones who seek out the desires from the Holy Spirit, using the new mind they have in Christ to test every situation, to determine if it is the desirous will of God (Romans 12:2).
This is not a person who lives according to any law to justify their salvation or righteousness. The Mosaic Law is a law that relates to the earth, but Christians are citizens of heaven. Therefore, their law is the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:2). This law frees them from the law of the sin nature, giving them liberty to live out a life of righteousness (Romans 8:4). In contrast, a person who is not living by faith will use works of the law to justify their righteousness.
Therefore, if someone says they have faith but has no works, their faith is dead—just as the body without the spirit is dead.