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| JAMES |
| Words Are Not Enough |
| You can believe all the right things, yet still be dead wrong. |
| Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 1:22 |
| Where there is life, there is motion. Some antelopes, as well as cheetah, can sprint faster than the legal speed for cars. Bighorn sheep, charging one another head-first, collide with such force that the sound echoes like a gunshot through mountain ranges. Canada geese, fanned out across the sky in an orderly V, battle winds for 1,000 miles, nonstop, before dropping back to earth. Sometimes we keep relics of life: an elkhead hanging above a fireplace, a fragile, perfect seashell, an exotic butterfly mounted on a pin. But these are mere mementos: life has gone from them, and with it motion. A Sure Sign of Life Authors of the Bible often look to nature for analogies to express spiritual truth. And the book of James, controversial because of its emphasis on "good works," is perhaps best understood through the analogy of motion. In the spiritual realm also, where there's life there will be motion. When a person becomes a Christian, new life begins, and inevitably that life must express itself through "spiritual motion," or good deeds. In James words, "What good is it if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?" (2:14). Movement does not cause life, but it does invariably follow life. It's a sure sign that life is present. Similarly, genuine faith in Christ should always result in actions that demonstrate the faith. Does James Contradict Paul? James is not writing about how to become a Christian, but rather how to act like one. Having all the correct beliefs about |