TOPIC: FAITH WITHOUT WORKS
We often say that faith without action or practice is dead from the start.
To be guilty of having faith without works, one must have the means to help those in need but instead offers empty words, telling the poor or indigent to ‘go and may God bless you.’
James 2:14-24(NIV)14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? 15 Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 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? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that — and shudder. 20 You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds (works) is useless? 21 Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.
Faith with works, however, is when your good intentions and wishes align with practical action.
Many of us know how to talk the talk but fail to walk the walk.
If your words don’t solve the problem, they are meaningless.
Today, let us concentrate on faith with works.
Luke 10:30-35(NLT)30 Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling on a trip from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. 31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. 33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.
The woman with the issue of blood did not just ponder; she reflected deeply on her situation and acted. She left her position and put her faith into action.
Mark 5:25-34(MSG)25 A woman who had suffered a condition of hemorrhaging for twelve years — 26 a long succession of physicians had treated her, and treated her badly, taking all her money and leaving her worse off than before — 27 had heard about Jesus. She slipped in from behind and touched his robe. 28 She was thinking to herself, “If I can put a finger on his robe, I can get well.” 29 The moment she did it, the flow of blood dried up. She could feel the change and knew her plague was over and done with. 30 At the same moment, Jesus felt energy discharging from him. He turned around to the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?” 31 His disciples said, “What are you talking about? With this crowd pushing and jostling you, you’re asking, ‘Who touched me?’ Dozens have touched you!” 32 But he went on asking, looking around to see who had done it. 33 The woman, knowing what had happened, knowing she was the one, stepped up in fear and trembling, knelt before him, and gave him the whole story. 34 Jesus said to her, “Daughter, you took a risk of faith, and now you’re healed and whole. Live well, live blessed! Be healed of your plague.”
Similarly, the prodigal son did not sit back after his spiritual awakening and self-reflection, he took action by saying “I will rise and go back to my father.’
Faith without action will achieve nothing.
The challenge we face with faith is taking action on the good things we have received in the spirit.
Luke 15:17-20(KJV)And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,19 And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
Someone with faith can stand in the same spot and say ‘I will rise’ a million times without actually rising.
There is much you could have done by now to receive your answer.
The four lepers asked themselves “… Why sit we here until we die?4 If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die.5 And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there.6 For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host: and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us.7 Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. (2 Kings 7:3-7 KJV)
Contemplation – the fight of faith (who will pay the school fees, who will roll back the stone etc. ) – Mark 16:1-4(NLT) Saturday evening, when the Sabbath ended, Mary Magdalene and Salome and Mary the mother of James went out and purchased burial spices so they could anoint Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on Sunday morning, just at sunrise, they went to the tomb. 3 On the way they were asking each other, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” 4 But as they arrived, they looked up and saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled aside.
Life of faith is both real and practical. Go and fast for me,’ demonstrating that faith requires action.
Est 4:15-16(KJV)15 Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer,16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.
Our problem often lies in our inability to act on the promptings of faith.
Jesus told the lepers ‘Go and show yourselves to the Priest’ – Luke 17:14 (KJV) And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
Jesus told the blind man ‘Go wash yourself in the pool of Siloam John 9:7(KJV) And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is byinterpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.
Naaman initially hesitated, but later obeyed when told to wash in the Jordan River
2 Kings 5:9-14(NLT)9 So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and waited at the door of Elisha’s house. 10 But Elisha sent a messenger out to him with this message: “Go and wash yourself seven times in the Jordan River. Then your skin will be restored, and you will be healed of your leprosy.”11 But Naaman became angry and stalked away. “I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!” he said. “I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me! 12 Aren’t the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar, better than any of the rivers of Israel? Why shouldn’t I wash in them and be healed?” So Naaman turned and went away in a rage.13 But his officers tried to reason with him and said, “Sir, if the prophet had told you to do something very difficult, wouldn’t you have done it? So you should certainly obey him when he says simply, ‘Go and wash and be cured!'” 14 So Naaman went down to the Jordan River and dipped himself seven times, as the man of God had instructed him. And his skin became as healthy as the skin of a young child’s, and he was healed!
The noble man was told by Jesus ‘Go your way’ – John 4:49-53(NKJV)49 The nobleman said to Him, “Sir, come down before my child dies!” 50 Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. 51 And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, “Your son lives!” 52 Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” 53 So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And he himself believed, and his whole household.
The Centurion said, ‘Speak the word only,’ Matt 8:8(KJV) The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.
These are all examples of faith in action.
Elisha commanded the king to strike the ground.
Obeying the word of God promptly is the key.
2 Kings 13:17-19(NLT)17 Then he commanded, “Open that eastern window,” and he opened it. Then he said, “Shoot!” So he shot an arrow. Elisha proclaimed, “This is the Lord’s arrow, an arrow of victory over Aram, for you will completely conquer the Arameans at Aphek.18 Then he said, “Now pick up the other arrows and strike them against the ground.” So the king picked them up and struck the ground three times. 19 But the man of God was angry with him. “You should have struck the ground five or six times!” he exclaimed. “Then you would have beaten Aram until it was entirely destroyed. Now you will be victorious only three times.”
Caleb said ‘Give me this mountain’ – Josh 14:11-12(KJV)11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said.
Caleb and Joshua urged, ‘Let us go up at once and possess it.’ Don’t be discouraged by what others are saying—put your faith into action. – Num 13:30(KJV) And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
If you don’t have faith, your life in this world is incomplete.
Shall we talk about walking around Jericho seven times?
Every man of God is a man of faith.