Blog

"In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead" (James 2:17 [NIV]).

The verse quoted above is very important for a couple of reasons. For one, the truth of the verse even if it were to stand alone away from the context in which it is found is very critical to the Christian walk. Having faith is not just something we can talk about or think about. It must be something that is shown in our actions. But secondly, the context of the verse is extremely important. That verse is found right in the middle of an entire section where James is talking about 2 different ways that believers are to ACT on their faith. Before the verse quoted above, James is talking about serving others and meeting their needs tangibly (verses 14-16) rather than just wishing them well, or the more modern way of dismissing the needy that goes something like: "That sounds really terrible; just trust the Lord and I'll be praying for you". His point is that we have to put our faith into action through service. Then, after the verse quoted above, James begins to describe acting on our faith by total trust and obedience, even blindly, to God (verses 20-26). He references 2 Old Testament examples in Abraham and Rahab the prostitute, both of whom abandoned personal desires and safety in favor of obeying God, even if it seemed completely crazy!

There is a much larger passage in the Bible that talks not only about Abraham and Rahab, but many other Old Testament "heroes" by faith. I'm talking about Hebrews 11, which is sometimes affectionately referred to as the "Hall of Faith". In this one chapter, the writer of Hebrews chronologically goes through a long list of individuals in the history of God's people who put their faith into action and thus became critical pieces of the great story of God and His plan. Now certainly, God could have used someone else had these people been unwilling. But because they were obedient, they got to be key characters in the plot. I encourage you to read through the descriptions of each one and if you are not familiar with the Old Testament story of any of the individuals, go back and read it. The writer of Hebrews talks about how each one contributed to what God was doing and how each one withstood persecution of the worst kind by remaining faithful to the truth that was planted in their hearts. By the way, that list includes a liar (Abraham), a murderer (Moses), a prostitue (Rahab), and an adulterer (David). This should prove once and for all that God is not concerned with what you HAVE done, but only what you WILL do. You may be wondering how you fit into God's story when you have done so much harm to others or have lacked faith and obedience for so much of your life. No matter what you have done, God is giving you opportunities today to live by faith and obedience. If you choose to surrender to Him, nothing about your past even comes into question.

So you may be asking how we can possibly do that. How can we live by faith? How can we actually begin to take steps forward toward something that seems crazy to our human finite minds? Well, the answer has to do with your heart and whether or not you truly believe that God is sovereign over all things and has your best interest in mind at all times. I'm not saying that means He is always going to do what makes you feel good. But it does mean that even when He does things that we really don't like in our lives, it's still because it is ultimately what is best for us and for others. Rather than having expectations of God and boxing Him into OUR expectations, we must accept whatever He does as His good and perfect plan. This is no more evident than in Matthew 8:5-13 and the story of the faith of the centurion. The centurion, a non-Jew and member of the army which had authority over the Jews, was described by Jesus himself as one whose faith was greater than anyone else's in all of Israel (v. 10). At first, I wondered why in the world Jesus would say this about this one individual when there were many who were healed because of their faith. But I realized that he acted out his faith in a way that very few if any in Israel had acted out. It was customary for the Jews to demand miraculous signs and wonders of Jesus to prove that he was who he said he was. Rather than just believing and obeying, many wanted to see what Jesus would do before they chose to believe. In the story of the centurion, Jesus first offers to go to the home and heal the centurion's servant. However, the centurion shows humility and respect for Jewish culture by stating that he is not worthy to have Jesus, a Jewish rabbi, come under his roof. Instead, the centurion simply asks Jesus to "just say the word and my servant will be healed" (v. 8). The centurion's faith was informed by his realization that Jesus was the Sovereign God, and all Jesus had to do was will that the servant be healed and it would be done! The centurion didn't need to see physical evidence because he knew that Jesus was sovereign and he could put his full trust in Jesus' power and love. What a way to live in absolute freedom!

Matthew tells us that Jesus heard this and "was astonished" (v. 10). Wouldn't that be cool to astonish Jesus? It is possible for you and me. When it comes to your faith, does it inform the way you think, speak, and act? Are you waiting to see evidence and walking by sight rather than by faith when God is calling you to surrender to His will and step out into the unknown adventure that is waiting for you when you trust Him completely? I encourage you to abandon your safety and comfort so that you can experience the reward and all that God wants to give to you and to others through you.