Introduction

The clock on the wall of the dry goods store showed high noon. The time for talking was gone. Gun belts were cinched and tied down - six bullets dropped into each steel-gray cylinder.

The two lawmen stepped into the deserted street. Not a living thing stirred. Windows were shuttered, doors locked. A single uninformed tumbleweed bounced erratically up the middle of the street, skipping and jumping the shallow wagon ruts like a child playing hopscotch.

Both men strode slowly, deliberately, side by side, up the middle of the street. Eyes narrowed as each lawman strained to assess the scene. Still nothing stirred - as though they walked through a ghost town.

Suddenly - a glint of sunlight on cold steel flashed from between the louvers of a shuttered door. Hands slapped leather as weapons unholstered and confirmed their target. Fire belched from the louvered door. Two guns answered as each lawman responded. The silent street erupted into confusion as the air filled with thunder and whizzing bullets coming from two directions. The badged men were caught in a crossfire. Back to back, from the center of the street, firing both directions, they made their stand.

When the gunsmoke cleared, the score was tallied. Good guys 6, bad guys nothing.

I like a good western once in awhile because you can always count on the guys with the white hats winning the day. Don't you wish that were more evident in life on this side of eternity?

This morning I'm not going to take you to the Wild West. Rather, we're going more eastward, and back about two millennia to the early years of the church.

There is a showdown in this message - a showdown over a concept. The concept is justification by faith. The two lawmen are Paul and James.

I must tell you up front that some people think that Paul and James were adversaries in this showdown because a cursory look at their writings seems to show them shooting in opposite directions, maybe even at each other. Paul said faith justifies, James said faith and works justify. A careful investigation, however, indicates that they were both on the same side. It was a case not unlike the two lawmen in the Wild West. Caught in a crossfire, they were simply back to back, on the same side, shooting at different bad guys. I'll give you more on this in a few minutes. First, though, I want to reiterate the point we've been emphasizing over the last few weeks as the first point of my message:

I. Real Faith Justifies.

We've been studying the book of Romans here on Sunday mornings. Paul, the writer of that letter has made it clear that man cannot be saved solely on the basis of keeping God's law because he cannot keep it perfectly. Said another way, he cannot earn his way or work his way to heaven. His works of human merit - his ability to do what is right - cannot justify him. Because of this, God has made a way to be saved apart from law - apart from a system of law keeping that would require perfect obedience. In chapter three Paul explained what he meant. He wrote: "even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ." (Romans 3:22) God has offered us His righteousness because we cannot produce an acceptable righteousness of our own on the basis of our works.

Then, in chapter 4 that we covered last week, Paul underscored his point by holding up the example of Abraham. In 4:2 he said, "For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God." Then he went on to show with Old Testament Scripture that it was Abraham's faith that was reckoned to him as righteousness, not his works. Paul quoted Genesis 15:6: "And Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness."

That Abraham was justified by his faith is hard to miss in chapter 4. Exactly what Paul meant by "faith" though, has become a problem. Because there are those who assert that the faith that justifies is a "do nothing" kind of faith, I spent our entire session in Romans last time establishing with you that Abraham's faith was more than just a shallow statement of belief. I suggested that if Paul intended to convey that justifying faith was "do nothing" faith, he surely picked a poor example to make his point. Abraham's faith, though not perfect, was an obedient faith, from beginning to end. He was a man who, though he made some serious mistakes, was willing to obey God. If you were not here for that message, I encourage you to get the tape or check my website.

The central point of Romans is that real faith justifies but we must also realize that…

II. Real Faith Obeys.

Many times I have heard people object to the Bible's repeated call for obedience by saying things, "Wait a minute. If his works didn't save him, how can you even mention a need for obedience? Isn't obedience a work? My answer to that is both "yes" and "no," depending on what is meant by "work." Not all "works" in the Bible are the same. If that seems confusing to you, I hope you'll give me your attention.

There are several kinds of works spoken of in the Bible. There are:

Works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21) which have no relevance to our discussion here.

Works of Satan (I John 3:8) which also have no relevance to this discussion.

There are works of human merit, which Paul has been referring to in Romans. These occur in the context of a person thinking that he can live well enough on his own to earn salvation from God. Of course, this is impossible to do because such a system requires perfection. Thus, no person can be saved solely on the basis of works of human merit.

Then there is another class of works spoken of in the New Testament (and this is one that is often ignored): Works of faith - that is, works that spring naturally from the life of a person who truly believes God. The New Testament uses this exact terminology: In I Thessalonians 1:2-3 Paul wrote: "We give thanks to God always for all of you… constantly bearing in mind your work of faith…." Paul told the Galatians in Galatians 5:6, "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love."

There are a lot of people today who don't understand this. They have the mistaken notion that all works are the same and because of their ignorance, end up trashing works. This is a serious mistake.

I showed you this with regard to Abraham's obedience in several passages last time.

Hebrews 11:8 says, "By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed…" Abraham's action sprang from his faith.

Hebrews 11:17 says, "By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac…" Again his action sprang, according to the Hebrew writer, not from a sense of earning salvation by works of human merit apart from God, but from his deep sense of faith and trust in God.

Abraham did these acts "by faith." He did not do them "by works." I'll speak more about this matter of "works of faith" in a few minutes.

I also showed you those places in Romans where Paul mentioned obedience in the context of faith:

	Romans 1:5 speaks of "the obedience of faith."
	Romans 6:16 speaks of "obedience resulting in righteousness."
	Romans 15:18 tells us that what God accomplished through Paul resulted in "the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed."
	Romans 16:9 praised the Romans "obedience."
	Romans 16:25-26 said that the preaching of the gospel was leading to "the obedience of faith."

If Paul meant to exclude obedience from his concept of justification by faith, what was he talking about in these five passages of Romans? Further, why did he use the obedient Abraham to illustrate justification by faith if he intended to convey that obedience was unimportant as some claim today?

Last Sunday night we addressed this further in our discussion session and I pointed out that obedience was relevant under both the covenant of Law and the covenant of Grace. There are, however, significant differences in the nature of obedience under each.

Under law, perfect obedience is required. Under grace, God can save one who is imperfect.

Under law, the motive for obedience is self-justification. Under grace the motive is a desire to please God backed up by a growing trust in Him with the full realization that one cannot save himself.

Under law, the result of obedience is condemnation because no one can do it perfectly. Under grace, the result of obedience is justification because it's presence shows our faith.

True faith obeys. Such obedience isn't a work of human merit and it isn't perfect, but it is present in those who have faith. That message is all over the Scriptures.

Now we come to the most difficult concept for some to accept:

III. Real Faith Works

Having said all these things about faith, let me now call your attention back to the issue between Paul and James. I said that some people think that they were adversaries in this showdown because a cursory look at their writings seems to show them shooting in opposite directions, perhaps even at each other. Paul said faith justifies apart from works. James said faith and works justify and that faith alone is worthless.

Several verses will serve to show what I mean.

Paul said in Ephesians 2:8-9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast."

He said in Romans 3:28, "For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law."

James said in James 2:24, "You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone."

Can you see the problem? The two seem to be saying opposite things.

Since we've been considering the writings of Paul now for 8 weeks, let's look more closely at James. In the process, I'll explain the answer to the apparent contradiction. Please turn to James 2.

(Read v. 14)

So exactly what is James dealing with here? He's asking the question, "What good is a workless, 'do nothing' faith? Can it save you?"

(Read v. 15-17)

Faith, if it has no works, is what being by itself? Dead!

(Read v. 18)

James here is making a point of argument. Putting a "faith" person and a "works" person side by side could make the case very easily. The "works" person looks at the "faith" person and says, "Show me your faith." Unless the "faith" person does something, how in the world is his faith going to be seen? That is the point.

So, what do we have so far? First, faith without works is dead. Now, faith without works is invisible.

(Read v. 19-20)

Here we have James's third point: Faith without works is useless. How useless? As useless as it is for a demon to profess faith.

Ah, but now James is really going to tell us how the bear sits in the buckwheat.

(Read v. 21)

Wait a minute! Didn't Paul say in Romans that faith justified Abraham? Now James says his works justified him. What is going on here?

Before I read on and give you James' explanation for his statement, I want to point out something to you. What was the question James is addressing in this passage? He stated it back in verse 14: "If a man says he has faith but he has no works, can that faith save him?"

James isn't excluding faith here. Rather, he is addressing the problem of a workless faith - a faith that is a professed belief but nothing more. It has no substance. Said another way, he is addressing the problem of one who thinks he is saved by faith alone. Though he wrote long ago, he James is addressing much of modern day Protestantism.

Do you think I'm stretching the terminology here? Would you accuse me of adding something to what James says when I say he is addressing the problem of one who thinks he is saved by faith alone? Drop down to verse 24. If I've stretched it, so has James.

(Read v. 24)

Now think back to Paul in Romans. What was he dealing with? If you will recall, he was dealing with the Jewish mind, coming from the perspective of the law and the belief that a person could be saved by works alone. Remember his words? "By works of law shall no flesh be justified." Cold, lifeless, man-centered works alone can do nothing. If man wants to be justified that way, he has to be perfect, which is impossible.

Here is the reconciliation of Paul and James. Paul was dealing with the problem of seeking justification by works alone. James was dealing with the problem of seeking justification by faith alone. Though they seem to be saying different things, they really are not. Rather, they are like the two lawmen in the opening story, back to back in the middle of the street, shooting in opposite directions at different bad guys, but in full harmony of purpose and well within the bounds of what is logical and right! Both had in mind an active, working faith.

But do you realize how much James' words here bother some people? Some of them believe that the book of James shouldn't even be in the Bible! That's right. Martin Luther, one of the major figures in the Protestant Reformation said that James was a "right strawy epistle." Others today echo that sentiment.

For the sake of argument, let's say that Luther was right - that James, because it mentions that we must do something if we expect to be justified, is just an empty, meaningless, strawy book. So we just take out a pair of scissors and cut it out of our Bible. Snip! There, that takes care of it.

But wait a minute. What about the book of Hebrews? It says we must do things as well. Hebrews 5:9 says, "He became the source of eternal salvation to those who obey Him." Obedience involved in salvation? That's clearly something we must do. It's a work. Should we cut that one out, too? Snip!

What about the book of Acts? When those people heard the gospel message, they were told to do things in order to be saved. An example would be Acts 2 where the Jews interrupted Peter's sermon on Pentecost and asked, "What shall we do? If there were indeed nothing they could do, then why didn't Peter tell them then and there? "There is nothing you can do. Christ has done it all." No, that scoundrel Peter! Do you know what he told them? He told them to "repent and be baptized" to have their sins forgiven! That's something you do. Snip! Cut that one out of the Bible, too.

Then there is Matthew who quotes Jesus in Matthew 7:21 as saying, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven." Snip! Out goes Matthew.

Mark quoted Jesus as saying, "He who believes and is baptized shall be saved." Oh, my, there's something implied that we're to do. Snip! Out goes Mark!

Luke quoted Jesus as saying, "Unless you repent, you shall all likewise perish." Something you do! Snip! Out goes Luke!

John quotes Jesus in John 14:15 as saying, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." Keep his commandments? That sounds like work! Snip! Out goes John.

I could go on, folks, and show you that every book in the New Testament contains commands we are told to do, but perhaps you get my drift. If we take obedient, working faith out of the Bible, there will be nothing left except a few Protestant proof texts with no context! If I had actually butchered a Bible up here in front of you to make my point, I'd now be left holding the spine of the binding with a hand full of scriptures hanging from it. Is that the way to solve this problem? I don’t think so.

Let's go back now and finish James 2. Still speaking of Abraham, James says in verse 22:

(Read v. 22)

"His faith was working with his works." Real faith works! Think about it. If all God wanted from Abraham was a workless faith, why didn't He just do a brain scan or a heart scan on him and say, "Abraham! Don't go to Mount Moriah! Stay home! I see that your heart is a believing heart, so I won't ask you to do what I was going to ask. Forget it. You're justified. I don't need to see a sacrifice." No. To have faith was to act. That is what God expected. That is what James is saying here.

Notice that James even quotes the very same verse from Genesis that Paul did to make his point.

(Read v. 23)

James knew of Abraham's justification by faith. But he also knew as Paul did, that Abraham's faith was an active, obedient faith, not a "do nothing" faith. James was dealing with people who asserted that they could be saved by faith alone.

What should be said to those who teach workless faith as a means of justification today? Just tell them what James tells them. Just read them the next verse.

(Read v. 24)

And to top it off…

(Read v. 25-26)

What does all this mean? It means that we are justified by God's grace through our faith. But this faith isn't a useless, dead, invisible, disobedient faith. It is an active faith - a faith that desires to do what God wants. It will even put itself and its own interests at risk and in harm's way sometimes in order to remain. It isn't perfect obedience but it certainly is a desire to obey. It isn't a system based on works of human merit but it certainly will produce works of faith. Want some verification of that? Go read Hebrews 11 where we read:

	(v. 4) "By faith Abel offered…"
	(v. 5) "By faith Enoch witnessed…"
	(v. 6) "By faith Noah prepared an ark…"
	(v. 8) "By faith Abraham obeyed…"
	(v. 11) "By faith Sarah considered Him faithful who had promised…"
	(v. 20) "By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau…"
	(v. 21) "By faith Jacob blessed each of the sons of Joseph…"
	(v. 22) "By faith Joseph gave orders concerning his bones…"
	(v. 23) "By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months…"
	(v. 24) "By faith Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter…"

By faith each one of these people acted. These were not works of human merit where each person expected to be able to demand justification from God on the basis of his ability to live up to God's standard. They were acts that sprang from their faith or, as we have seen, works of faith.

Drop down now to verse 39.

39 And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, (Would you underline that, please?)

Were all of these people perfect in their obedience or their works? Not a one of them! But their lives did exhibit faith as shown in their faithful acts and so they gained approval.

How much faith did they need in order to be justified? The thing that strikes me reading Hebrews is how vastly different the circumstances were in each life named here. Apparently God deals with each one of us separately on the basis of our own individual faith. He doesn't compare us with one another. Hebrews 11 isn't a roster of "who came in first" or "who had the highest score." Justification isn't based on that. Each life was different in the way faith impacted it except for one thing they had in common. All these people possessed an active, obedient, working faith.

Conclusion

I would like to leave you with a few verses that verify what I am saying and show that Paul and James were not enemies at all. The first three of these are from Paul, the last from James.

"We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers; constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father…" (I Thessalonians 1:2-3)

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love." (Galatians 5:6)

"Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?" (Romans 6:16)

"You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone." (James 2:24)

Real faith justifies. Real faith obeys. Real faith works. You simply cannot get around it unless you ignore the Scripture.

*This message is Part 9 of a series of sermons from Romans by the author called "How to Be Right With God" [Back]