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What Do We Do with a Passage Like James 2:14-26 in Light of the Clear Teaching of the New Testament on Justification by Faith?

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What Do We Do with a Passage Like James 2:14-26 in Light of the Clear Teaching of the New Testament on Justification by Faith? What to do with James 2? James 2:14-26 What do we do with a passage like James 2:14-26 in light of the clear teaching of the New Testament on justification by faith? I want us to look once again at James 2:14-26. This passage has been the subject of much debate throughout the years. In fact, the Book of James had a tough beginning because many thought it did not belong in the Bible. • The Muratorian, in 190 AD or later, provides us with the earliest accepted list of New Testament books, and it disputes seven of the ones in our Bible today, one of which is James. • By the 3rd century, about 150 years after Jesus’ death, Irenaeus and Tertullian had confirmed that only 20 of our 27 books were accepted as scripture. James did not make the cut. o The first appearance of the exact list of our present 27-book New Testament was in the Festal Letter of St. Athanasius, in 367 A.D. James made the cut. o The New Testament canon was not settled until the Council of Carthage in A.D. 397. James was officially in the New Testament. ISSUES WITH JAMES Martin Luther, the initiator of the Reformation—the event that forever changed the trajectory of the church, breaking away from the Catholic church, on the basis of Christ alone, faith alone, and grace alone—took issue with the book of James. He didn’t think it expressed the “nature of the Gospel,” and it seemed to contradict Paul’s statements concerning justification by faith. Also, the book never directly mentions Christ. Martin Luther concluded: “Therefore St James’ epistle is really an epistle of straw, compared to these others, for it has nothing of the nature of the Gospel about it.” Luther never claimed that James should be thrown out of the Bible, although some claim he did, but he did want it thrown out of his school: “We should throw the epistle of James out of this school, for it doesn’t amount to much. It contains not a syllable about Christ. Not once does it mention Christ, except at the beginning. I maintain that some Jew wrote it who probably heard about Christian people but never encountered any. Since he heard that Christians place great weight on faith in Christ, he thought, ‘Wait a moment! I’ll oppose them and urge works alone.’ This he did.” The main problem that Luther and others have had with James is the content. James puts more emphasis on works than the other New Testament writings. The book seems to disregard a foundational truth of our faith, that is, justification by faith alone. But I believe James is very much in step with the rest of Scripture. CONTRADICTORY? Read James 2:14-17. Is this consistent with the rest of Scripture? Is James out of step with great theological truths, such as justification by faith alone? Let’s step back for a moment and consider what the Bible teaches: • Two Great Commandments – we cannot just say I love God alone, we must also love our neighbor • Isaiah 1 – God says, “don’t worship me when your hands are covered with blood” • Many epistles – Ephesians for example, 3 chapters of the amazing gospel, that is justification by faith alone, followed by 4:1, I entreat you to walk worthy of your calling. The idea is that your living should “weigh the same as” your faith • Col 3 – if you have been raised up with Christ, that is through justification by faith alone, then put to death sins and walk in newness of life • Rom 12:1 – I urge you by the mercies of God, that is justification by faith alone, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice So, is James really saying anything different that the rest of the Bible? I say, “No.” He is challenging us that we cannot say, “I am a Christian,” yet live in a manner that is contrary to the gospel. “Faith alone” will always bear FRUIT in our lives. Faith without works is dead. Next Steps 1) Read the entirety of James 1:14-26. 2) Spend some time thanking the Lord for such an amazing salvation that is not a result of anything that you have done—Christ alone, grace alone, and faith alone. It is “not of yourselves, it is a gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8- 10). That is the good news of the gospel. 3) Consider the events of yesterday. Did the faith you have in the Lord manifest itself in the way you spoke, thought, the way you treated people, the tasks you focused on, etc.? If not, ask the Lord to forgive you. That is the good news of the gospel. 4) Consider the day in front of you. What will you be doing? Ask the Lord to help you in each planned event, encounter with others, unexpected happening, or in your idle time live your faith. Ask him to help your “faith alone” bear “FRUIT.” And this is also the good news of the gospel…the point that James wants us to see. .
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