Faith and works OR Faith vs works

Yesterday in small group time time with my buds we were reading in James chapter 4. Most peeps know this for its famous "faith without works is dead". This is not too difficult to reconcile with salvation by grace through faith doctrines of Paul when we grasp Jame's notion that without acting on the faith we have, our faith has no power to life.

The problem I faced with James 4 came in verse 24 where James proclaims that "by works man is justified and not by faith only." Here James is dealing with our justification, not the power or testimony of our faith. This position by James seemed to me to be in direct conflict with Romans 3:24 (ironically, same verse number), "being justified gratuitously by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." The key to understanding this "contradiction" may be found earlier in Romans 3 where Paul says, "by the works of the law no flesh can be justified."

A closer look reveals that Paul is saying that in no way can a peep's human nature (flesh) make him/her in harmony with the heavenlies or right before a Holy God. Our nature is flawed and can never satisfy the behavioral demands of the Law. James is not focusing on our works (actions) as satisfying God's Law. What he seems to be positing is that it's peeps acting out their faith (as opposed to obeying the Law) that makes them right before God. This may be a subtle but it is a profound difference and not a contradiction. In fact, James seems to be saying what Paul says in Romans 14:23 where we find "anything that is not of faith is sin (enmity with God)."

Thus, the standard for justification is not some behavioral code (ethics, morality, law) but faith in God's love and sovereign power. This is a difficult distinction for Christians steeped in legalism. James is completing what Paul says in Romans 3, not contradicting it. Both encourage us to understand that it's acting on what we believe about God, who He is, what He's done though Jesus, etc. that puts us in right stead with Him. In other words, how do we respond to difficult circumstances? what is our reaction to someone who hurts our feelings? How do we act when we win? Being right before God occurs when we trust Him, not act out of our nature. When we deal with evidence not seen vs what we see. Here justification  (being made right with God) is an ongoing reality, not a single transaction, such as salvation.

While Jesus made us right with God through the Cross, its actions we take from a Kingdom mind that actualizes (makes real) this relationship. This is not collaborative destiny (Armenian), but the reality of our life as one who has received the completed work of redemption. Just as our body and our spirit cannot be separated, neither can our faith and acting on our faith be disconnected, otherwise it is NOT faith!!

Just saying .....