What does faith in
Christ and His atonement work mean to us as Christians? To many faith is
a personal matter and although they believed in Christ, it is not
reflected in their actions to continue on the ministry of Christ. Faith
is kept to themselves.
The epistle of James is
a book about the struggle of living out our faith in an authentic manner
in the midst of a cross road in Christianity when it was hitherto based
on the many hundreds of Jewish laws and good works, versus the
proclamation of faith alone in Jesus Christ and what it means to live
out this faith.
There was persecution
for the early Christians who were adamant that Christianity was the
truth and it mattered enough for them to sacrifice their lives rather
than going back to the Jewish faith. Were they to still rely of the
Jewish laws or go into the unknown of faith in Christ without the clear
boundaries for their actions and works.
It is in this context
that the epistle of James was set with strife between the different
theological beliefs, the pride of self righteousness and also with the
rich and the powerful taking over the church in Jerusalem having the
loudest voice and condeming others of not following the Jewish laws. The
power of the tongue of strife and arguments were causing harm.
In a world where there
are many faiths, and spiritual deities, the truth in Christianity is
often challenged. We don't make Christianity true as Christians, because
the revelation and salvation of Christ is eternal irrespective of us.
However, Christians in
the last two thousands have often not act out what we believed until it
can even be said by some that it does not matter whether Christianity is
true rather we make Christianity true in our works.
Good works itself - to
visit the orphans and widows doesn't by itself imply that it is
motivated by a pure and undefiled religion. For a humanistic based faith
often ends in a deep void of spirituality.
Jesus was not born of
this earth, rather His Spirit came from heaven, the incarnate of God. It
is God who came down first not that our pureness leads us to heaven. It
is Christ who first loved us whilst we were yet sinners. He came down to
heaven in order to redeem us to bring us home. He was not from this
earth yet became one of us, one of humanity.
James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is
this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself
unspotted from the world.
James was particularly
adamant that we should be doers and not hearers of the word only, and
that true religion is manifested not in being proud and boastful that we
have the truth rather that we can be a blessing of God's peace through
Christ.
The target of the
James' criticism were Jewish law minded
Christians who had insisted on following the law and not be defiled by
the world (ie not to be engaged with the gentiles). They held on
strongly to orthodoxy, and James rebuked them that purity in the
Christian faith is not by their insistence of strictly following the
Jewish law inwardly.
If they were so pure
and undefiled inwardly by the religious law, James sarcastically rebuked
them for the lack of their outward acts of faith to help the poor and
the rejected.
The argument was not
whether "Christianity was true?" but whether abiding
by the strict religious laws and insisting them strongly would lead to
any good works. On the other end, there were those who stopped at the
declaration of faith, yet not demonstrating the outworking of this faith
in the good works of continuing on the ministry of Christ or by standing
up for the faith.
Perhaps, apostle James was
himself conflicted, for his Christianity was within the Jewish faith
context. They believed that Jesus was the Messiah but they were still
very much Jewish abiding by the Jewish laws.
In the Epistle of James, he
begin to see that those who had insisted loudly on abiding by the Jewish
faith were causing more harm rather than proclaiming the love and grace
of God. They had pride in the law, and in their wealth and power.
The epistle of James
starts of in James 1:2-8, where James
was adamant that the Jewish Christians keep to the faith amid the trials
and not sway from the centrality of Christ. And they were indeed under persecution from
the Romans who had by now considered Christianity another religion (that
was to be banned) rather than a permitted Jewish sect.
The Jewish Christians
were also leaving Jerusalem to the diaspora to the Gentile lands or beyond
the walls of Jerusalem to the "outside world" in the persecution.
In the conflict from outside and from within, many have left the church.
In James 3, James
rebuked those who were outspoken and who had insisted on the Jewish
faith were causing harm and fire to the work of the church, and also
against those who took their faith in Christ rather casually.
There was grave
internal division and fighting and different camps judging one another
as being wrong and currupt (James 4:1). There was also pride in the
power struggles for control and authority to retain the status quo
rather than to proclaim that the grace of God extended to the Gentiles.
James called upon the
opposing groups to be humble (James 4:6), and not to agressively attack
the different theological opinions within the church (James 4:11). Added
to this was the complacency of what it means to be a Christian. If
Christianity was indeed the The way, and The truth to God in Jesus
Christ, shouldn't we be going out there to proclaim the Gospel message!
We all have different
ministries and different theological understanding to motivate our good
works. How do we relate to each other, giving space, dignity respect, to
different aspects of Christian ministry and beliefs without insisting
that everyone do as we do.
The early Christians were under grave persecutions by the Romans and Jewish
religious leaders yet internally they were disunited and had strong
arguments, disagreements, and verbal disputes.
The church of the 1st
century were facing a major theological conflict, whether to continue
abiding by the Jewish religious moral laws versus faith through the grace of
God in Christ producing the resultant good works and moral living. As James 2:18 so eloquently put it - in James 2:18
"But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.”"
There was also the
strong influence of the rich and their focus on prosperity (James
2:2-6). The poor was left out and the rich and powerful were having mini
kingdoms within the church.
James 2:13 For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no
mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
James challenged those
who had insisted on judgement to show love, to show mercy, and to show
grace, and instead of zealously condeming others, to do good works and
help the poor instead.
Yet, James was adamant
that Faith produces an outworking of righteousness and good works. True
Christianity matters. James wasn't too comfortable of those who took
faith casually without the need to show good works of their faith. For
right believing leads to right living.
In the famous
verse in
James 2:20 "But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without
works is dead?", giving the example of Abraham as an example of
faith resulting in good works.
However, Abraham was
not made righteous by the works of the law, or even helping the widow
and the outcasts. He was made righteous when he believed by faith in the
promises of God that enabled him to act out this faith by attempting to
sacrifice his only son. His faith led him to action, to the works of
faith.
Does our faith in
Christ leads us to the good works of demonstrating the love, grace,
mercy of Jesus Christ instead of insisting that we were right, or
judging and condeming others in a loud manner. Does in our faith results
in the good works of trusting in God and stepping out by faith in the
work that God has ordained for us?
If our faith is a
carnal and a humanistic faith, it will lead to us insisting on achieving
righteousness by good works. But we will end up loud and demanding,
condeming others of not meeting our standards of morality, and having
pride in our own righteousness in following the law.
If our Christian faith
is indeed true and based on Christ redeeming works for the atonement of
our sins, it will be demonstrated in our desire to do good works in
spreading the Gospel message of salvation, and showing God's love, grace
and mercy because Jesus lives in us.
Our Christian faith
will be shown not in the accumulation of wealth for ourselves but in
giving to others. We will not be proud of our works or insisting that
others follow our good works but giving space and freedom to others to
live out their Christian faith in honesty and integrity as the Holy
Spirit leads them.
How does the truth of
God's redeeming grace in Jesus Christ, leads us to good works of faith?
Are we asked to follow Abraham to sacrifice our all to venture into the
unknown where God will lead us by just trusting in God alone accounting
for our righteousness.
Abraham was righteous
looking forward and acting out good works in faith looking to the coming
of Jesus Christ the Messiah. We look backwards, to the Cross of Calvary,
for our rigtheousness in Christ as the basis of our faith to trust in
God to do the good works of continuing on the ministry of Christ.
We don't do good works
to gain righteousness, but it is by our faith that we are righteous in
Christ, and this assurance of salvation in Christ where was are standing
firmly on the solid rock allows us to step out to do the good works that
God has called us to do.
For some our calling is
to the streets of Geylang in Singapore. For others, it is to proclaim
the good news of the atonement of Christ and the Year of Jubilee and
acceptance of the GLBT community that God has placed us in.
What is your calling
today! live it out by faith that the truth of Christ and His redeeming
grace may be shown to the world. Be humble and be gentle, always having
grace that Christ may be revealed in us through our good works in living
out our faith with gentleness, kindness, love and humility abounding in
the Hope of Glory.
Abraham displayed the
good works of faith when he took the step to trust and obey God. For the
Gay Christians, this would be often challenging because so much of life
has been finding and living out our true authentic self as gays.
We struggle just to
survive physically, emotionally and spiritually. Yet, God is calling us
to trust and obey by faith that in our good works may reach our purpose
in life, the peace, rest and joy that comes with it. God is faithful and
it is in His faithfulness that matters and not our faithlessness. For
some our good works may just be sharing our testimony of coming out and
trusting in the faithfulness of God to support us.
Could
we trust God again when there is so much condemnation by people of faith
against us, and we often are alone in hiding with not much to fall back
on spiritually and financially.
We are called to good
works as Christians and for some it may be just staying true to the
Christian faith and coming out of the closets yet still holding on to
the love of Christ and bearing no ill will against others for putting us
in the closet, and living out the plans that God has for us for good
works for the Kingdom of God.
Good works is displayed
when we respond in kindness and grace when grave harm is done against
us. It requires trusting and obedience in the faithfulness of God in
the storms of life that for many gay christians is a daily affair. It is
when we can put on faith to trust and obey God that we can begin to do the
good works that God has planned for us as we minister Christ to the Gay
community by the grace of God.
Tis so sweet to trust
in Jesus
’Tis so sweet to trust in
Jesus,
Just to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His promise,
And to know, “Thus saith the Lord!”
Refrain:
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er;
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
Oh, for grace to trust Him more!
Oh, how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
And in simple faith to plunge me
’Neath the healing, cleansing flood!
Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking Life and rest, and joy and peace.
I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.