The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 274


The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 274

Works—Without Faith Is Dead
(Genesis 22:6-13; Joshua. 2 )

James 2:21-26 – 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.

Christ/Messiah is Our Only Hope

Every person through or by the blood of our Savior Jesus, that is; through or by faith in the gospel of God who gave His only Begotten Son as the sacrifice for the sin of the world has become a child of God, in that we have become God’s workmanship, born again, in Christ Jesus for (purpose) good works, works which God prepared beforehand; Did you get that? Which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them, that is His works, not ours. (Ephesians 2:10).

James gives his readers two examples of faith and works in action, but first James assumes that his readers (as do all of the epistle writers) are saved through or by the blood of Christ, in other words, James and all of the writers of the epistles are confident that they are writing to believers in Christ (the trust of these writers is a complete work of faith in God). And too, if you believe this is a completed work of faith in God, you see clearly that in every way faith and works in God and by God are mutual, one cannot have faith in God without observing the work of God.

The two examples are the faith of Abraham and the faith of Rahab. Looking at Rahab first we can see clearly that Rahab had ‘consciousness of God’. She had the wisdom of Creation and the Creator. She knew current events and she was not liberal in her decision making. She expressed faith in the God of Israel and the result of her faith-based work with the two spies provided the definite result of safety for her and all of her household.

Abraham’s faith-based response to God when God commanded him to obey the call of God and offer back to God, his son Isaac on the altar is to be THE seasoned by grace through faith response of Abraham. Abraham had experienced years of working with God, but of all the years there were only a few occasions where God credited Abraham’s faith as God’s Righteousness, in him. Genesis 15:6 - And he (Abraham) believed in the LORD; Thus Abraham is justified by God, and God accounted it to him for righteousness. Then, in Genesis 22:1-19, God reveals to you and me that as a result of Abraham’s MATURE faith in God, that God received Abraham’s faith and granted him to be the father of the great nation of Israel.

See also Psalm 106:31, Romans 4:3-9; Galatians 3:6 and our passage here in James 2, verse 23.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 203

The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 203 Luke 21:7   –   So they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, but when will these things be? And what sign will there be when these things are about to take place?” Matthew 24:3 – Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” Mark 13:4 – “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign when all these things will be fulfilled?” Jesus, the Christ of God/Messiah Yesterday we looked briefly at the First coming of the LORD Jesus, born of the virgin Mary, suffered and crucified, killed by the power of sin of which we all had and have a part in. He rose from this death; He is alive again . The apostle Paul writes, “For I deliver to you first of all that which I also received that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose
Read more

The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 169

The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 169 Luke 14:7-14 - So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; “and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. “But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. “But when you give a fea
Read more

The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 161.1

The Devotional – Search the Scriptures – 161.1 SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:   Luke 12:1-5 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. “Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” Jesus, the Christ of God/Messiah An excerpt from yesterday’s devotional: In our passage, the point of the LORD is not that of being a newscaster but placing the death of these people beyond human judgment, in fact; Jesus does not look at the death of human beings as we do. All humans, past present and future will die a ph
Read more