Category Archives: faith

James versus Paul regarding faith and works

Leave a reply

One major problem with stating that we are saved by faith alone is that the Bible never says that, at least not directly. The only statement made about “faith alone” is negative:

“You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.” (James 2:24)

Oops!

Does James really contradict Paul? I mean Paul says things like:

“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.” (Romans 3:28)
“However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness.” (Romans 4:5)
“So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.” (Romans 11:5–6)
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9)

Yet James insists that faith is insufficient:

“In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” (James 2:17–19)

I think James and Paul are using words differently, as biblical writers often do. When Luke speaks of “apostles,” he almost always means the Twelve. When Paul speaks of “apostles,” he is usually referring to those sent out by the church as evangelists.

When James speaks of a faith that even demons have, he’s not speaking of the saving faith that Abraham had. When Paul talks about faith, it’s an active, obedient faith. James is addressing the lifestyle we live as a Christian; Paul is talking about how we achieve justification.

Using James’ terminology, we can’t be saved by faith alone; we also need works. Using Paul’s terminology, works have nothing to do with our salvation; it all depends on faith.

IF we understand how each author uses the words they use, we’ll see there’s no real conflict between their ideas.

Faith alone and the response of faith

Leave a reply

Yesterday I asked these questions:

Do you think that most people think “faith alone” excludes the thing the commenter mentions? Or do most people think that saving faith includes a certain response?

The commenter I referred to had listed “repentance, confession, baptism, or anything else.” I would argue that I have yet to meet anyone who felt that “faith alone” didn’t require some response. Most base that belief on verses like Romans 10:9

“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”

I’ve generally heard it taught that there needs to be some response, be it a praying of the sinner’s prayer or a public confession of faith. Few would believe in salvation of an unrepentant person. Believing in Jesus involves some change, some response.

Where the debate comes in, in my experience, is what form that response needs to take. I’m among those who believes that the biblical response includes immersion; that view is not held by all, and is, in fact, rejected by many.

Is a faith that doesn’t respond truly faith? If you strictly believe that it is, then your view of “faith alone” excludes the need for the things listed above. If you feel that faith that doesn’t respond is sterile, then I would guess “faith alone” doesn’t mean “intellectual assent alone” to you.

I want to keep unpacking these ideas. What are your thoughts on the subject?

Saved by faith alone?

1 Reply

I want to get back to a minor controversy that happened on the blog a couple of months ago. Ryan Lassiter made the statement that “you are saved by faith alone.” One commenter took great exception to this phrase. Even though Ryan had previously rejected the idea of biblical being merely intellectual, this commenter said:

My point is that when the majority of people, see the words “saved by faith alone”, it is understood to mean without repentance, confession, baptism, or anything else.

So I’d like to hear your thoughts. Do you think that most people think “faith alone” excludes the thing the commenter mentions? Or do most people think that saving faith includes a certain response? (We’ll talk more about what that response might look like. For now, I’d like to know if you see most people as viewing “faith alone” as mere intellectual assent to certain religious propositions.)

Law and Grace, Faith and Works

1 Reply

legalLast week we were looking at some unhealthy attitudes toward the Old Testament (and the Gospels, along the way). But it’s not just about the attitudes toward that (huge) section of Scripture. It’s really about how we look at the Bible itself.

For some people, the Bible is merely a book of rules, a legal code, the constitution for God’s Kingdom. Wade Tannehill said it well the other day:

But here is what has changed. The legal texts of Moses were in some cases highly detailed and prescriptive. Some would read the New Testament literature as if it were the same genre as the Book of the Covenant or the Holiness Code. This amounts to viewing the New Testament books, not as occasional literature written to aid disciples in a Christocentric reading of the Hebrew Scriptures, but as a flat law code of new legal stipulations for Christians.

Where the old law / new law dichotomy really misses the point is its misunderstanding of law in Scripture. Those seeking to understand the New Testament writings as a legal code are making a similar mistake to the Judaizers of old. The law is imagined to be in a position it was never intended to hold. The law has never been a means of salvation. No one has ever been saved by law-keeping, under any covenant. Salvation has always been by grace through faith.

Yes! Exactly. When we think that what Jesus did was substitute one written code for another, we fall into the trap that Paul condemned in the Galatian letter. When we depend on law, any kind of law, then we are no longer depending on grace. And that’s a dangerous thing: “You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.” (Galatians 5:4)

I heard a man speak at a youth camp 30 years ago, presenting the argument that the New Law was merely an improvement on the Old Law. He argued that when Paul says we aren’t saved by works, he only means works of the Law of Moses;”obviously we are saved by works.”

No! The New Testament is not a revised copy of the Pentateuch. It’s about coming into a relationship with God through Christ, seeking to live out our lives as an imitation of our Redeemer. We do that not to be saved but because that’s who we were called to be.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:8-10)

Not saved by works, but created for works.

We don’t need a new legal code. We need a Savior.

Salvation by faith

5 Replies

viewI believe in salvation by grace through faith.

Yes, I believe in salvation by faith. I just think we need to know what we are talking about when we say faith.

Saving faith is not mental assent. It’s not something the same as what we typically call belief. We can see an example of that in John chapter 12: “Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.” (John 12:42-43) These people came to have faith in Jesus, they believed in him, but they weren’t willing to act on that faith. Faith that never goes into action is not saving faith.

In Romans 1:5, Paul can talk about “the obedience that comes from faith.” Saving faith moves us to do something, to respond to God in some way. Faith without obedience is dead.

That’s why I have no problem in believing that baptism is the normal way that people come to be in a saving relationship with God, yet can also say that I believe in salvation by faith. Obedience is part of saving faith. Mere intellectual assent is not saving faith. We do nothing to earn our own salvation; it’s an exercise in futility to try. But at the same time, we put our faith into action or we admit that we have no real faith.