A Faith Without Fruit Is A Futile Faith

AN EXPLANATION

A faith that does not produce fruit is not only false; it is also futile.

In a creative dialogue with an imaginary person, James continued addressing the matter of those who profess a good game but whose faith, in the end, is merely talk.

James engaged his readers with this challenge: “Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” This two-letter, one-syllable word by translates a Greek preposition that is best understood as “out of.” James was saying that our works emerge “out of ” our true faith in Christ. Paul actually echoed this very point, saying, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Ephesians 2:8–10). The apostle left no doubt that faith alone is the channel of God’s saving grace. Then, like James, Paul added a word about the proof of faith being our good works: we are “created in Christ Jesus for good works.” Both Paul and James talked about a faith that works. When we examine what each of them really said, we see that they arrived at the same point even though they came to it from different directions. Paul and James never contradicted each other; their teachings complemented each other.

When Paul spoke of works in his epistles, he was generally speaking of the works of the law, like observing the Sabbath and the like. However, when James spoke of works, he was referring to the fruit of genuine faith, to obedience issuing out of love. A clearer understanding of what each man is saying comes when we remember their audiences. If Paul were alive today, he would be addressing those who think they can be saved by keeping the law through their own human effort. That’s why Paul’s emphasis fell solidly on the side of grace. If James were around today, his argument would be directed to those who adhere to a cheap faith that tends to say, “I am saved and under grace, so I don’t have to even think about the law. I can live any way I desire.”

AN ILLUSTRATION

James chose to illustrate a futile faith with demons, of all things. James said, “You believe there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” It may surprise some to discover that demons have faith. They are surely not atheists, or even agnostics. They believe in the one true God. As the possessed man in the synagogue in Capernaum asked, “What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24). During Jesus’ healing ministry in Galilee, the “unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, ‘You are the Son of God’ ” (Mark 3:11). In his gospel, Luke recorded that “demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of God!’ ” (Luke 4:41).

Yes, even the Devil and his demons believe. They recognize the holiness of God and the deity of Christ, but they do not possess saving faith. Their faith is an intellectual assent that goes no further than mere head knowledge of who Jesus really is. Yet that head knowledge is enough to make the demons tremble in terror at the coming judgment.

It is strange to realize that many professing believers today are farther from God than the demons. Many professing believers almost robotically go through the motions of a lifeless faith with no real fear of God.

AN APPLICATION

Even before our spiritual birth that came with trusting in Christ alone for our salvation, most of us believed the facts of Christ’s story. Few of us were bona fide atheists or agnostics. But the gospel did not alter our lives in any way. Many today believe that Jesus died on a cross in much the same way that we believe George Washington was the first president of the United States. They acknowledge that He existed as a real person; they simply do not trust their lives and eternal destiny to Him. The tragedy is that their false and futile faith does not really bother these people. Yet without true saving faith—and that comes only by God’s grace and through our faith, through our trust in Christ alone rather than any effort on our part—our faith is false and futile.