A Daily Walk

Announcer: There are some that say they have faith, and others that feel they have faith, but then there are those who show their faith. Which one saves? Keep that question in the back of your mind and join us for a daily walk with Pastor John Randall. We continue in our study verse by verse through the New Testament book of James. It’s there that we're given insight into what saving faith is and the role of works. You're about to see some real living examples from the Old Testament as we finish chapter two today.

John Randall: The Bible tells us in Philippians 2:13, it is God who works in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure. God puts it in me and then He enables me to do what He's called me to do. How thankful I am for that. The Bible says God is able to make all grace abound to you, always having a sufficiency in everything that you may have an abundance for every good work.

Second Corinthians chapter nine. James emphasizes that genuine faith isn't indifferent, but it's involved, and he highlights an example of an obvious inconsistency. If a brother or sister in the faith, as he says here in this example, says, "Listen, I'm really in need. I'm hurting. Can you help me?" And you say, "Be warmed. Be filled. Take care. Bye-bye now." You don't really do anything. You don't help. You don't even care.

James says, what is that? That's empty. That's fruitless. There's nothing to it. In the same way, faith, just like those words are empty, faith without action is empty. It's dead. And by dead, James means useless, ineffective, impotent. It's the opposite of living and effective and active and vibrant. It's the exact opposite. James warns that there is such a thing as dead faith, a faith that goes no further than the profession of the lips, but it doesn't match up with any portion of your life. That's a dead faith.

But then there's something else. James says not only is there a dead faith, but there's actually a demonic faith. You say, "What do you mean, demonic faith?" Just look at the passage here. Check this out. Verse 18: "Someone will say, 'You have faith, I have works.' Show me your faith without your works, I'll show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God? You do well. Even the demons believe and they tremble." But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?

Again, James writes of a hypothetical case where a person agrees with him. They say, "Well, I have faith. Faith is good. I have faith, you have works." Or to put it another way, "I like to keep my faith private to myself. It's a private faith. I don't want anybody to know it. It's my faith. It's very private." Some people are like that. But James presents a challenge to the person that thinks that way. Maybe that's you. His response is, "Do me a favor. Show me your faith without your works. Go ahead."

James says, "I'll show you my faith by my works. This is the evidence." How do you know? How is your faith observable? It's only observable by the life that you live. This is how a person demonstrates their faith. They live it out in everyday life. Their works bear witness of their saving faith. Genuine faith isn't hidden. It's on display. It's just a way of life. It's not like I wake up in the morning thinking, "Okay, I'm going to work for God so I want to show everybody how faithful I am and how awesome my faith is." I just wake up and say, "God, I just want to do Your will today. Whatever that looks like, let's do this."

He is so faithful to use me, even in spite of myself. God just works. We just submit to Him and His will and His purpose and His plan, and He works through us. Now James says, "Hey, listen, you who think this way. You believe that there's one God? You say you have faith?" He says, "Let me tell you something. Even the demons believe that there's a God, and they tremble." Genuine faith, in other words, is more than intellectual. It's more than just an assent to a truth or studying the idea of God.

Analyzing a belief system is light years away from receiving the Lord Jesus Christ by authentic faith and living out that faith with real action. Remember, James is addressing the 12 tribes of Israel that were scattered abroad. In speaking to them, the Jews in Deuteronomy chapter 6, verse 4, had what was called the Shema. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one." Jehovah our Elohim, He's one. The Jews recited this always. This is what set them apart from all the pagan, polytheistic neighbors. They took great pride in this profession. "We believe there's one God, and only one God."

James says, "Well, that's great, and you should believe that." But he says also the demons of hell believe that there's one God. They know that Jesus Christ is God. They even know more Bible than some Christians. The devil knows the scriptures. He's been twisting them for years. He knows the word of God. They know that God is real. Do you know that the devil and the demons are not atheists? They're not agnostic. So if you're an atheist or an agnostic, even the devil doesn't have that kind of lifestyle. He knows there's a God. He knows that his time is limited.

You also find in the ministry of Jesus, did you ever notice when reading through the Gospels when Jesus confronted principalities or powers or forces of darkness, that they shuddered at His presence? They even confessed His deity. "We know who you are. You're the Son of God. Don't touch us, please don't hurt us." They couldn't do anything without Him directing them. They were aware that there's judgment to come. You don't want to have dead faith or demonic faith.

James further clarifies his statements by way of real living examples to prove his point concerning faith and the works that follow faith. What he does is he goes back to the Old Testament. Keeping in mind the context of this entire letter, he's writing to the 12 tribes. They're very aware of their history, of their nationality. They know where they come from. They know who Abraham is. They know the whole story. So what he does is he goes back and he looks at these examples in the Old Testament of faith.

The first example was Abraham. Notice in verse 21, "Was not Abraham our father justified by his works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?" Do you see that faith was working together with works? By works, faith was made perfect, matured, or complete. 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. James goes all the way back to Genesis 22. Abraham was the father of the Jewish people, the father of the Hebrew nation.

He started out living in a place called Ur of the Chaldees. They worshipped all kinds of pagan gods there. One day, the Bible tells us in Genesis that the Lord came to Abraham and called him to leave his family. The Lord said, "I'm calling you out of this place, from your familiar area, and I'm taking you somewhere to a land that I'm going to show you." He didn't even tell him where it was. He just gave him the opportunity. Abraham went. The Bible says in Hebrews as a New Testament commentary, he went out not knowing where he was going. That's a little concerning.

By faith, he knew God spoke to him. God called him. "Where you going, Abraham?" "I'm not sure." "What do you mean you don't know?" "I don't know. I'll know when I get there." "You're crazy." Maybe. He was walking by faith. So years go on and one thing that Abraham really wanted was a child. He and Sarah prayed, but they couldn't have children. Sarah was barren. But during this wandering to the promised land that God was eventually going to give Abraham's descendants, the Lord made some insane promises to Abraham.

The Lord said, "Abraham, I'm going to bless you with more kids than you can number." Abraham's like, "I'd be great with one." Sarah, come on, what's happening here? But Abraham believed, and then at one point, the Lord even changed his name from Abram to Abraham, father of many, to father of many nations. He had no children. The Lord took him aside and said, "I'm going to change your name from Abram to Abraham. You are now going to be called the father of many nations. Why don't you go tell the 300 people traveling with you what your new name is and see what they say."

No children. In his 80s. "Hey guys, got an announcement to make. Call me Father of Many Nations." "What did you say?" "My name is Abraham, alright? Let's keep moving." The Lord changed his name, but he believed it. By faith, God accounted it unto him as righteousness. Eventually, the story goes on. They tried to help God out. They had a little kid named Ishmael through Hagar, who was a servant down in Egypt. That was a bust, and that went really bad. That was the work of the flesh. It backfired.

So finally, Abraham's 99 and the Lord comes to him again. He's 99. Oh my goodness. Then the Lord says, "Abraham, Sarah's going to have a child this time next year." It says that Sarah was in the tent and she laughed. And you would too. Abraham, 99, is going to have a bouncing baby boy. Is he going to be able to do anything with the kid? Is he going to just get pushed around by him? What's going to happen? But next year, sure enough, God did it. Guess who was born? Isaac. Do you know what his name means? Laughter. That's appropriate.

Isaac was born, the son of promise, the beloved son. Then there came a point when Isaac was estimated at around 30 years of age, same age Jesus was during that time, 30, 33 years old. He was right about that age, and the Lord said to Abraham, "I want you to take your son, your only son, Isaac, up to Mount Moriah and I want you to offer him as a sacrifice to me there." Without any hesitation, no questions, no arguing, immediately Abraham went to work. He saddled the donkey, got everything ready, said goodbye to Sarah. I don't know if he told her, but they were on their way.

As they made their way to Mount Moriah, Isaac carried the wood. He had the knife, the wood, the fire, and they're making their way up the hill. It dawns on Isaac, "Where's the lamb, Dad? What are we going to sacrifice up there?" Abraham prophetically said to Isaac, "God will provide Himself a lamb." So when they went up, by his own—he didn't fight his dad, he didn't wrestle with his dad—he willingly went on the altar to be sacrificed. In the moment that Abraham was about to go through with what God said, the Lord stopped him and said, "Abraham, now I know you won't hold anything back from Me."

It was a test. It's amazing because then there was a ram, not a lamb, a ram caught in the bushes. They brought that ram that God provided and they sacrificed it there. They went back down the hill and went home. But this is the amazing thing. Isaac serves as a picture for us of Jesus. Isaac, around 33 years old, carrying the wood on his shoulders. Jesus carrying the wood on His shoulders, making His way up to Mount Moriah. It is the other side of the mountain where Jesus is believed to be crucified.

That place is so significant. Years later, just as Abraham had prophesied, God provided Himself a lamb. It was the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, who takes away the sins of the world. Our Lamb. But it's interesting. Abraham's faith in that moment was tested. What was so powerful about his faith? The New Testament gives us commentary on Abraham's faith at that moment. Abraham believed. He was so convinced, because Isaac had been born miraculously at the age of 100, that God could do anything.

His faith was so solidified, so active, so vibrant, that if God wants me to sacrifice him, and he's the fulfillment of the promise, my son, then God's going to have to raise him from the dead. That's how tight his faith was. That's how solid his faith was. God's going to raise him from the dead. That's the kind of faith that Abraham had. James uses that example and he said, "Do you see Abraham's faith with his works?" They were together. Abraham was accounted righteous. He believed.

The moment he believed, he was accounted righteous from that moment. He couldn't do anything except believe and God said, "You're righteous." But what followed that faith, that righteousness, was when God asked him to do something, he did it obediently. There was an obvious expression of his faith. He left Ur of the Chaldees. He trusted God in difficult situations. He believed the promises of God when everything ran contrary to the fulfillment of those promises. He still believed and there were works that followed. That's what James is saying. Faith and works come together.

That's what saving faith looks like. There is some evidence of it. Abraham was that example. What is amazing is it says here, "Abraham believed God, it was accounted him righteousness," and listen to this, "he was called the friend of God." Remember what Jesus said to His disciples? "I no longer call you servants, I call you friends." I'm a friend of God. Who's your best friend? Jesus. That's what He wants to be, a friend of God. It's a relationship. That's what this is. That's what He wants, what He desires. Faith exercised and expressed, the Lord says, "That's my friend right there."

The Jews had taken great comfort in the fact that they were descendants of Abraham. In fact, they were so confident in their connection to Abraham that they believed that no Jew would ever go into eternal punishment and judgment. All they had to do was say, "Abraham's blood is coursing through my veins, I'm going to heaven." They didn't believe that they would be judged. That's why when John the Baptist came on the scene, he said, "Don't think because you're related to Abraham that you're getting in."

He said God is able to raise up descendants from these rocks right here if He wanted to. John was calling the people to repent, of course. Nonetheless, Abraham's expression of faith was evident. But then one other example, a second example that he uses, and that is that of Rahab. It says here, if you'll notice this name: "Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?" All right, let me fast forward going from Genesis to Joshua.

What happens in Joshua? Well, Moses dies. Joshua takes the people into the promised land. They cross over the Jordan, they go in, and they're about to take out Jericho. The Lord gives Joshua a very unique battle plan. He says, "Here's what I want you to do. I just want you to march around the city. Just walk around it. Don't say anything. Just march around it. Have the priests carry the ark. Then on the seventh day, march around it seven times, then blow the trumpet and the walls are going to fall down. It's going to be awesome."

That took faith to believe that. That's an interesting battle strategy. Never been done before. But Joshua had seen a lot of things in his day. He came out of the bondage of Egypt. He said, "Okay, if You say march around the city, that's what we're going to do." But before they marched into the city, what he did is he sent two spies to go into Jericho, check it out, do a little recon. So these two spies made their way into Jericho, and where are they going to hide out? How about a prostitute's house? That's where they went.

Harlot equals prostitute, just in case you didn't know. That's what she was. So they hid there. She said to them when they came in, "Listen, we heard all the stories about your God. We know everything about you. Please do me a favor. Please don't let me be judged with Jericho. Let me be innocent." She hid them. When they came looking for them and asked Rahab, she said, "They went a different way. They weren't here. I didn't see them." But then here's what they said. The two spies said, "Listen, if you want to be spared in this judgment, you take a scarlet cord and hang it outside of your window."

"We'll know that scarlet cord that's hanging outside the window, that house is protected." Again, can I just say to you a picture of Jesus. How so? In the scarlet, the blood, the color, the red, the whole thing. It's a picture. It saved her from judgment. It saved her from death. So when the spies came in and they marched around the city, they rescued Rahab and any of her family who were there. They all got out alive and they were spared. She had faith. She believed in their God.

How did she demonstrate that faith? She took the cord, she hung it outside. "This is an expression of my faith. I believe it." This is the manifestation of my faith. Listen, you want to hear something awesome? Rahab, after she was delivered, after they came out of Jericho and all the walls fell down, she married in with the Jewish people. This is God's grace. Rahab is included in the line that leads to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. In the genealogy, Rahab's name is mentioned there.

You talk about grace. You might be concerned about your family history. Look at the Messiah: Bathsheba, Rahab, Tamar. These weren't awesome ladies, but they were touched by grace. God used them. Rahab is included in the line that led to Jesus. Why? She believed, she exercised her faith, and she became part of that family. It's really fascinating. What a beautiful thing to consider. How do you describe your faith tonight? Would you say it's a dead faith?

"I've made a profession with my lips, but my life is a walking contradiction to everything that I profess to believe." It's not too late to repent and have your faith be active and vibrant, to turn from those things that are wrecking your faith. Repent of them and watch what the Lord will do. Maybe you'd say—you probably wouldn't, but maybe—it's a demonic faith. And by that, I mean you acknowledge there's a God. "I'm cool with Jesus. I love the manger. I got no problem with baby Jesus. Who doesn't love babies?"

He's not a baby anymore. He's a king. And He's coming again. The Lord wants to take you from just an intellectual assent into a personal relationship with Him. That's what He desires: to be a friend of God. Or is your faith dynamic? Is it active, saved by faith, and that faith is demonstrated by the life that is lived for Jesus? Good works follow, not to earn salvation, but because I have salvation. An active faith. Folks, can I tell you that right now, if ever there was a time for the world to see genuine, active, vibrant faith and trust in God from the people of God, now is the time.

I just want to commend you tonight. The fact that you're here is a demonstration of your faith. It really is. It took faith to come here, to come in here. I'm so proud of you. I'm just so blessed to see your faith on display as you come to church and you show up and you say, "We're going to worship Jesus no matter what. I trust in Him. He's faithful. I'm going to keep following. I'm not going to stop." I commend you for that. That's a blessing.

But maybe for some of you tonight, your faith is being tested. I wouldn't be surprised if probably everybody in this room, in the context that you're in, your faith right now is being tested. That's part of it. Did you know that the only way for faith to grow is it has to be stretched? I'm not very limber, physically or spiritually, but God is working. God has ways of stretching our faith, making us more like Him and teaching us to trust in Him. That may be right where you are tonight. That's where we are as a church tonight. We're there. We're trusting in God. We're looking to Him. Our faith is being tested. But you know what we're finding out as our faith is being tested? That our God is faithful. That's what we're finding out.

Announcer: Well, thanks for joining us today for A Daily Walk. To catch a recap of today's message from Pastor John Randall, simply go online to adailywalk.org. You can also listen to studies from John on our free mobile app. Do a search for Calvary South OC in the App Store or Google Play. You know, we light up around here when a listener shares what God is doing in their life and how they're helped through the teaching of God's word. This would be a great time to hear from you as we're beginning a new year.

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