Homiletical Commentary.

NOTES ON THE EPISTLE OF JAMES.

"Faith Without Works."

Chapter ii. 14-19.-"WHAT DOTH IT PROFIT, MY BRETHREN, THOUGH A MAN SAY HE HATH FAITH AND HAVE NOT WORKS? CAN FAITH SAVE HIM? 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. 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. THOU BELIEVEST THAT THERE IS ONE GOD; THOU DOEST WELL: THE DEVILS ALSO BELIEVE AND TREMBLE."

SALVATION by faith and not by works, by faith alone, and not in any degree by works; this is the pervading principle of Scripture, radical, universal. Scripture everywhere insists upon it, conscience assents to it, the reason is shut up to it; and the conclusion with which another apostle brings the teaching of Scripture, of conscience, and of reason to bear upon the convictions of his readers is one which no man, when he faces his own past life in the light of the holiness of God, can possibly evade. Who for a moment could entertain the hope of salvation grounded on his obedience to the law of God? Who is prepared to go into the presence of God with the deeds of the flesh, expecting on the Salvation by ground of these to be received into the everlasting habitations? We have no works of our own to save

faith alone.

us, the works of our own that we do have condemned us; and if it is to be a matter of what we have of our own, there can be but one result; the due award of our deeds is, and must to all eternity be, condemnation. But if it is not to be a matter of what we have of our own, if it is to be a matter of what some other has of his own, if it is to be by, and on account of the deeds, and, therefore, of the merits of this other who in accordance with the righteous and merciful character of God, offers Himself to God in our place; in this case it would seem that the only possible alternative, the only possible way by which we can get the benefit of all this is that of faith, of receptive belief. How can we take to ourselves the benefits of our Saviour's work which He wrought out for us, except by putting forth our hand to take them? And what is this, in the spiritual world, but believing? It is plain enough that we cannot be justified by our own works; if in God's grace we may be justified by the works of another, it is surely as plain that the means by which we are to unite ourselves to these works, or rather to Him who has wrought them out, is faith, a vital and cordial assent of the whole man to the Gospel offer, "the embracing of the Lord Jesus Christ as He is offered in the Gospel."

Of the last importance to understand

this clearly.

It is matter of the last moment that this radical Gospel truth be made clear to the mind, that it may become energetic in the life. How do we expect to be saved? We know we are helpless and cannot save ourselves; God says to us He will help us if we believe His word, if we take Him at His word; can we be saved if we do not? He says, " Look unto Me and be ye saved." The look, the look of faith will save us, but what if we do not look, what if we persist in looking away? It must be the one thing or the other, God is willing to save us; at an infinite sacrifice to Himself has provided salvation for us; do we believe Him, or do we not believe Him? Are we putting our trust in His word and promise, or are we casting discredit upon the word of the Faithful and the True? It is one or the other; we cannot be saved by our own works or merit, we may be saved by faith in the works and

merit of another, and there is no other way of being saved but by this faith. "There is no other name," &c.

We have all been brought up in the atmosphere of this; in the preaching and teaching of it we have become so familiar with this condition of being saved, that we imagine we have complied with the condition. Very few have any doubt about it, and even the most worldly, the least religious would hesitate, and hesitate long, before he would acknowledge himself an unbeliever. In a Christian community we breathe the very atmosphere of salvation by faith, and hence the fatal tendency to think we have exercised the faith on which the salvation depends; the fatal Are we really tendency to mistake external hearing of, and familbeing saved iarity with the doctrine for the vital and energetic individual realisation of it. It is to be feared there are many, in all our Christian Churches, in the vain imagination that they have believed, who have never believed at all. They have drifted into the delusion because others around them are believers, they fancy themselves to be believers too. And if the apostle James were here again, he would not need to alter or modify any of his words; the same remonstrances, the same rebukes, the same exposures of unreality would be equally in place now: "What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?"

by faith?

James accepts the doctrine.

This apostle believed in justification by faith and not by works; with him faith is as much the root-principle of all spiritual life as it is with Paul, or with any of the apostles, but he sees as they did that it is liable to misconception; he sees that the natural heart, ever ready to rest in mere forms, will make a form of even such a spiritual thing as salvation by faith; and, apostle of reality, he will set himself to counteract this tendency; like the prophets of old "he will lift up his voice against, and spare not," those who are contentedly imagining they have the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ, when their supposed faith is but the result of their Christian surroundings. When he here speaks of a man who "says" he has faith, he is not thinking of a conscious hypocrite, it is of a member of the church who but believes that he believes, and

who vainly "says" it. He singles out one of these, asks us to look at him, perhaps, to find in him an image of ourselves. "What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man

But sees it may be

'say' he hath faith, and have not works: can faith perverted. save him, can faith of that kind save him?"

Observe, this apostle believes in saving faith, is himself resting on the finished work of Jesus Christ; but this is the question to push it to its issue. Is that, can that be called, saving faith which gives no evidence that it exists? Saving faith must be a living faith, and living it will be active, active it will manifest itself, in the very nature of things, it will prove its existence by works. But the faith of the mere "sayer" has nothing of all this! Then of what use is it to him, what profit is there in it? It is dead, and the sooner he knows this the better: knowledge here would be the beginning of salvation. What is the use of calling that faith which cannot do the only thing for which faith exists?

Charity with

dead.

ance !

You would not "say" a man was charitable or benevolent who, when he saw an ill-clad, starving fellow-man, merely "said" charitable or kindly things to him, who, being in possession of superabundant food and raiment, never gave of his superabundPlenty of charitable words, no charitable out works is actions: plenty of sayings, no doings! What profits it, my brethren, though a man "say" he hath a charitable spirit, and have no charitable deeds? This is the illustration the apostle uses to let light upon, and in upon, this saying without doing, this believing and not working; and it is very characteristic of him. It illustrates clearly the matter in hand; but over and above this use of it what a practical lesson in true benevolence, and what a condemnation of all mere sentiments and feelings which, professing to be so interested in the poor and needy, stop short of condensing themselves into actual kindnesses, into deeds of charity and goodwill. Telling, as an illustration, it is quick and powerful as a rebuke. "If a brother or sister be naked or 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

for the body, what doth it profit?" The charity which only "says" is a dead charity, and the faith which only "says" is a dead faith, profitless, non-existent. It is a good and serviceable thing to bring a life and death matter like this to a plain and pointed issue. James does not trouble or confuse his readers with subtleties or refinements; he has nothing to say about speculative faith or historical faith; about a faith of the head, or a faith of the heart; he is a plain man, speaking to plain men about a matter too serious to admit of mere discussion. He knows of but one kind of faith-the faith which comes out in appropriate evidences-the faith which has works! There is no other kind, everything else is unbelief, aversion to the truth, and to God;" Faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone."

The subject is of the last importance, and the apostle will detain the minds of his readers upon it; it is apt to be misunderstood and he will vary his mode of presenting it. Charity without kind deeds is not charity; faith without works is not faith. Is this disputed? Well, then, let it be brought to the test. There is an easy and satisfactory one at hand. You say you have faith, though you have not works: let me see this faith of yours, if the thing exists surely you can let me see it! What kind of thing can that be which cannot in any way show itself? The demand is a common sense one; if a man cannot show his faith, it is because he has no faith to show! Yea, a man may Meeting him say, I'll meet you on your own ground; I'll take on his own you on your own showing: thou hast faith, and I ground. have works, show me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. I have works; I

have the feelings, and the affections, and the desires, and the outward life, which would not have been but for my faith; and when you ask me to show my faith, to give proof of its existence, I can confidently point to these as its evidences; feelings of filial trust, affectionate gratitude, desires after holiness, deeds of liberality and kindness. I point to these as proofs that I have faith, but you who have none of these and yet who say you have faith, let me see that faith of yours, which can live and energise without any results, without any works, without any fruit! The