James 2:1-26
Live with love
The poor come to us in many forms. Mother Teresa said, ‘Never turn your back to the poor, for in we turn your backs to the poor, you are turning it to Christ.’
Love for the poor is not an optional extra. It is at the heart of the New Testament. It is evidence of living faith: ‘If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbour as yourself,” you are doing right’ (v.8). Your love is shown especially in what you do for the poor (vv.2–7), the hungry (v.15) and the needy (v.16). ‘Kind mercy wins over harsh judgment every time’ (v.13, MSG).
Treat the rich and the poor equally. If we discriminate against the poor, then we have ‘become judges with evil thoughts’ (v.4). God’s bias, if anything, is in favour of the poor (v.5).
James goes on to say, ‘Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?’ (vv.15–16).
As believers in Jesus, we are called to live differently. Your faith must be evidenced by your deeds. All the way through the New Testament, these two go together. As do words and actions; proclamation and demonstration; the conversion of individuals and the transformation of society.
James writes, ‘What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if people claim to have faith but have no deeds? Can such faith save them?… Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead’ (vv.14,17): ‘Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-action is outrageous nonsense?’ (v.17, MSG). In other words, if your faith does not change how you live, it is not real faith at all.
James continues, ‘You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove’ (v.18, MSG).
He proves that mere intellectual belief in God is not enough: ‘You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that – and shudder’ (v.19).
Interestingly, like Paul, James uses the example of Abraham. Paul used the example of Abraham to show that justification comes by faith. James uses his life to show that ‘his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did’ (v.22).
James’ second example of this ‘seamless unity’ is a more unusual one. He looks at the actions of the prostitute Rahab. She demonstrated her faith in God by helping out two Israelite spies (see Joshua 2) and was ‘considered righteous’ as a result – though she can hardly be described as a model citizen!
By using her as an example, James makes clear that he is not talking about earning our way to God by being good people. Rather, he is demonstrating that there is a ‘seamless unity of believing and doing’ (James 2:25, MSG). Rahab acted on what she believed. James concludes, ‘As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead’ (v.26).
As John Calvin put it, ‘Faith alone justifies, but faith which justifies is never alone.’ You cannot earn your salvation. You are not saved by your good works, but you are saved in order to do good works (Ephesians 2:9–10). The book of James does not contradict the apostle Paul (as some have suggested). James’ point is not that you can earn your salvation by good deeds. Rather, he is saying that genuine faith will be evidenced by how you live.
Lord, help me to live a life of love and to act urgently on behalf of the poor – locally and globally.
