Faith Sacrifices

So good to see you all here this morning.

We're continuing our series in James,

and we're just going to do the last little bit of James chapter 2 together.

James 2 · chapter mention

But perhaps before we dig into this,

I would like us to just take a minute to think about the week gone by,

just individually, and think to ourselves about this question.

What difference has faith in Jesus Christ made to the week just gone by?

In my life?

What is it about trusting Jesus that has altered the way I would have lived the week just gone by?

Maybe it's your attitudes, your actions, your interactions with others.

Perhaps it's something you did or something you didn't do.

Maybe it was the way you reacted to people.

But let's just take a minute and think,

what difference has faith in Jesus Christ made to the week just gone by?

And then I'll pray, and then we'll get stuck in.

Father God, as we come to this, your word,

and we think of the week just gone by,

Father, we long that as we reviewed a week,

that there might be so much evidence

that we have trusted Jesus and are living for him.

And so, Lord, as we come to this passage,

such a challenging passage about the outworking of faith in life,

about the cost of following Jesus,

Father, would you help us?

Father, would you teach us,

and would you spur us on,

Father, that we wouldn't just have a dry,

intellectual knowledge of Jesus,

but we might have a deep, profound love,

and therefore an active, vibrant service of him in our lives.

Father, bless us in his glorious name.

Amen.

So we're in James.

James is a book that really does make us wiggle and squirm.

As we get into, behind what James is telling us,

it becomes decidedly uncomfortable.

Because James is very practical.

And he shines a light on all of life.

And as the light of God's word shines into our lives,

it makes us squirm.

He's writing to his former church,

his former congregation that has spread among the nations.

That they were once all together,

but now he writes to them,

as they are in the midst of a hostile world.

His congregation are predominantly Jewish Christians.

And therefore they're hated by everyone.

They're hated by the pagans.

And they're hated by those people that are still Jewish.

They're in real trouble.

It is really hostile.

This prejudicial hatred infringes on every area of life.

At work.

On the commute home.

In the marketplace.

Everywhere they are,

they are known as Christians.

And hostility comes their way.

To be a Christian,

to own the name of Jesus,

is to paint a target on your back.

For others to shoot at.

And James knows this.

He knows to be a obvious minority in a hostile world

is a very unpleasant place to be.

And he's really exhorting them,

don't bow to public pressure.

Don't let your faith melt in the heat of hostility.

James says,

don't blend in.

Don't back down.

Don't compromise your Christian faith.

Because the temptation for them,

as is the temptation for us,

when hostility comes in,

we just put on this cultural camouflage.

We just want to look the same as everyone else.

Behave the same as everyone else.

Do what everyone else does.

Say what everyone else says.

That it's very tempting, isn't it,

to be like a hedgehog.

That you'll walk around,

safe on a Sunday,

but Monday through to Saturday,

you'll curl up into a prickly ball.

Just kind of mothball your Christianity.

And then make sure you take it off the shelf

and dust it down,

ready for the show next Sunday.

James says this is a real temptation,

to be one thing on Sunday

and something else during the week.

All through the letter,

as we were looking at in Team Tabitha on Wednesday,

he says,

don't be double-minded.

Don't be too sold.

Don't have disassociative identity disorder,

where you are two people in one person.

You are a Christian on a Sunday,

but just ever so normal during the week.

Don't conceal your Christianity.

And that's a temptation for all of us.

I played cricket yesterday.

It was freezing.

I took a catch that was absolutely hammered at me,

and I thought my hands were going to shatter like glass

because they were so cold.

But the incredible thing about cricket is

most of it is spent just sitting around drinking tea.

And they're always fascinated

because they know I'm the pastor of a church.

And we're sitting over tea,

and somebody says,

what is being part of a church all about?

And this isn't just my team.

This is the other team as well.

I'll tell you, sweat, even though it was so cold,

was dripping down my back.

Because there's a real nervousness, isn't there?

There's a real pain, a real anguish

when we have to stand up and stand out for Jesus.

I told them that to be part of a church

is to belong to Jesus.

I said to belong to Jesus means that you trust

that he died for us

and raised that we might be forgiven.

Once I said that,

suddenly people thought it was time

to start playing cricket again.

We're all sorely tempted

to keep our relationship

with the Lord Jesus on the down low.

James knows that's true,

as we all know that's true.

So he writes this letter

and says,

don't just merge and morph

and become like everyone else

for the sake of ease and comfort.

Make sure you are in the world,

but not of the world,

because we all know the temptation is

to be in the world and of the world.

I live a very secluded life.

Most of the time I work for a church,

I spend most of my time with people in the church.

And I really feel for you guys

who are actually out there

trying to be different for Jesus,

trying to work in such a way that honors him,

trying to love your friends in a way

that really adorns the gospel

and makes it look attractive.

And as I was preparing this this week,

the one thing that I thought I must do

is pray for each of you more.

Pray for each of you more

as you just live life,

that you might live it in a way

that makes Jesus look glorious.

James starts his letter

by talking about not collapsing

under trial,

but persevering

and getting wisdom from God

that we might be mature in faith

and complete in Christ.

He then says at the end of chapter one,

don't just be hearers of the word,

but doers.

Don't just consume a Sunday sermon

and go out on Monday morning

like you've forgotten what you look like

when you look in a mirror.

And then chapter two is a real call

to be genuine.

The first half is about being genuinely loving,

genuinely loving towards everyone

and not changing how you approach people

depending on whether they're wearing

a gold bracelet or not.

He says show universal love to all.

And then in the second half,

he says have genuine faith.

Have genuine faith that works out in life.

Real faith, vibrant faith,

faith that leads you into works.

He says that famous thing

that we looked at last week.

Don't be a Christian of the platitude.

Go in peace,

keep warm and well fed,

and then get into your BMW,

drive home,

have a three course meal

next to your log fire

all by yourself.

Don't just be the platitude Christian

who just says nice things

but actually has the capacity

and the resource

to do something about it.

Be a whole,

let there be a wholehearted trust

in Jesus that is evidenced

by your good works.

As we move to the end of chapter two,

we'll see that it's not just

do good works,

but also that good works cost.

There's a real cost associated

and we'll see that

particularly as we come to

Abraham and Rahab.

So let me read chapter two

and I'll start at verse 19

and then to the end of the chapter.

Here we go.

You believe that there is one God, good.

Even the demons believe that

and shudder.

You foolish person,

do you want evidence

that faith without deeds

is useless?

Was not our father Abraham

considered righteous

for what he did

when he offered his son Isaac

on the altar?

You see that his faith

and his actions

were working together

and his faith was made complete

by what he did.

And the scripture was fulfilled

that says Abraham believed God.

And it was credited to him

as righteousness.

And he was called God's friend.

You see that a person

is considered righteous

by what they do

and not by faith alone.

In the same way,

was not even Rahab the prostitute

considered righteous

for what she did

when she gave lodging to the spies

and sent them off

in a different direction?

As the body without the spirit

is dead,

so faith without deeds

is dead.

Well, there's one verse in there

that really sets our

theological antennas

twitching, isn't there?

This one verse,

Martin Luther said,

this one verse makes me want

to throw little Jimmy

into the fire.

And this is the problem,

isn't it?

Verse 24.

You see that a person

is considered righteous

by what they do

and not by faith alone,

which seems to be

in direct contravention

of the Apostle Paul

who says,

for we maintain

that a person

is justified

by faith

apart from works

of the law.

This is

one of the most

controversial verses

in the entire New Testament.

One of the second

is Romans chapter 9,

Romans 9 · chapter mention

so it's a good job

we're not doing

that one tonight.

So what are we

going to do?

How are we going

to square

this circle?

Well, I want you

to cast your mind

seven weeks forward

to the Commonwealth Games.

And I want you

to think particularly

of women's gymnastics.

And my favourite

apparatus in all

of women's gymnastics

is the balance beam.

It is incredible

that people

can do things

like this

1.24 metres

off the ground

on a bar

that's 5 metres long

and only 10 centimetres

wide.

I find it hard

to walk along

a pavement

without tripping.

I can't even

do a handstand

without breaking

my neck.

And these guys

do it on what

in essence

is a glorified railing.

Have this in mind.

Imagine that we

are walking

along a balance

beam.

For some of us

that's easier

than others.

We're walking

along a balance

beam.

We have to be

very careful

that we don't

lean too far

one side

and therefore

fall over.

So on this side

we've got the

Apostle Paul.

and he's telling

the people of Rome

don't be legalists.

Don't think

that there's rules

you can obey

which will make

you acceptable

to God.

Don't lean too

far this way.

And make out

that grace is

affordable.

If you do enough

stuff well

God will accept

you.

Paul says

we hold

that a man

is justified

by faith

alone.

Faith is all

important.

But on this side

we've got to be

careful we don't

lean this side

and this is what

James is writing

about.

He says

don't fall

for an easy

believism.

Don't fall

for a believism

that is just

oh I said a prayer

one day in my

life.

I declared

I had faith

in God

but can now

live

however I like.

It doesn't

matter.

Paul says

what I do

is important

to make me

acceptable by God

and James

says it doesn't

matter what I do

because I am

acceptable to God

and both are

wrong.

And we have to

walk this tension

down the middle.

Paul is all about

affordable grace.

James is all about

cheap grace.

Grace that's given

to us and that's

cheap so it

doesn't matter.

Got to walk

this balance

beam well.

That we are

justified by faith

alone but don't

think that faith

doesn't need to

work.

So James is

particularly

writing against

what we might

call insurance

policy Jesus

where we just

believe in Jesus

and put him in

our back pocket

and it doesn't

matter and one

day we'll cash

in our insurance

policy when we

die.

James says

don't fall for

that.

Don't think

that what you

do on a Sunday

will save you

if it's not

completed by a

consistent life

during the week.

James is saying

that your faith

must be active

fruitful saving

faith.

Not dead

demonic futile

faith.

Do you see what

he says in verse

19?

You believe that

there is one God

good.

Even the demons

believe that and

shudder.

His point is that

even that the

demons have this

knowledge and it

makes them shudder

whereas you just

have this knowledge

and do nothing

about it.

James is saying

this faith has

to be accompanied

by works.

He's saying

faith alone

saves but

saving faith

cannot remain

alone absent of

works in the

believer's life.

Faith alone

saves but

saving faith

cannot remain

alone absent

of works in the

life of the

believer.

That's why he

says verse 20

you foolish

person.

Literally the

word is you

hollow person.

He's calling the

person who says he

has faith but no

works a superficial

charlatan and a

fraud.

He's saying if

you've got all

theology all

knowledge but no

doxology praise and

worship in your

life you're hollow

like your easter

egg.

Nothing in the

middle.

No consistency.

All talk but no

walk.

All icing but no

cake.

All information

no transformation.

You're a cul-de-sac

of knowledge not an

avenue of good

work.

Such a challenge

isn't it?

Such a challenge for

us today to not be

hollow people.

How much substance

is there to our

confession?

When we think about

what differences Jesus

made to our week was

it easy to come up

with stuff?

James says your faith

has got to drive you

to good works.

Your passion for the

Lord Jesus is to

overflow into every

area of your life

that we together might

be altogether new

creations.

People that do

things differently

because we're not

our own but we're

owned by another

the Lord Jesus

Christ.

Don't let your

faith exist in a

hermetically sealed

compartment in your

life that has no

overlap into the way

that you actually

live.

Don't let your faith

be like my mum's

silver cutlery that

you only bring out on

special occasions and

that's normally never to

eat with just to polish

in order that it

might look nice.

James is so clear.

Christian maturity

isn't just what you

know or how much you

attend but it's what

you do with what you

know and the reason

that you serve and

love.

Be persistent in good

works.

Not just education but

equipping for good

works and the

edification of the

saints as it says in

Ephesians 2.

James says the faith

that is dry, dead and

doesn't result in good

works is futile and

sits at the level of

the demons.

This is something we're

just doing on a Sunday.

There were no better

than a demon.

Billy Graham tells the

story of flying from

Chicago to Charlotte

years ago.

Directly in front of

him sat a large man who

had been drinking a lot

in the departure lounge

before they boarded the

plane.

Once the plane reached

cruising altitude and the

seatbelt sign was turned

off the man pressed the

service button and plied

himself with more

refreshments.

He repeated this several

times.

The more he drank the

louder he became and more

abusive he got.

The more he drank the

more he flirted with the

air hostesses despite

wearing his wedding ring.

Finally one of the

embarrassed passengers stood

up and said to the drunk

Sir do you realise that

Billy Graham the great

preacher is seated right

behind you?

The bleary man struggled

to his feet stuck out his

hand and said Billy Graham

put it there.

Glad to meet you.

You have no idea how much

your sermons have helped

me.

I listen to them every

Sunday.

To which Billy Graham said

judging by your behaviour

sir they've not helped you

at all.

James is saying faith alone

saves but saving faith

cannot remain alone absent

of works in the life of the

believer.

To quote Martin Luther who

didn't actually throw little

Jimmy in the fire.

He says oh it is a busy

active mighty thing this

faith and so it is impossible

for it not to do good works

incessantly.

It does not ask whether there

are good works to do but

before the question arises it

has already done them.

And is always at the doing

of them.

He who does not these works

is a hollow man of demonic

faith.

Jesus himself will say there's

lots of things out there

that look like branches but

they're not connected to me and

therefore they're not fruitful

and they're only good for the

fire.

Jesus will tell a story about

three servants who get

different sums of money.

And the bottom one gets quite a

lot of money but only one

talent.

And he puts it in the ground

and does nothing with it.

And what does Jesus say?

You wicked lazy servant.

And he isn't welcomed into his

master's rest like the other two.

It is good works that we are not

to tire of doing.

James says faith alone saves but

saving faith cannot remain alone

absent of good works in the life

of the believer.

And James gives us two case studies.

He gives us the patriarch Abraham.

He points us to the first and

principal Jewish man.

The man Abraham.

And he wants to show us that faith

did something in Abraham's life.

He talks about Abraham who was a

former moon worshipper in Ur of the

Chaldeans and God says leave all

this take your family and go to the

land that I promised you.

And God makes amazing promises to

Abraham about descendants and land

and that they would be his people and

that he would be his God.

And in Genesis 15 verse 6 we read

Genesis 15:6

what's quoted here.

Abraham believed God and it was

credited to him as righteousness.

That Abraham had faith that what God

said God would do.

But notice that this faith didn't

remain dormant in his life.

He didn't just sit back in his

hammock in the promised land and

think I'll just wait for this

dividend to be paid.

I could do with some descendants.

I'm getting quite old and this land

is quite tough.

Notice what does he quote?

He quotes sacrificing Isaac.

Do you know how long there is between

that declaration in Genesis 15 verse 6

Genesis 15:6

and Genesis 22?

At least 30 years.

At least 30 years it is said of

Abraham that he believed God and it

was credited to him as righteousness.

That this faith started but it

completed its work.

Because when God says I want you to

take this son that you've waited so

long for.

This son that I've miraculously given

you.

I want you to take him up Mount

Moriah and I want you to kill him as a

sacrifice to me.

And Abraham could have gone well we did

this faith thing a while ago.

I'm just kind of like life now.

But he takes his son up and he trusts

God and his faith does something.

And he's prepared to pay the highest

price because his faith means that

much to him.

The highest price of obedience no

matter what the cost.

You see Abraham's faith and Abraham's

actions were working together.

Faith produces good works.

Good works complete faith.

A virtuous circle.

Faith produces good works.

Good works complete faith.

See how it finishes?

And he was called God's friend.

He was called God's friend.

That's from Isaiah 41.

Where Isaiah is detailing the history

of Israel.

And he says over all of Abraham's life

he was a friend of God.

Why was he a friend of God?

Because he not only trusted God but he

did what God called him to do.

Do you know what that means?

That means over our lives can be

written a friend of God's.

Because we not only trust what God

says but we do what God says we are to

do.

Faith alone saves you see but saving

faith cannot remain alone.

Absent of good works in the life of

the believer.

But James is a brilliant pastor.

Because he knows what we're all

thinking well I'm not like Abraham.

Abraham's kind of like the first and

he's this real picture of faith.

And he's like I'm not like him so I

can't trust and do what he has

trusted and does.

So look who he brings up in verse 25.

In the same way was not even Rahab the

prostitute considered righteous for

what she did when she gave lodging to

the spies and sent them off in a

different direction.

He is a brilliant pastor James because

he knows all of us exist somewhere

between that spectrum.

Somewhere between Abraham the

patriarch and Rahab the prostitute.

And if Abraham showed his faith by what

he did in being prepared to sacrifice

Isaac then Rahab showed her faith by

giving shelter and a means of escape to

the spies.

Abraham is not a special elite that we

cannot copy.

He is someone that we're called to

emulate by trusting God.

It's a remarkable faith.

Rahab's.

Rahab's.

She's in the city of Jericho.

She understands that God is God in heaven

and God on earth.

She makes that declaration.

She harbors spies.

If this goes badly for her she will be

executed and Jericho is particularly

barbaric.

They even sacrifice children so they're

not going to struggle to put a

prostitute to death.

And yet because she has faith in this

God who has revealed himself to her in

this way.

She's prepared to put her life on the

line.

In order that his work might be done.

If you know her story she puts the

spies under palm branches on the roof.

She says oh they're not here they've

gone this way.

Well she lets the spies down off a rope

and says go this way.

She put her life on the line.

Her faith had a real cost.

Because she knew what God said and she

wanted to do what God wanted.

I'm sure we're getting this by now but

faith alone saves.

But saving faith cannot remain alone

absent of good works in the life of the

believer.

Now all of us are somewhere on that

spectrum.

So all of us cannot dodge this command

that our faith must work.

It's not just James that's got this.

Hebrews 11 is littered with them.

Talks about Noah was a man of faith

who built an ark in the desert.

That's great faith.

That's like opening a vegetable shop in

the middle of Glasgow.

Moses who gave up life in Egypt

didn't consider himself one of Pharaoh's

sons.

Because he knew who God was and what

he was going to do.

Let us not just hear the warning

that faith without works is dead.

Let us rejoice

in the glorious promise that faith with

deeds

is alive.

And it is life.

It's not just a warning not to do this

but it is a real

emulation of what it means to trust God

and do what he says.

Because we serve a God

who did more than Abraham.

Who didn't just

wasn't just prepared to sacrifice his son

but sacrificed his son

for us.

And we worship the Lord Jesus.

Who wasn't just prepared

to give us shelter

at personal risk

or give us a means of escape.

He actually died that we might have rest forever.

And he actually died that we might have a means of escape

forever from the wrath of God to come.

In response to all this good news

this outrageous grace

why would we not want to live

lives of gratitude

joyously involving ourselves

actively in good works.

Why would we not live

all of life as friends of God

with our faith producing good works

and our good works completing

our faith.

That when we think next week on

what have I done differently

because of Jesus

we say everything

absolutely everything

because of the God

who loves me.

This is Michael Jordan

when he leaves North Carolina University

and he signs for the Chicago

Chicago Bulls.

He signs an endorsement deal

for seven million dollars

with Nike Athletics.

And when Jordan signed

he also bought out

Nike Air Jordans

that exist to this day.

The first Nike Air Jordans

were red and black

which in the mid 80s

as today

was a great fashion faux pas.

And no one thought

they would sell.

No one thought

anyone would want

a pair of Nike Air Jordans

because

they were so hideous.

Another sports company

tried to hijack the deal

and the one stipulation

that was different was

we won't bring out trainers

that are red and black

in your name.

However,

Jordan signed with Nike

and in March 1985

the first Nike Air Jordans

came out.

By May 1985

just three months later

these shoes

had bought in revenue

of a hundred million dollars.

They'd sold

every pair

that they'd made

and there was

a massive crisis

that they couldn't make more

fast enough.

And why?

Because everybody

wanted to be

Michael Jordan.

Everybody

on the basketball courts

all around the world

wanted red and black shoes

because they were

Michael Jordan

and when people

saw those shoes

they would think

they were Michael Jordan.

Such is the delusion

of advertising.

Jesus says

my endorsement deal

involves doing good works.

to be associated

with me

or my team

means that you do

good works.

That all over the world

people that are

associated with Jesus

will adorn themselves

in good works.

Will dress

in righteous deeds.

Our good works

show our association

to Jesus Christ.

It is adorning ourselves

with good works

flowing from the gospel

that people see

who we are

and striving to be like.

Our good works

are to faith

in Jesus Christ

what Nike

and Jordans

were to basketball

in the 1980s.

There was the phrase

that went alongside it

I want to be like

Mike.

Wouldn't it be great

if we go on from here

and say

I want to be like Jesus

and I'll do whatever

wherever

whenever

with whoever

in order that I can

make him

look good.

You see it's quite simple

I think you're getting

this by now.

Faith alone saves

but saving faith

cannot remain

alone

absent of good works

in the life

of the believer.

I want to finish

by reading

Titus 3

Titus 3:3–8

verses 3 to 8

then I'll pray

and then I'll hand

back to Ian.

At one time

we too were foolish

disobedient

deceived

and enslaved

by all kinds of

passions and pleasures.

we lived in malice

and envy

being hated

and hating one another

but when the kindness

and love of God

our Saviour appeared

he saved us

not because of

righteous things

we had done

but because of his mercy.

He saved us

through the washing

of rebirth

and renewal

by the Holy Spirit

whom he poured out

on us generously

through Jesus Christ

our Saviour

so that

having been justified

by his grace

we might become

heirs

having the hope

of eternal life.

This is a trustworthy

saying

and I want you

to stress these things

so that those

who have trusted

in God

may be careful

to devote themselves

to doing

what is good.

These things

are excellent

and profitable

for everyone.

Let's pray.

Father God

save us

from dry

meaningless

demonic

dead faith.

Save us

from just being

lovers of the Lord

Jesus

for an hour

and a half

on Sunday.

But Father

send us out

from here

send us out

as people

who love him

who want to

serve him

who want to

make him known

who want people

to see our good

deeds

and give you

thanks on the

day that you visit.

Father

keep us

from a dry

intellectualism.

Father

spur us

to a real

vibrance

that works

out in

every area

of our lives.

Father

we do want to

say that

faith alone

saves you.

You've done it

all for us.

But Father

save us

from ever

thinking

that faith

remains alone

in our lives

absent of good

works.

Father

send us out

to love

what you

love

to hate

what you

hate

and to do

all that you

command us

to do.

Father

may this week

there be

real evidence

that we are

not our own

but we are

owned by another

even your

son

the Lord

Jesus Christ.

Amen.