John Fischer The Catch

You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless? (James 2:19-20)

I’ll be honest. This is one of those passages that makes James hard to accept.

James says that believing the right things isn’t enough. In fact, he goes so far as to say that even demons believe — and that hasn’t changed them a bit.

That line should make all of us a little nervous because most of us are pretty confident that our standing with God depends solely on what we believe. We believe God exists. We believe Jesus saves. We believe the Bible is true. We believe faith matters. James isn’t arguing with any of that. He’s asking a different question: What is that belief actually producing in my life?

Belief, by itself, doesn’t guarantee transformation. It informs us, but it doesn’t necessarily change us. You can believe fire is hot and still keep touching the stove. At some point, the issue isn’t knowledge. It’s obedience. That’s what James is trying to get us to see.

I think many of us confuse faith with agreement. We hear something true, nod along, maybe even feel convicted — and assume that counts as spiritual progress. James says it doesn’t, unless something changes. This isn’t about earning salvation. James is clear about that. Works don’t save us. They reveal us. They show whether belief has moved from our heads into our hearts and lives. But if nothing changes, James would say we’re not dealing with living faith. We’re dealing with belief that never left the room.

That’s uncomfortable, but it’s also freeing because James isn’t asking us to do everything. He’s asking us to do something. To let belief take shape in action. To let faith get its hands dirty.

So here’s the question I’m sitting with — and maybe you should too: If someone looked at my life, not my words, or my intentions, or my beliefs on paper — if they watched me, what would they say I actually believe?

THE MAN IS STILL IN THE MIRROR
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https://youtu.be/clFLSuBLGm4

For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. James 1:23-25

Jesus told us a number of times to not just be hearers of the word but doers also. In fact, the story of the man who built his house on the sand that the storm came through and destroyed was like someone who heard the word but didn’t put it into practice. And the one who put the word into practice was like one who built his house on a rock that survived the storm. (Matthew 7:24-27) Hearing and doing are critical as far as the Lord is concerned. They need to be almost one and the same. You hear from the word of God; you do it. Hear … then do. Hear … then do. That’s it. And that is the main message of James. Faith must be evidenced in your life by your actions or it is useless.

What does it mean to see yourself in the mirror and not forget what you look like when you walk away? It means that you’ll see something good that God has worked into your life and you’ll be thankful. And it means that you’ll see other things that need improvement that God is also working on, and these are the things that you need to remember, both good and bad. They will keep you growing and make your life fruitful in the Lord.

But what does it mean if you forget what you saw? It means you don’t care. You’ll just stay the person that you are. Change is too much work. You’ve made too many compromises with your unfinished self to invest in anything but comfort. That’s why you only glance at yourself. You don’t want to look too long. Stay where you are. Believe me, I know about this.

But if you have the guts to look long enough at yourself in the mirror, something wonderful will happen — something you may not have been expecting. You will see the Lord, because He’s been there all along, waiting for you to want to make a change — to realize He’s there for you, to give you the power to act on His word.

Faith without works is dead. Faith with works, powered by the Spirit in you, is alive with adventure.