“Faith: Dead or Alive?” (sermon on James 2:14-26)

How important is faith, really?  Many have written about ways to “grow our faith;” others boast of how great their faith is.  Prince Charles says that when he becomes king of Britain (assuming he lives long enough to become king), he wants to be called, not “Defender of the Faith,” but simply “Defender of Faith”—any and all faiths.  Because what could be more important than faith—whatever faith is?

But what does the Bible say?

Up to this point in his letter, James has been telling us how to live a life of wisdom—what it looks like to think about God’s world the way God does.  He has called us to the kind of wisdom that trusts God in the face of troubles and believes God in the face of temptations; a wisdom that responds to disappointments and wrongs not with unbelieving anger, but with holy, humble trust in God’s wisdom and justice; a wisdom that listens to and obeys Christ’s Law in every part of life; a wisdom that sees ourselves and others in light of the gospel and so abandons partiality for mercy.

And now, having warned us that hearing without obeying fools us into thinking that we’re okay with God, having warned us that unrepentant partiality will send us to hell, James warns us that there is a kind of faith that is dead and useless—a faith that fools us and kills us.  He warns us that:

I.      Lonely Faith is Useless Faith (v. 14-17).

II.    Lonely Faith is Demonic Faith (v. 18-20).

III.  Lively Faith is Lived-Out Faith (v. 21-26).

 

Audio may be downloaded here, or it may be listened to below.

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“The Problem with Partiality” (sermon on James 2:1-13)

When I was in school, it was definitely the case that “birds of a feather flock together.”  In one hall you’d find all the skaters; down the next hall were the kids with chewing tobacco, farmer’s tans, and trucks; a little way further down were the ball players and cheerleaders.  And down by the music room were those of us who really didn’t fit in anywhere else.

But it isn’t just in high school, is it?  It’s been nearly fifty years since Dr. King called 11:00 on Sunday morning the most segregated hour in America, but studies in the last few years don’t reflect much of a change.  And there are countless other ways that we divide people—by finances, by age, by hobbies, by music styles, by education or work…

James, the half-brother and servant of Jesus, lead pastor at Jerusalem, is calling us to wisdom.  In chapter 1 of his letter he said that the key to wisdom is knowing the Father who generously gives all good gifts—who gives only good gifts—and responding to every circumstance, every trouble, every temptation, every day, in light of who this Father is—the Father who has perfectly revealed Himself in Christ.  And having just called us, not just to hear, but to obey Christ’s Law of liberty (James 1:21-27), James warns us that there is a kind of worship that centers on what people are like, rather than on what Christ is like.  James warns us of three problems with partiality, and then gives us one vital solution:

I.     Problem: Partiality makes us bad judges and wannabe gods (James 2:1-4).

II.   Problem: Partiality disagrees with God’s judgment and blinds us to reality (v. 5-7).

III. Problem: Partiality will send us to hell (v. 8-11).

IV.  Solution: Speak and live the Law of Christ to find mercy instead of judgment (v. 12-13)!

 

Audio may be downloaded here, or it may be listened to below.

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