Recently I was mulling over James 2:26 and Romans 10:17 (see the related article Three-part Heart?), with a sense that there is a deep harmony between the two verses, but I was missing it.
James 2:26 KJV — “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”
Romans 10:17 KJV — “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
Looking at references with the original Greek text, it appears that these verses can be translated:
James 2:26 — “As a body without breath (that is not breathing) is a corpse, faith separated from labor/work is a corpse also.”
Romans 10:17 — “So then faith comes by obedient/responsive hearing of God's revelation (Rhema).”
Earlier verses of the second chapter of James are often explained as an exhortation to demonstrate one's faith through good works. But now that I look more closely at verse 26, it appears to me that here James is saying something even more powerful.
I had always thought that this passage was indicating that our faith gives life to our works. But verse 26 seems to be saying that our works give life to our faith, in the same manner that breathing gives life to our body.
Actually, I think it works both ways, but here in verse 26 James is especially emphasizing a spiritual principle that is easy to miss, the works-to-faith connection. And it does match perfectly Paul's statement that faith comes by obedient hearing of God's revelation.
Often Paul's verse is explained as faith's being built up through a passive listening to the speaking of the written Word of God. That might occur, but the Greek original indicates an active, obedient listening. And it is not to the (external to the individual) written/spoken Word of God, which in Greek is the Logos, but in this case the listening and obedience is to the internal Rhema, which is God's revealed Word to the individual. The Rhema may come as a result of the written Word, and it will always be consistent with the written Word, but the Rhema is that internal understanding of God's personal message and instruction. After Jesus's birth, fulfilling centuries of written prophecies, angels, shepherds, and wise men celebrated and worshiped, and then Jesus's mother Mary pondered these things (Rhemas) in her heart.
Jesus perfectly illustrated the works-to-faith principle with His miracle of the loaves and fishes. He personally asked his disciples to be obedient in a very small way which didn't even make sense to them. They obeyed as a work of tiny faith. Then God did something with their offering which was beyond all understanding, with a different result than they ever could have imagined. That result should have greatly increased their faith going forward. So the loaves and fishes works/faith process was like a breathing out, breathing in. They expended a little bit of existing faith. The the Lord supplied them with a huge new life-giving burst of faith they could take in.
I have always thought that James 2 was telling us that our living faith should result in good works. And that is true. But I believe James is also telling us that our obedient works give life to our faith.
I do admit that often I have done exactly what I thought God wanted me to do, and it hasn't turned out the way I thought it should. But often those “failures” have put me in a position to experience very good things I never expected. In other words, my little bit of loaves and fishes may not produce a great quantity of loaves and fishes, but something else entirely. The miracle still happened, but it was God's miracle and not my imagined miracle. Paul, in Romans 8:28, assures us that all things do work for the good for those who are the called according to God's purpose!
The Scriptures give us infinite insights into God's will and provision for us. This breathing exercise of hearing, doing, and receiving living faith is just one example. I believe it is a helpful key to learning to recognize God's work in our lives and around us, receiving the inner healing we need, taking our next steps as we are directed, and delivering the ministry and gifts of the Holy Spirit into our broken world. All that is being asked of us are our loaves and fishes. They may be tiny, but just look what they become!
There is a “catch” to this, for those of us in the modern age. We cannot go to a classroom to learn this breathing exercise. We probably would not be able to master it in a sanctuary. And not on TV, the internet, or with a smartphone. The transmitter/receiver is inside us. We may not be accustomed to transmitting and receiving. But the signal is present, and the Help Desk is waiting to communicate with you in a way that is unique and most meaningful to you. He knows who you are, where you are, what has been happening to you, what you need, and how you need to hear it and receive it, even much better than you do. Talk to Him. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3:20)
Copyright © 2024 Henry H. Mitchell.