29 Aug 9/13/26 James 2:14-27 “The Pit”
9/13/26 James 2:14-27 “The Pit”
We have been in the book of James for a couple of weeks and we will continue because I feel that it is very important. Today’s passage is not in the lectionary at this time. It might be later but I don’t know. Actually part of this was included in last week’s readings but there was just too much material to cover. Sometimes the creators of the lectionary like to gloss over some things. This is something that we all do. Watch the politicians as we enter into another of the endless election seasons. There are definite topics they don’t want to talk about and they will manufacture topics that they want to talk about that were not even important a year ago and probably still aren’t. They do this every election and it’s one of the reasons that we the people are so tired of politicians. Personally, I’m tired of them because they lie so much. They are role models for the devil in many respects because they think nothing of telling lies. This trickles down so that now so many in this country think that it is ok to lie. Anyway, we will get back to this next week. Today, we are going to talk about faith and works. Let’s see if we can do this simple task right.
Jeffrey Smead tells a story about faith, one of the most misunderstood aspects of our belief. One day a young Christian who desired all that God had for him visited the home of an elderly Christian. He had heard that the old man was still on fire for the Lord after so many years. They was sitting on the porch with his dog watching the sunset when the young man asked, “Why is it that so many Christians zealously chase after God during the 1st year or 2 after their conversion and then become complacent. Soon you cannot recognize them from their non-Christian neighbors.” The old man said let me tell you a story. “One day I was sitting here quietly in the sun with my dog. Suddenly a large white rabbit ran across the field in front of us.
Well, my dog jumped up and took off after that big white rabbit. He chased the rabbit over the hills with a passion. Soon other dogs joined him attracted by his barking. What a sight it was as the pack of dogs ran barking across the creeks, up stony embankments, through thickets and thorns! Gradually, however, one by one, the other dogs dropped out of the pursuit, discouraged by the course and frustrated by the chase. Only my dog continued to hotly pursue the white rabbit. In that story, young man, lies the answer to your question.” The young man sat in confused silence. Finally, he said, “Sir, I don’t understand. What is the connection between a rabbit chase and the quest for God?” “You fail to understand,” answered the well-seasoned old man, “because you failed to ask the obvious question. Why didn’t the other dogs continue in the chase? And the answer to that question is; they had not seen the rabbit.”
I have come to the conclusion that this is a major stumbling block for many today. For so many, they know Jesus just a little bit if at all. They have read the stories. They know all the relevant facts about Jesus but they have never invited Him into their hearts. So all they know how to do is go out and work. Works without faith is dead just as much as faith without works is dead. This is one of the reasons that I ask all the time if you know Jesus. If you don’t or you’re not sure, then confess your sins and ask Him to live in your heart as your Lord and Savior. The beginning of faith is through a confession or a similar acceptance of Jesus Christ. It is then and only then that you may begin a journey, an incredible journey with Jesus Christ holding your hand. This applies to those who gradually came to Christ or don’t remember when it happened. Even then there is a point of acceptance even though it might have been part of a Sunday school class that you don’t remember. It is not so important as to how you come to Christ. It matters that you do.
I would like to just go through a few things that faith isn’t based on an outline by Jerry Shirley. First of all, faith isn’t just something we say. I think that I’ve probably given the sinners prayer in some form to several hundred, maybe thousand people. I know for a fact that just because I have said this with people, doesn’t mean that it has clicked in them.
Here’s what I mean. A few years ago, we had a Christian group come into the gym at the Kindred school. They performed some extreme sports basically for the young people in the area. There was a good turn out and when they did the altar call, they reported that let’s say 200 young people and children came to Christ for the 1st time. First of all, I had a problem with the bean counting. Second, I know that many if not most of those kids had said the sinner’s prayer prior to this because I had led many of them. The sponsors of this event were committing the sin of being proud to be a Christian. Now don’t get me wrong. I would imagine that there were a few who came to Christ for the first time and that is great.
But just because 200 kids said this prayer doesn’t mean that they accepted Jesus. Having faith is much more than what we say. This is the reason that I ask you so many times. As I said I would guess that I’ve made this invitation a few hundred times since I’ve been a pastor. There might be someone here who needs to say this and mean it for the first time. Sometimes we just need to recommit ourselves. There are so many trials in life that we cannot keep up. But we can praise the Lord that He can keep up. The invitation to Jesus is always open.
In a similar vein, faith is not just what you feel. Now any of these things can and are part of faith, but alone they are nothing. I don’t know how many people mistake feelings and emotions for faith. Don’t get me wrong because John Wesley felt a warm tingling in his heart when the Holy Spirit came upon him. But that was it. He never looks back. Instead he goes out and begins one of the biggest revivals that there has ever been. He was all faith and action.
We have to be the same way. We come to church every week or watch this and there may be those who expect to get something out of the church experience and we have talked about this before. You will never get anything out of worship if you don’t put something into your worship. If you just sit there, then there is nothing we can do that will enhance your experience. You have to sing, pray, listen and/or react to the service. Those of you who do put yourselves into the service also have a responsibility. You have to go out and live your life in the name of Jesus. I don’t know what that life will be but God does and let him lead you. Faith is much more than just the warm fuzzies that you might get once in a while when you talk with God.
Then we come to another huge obstacle as faith is not just what you think. So far faith is not what you say, feel and now think. This is probably one of the hardest obstacles to overcome. I do not have to tell you that we live in the age of science and more to the point, applied science and this is a very good thing. If you look around right now, everything you see and have is a direct result of God’s work through science. However, and we all know this, God gives us many things but we have to first work for them. In this case, we have to figure things out and that comes through science. I really don’t think that there is ever anything wrong with science unless of course it’s bad or flawed. The problems come when we use science for things that are wrong.
This comes when we start to over think things. If you want me to be perfectly clear, there are many things about Jesus Christ and what He did that absolutely defy any kind of logic and/or science. But just think of all the miracles that happen on a daily basis in our modern world that also defy logic. Because we live in a scientific age, there are many non-believers that will only believe if we can put these miracles and our faith into a scientific equation of some sort. Then in order for these people to believe, they first have to believe that miracles happen every day today.
Most people, however, don’t have a science background and they don’t believe either. These people are easier to win over because they have no real convictions. They don’t know logic any better than their faith. They just think they do. The best way to help out anyone who is too much of a thinker, is to go to them with the Gospel message. I mean who could disagree with the command that we are to love our neighbors as ourselves. Who could argue with fruits of the Spirit like joy, peace, patience, kindness and goodness? What I’m trying to say here is that faith is much more than thinking.
Then we come to the other thing that trip up many Christian believers. There are so many people that think that faith is just something you believe. Here’s the one that may affect some here today. Many people, some denominations believe that they are saved and that is all there is to it. They don’t have to do anything except come on Sunday morning and show their neighbors just how much they believe. As a matter of fact, this type of person thinks they probably believe better than anyone else in the room. Faith has become a contest.
But this isn’t a contest. No one can believe better than someone else. We all have different ways of believing. We have all been given gifts. Every Christian has been given at least one gift. Some have more than one and these gifts may change at any time. Anyway, we show our belief by how we use our gifts. It’s that simple.
I would like to take a minute to tie this all up. Your faith isn’t something you just feel, say, believe or think. It is a combination of all these things plus more. Your faith is what you do. It may include all of the things we have been talking about. But I can tell you one more thing that it isn’t. It isn’t coming on Sunday morning or watching this on the computer and then leaving to spend the rest of the week like you have never heard of Jesus before. There is no faith in a person like that. You cannot call yourself a Christian if you live your life mired in Satan all week and then try to spend an hour with Jesus on Sunday morning.
It doesn’t work that way. We cannot help but live in a world that is controlled by Satan. That is the way things are set up. However, we do not have to live Satan’s message of destruction. We have to try to live like we love Jesus. We are to try to live our lives as if they will make a difference for someone else. This someone else could be a child, your child, your spouse, your family, your neighbor. If you learn to try to treat every person you meet or even know as if they were Jesus Christ himself, you would have much less to confess on Sunday mornings.
All this leads us to what faith is. Faith is what you do. All these things can be a part of faith but they aren’t it. Faith is what you take into the world and do. Faith is the love that goes with the action. James uses Abraham and Rahab as examples. They both were of faith and they acted upon this faith. James tells us that faith by itself without works is dead. It doesn’t do any good to have Bible studies and things like that in the church if you never go out and do what you are supposed to do. James also uses the comparison that we all know. We are considered to be dead without the Holy Spirit. When we first get the Spirit is the first time we have life. It is the same with faith without works. Faith is dead without works.
The other side of this coin is just as true. You can go out and do all kinds of good deeds but if you don’t have faith, your works are dead. Everything you do has to be in the name of Jesus Christ or rooted in faith or you are working for the evil one. If you are a Christian, then you have faith and works. You have purpose. You have love, joy, peace. You have a life that is worth living and you realize it because Jesus tells you so. So if you think you might be a little weak in this area, get on your knees and ask Jesus what to do. He would love to hear from you and let you know your purpose.
Here’s a quick story to show you the point of this. There was a man who fell into a pit and couldn’t get out. No matter how hard he tried, he was stuck. A subjective person came along and said, “I feel for you down there.” Then an objective person walked by and said, “It’s logical that someone would fall down there.” A Pharisee said, “Only bad people fall into pits.” The mathematician calculated how deep the pit was. A news reporter wanted the exclusive story on the pit. An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit. A self-pitying person said, “You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen my pit.” A fire and brimstone preacher said, “you deserve the pit.” A Christian Scientist observed, “The pit is just in your mind.” A psychologist noted, “Your mother and father are to blame for your being in that pit.” A self-esteem therapist said, “Believe in yourself and you can get out of that pit.” An optimist said, “Things could be worse.” A pessimist claimed, “Things will get worse.” But Jesus seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit.
People, do you want to be like all these wannabes that I just named or do you want to be Jesus Christ for those you meet. Lift someone out of their pit. That is what faith is all about. It’s about love and patience, the fruits of the Spirit. Jesus set the example for us. He came and unselfishly lived with us. He loved us so much that he died an excruciating death on the cross. He did all this and much more because He loves you. Thank you, Jesus, for first loving us. Let’s pray.
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