But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? 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. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. — James 2:20–26(NKJV)
How do you reconcile this with sola fide?
Yeah, this is the “gotcha” passage for anyone who doesn’t subscribe to “sola fide.” They see Abraham’s works as being something more than just faith in action.
But remember when I said that you had just wandered into the doctrine of sanctification?
Sure.
Well, you just wandered into it again.
Here, James says, “Faith without works is dead.” Okay, let me ask you this, “What’s the difference between alive and dead?”
Movement?
Not bad, but I’d say that the difference between alive and dead is the difference between growth and decay. A living thing is either growing or at least growing bits to replace what’s lost or consumed. Once death sets in, all growth stops and decay begins.
The key to this passage is, “Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?”
This ties in with everything I’ve said about how growth plays a central role in God’s purposes. The works are essential to the growth (specifically here, making faith perfect).
Let’s take a deeper look into what was going on with Abraham’s faith, and I think you’ll see how this all connects.
Okay.
So, the backstory here is that Abraham and Sarah had made one of the biggest faith goofs of all time. The result was Ishmael—who is a relentless reminder of their failure. Sarah even goes totally ballistic about this at one point. That hints at a lot more marital friction than just what’s recorded in scripture.
Yeah, but Sarah suggested to whole madcap scheme to begin with. Shouldn’t that have helped tamp down her response?
Hah! Let me ask you this, “Do you think that Sarah’s memory of her role in all this lessens her pain or makes it greater?”
Oh, yikes. Never mind. No wonder she had such a hair trigger.
So, this sets the stage for what’s in Abraham’s head as he heads out to sacrifice Isaac. He has great faith, but could it use a little “perfecting”?
I suppose.
We cannot know what Abraham was thinking as he prepared to kill Isaac, but c’mon. His past failure had to be weighing on him. He’s under great stress. So, what’s he praying?
That he’ll catch a break.
Surely. Every moment that he doesn’t catch a break, the stress builds. Then Isaac asks him, “Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” — Genesis 22:7b (NKJV)
Burn!
Abraham makes up an answer, but he has to be hoping and praying that it’s not a lie.
Finally, we get to the moment when Abraham raises the knife. God knows what Abraham is thinking and he’s not faking it; he’s about to kill Isaac. Then, and only then, does God let him off.
So, did this help “perfect” Abraham’s faith?
Okay, I see what you mean.
James’s point in this passage is that you have to “practice” your faith to grow it. That’s what happened with Abraham. The result of his practicing his faith was that it grew. His already great faith was made perfect.
And, by my definition of alive vs. dead, if faith isn’t growing from practice, it’s dead.
So, you’re saying that works is practicing faith, which is how faith grows, otherwise it’s dead.
That’s definitely the meaning of James’s Abraham example.
I get that.
On to tomorrow!
