Daily Writing

Saturday, 20 July 2019

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. James 2:23

James now goes to Scripture to support his claim concerning Abraham that “faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect.” He says, “And the Scripture was fulfilled.”

The word “fulfilled” is argued by some to mean “confirm” or something akin to that. But the meaning is properly “fulfilled,” and it is rightly translated that way. With this understood, he then cites a verse from Genesis 15:6. There it says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Again, it must be remembered that Genesis 15:6 occurred many years before the offering of Isaac in Genesis 22. How could Scripture be “fulfilled” in the sense of justification when he was already declared righteous, as Paul clearly shows in Romans 4 & Galatians 3? But this is the common interpretation of the citing of this verse by James. However, there is no need to use the words “accounted to him for righteousness” as the fulfillment of the Scripture.

Rather, Genesis 15:4 says, “And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.’”

The Lord told Abraham that his servant, Eliezer of Damascus, would not be his heir. Rather, it would be a child who issued directly from Abraham’s body. And yet, in sacrificing Isaac on the altar, how could he be the promised heir? But Abraham followed through, in faith, with the sacrifice. He was only stopped by the call of God, and thus the Scripture – concerning a son from his own body being the heir – was fulfilled. Whether Isaac was actually sacrificed, which proved to be not necessary, or whether the Lord stopped the sacrifice at the last minute, Abraham was certain that Isaac would be the heir. How can this be? It is explained by the author of Hebrews –

“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, ¹⁸ of whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,’ ¹⁹ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.” Hebrews 11:17-19

Despite Abraham’s attempt to follow through with the act, Abraham understood that Issac was, and would remain, the son of promise. Thus, “the Scripture was fulfilled” is not speaking of the words, “and it was accounted to him for righteousness,” but of the words, “Abraham believed God.” This declaration of righteousness is what the belief signified. Abraham believed God in Genesis 15, and his faith in what he was told then did not waiver in Genesis 22. The entire account comes back to one word – FAITH. And because of Abraham’s faith, James finishes the thought with, “And he was called the friend of God.”

What is it that pleases God? It is faith. Abraham had faith and he demonstrated his faith in action. However, there may be those who are not able to demonstrate faith in action due to some limitation. This does not negate their faith. God looks on the heart and motives behind any action. Some actions are accomplished, but not in faith. Some have faith, but there are no actions to support it. Either way, faith is what is being referred to in regards to justification. Concerning the notion of Abraham being called the friend of God, two notable verses confirm this –

“Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever?” 2 Chronicles 20:7

“But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My friend.” Isaiah 41:8

Life application: It is important to remember that Abraham’s declaration of righteousness was seven chapters and many long years before the account of the sacrifice of Isaac in Genesis 22. Therefore, the crediting of righteousness can have nothing to do with what Abraham did at Mount Moriah. Abraham simply looked up at the stars, believed God’s promise, and it was credited as righteousness to him.

Was the deed then something that “naturally stems” from saving faith? Was it something that “added to” his righteousness? Or was it a deed of faith because Abraham was a man of faith – already declared righteous because of his faith? Clearly, it was the last: a deed of faith.

You should know and understand that if you are a believer in Jesus Christ, and yet you are facing a trial or hardship, God has ordained it for you according to His great wisdom and for your benefit. Be at peace that, whatever you are facing, He is there with you. This is certain because of what Jesus did on your behalf.

Lord God, we often face difficulties and trials that we wish we didn’t have to face, but we know Your promises to us stand, and that all things are working together for our good because of Your love for us in Christ Jesus. Give us the strength to face every test and every trial just as you did for Abraham, our great father of faith. Amen.

Friday, 19 July 2019

Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? James 2:22

James just cited the account of Abraham offering up Isaac on the altar to support his notion that “faith without works is dead.” With that in mind, he then says, “Do you see.” Translations are divided on this. Some make it a question, “Do you see…?” Others make it a statement of fact, “You see…” Either way, the thought comes out the same in the end, which is, “that faith was working together with his works…”

In the Greek, James makes a play on words by saying that Abraham, “was working the works of him.” So, Abraham has works that he is working out together with his faith. The word is sunergeó, and it is key to understanding what is being relayed. It means “to cooperate” or “to work together.” It is where our modern word synergy is derived from. Of this, Albert Barnes says –

“The apostle does not say that, in regard to the merit which justifies, they came in for an equal share, for he makes no affirmation on that point; he does not deny that in the sight of God, who foresees and knows all things, he was regarded as a justified man the moment he believed, but he looks at the result as it was, at Abraham as he appeared under the trial of his faith, and says that in that result there was to be seen the co-operation of faith and good works. Both contributed to the end, as they do now in all cases where there is true religion.”

How can it be that Abraham “was regarded as a justified man the moment he believed,” and yet it also be true that a cooperation of faith and good works contributed to the end, if by “end” he means justification? Either one is justified and declared righteous, or he is not. The only thing that can be affected by his faith are the works (whatever works) that he does.

The works are not separated from his faith, but they are combined with it. James then confirms this by saying that “by works faith was made perfect.” It is not the justification that was made perfect. Rather, that was something that occurred many years earlier. His later works had no bearing on that declaration – as Paul clearly shows in Romans 4:9-11. This is important to understand prior to arriving at verse 2:24. It is his faith that was made perfect.

Life application: Roman Catholicism claims that deeds of righteousness increase our standing before God and assist in our justification. Protestant theologians say they have no merit but only prove salvation. Paul, however, says we are justified by faith alone and that this occurred in Abraham’s case long before the time of Isaac. Therefore, the justification is by faith alone.

Was Abraham’s deed of sacrifice meritorious in and of itself? Or was the action pointing to something else that hasn’t yet been analyzed? If you studied the passage from Hebrews 11 which deals with Abraham, then you may have an inkling of what was really involved in Abraham’s deed. Understanding what Hebrews 11 says is the key and it will resolve the matter.

No matter what the resolution is, what is important for now is that Abraham did what he was called to do. You also have a divine calling on your life – one to be holy, to honor the Lord, and to care for others in selfless ways. This calling, along with telling others about Jesus’ wonderful salvation, is something you should be pursuing all the time. Have faith that the Lord will be with you as you do!

O God, how precious is the study of Your word! It is so wonderful to look into matters presented there and to know that you have provided all we need to know to live in a holy and Christ-honoring manner. In all ways, may our lives reflect Your plan and purpose…to the praise of Your glorious grace. Amen.

Thursday, 18 July 2019

Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? James 2:21

James now introduces the first of the two examples which he inferred were coming by the question which comprised the previous verse. He asked, “But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?” To affirm that it is the case, he begins his examples with, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works.” Albert Barnes states the following concerning this –

“Justified by works – That is, in the sense in which James is maintaining that a man professing religion is to be justified by his works. He does not affirm that the ground of acceptance with God is that we keep the law, or are perfect; or that our good works make an atonement for our sins, and that it is on their account that we are pardoned; nor does he deny that it is necessary that a man should believe in order to be saved. In this sense he does not deny that men are justified by faith; and thus he does not contradict the doctrine of the apostle Paul. But he does teach that where there are no good works, or where there is not a holy life, there is no true religion; that that faith which is not productive of good works is of no value; that if a man has that faith only, it would be impossible that he could be regarded as justified, or could be saved and that consequently, in that large sense, a man is justified by his works that is, they are the evidence that he is a justified man, or is regarded and treated as righteous by his Maker. The point on which the apostle has his eye is the nature of saving faith; and his design is to show that a mere faith which would produce no more effect than that of the demons did, could not save.”

Barnes, as well as others, states that “faith which is not productive of good works is of no value.” This is true, however, he fails to state what “works” are acceptable to justify a man. As noted in the previous commentary, this will naturally cause a person to say, “I need to do works to prove my faith.” From there, he goes and does and does and does, but his doing never satisfies because nobody told him what “works” are considered acceptable.

Barnes then continues with, “that if a man has that faith only, it would be impossible that he could be regarded as justified.” That, unfortunately, entirely negates what Paul says concerning justification. Paul says that a man is justified apart from works of the law. He says that a person believes, and when he believes he is sealed with the Holy Spirit.

Consider the man who believes, is saved, and then dies – such as the man on the cross next to Christ. What works did he do? What about the person who is a quadriplegic and cannot do whatever supposed “works” someone thinks up as being necessary to be justified?

However, this was not the case with Abraham. God declared Abraham righteous in Genesis 15:6. The offering of Isaac was seven chapters and many years later. And yet, James questions, was not Abraham “justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?” It begs a positive response. Is this the same work that is necessary for us? Obviously not. James will continue with his analysis of what Abraham did for the next few verses. He will then move on to the prostitute Rahab. What is it about what they did that makes their works acceptable?

Life application: James remembers the great test of faith of the Hebrew people – that of Father Abraham offering up his son Isaac on Mount Moriah. However, Paul also speaks of the righteousness of Abraham and how it was obtained by him.

Hebrews 11 speaks of this same account of the offering up of Isaac as well. Because of this, it must be incredibly important and a matter that needs to be considered carefully. Take time to read Genesis 22, Romans 4, and Galatians 3. If you can understand these areas of the Bible, and also the account as mentioned in Hebrews 11:17-19, then you can more fully understand what is being spoken of by James concerning faith versus deeds. Together, these passages will take you about 15 minutes to finish but they contain a lifetime of wealth for us to remember.

In the end, the account of Abraham, Isaac foreshadows the Person and work of Jesus. He, the only begotten Son of the Father, climbed this same hill, with his own wood (the cross) on His back; and His Father allowed the sacrifice to continue. Because of what Jesus did, we are now reconciled to God the Father.

It is faith in this action and faith alone which justifies us in the sight of God. Don’t be distressed at any foe that comes against you – Jesus is on your side and God the Father has approved of you because of faith in what His Son did. Be at peace!

Thank You Heavenly Father for the Gift of Your Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank You that He bore our sin and wrath on the cross so that we are now reconciled to You through His precious blood. We know that we can add nothing to this great work, but we simply need to accept it by faith alone. Praises, honor, and majesty belong to You alone! Amen.

Wednesday, 17 July 2019

But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? James 2:20

James has spoken of faith without works and works which demonstrate faith. From there, he used demons as an example of belief which is void of any value. They believe in God and yet they tremble.

One can believe in something without having faith in it. A person can believe that an arrangement of wood in the corner of a room is a chair, but he may not have faith that the chair is capable of holding his weight. A person can believe in God, and yet he can also have no faith in that same God. A person can even believe in Jesus and yet not have faith that Jesus died for his sins and was resurrected proving His own sinlessness.

James now asks a question to get his reader to think this matter through. He begins with, “But do you want to know, O foolish man.” The word translated as “foolish” is kenos. It means “empty,” either literally or figuratively. It would indicate a man whose head is empty from not thinking clearly. He is lacking in moral content. To understand, one could think of almost any liberal in the world today. There is no substance behind their thought process.

James’ words are general, as if he is speaking to anyone who hasn’t figured out what he is saying. There needs to be faith behind knowledge. The two need to work in harmony with one another. And so in order to complete his question, he says “that faith without works is dead?”

The word translated as “works” is the same common word that he uses twelve times in this chapter alone, ergon. It is a deed which accomplishes what is initiated by an inner desire. James says that faith without such “is dead.” Here, there is a variance in some manuscripts. Some say nekra, or “dead,” while others say arge, or “worthless.” In the end, they come to substantially the same meaning. A tree can have fruit which is shriveled up and dead, or it can have fruit which cannot be eaten for some reason. And so either way, the fruit is not able to accomplish that for which it was intended.

To support his statement, James will next give two examples directly from Scripture. He (and thus the Lord who inspired the words) obviously finds that these two examples (Abraham and Rahab) are sufficient to convey the exact intent of what he means here. As he does, so should we. What is it that Scripture says about these two that James finds worthy of note, and what is it that Scripture itself also elsewhere says about these two which will help us to understand what James is conveying?

Of the concept of faith without works being dead, Albert Barnes says –

“That the faith which does not produce good works is useless in the matter of salvation. He does not mean to say that it would produce no effect, for in the case of the demons it did produce trembling and alarm; but that it would be valueless in the matter of salvation.”

Is this correct?

Two things need to be considered. First, it was argued in verse 2:14 that James’ words, “Can faith save him?”, were speaking of another, not the individual with the faith. That was substantiated by the fact the example which immediately followed the question was referring to helping another. Secondly, even if this was speaking of the person with the faith, then to support Albert Barnes’ statement, it would have to assume that in Genesis 15:6 Abraham was not yet “saved” (meaning declared righteous), in the sense of pleasing God and being justified by Him. As will be seen, this is entirely incorrect.

And so the question is, “If faith without works is dead, then what ‘works’ prove that the faith is alive?” Charles Elllicott, in line with almost all reformed thinkers, says, “Works are the natural fruit of faith, and without them it is evident that the tree is dead.” This statement, however, explains nothing concerning “what works,” demonstrate or prove saving faith.

How can a person read such things and feel any more secure in his walk than before he read them? He is left with nothing but a dubious sense of, “I need to do works to prove my faith.” From there, he goes and does and does and does, but his doing never satisfies because nobody told him what “works” are considered acceptable. One might as well go back to Roman Catholicism under such an explanation of “works which demonstrate saving faith.”

Life application: Jesus said, “But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire” (Matthew 5:22).

Raca means “empty-headed,” and it is what James appears to be calling people here. But he is using the term in a general sense to explain how someone may not be thinking an issue through clearly. Further, Jesus uses the term moros, when speaking of a fool (think of our modern term “moron”). Paul uses that term when speaking of others because the Bible already describes who a fool is for us, such as –

“The fool has said in his heart,
‘There is no God.’
They are corrupt,
They have done abominable works,
There is none who does good.’” Psalm 14:1

Therefore, one valid definition of a fool is a person who denies the existence of God.

But, a person claiming to have faith and yet lacking the proper deeds of faith could also be considered foolish. Keep this in mind because it bears on the examples James is going to give and how we can know what deeds are relevant to saving faith. One reason this is so important is that anyone can claim any deeds are necessary fruits of a converted person. If so, then if someone else doesn’t do what the individual determines is necessary to prove his faith, finger-pointing and accusation results – “He can’t be a Christian because…”

This is exactly what happens in churches and denominations all over the world. All because people set their own standards of “deeds of righteousness” rather than looking to the Bible to determine proper deeds which result from saving faith. We will determine what they are in the verses ahead. Sure we will… Have faith!

Lord Jesus, we know that You have accepted us because of our faith in Christ. We have this certainty because we called on You in faith and because You then sealed us with Your Holy Spirit as a guarantee. It was the sweetest moment ever! May our deeds now reflect this, all the days of our lives. Amen.

Tuesday, 16 July 2019

You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! James 2:19

The word “you” is singular and it is in the emphatic position, and so James – writing to a Jewish audience – implies that the individual is self-deceived if he claims to have faith and yet has no works. The structure of the first part of this verse varies a bit between manuscripts –

You believe that One is the God.

You believe that the God One is.

Either way, God is the formal object, and it is speaking of the oneness of God, not so much the fact that there is one God – although that is to be understood. This then is in line with the proclamation of Moses which is recorded in Deuteronomy 6:4 –

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!”

James uses this statement of faith in order to highlight the belief in the monotheistic God who is also Triune in nature – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In emphatically stating to each person in his audience that they believe God is One, he is preparing them for his next words to show how little that actually means all by itself, even though it is a good thing. As he says, “You do well.”

Jews believed this all along, ever since Moses proclaimed it to the people. James says that this is commendable. It demonstrates faith in the words of Moses concerning God’s nature. However, that is only good to a certain point. He shows this by saying, “Even the demons believe.”

The Oneness of God is understood by the demons, just as it is to those humans who accept the premise. Both accept the same truth. However, James continues. They believe “and tremble!”

The word James uses is found only here in Scripture, phrissó. It originally meant “to be rough on the surface,” and thus “to bristle.” From this one gets the sense of hair standing on its end from terror. It is more than to tremble, but to shudder. It carries the sense of horror at the knowledge. This is what James is referring to, and it is something that is intended to point to the Oneness of God, despite speaking of faith in Jesus. In other words, He is indicating that faith in Jesus is faith in God. This is confirmed by the accounts of demons being faced with the presence of Jesus as recorded in the gospels, such as –

“When He had come to the other side, to the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two demon-possessed men, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one could pass that way. ²⁹ And suddenly they cried out, saying, ‘What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?’” Matthew 8:28, 29

These demons had a knowledge of Jesus, including that He is fully God. As James says, “God is One.” But these are demons. James is saying to his audience that just because someone knows God is One, it doesn’t mean that their knowledge is backed up by anything of further value. If the demons believed this and backed it up with action, they would not be demons set for destruction, but angels who would forever stand before God praising Him. James’ point is, “Where do you stand? On belief alone, or belief plus acting on your belief.”

Life application: Most rational people will believe there is one God, regardless of how they exercise that faith, so James is saying that this is nothing special. In fact, even the demons believe this, but they shudder at that knowledge. Why? Because they believe in God from first-hand knowledge! Their belief is more than general faith, and that knowledge tells them they will receive their sentence in due time.

How many times have you heard someone say, “I believe in God,” and then you watch them live lives of ungodliness? This is irrational because someone who believes in God and lives that way hasn’t thought the whole thing through. However, the demons have. They know that judgment awaits, and yet they continue on their reckless path. This is what James is talking about.

Misdirected faith is wasted faith. If you are a Jehovah’s Witness, a Mormon, etc., then you obviously believe in God. However, your faith is misdirected and it is therefore useless. God isn’t contradictory and His word is not to be manipulated. Rather, it is to be believed as written. You believe that God is One. Good! Don’t waste your faith in Him then. Exercise it appropriately unto salvation and proper action. Call on Jesus, who is God.

O God, we believe in You, and we believe that Your word is true. Give us wisdom in understanding it more each day. Grant us to know Your ways, faith that isn’t dead, and the desire to accomplish deeds that will be pleasing to You. May our lives be as examples to others of faithful Christians who honor You in all ways. Amen.