During the next five weeks, passages from the Epistle of James are the New Testament readings before the Gospel in our Sunday worship services.
Martin Luther disliked this particular letter because of its focus on deeds, or “works.” In Luther’s time (16th century), the church emphasized doing certain things as a way of accumulating grace to be accepted into Heaven.
Good deeds, church attendance, prayers, even buying indulgences (a monetary donation to the Vatican that paid for the forgiveness of a certain amount of sinfulness, depending on the contribution size). From that frame of reference, Luther saw James’ 1st-century letter as a list of works leading to salvation and therefore in conflict with Paul’s declaration that we are saved by grace through faith.
His perspective was skewed a bit. Both Paul and James were in complete agreement. We are saved by grace through faith, which God sees, as Paul tells us in his Letter to the Ephesians:
For by grace you are saved through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; — Eph 2:8 (LEB)
In other words, you can’t earn it; so, stop acting like you can.
James is commenting on the aspect of faith that humans are able to see: the fruit of our faith. He mentions that Abraham was saved by faith, but his actions in obeying God’s command are what we witness as a demonstration of that powerful faith.
Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was working together with his works, and by the works the faith was perfected. — James 2:21–22
“Perfected” in biblical usage doesn’t mean “without fault.” It means “completed.” Abraham’s faith in God was incomplete in its ability to serve as an example to others until that faith led him to trust God regarding the sacrifice of his own son.
Being told by Abraham that he had faith in God would be less convincing to the people around him than their witnessing that faith in action.
James is showing us that our faith will result in changed lives: ours and those we touch. It is completely consistent with Christ’s command in the Sermon on the Mount:
In the same way let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven. — Matt 5:16
And so, our venture into James’ letter begins, as he confronts us almost immediately with an admonishment concerning anger (a behavioral issue that plagued both Paul and Luther).
Understand this, my dear brothers:
every person must be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, 20 for human anger does not accomplish the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore, putting aside all moral uncleanness and wicked excess, welcome with humility the implanted message which is able to save your souls. — James 1:19–21
And after you’ve accepted God’s message within your hearts, act on it. God is the playwright and you are one of his performers, not an audience member watching the play unfold.
But be doers of the message and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves, 23 because if anyone is a hearer of the message and not a doer, this one is like someone staring at his own face in a mirror, 24 for he looks at himself and goes away and immediately forgets what sort of person he was. — James 1:22–24
Where the passage translated the word someone, James uses the word, andros, which usually means man specifically, as opposed to anthropos (from which we get anthropology), which often means humanity in general. A woman at that time using a mirror would likely not ignore a flaw that she sees in it. She would fix whatever she could (brushing hair, washing face, etc.), whereas, a man was more likely to ignore whatever needed fixing. Yes, the culture of 1st-century Israel was less politically correct than ours today.
But the one who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues to do it, not being a forgetful hearer but a doer who acts, this one will be blessed in what he does. — James 1:25
Many of us read something in the Bible or hear it on Sunday and think it’s wonderful, but then go on with our lives never implementing the guidance we received from God. That’s a faith problem. Faith is a belief that causes us to change, and change is visible to others.
If anyone thinks he is religious, although he does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. — James 1:17–27
The social action of helping the poor is reflected in the comment about looking after widows and orphans, and much of our charitable focus is in that direction. We forget the preceding part that identifies it as pure and undefiled religion in God’s sight. Not proper doctrine, not flawless theology, not a better understanding of the Lord’s Supper than those other folks. None of that is even mentioned by Jesus or James. Helping others is, however, and it’s a primary concern. The next phrase serves as a warning to us regarding the material distractions that beckon to us — to keep ourselves unstained by the world.
Paul shows us how the world’s distractions can corrupt us in his letter to Timothy asking for visitors for his last days.
For Demas deserted me, because he loved the present age …. — 2 Tim 4:10
Demas had been ministering alongside Paul for years, as he sends greetings from them both and other workers to Philemon.
… and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers. — Philemon 24
But Demas became distracted by what the secular world had to offer him and left his calling and purpose to chase after his own material desires. James warns us that our sinful world will do all it can to draw us away from our calling as disciples. Our faith in Christ enables us to withstand that temptation, and our unworldly focus becomes an example to others of our faith.
The flow goes in one direction, however; faith causes works—not the other way around. Works don’t cause faith any more than perfume causes flowers.
So, keep the faith, and let God’s grace lead you to the good works he has in store for you.
Semper Fidelis,
Fr. Austin