Faith Without Works

James chapter two teaches us 

that

"Faith without works is  - dead."

"Dead"
is
cause for concern!

James 2:17-20

This page has a fictional story

to illustrate

what this means.

Full Scripture reference after the story.

If you have ever

struggled

with understanding those words,

then

this engaging Bible devotion is written for you.

~ ~ ~ ~

This fictional story's charm and unique characters

  will blend together

to entertain you

and

leave you pondering

about the many implications of the moral of this story.

Marilyn's Mistake

“Kids! Be quiet! I can’t think!” Marilyn yelled to her two young children.

Marilyn had been on edge for days. Her father was in serious condition in Grant Memorial Hospital.

She picked up her sweater and her keys and her purse. “Be good for your Daddy!”

“Mommy, Mommy, tell Daddy Luke I love him!” shouted little Lisa.

“Tell him I do too!” added little Timmy.

As Marilyn headed out to the car,

tears began to run down her face.

“Oh, Daddy!

You have caused me so much

embarrassment all my life,

but I love you so!

Oh, please try to act halfway normal when I visit!"

"God, please God,

keep my eccentric dad

from being so weird today.

I’m so worn out!”

As Marilyn entered the hospital room, her mood sank even lower.

She heard her dad arguing with a nurse about the banking industry.

How in the world did they get on that subject?

Marilyn always hated it

when her dad got on his soapbox about banks.

Anytime someone brought up the subject,
he always
proudly
proclaimed
that he would never use a bank.

He always ended the conversation with the words,

“Never forget the lessons of the Crash!”

Oh, it made him look so

weird, out of step, and down right crazy.

“Never forget the lessons of the Crash!”

exclaimed the pale man

almost hidden beneath the jungle of tubes.

The nurse gave a look

that clearly communicated,

“He’s a nut!”

She then turned and

quickly collected her supplies and scurried out the door.

“Hi, Daddy!”

“Hi, May Bean!”

“Oh, Daddy, don’t use that pet name. Please Daddy. . . I’m an adult now.”

The old man’s voice suddenly grew serious. “Honey, I’ve got to tell you something. You see, if I don’t make it through this, well, I’ve got to let you know . . .”

Marilyn interrupted him and said, “No, Daddy. Don’t talk like that!”

“I’ve got to tell you. Now you listen.”

Then he lowered his voice.

His eyes darted around the room.

“All my money,” he whispered, “is buried

in front of the big tree in the back yard.

It’s. . .”

He paused.

His voice was now barely audible.

“It’s over two hundred thousand dollars, and it’s yours.”

Marilyn’s eyes grew bigger and bigger. “I never knew you had that kind of . . .”

“Sh! Someone might hear!” he cautioned. Then he continued, “Now the house is willed to you. It’s all yours. If I die. . .”

“Oh, Daddy, please!”

“O.K. May Bean. Come give Daddy a hug before they come to get me and give me another one of those silly tests. Now don’t you forget to trust your papa!”

“Yes, Daddy.”

One month later

Marilyn’s husband Frank was fuming and fussing.

“Why couldn’t you have thrown some of this old junk away?
I told you I wanted us to
get rid of a lot of this stuff before we moved
into your dad’s house.”

“I know. I’m sorry.” Marilyn knew that her father’s death and the strain of moving from their apartment into her dad’s house would be tough on her, but she never realized how much Frank loved her father. Frank did not know how to express his grief in any way other than to bark at her.

She had been through this before when her mother had died. But back then, she had resented the fact that it was her mother and yet she had to put up with Frank’s volatile behavior.

It took her several years to make peace with the anger she felt about dealing with Frank's explosive emotions while simultaneously dealing with her own emotional pain. Now however, it was a comfort to realize that except for times of grief, Frank was a great husband.

Eight months later

Frank was a salesman, and sales had not been going well the last few months. Every paycheck contained less money than the previous one. Their stack of unpaid bills kept getting higher. Several times they sat down together and made a new budget. Each time they had planned to carefully stick to the budget. However, the car repairs, the new roof, and the doctor bills just would not cooperate.

When little Timmy had to go to the emergency room after a playground accident, Marilyn thought things just could not get worse. But . . .

Frank’s ego was already almost shattered when the bombshell hit – Frank was laid off from work. Within a week, Frank and Marilyn had a For Sale sign in the middle of their front yard.

“God has deserted us.” Frank said matter-of-factly.

Marilyn sadly nodded.

The end.

Copyright © 2000 Beth McLendon of Inspirational-Prayers.com

Pondering Marilyn's Mistake

Marilyn told her father that she trusted his words, but her actions show she did not.

If Marilyn had believed in her father's words, she would have found a shovel and started digging.

Christians often say

that they believe God's words,

yet their actions reveal what they really believe.

When we truly believe what God says,

we will act like it.

~

You do not truly have faith if you do not

do works based

on your faith.

Works do not save you,

but a lack of works

does reveal your inner condition to you.

You cannot help but have

godly works

if you are following Jesus.

If you are following Jesus,

you will begin to do what he would do -

therefore,

you will display godly works. 

Also, you will begin to stop doing things

that Christ wouldn't do.

Your life WILL change.

If you get saved

and

none of your friends notices,

I submit that you didn't give your whole life to Christ.

It is a process to become more like Christ.

The process is lifelong;

nevertheless,

we should continually

be seeing

the good fruit of becoming more like Jesus.

We WILL see changes in ourselves

because

we are growing more like Christ.

God's love for us is not based on our behavior.

But we must remember that it is our growing love and devotion

for Jesus that shows us that we love him.

It shows us our "heart condition."

It shows us

whether we are committed and following

Christ or not.

Jesus said.....

"If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word."

John 14:24 NKJV

If

your life does not

display

the good works that naturally flow

from a healthy relationship with Jesus,

then there is cause for concern.

"And how can we be sure that we belong to him?

By looking within ourselves: are we really trying to

do what he wants us to?"

1 John 2:3 TLB

If you have never given your life to Jesus or if you are not sure,
Please visit our Salvation Prayer Page.

If you are Saved, but having some major struggles with

obeying God, one thing that will help is to allow

yourself to grow in your love for God. 

~

If you will allow yourself

to grow in your love for God

and his laws,

you will begin to want to do the will of God. 

If you are not growing in this area, you will be struggling with opposition to the Lord and his word.

We also suggest praying spiritual warfare prayers.

Prayer

for the "Faith Without Works" Page

Father God,

You possess all knowledge. You know all things.

You gave me your Word to help me to grow to be more like Jesus.

Today I want to rededicate myself to you. 

I realize that even though I say that I believe your words, I don't always act like I do.

Father, help me to grow my faith. Help me to develop deeper faith in your words. I want to trust you more. I want to follow you more closely.

Amen

Copyright © 2013  Beth McLendon of Inspirational-Prayers.com

Faith Without Works

Sometimes there is confusion in the church about the relationship between faith and works.

We frequently hear scripture quoted from the book of James chapter two verse twenty that says,

"Faith without works is dead."

Yet most of us still have not come to a clear understanding of what those words mean.

Faith without Works Scripture:

Thus also faith by itself,

if it does not have works, is dead.

But someone will say,

'You have faith, and I have works.'

Show me your faith without your works,
and I will show you
my faith by my works.

You believe that there is one God,

You do well.

Even the demons believe - and tremble!

But do you want to know, O foolish man,

that faith without works is dead?"

James 2:17-20

We at Inspirational-Prayers pray that this devotion
has shed light for you on the
"Faith without Works is dead" concept.

 

Back to top of Faith without Works