Faith That Works Is Relational Faith
A Brief Exposition of James
By Wesley G. Vaughn, © 2013(Unless otherwise noted, all references
are from the English Standard Version)
Introduction
We all have “Aha!” moments, when a realization dawns on us, when pieces fall into place, when we see what has always been there. Such was my recent “Aha!” moment, seeing what was always there. A dawning grew in my mind that the good works which the Lord’s brother presented as works of faith are relational in nature. So also are the ills he wrote against, sins his readers were to repent of and correct. I don’t know why it took me so long to see this, but thankfully I finally have. According to James, the faith that works is a relational faith.I first came face-to-face with the Epistle of James as a tenth grader. In my home church in Seattle I was old enough to join the choir and attend the Wednesday night Bible Class. On my first evening, they were in a verse-by-verse study of this letter by Jesus’ oldest half brother. They were in Chapter 4, concerning strife and temptation.
Later, in a college New Testament class, we considered the question of James versus Paul. Martin Luther had called the Epistle of James “a book of straw” because of James’ emphasis on works. We came to the conclusion that Paul and James did not disagree, but actually shared their concerns. Paul combated the view that one could not be saved until, in essence, becoming Jewish. James stressed that the faith which saves is faith which works, and Paul also taught this. Rather than being contradictory, James’ epistle and Paul’s epistle to the Galatians are complementary. In fact, there are several parallels between the two letters. To quote a common summary, “Faith that saves is faith that works.”
The Audiences
To understand why James wrote the way he did, we must first consider his audience. They were Jewish believers; the letter is addressed, “To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations” (1:1). Many scholars believe this letter was written before the Jerusalem Council recorded in Acts 15. These believers already knew and followed the Old Testament Law: Their men were circumcised; they observed the weekly Sabbath and the Old Testament holidays; they followed the dietary laws and the rules of cleanliness; they obeyed the Ten Commandments. In other words, to all appearances they had good works, at least in the Jewish sense. The difference between them and other Jews was their acceptance of and faith in Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah (Christ) and Savior.Contrast this with the Galatians. They were Gentiles who learned about Jesus Christ during Paul’s first missionary journey. Like James’ readers, they accepted Jesus as Christ and Savior. But unlike James’ audience, the Galatians were not Jews, and some teachers came to Galatia telling them that they had to become like Jews to be complete in Christ. Therefore, Paul’s purpose in writing to the Galatians was to tell them they did not have to be circumcised (become Jews) to be Christians. James’ purpose was different.
What are the good works and the sins in James?
James’ concern was that so many Jewish believers felt that they were good enough with their legalistic observance of the Law. The only thing they needed beyond that was “faith” in Jesus as Messiah. James wrote to tell them that was not good enough, that their faith should work in a way beyond what they ate, what days they observed, etc. He said, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder” (2:18-19).Since his readers already exhibited the works of every good Jew, then what were these works James referred to? Going through the Letter from James, I noted twenty works, ten good (what we should do), eight bad (what we should not do), and two examples from the Old Testament (both good). As we shall see, each of these works is relational in some way.
Relational Issues in the Epistle of James
Controlling Anger (1:19-20) and Bridling the Tongue (1:26)
The first relational issue in James is controlling anger. He says to “be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger,” going on to paint human anger as unrighteous. Soon he mentions bridling the tongue, which I think means refraining from angry outbursts. Proverbs 15:1 says, “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”The issue of anger shows itself in other issues in this letter, such as misuse of the tongue by cursing others (3:9-12), quarrels and fights (4:1-4), having mercy (2:12-13), and being peaceable (3:17-18). Note also that in his discussion of the “Royal Law,” when James states that breaking one commandment breaks them all, the one he uses for an example is “Do not murder,” a relational wrong of the worst sort. Didn’t James’ older brother, Jesus, equate hatred with murder?
Since this is the first relational issue, the “trials” in 1:2 may well be those of dealing with people, an area which certainly requires wisdom (1:5). Controlling anger is an issue almost all of us face, and Christians in the First Century were no different.
Caring for Widows and Orphans (1:27) and Helping Those in Need (2:14-17)
James says that true religion is caring for orphans and widows. In the next chapter, he gives helping persons in need as an example of faith at work (rather, not helping as an example of faith that does not work). Here James is totally in line with Old Testament teaching, that God loves the poor, the widow, the orphan, that He avenges the oppressed and disadvantaged.Partiality (2:1-7,9)
James says that partiality–favoring some people over others because of what they have–is wrong. It is no accident that this closely follows what he said about widows and orphans. Peter said earlier, “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality” (Acts 10:34). The example James gives is based on riches, but we also tend to favor people on the basis of having other things: good looks, talent, strength, power, connections, knowledge or education, social standing, fame, etc. All people are made in God’s image (2:9), and in this respect they are equal (as stated in our Declaration of Independence).The “Royal Law” (2:8,10; Lev. 19:18,34; see also Mt. 22:37-40; Mk. 12:29-31; Lk. 10:25-27; Rom. 13:8-10; 1 Cor. 13: John 13:34-35, 1 John)
This is the core of James’ thesis, what he calls the “Royal Law,” found in Leviticus 19: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” This is actually the Second Great Commandment. Jesus said the First Great Commandment was, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37). This was commonly accepted among the Jews; when He asked a scribe what the greatest commandment was, the scribe gave Him the same answer (Lk. 10:25-27).Why did James not give the first commandment? The command to love God is from Deut. 6:5, and every Jew, including James’ readers, had memorized Deut 6:4-9. James emphasized the importance of the second commandment, the one his brother had said was “like” the first. John would later write, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:20-21).
James goes on to say that to break one of the Ten Commandments is to break them all. For instance, if someone murders, then that person is also guilty of adultery (2:10-11). It is interesting that he chose two very relational commandments for his example. The point is that we are breaking God’s law if we do not treat each other justly. This is an echo of what Old Testament prophets like Amos, Hosea, Micah, Isaiah and Jeremiah said. Throughout Scripture, God says that He loves justice and mercy.
Mercy (2:12-13)
Micah said that one of God’s requirements is to “love mercy” (Mic. 6:8 KJV). Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” Mercy is not dealing with people who have done wrong as they deserve, but showing kindness instead. The greater context is that we are all wrong doers in need of God’s mercy. And God expects those who receive His mercy to grant mercy to others. On the practical side, other people are not inclined to show mercy to someone whom they see as unmerciful.Two Examples: Abraham was a “Friend of God” (2:21-24), and Rahab Hid the Spies (2:25-26)
James offers his audience two examples from the Old Testament of faith at work. Abraham, who offered his own son, was called a “friend of God.” And Rahab of Jericho, who hid the Israelite spies, was a friend of God’s people.Misuse of the Tongue by Cursing Others (3:9-12) and Slander and Judgmentalism (4:11)
The misuse of the tongue in 3:1-12 comes down to cursing other people, and is related to the issue of anger in Chapter 1. Here again, James links love for God with love for others, since all people have been made in God’s image (3:9). He also further explains what he means by “be slow to speak” (1:19). Control of what we say and how we say it comes up again later in the mention of slander and judgmentalism. Didn’t he use murder as an example of breaking the Law? Jesus equated hatred, which is held in anger, with murder, and we call slander verbal murder (or assassination).What is cursing? It is the opposite of blessing. When we bless God, we recognize Him as worthy. When we bless others, we wish them well. To curse God is to count Him as unworthy. When we curse other people, we wish them ill. We can curse by what we say to people and what we say about them, such as, “I wish he’d disappear,” or “Drop dead!” It could be, “The g**d****d so-and-so.”
Quarrels and Fights (4:1-4), Jealousy (3:13-16), Grumbling (5:9), Slander (4:11)
Quarreling and fighting are evidence of relationships gone wrong, of anger out of control. This is also characterized by jealousy and grumbling. James identifies the cause of this as selfishness. He says, “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel” (4:2). Among the crimes arising out of this is murder. And in verse 11 he mentions slander, which is lying about someone in a damaging way.Paul also brings up this issue in Galatians 5:14-15: “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.”
Relational Virtues (3:17-18)
Now James offers a prescription, godly wisdom which produces relational virtues: purity, peaceableness, gentleness, reasonableness, mercy, goodness, impartiality, and sincerity. In Galatians 5:22-23, Paul describes these virtues as “the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit.”Boasting (4:13-17)
James does not describe boasting here in a relational way, unless it is how we relate to God. But boasting in itself is not helpful in building and maintaining relationships. It shows pride, which itself is the source of many relational ills.Wrongs of the Rich (5:1-6)
James begins the fifth chapter with a denunciation of the rich, the counterpart of his disapproval of partiality in Chapter 2. What are their crimes? Withholding wages and social injustice. Old Testament prophets such as Amos and Micah condemned injustice, especially oppression of the poor, with Amos calling out, “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24).Truthfulness (5:12)
In 5:12, James echoes Jesus’ advice to be so truthful that we do not have to swear to the truth of what we say (Matt. 5:33-37; Lev. 19:12). Truthfulness builds trust, and trust is a building block of positive relationships. Also, most relational ills involve a degree of dishonesty.Intercessory Prayer and Confession (5:13-18)
Praying for others is one way of creating positive relational attitudes within ourselves. Jesus told us to pray for our enemies (Matt. 5:44). James connects prayer to confession, healing, and forgiveness: the person who is sick calls for prayer, the elders anoint and pray for the sick person, if the sick person has sinned the sin is forgiven, if we have sinned we need to confess so we can be healed.Restoring Wanderers (5:19)
James ends his letter the same way Paul begins the last chapter of Galatians, with the restoration of a sinning brother or sister. While James says “bring him back,” Paul says, “Restore him in a spirit of gentleness” (Gal. 6:1). Here the true believer shows his or her faith by restoring relationships. True faith values relationship over selfish ambition, pride, love of pleasure, and covetousness. It seeks the best for others, including rescuing them from sin.Conclusion and Application
We have heard it said, “Faith that saves is faith that works.” I say, “Faith that works is relational faith.” But some will ask, “Aren’t the works of faith relational works?” The works of faith are relational, but so is the faith itself. Faith in God leads to a relationship with God, a love for God. It follows that if we love God, we will love what He loves. The teaching not only of James, but of the Bible as a whole, is that loving God leads to loving people in a practical, relational way, so our faith and works are relational.In 4:6-10 is the key to relational faith – our relationship to God. Notice these three imperatives: “Submit yourselves therefore to God” (v. 7), “Draw near to God” (v. 8), and “Humble yourselves before the Lord” (v. 10). Each of these imperatives has a promise. When we are being tested and tried by those with us and around us (1:2-3) and the worst part of our nature wants to react unrighteously (1:20), first submit to God, then resist the Devil (4:7), it is then that we can have victory over temptation. If we draw near to God, then He will draw near to us (4:8). And if we are humble before the Lord, then He will lift us up (4:10).
This trio of commands also outlines the progression of our relationship with God. “Submit” is the initiation of the vertical relationship. “Draw near” is the ongoing aspect. And “Be humble” is the controlling attitude.
In applying this, we must consider today’s issues. Christian doctrine and practice covers the spectrum from legalism to libertarianism (called by some “cheap grace”). Every group has its own list of do’s and don’ts. Some of the items on lists are from over-interpreting or overextending the principles of the Bible. Then there are some who try to make the Bible not say what it clearly says, making biblically unacceptable practices and lifestyles acceptable. In Romans 14, Paul dealt with Christians who differed on practical issues. He told them to accept each other and work together.
I will not try to sort out these items here, but will apply the principle of relational faith. Suppose that our list is biblically sound, neither legalistic nor libertarian. We could be fulfilling the list faithfully, yet not be right if we were not relationally right. This is James’ point. Jesus said that when we serve others, we serve Him (Matt. 25:40, 45). Or, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13, if we do everything right but not in love, our efforts are worthless. Therefore, everything we do must be done in love. This is how faith that works is relational faith.
