The HIDDEN meaning of “Faith Without Works is Dead”

Introduction

James Chapter 2 has to be one of the most controversial passages in the Bible, at least when it comes to Salvation. The reason it's so controversial is that many Christians seem to think that it contradicts the biblical doctrine of  Justification by Grace through Faith without Works. It says in Romans Chapter 5 that we are justified by faith.

 “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:” (Romans 5:1)

Ephesians 2:8-9 puts it this way,

“For by grace ye are saved through faith; not that of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

The Bible makes it abundantly clear that we are saved by faith without works or “faith alone”.  But, when we read James Chapter 2, it says,

“But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?” (James 2:20)

And,

“Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.” (James 2:24)

These verses have caused many to ask, is there some kind of contradiction? 

False Interpretations

Well, many people have had their own interpretations of this passage. The Eastern Orthodox and Catholic will claim, “This is saying that you must have Works in order to get Salvation.” Thinking this of course, is going to contradict the verses that were previously mentioned (and pretty much half of the New Testament). To believe this, one would have to throw out the entire book of Romans, the entire book of Galatians, and the Gospel of John… at the very least. 

Protestants (who nominally adhere to “Faith Alone”) have their own interpretation as well. They claim that James chapter 2 is teaching that salvation is by faith alone, but if you truly have faith, you will produce good works as a result of that faith. They say that it's not the works that are saving you, but if you are truly saved, you will have good works: which is summarized in the infamous quote attributed to Martin Luther, “We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.” The problem with this interpretation, is that it’s not saying anything fundamentally different from the Works Salvationist’s view. Salvation cannot be by “faith alone” if true faith is never alone. If faith always has works that come out of it, then how can the Bible say we are saved by faith without works? This statement is truly contradictory. 

Those who are wise enough to realize that both interpretations are wrong will still unfortunately interpret the passage incorrectly. 

The third most popular interpretation of James chapter 2 is the “Free Grace” perspective. They will claim, “James chapter 2 is talking about justifying yourself before man. We're saved by grace through faith, and we don't need any works to be saved, but if we want to show the people around us that we are believers, then we need works.”

However, this interpretation clashes with James 2:14 which states,

“What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and hath not works? Can faith save him?” (James 2:14)

Save him from what exactly? They will say, “Save you from ridicule,” or “Save you from people questioning whether you're saved.” These do not feel like satisfactory answers. 

Reading in CONTEXT

The main reason why so many people struggle with this passage is because James chapter 2 is a victim of being taken out of context.

In Isaiah 28:13 it says, 

“But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little; [...]” (Isaiah 28:13)

When we are reading the Bible, and we want to understand what it's saying, we need to go precept upon precept, line upon line, verse by verse, to understand it. However, when most people are reading James chapter 2, they skip the first thirteen verses and go down to verse 14, (where they inanely start reading) and when taken out of context like this, (such as

many passages in the Bible), it sounds like it’s teaching works salvation. It is only when James chapter 2 is put back into context with the other thirteen verses preceding it, does it actually teach “faith alone” justification. 

We need to put James chapter 2 back in context so we can understand what it's really teaching. So, before we get to James chapter 2, it’s important to touch on James chapter 1.

If we go to the first two verses of James chapter 1 it reads,

“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;” (James 1:1-2)

In the very beginning of the book, just like every epistle in the New Testament, the author, James, tells us who he's writing to; the 12 tribes scattered abroad, who are his Brethren. Now who are the 12 tribes? They would be, the dispersed descendants of Jacob's (Israel’s) 12 sons across the Roman Empire and beyond. Who are his Brethren? well according to the Book of Romans, all who believe become the brothers and sisters (Brethren) of Jesus Christ because we're adopted into his family. 

“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; [...] For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn of many brethren.” (Romans 8:15-29)

James is writing in his epistle to saved believers who are Jewish. So, he's writing to the Jewish church, the same audience as Paul’s Epistle to the Hebrews, though this was written about  20-30 years prior. In James chapter 2, James is writing about a particular problem that the Jewish church is facing and he is rebuking them.

“My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called? If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.” (James 2:1-9)

James is rebuking the Jewish church for their greed and showing favoritism to the wealthy Roman congregants that started going there and leaving the poor congregants in need. They respected their person, meaning they excused the Romans' sins just because they wanted to get donations and favors from them. James writes how they need to act out the faith that they profess and go beyond simply just believing.

One of the teachings of the Lord Jesus is that we're supposed to give alms to the poor— love thy neighbor as thyself. These Jewish Christians claimed to believe these teachings, but instead of acting out these beliefs and helping the poor, these Jewish Christians were more focused on helping out the rich. 

James then goes on to tell them that if they don't repent of this sin, God is going to chastise them, 

“So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the perfect law of liberty. For he shall have judgement without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgement.” (James 2:12-13)

The chastisement of God is talked about in Hebrews 12:6,

“For whom the Lord loves he chastens and scourges every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chastens not? But if you be without chastisement, whereof all our partakers, then ye are bastards, and not Sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection to the father of spirits, and live? For verily for a few days they chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his Holiness. Now no chastening for present seems to be joyous but Grievous: nevertheless afterward it yields the Peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” (Hebrews 12:6-11)

God chastens his children. In other words, he punishes them when they do evil. This punishment is not about sending people to Hell. What the punishment looks like biblically, is when a Christian sins, God introduces negative repercussions onto them. For example, he may allow the Sinful Christian to get sick (1 Corinthians 11:29-32), experience loss (2 Samuel 12:13-23), and even kill their body so that their soul can go to Heaven. (Acts 5:1-11, 1 Corinthians 5:1-5). God chastises people in order to teach them not to sin anymore. 

Addressing Difficult Passages

Can Faith Save Him?

It is, at James 2:14, where people begin to misinterpret what James 2 is saying; and this misinterpretation is directly linked to the common practice of (as previously mentioned) skipping the first 13 verses and going down to verse 14 immediately, missing out on important context.

“What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? (James 2:14)

Many Christians understand this to mean that, if you do not have works, you cannot be saved from the fires of hell. As we have previously shown, this cannot be true. But now, with the context of the first 13 verses, we understand that, if a Christian believes he should take care of the poor, but does not act out that belief, they will not be saved from chastisement.

Faith Without Works is Dead

James continues,

If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” (James 2:15-17)

This phrase, "faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone," or as it is more commonly quoted from verse 20, "faith without works is dead," is commonly misinterpreted to mean that if one truly believes, they will have good works. They interpret the concept of having a dead faith to mean that it is a non-existent faith.

However, James contradicts this concept.

"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." (James 2:19)

He affirms that these Christians do truly believe in God. So a dead faith cannot refer to a faith that does not exist. Rather, James is saying here is that, if you truly believe that we should love our neighbor as ourselves, then you should act that out. If you're not acting out your belief then your belief is nothing more than a belief. It's not actually doing anything, it's dead. 

James says in verses 15 and 16, that you may believe that you should feed the poor, and you may claim to care about the poor, but if you don't actually do the things that you need to do to take care of them, then what does it matter? “Faith without works is dead.” In context, this is not talking about salvation whatsoever. The Jewish Christians he’s addressing will still be judged even if they in their hearts believe in feeding the poor, because merely believing in helping them is not the same as actually providing for them.

Showing Your Faith

Verse 18 is another verse which confuses people. It says,

 “Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.” (James 2:18)

Due to the problem of reading out of context, they interpret this to mean that you show your faith in Jesus by having good works. This is not true. As the context we've gone over so far has established, this is talking about believing in God's law.

This confusion on what kind of faith James is talking about also causes people to misinterpret the next verse.

“Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.” (James 2:19)

This particular verse is very difficult for people, and many pronounce that it is saying “even the demons believe in Jesus! Jesus died for their sins!" However, this verse never says that the demons believe in Jesus regarding their sins. It says they believe in God's existence. Believing in God's existence is not how one gets saved. It should also be noted that Jesus did not die for the sins of demons, but rather, for the sins of humans.

"For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:21-22)

I wrote an article going in depth about this.

The point which James is explaining is that, now that we have salvation, we should move past just having faith in Christ and start to live out the Commandments in which Jesus instructed us to live by. Living out his commandments has nothing to do with “proving you're saved” or providing any external evidence that you are saved. This is simply about how we should live our lives after we get saved. We shouldn't just keep our faith as a mere mental belief, but rather, we should go on to do good works. This concept is known as “walking in the Spirit” according to the Bible (Galatians 5:16, Galatians 5:25, Romans 8:2, Romans 8:4). 

NOT Justified By Faith Alone

James gives the example of Abraham, as someone who lived out his beliefs.

"Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.” (James 2:21-24)

This is another controversial part of the passage due to the segment that reads, “and man is not justified by faith only,” Which is commonly cherry-picked out of context for use in debate. Naturally of course, when we read it in context we understand what it's talking about. 

The book of Genesis teaches that Abraham received a promise from God that he would be a father; and that his son, Isaac, would be the beginning of multitudes and multitudes of generations.

“And, behold, the word of the Lord came unto him [Abraham], saying, This shall not be thine heir [Eliezer of Damascus] but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir [Isaac]. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” (Genesis 15:4-6)

Abraham believed God's promise to him that his son would be the beginning of multitudes, upon multitudes, of generations; and so when God asked Abraham to slay his own son, Abraham was willing to do it; believing that if he did kill Isaac, that God would still fulfil the promise that Isaac would be the beginning of multitudes of generations, by raising Isaac back to life from the dead, so that Isaac could father his own children.

“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; [...]” (Hebrews 11:17-19)

Abraham lived out this belief (had a living faith) by taking his son Isaac and binding him up and placing him on an altar as God ordered him to do (Genesis 22:6-14). According to James, it was the execution of what he claimed to believe that justifies him. While it may seem confusing to some, this justification is not in a salvific sense. According to the Oxford Dictionary, the word ‘Justify’ means to, “show or prove to be right or reasonable.” Abraham was shown/proven to be a righteous and moral person because he was not a hypocrite with a dead faith, but he had a living faith and lived out what he said he believed.

The point being made in James chapter 2 is that, like Abraham, when we have a belief about something, whether it be that murder is wrong, that we should love our neighbor, or that we should keep the sabbath, we should live out that belief so that we are not hypocrites. If we are hypocrites, God will chastise us for our unrighteousness.

Conclusion

To conclude, James 2 is a warning to us to not just be people who say the right things, think the correct way, or believe in what we ought, but that we should also do the right things. To not just be hearers of the word, but doers of the word. Living our lives in accordance with the commandments of Jesus Christ. As the book of Romans teaches, once we become aware of morality, God holds us to the standard of keeping it.  

Now regardless as to how you live your life as a child of God, you will have everlasting life no matter what. Even when God is chastening you, he still loves you and he will never take away what was promised. All of your sins have been forgiven, so be dead to sin and alive unto God. Repentance of sins and doing good works don’t have anything to do with salvation. They don’t get you saved, prove you’re saved, or keep you saved. 

“But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” (Romans 4:5)

“But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7)