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Sunday 07/13/25
Title: Dead Faith
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Dead Faith
Last week we James introduced us to a concept which is not so much unique in scripture as it is uniquely worded.
He mentions it in chapter 2 beginning in verse 14…
“(14) What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him?”
For clarity on the passage…
The word “claims” is a good word, but not perfect. The idea is one of a proclamation that one stands by and affirms as true. However, if used in a sentence such as this in English, it can leave the impression that James is calling into question the veracity of the claim. Now, we know he does as he builds his case, so overall it does not build a wrong impression, but strictly speaking that nuance is not present in the Greek.
James offers an example:
“(15) If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, (16) and one of you says to them,
“Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it?”
“(17) So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself.”
Theologically these are difficult waters to navigate, but having given it some thought this is my conclusion.
For practical purposes there is only one word for faith in the New Testament which appears in three different forms, they are – pistis, pisteuo, and pistos. These are simply the noun, verb and adjective forms of the same word and are represented as “faith”, “believe”, “trust”, “faithful”, “believer” and even “sure”, “assurance” and “fidelity”.
Faith in the Greek:
- Pistis (πίστις) is a noun which is overwhelmingly represented with the word “faith” or “belief” though assurance and even fidelity is also used.
- Pisteuo (πιστεύω) is the verb form, just turning Pistis into an action. So it is represented with the words “to believe,” “to have faith,” or “to trust“.
- And finally Pistos (πιστός) is the adjective form, typically translated as “faithful,” but also as “believe,” “believing,” “faithfully,” “true,” “believer,” and even “sure“.
There are related words which alter the meaning due to prefixes, turning “faith” into “little faith”, “unbelief” and “unwillingness to believe”.
So it isn’t that James is saying there is a different “type” of faith, but rather a different condition or expression of faith. Or as in this case, a lack of expression!
Paul also introduces a novel expression regarding faith not found outside his letters. He called it “sincere” or “non-hyprocritical” faith. Like “dead” faith, “sincere” is not a prefix to faith, but a separate word used to further define the faith being taught about and it only appears in his two letters to Timothy.
Then Peter comes along and indirectly mentions the same by telling us that one of the benefits of temptations and trials (unintended by the enemy of course) is that it reveals the “genuineness” of our faith.
So the existence of “genuine” or “sincere” or “non-hyprocritical” faith requires the existence of its opposite which would be faith that is “insincere”, “ingenuine” or “hypocritical“.
So the question is – Is “insincere” faith the same thing as “dead” faith?
Well I’m inclined to think so, albeit they are nuanced in slightly different directions.
However, whether these truly are different and unique types of faith does not represent a theological hill worth dying on. We simply need to know of their existence.
Paul told Timothy that the purpose for his initial letter was to encourage “…love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.” – 1 Timothy 1:5.
Continuing on in Paul’s letter to Timothy, those in danger of possessing an “insincere” faith were those who persisted in false doctrine. So by extension these are those who are either:
- insensitive to the Holy Spirit (carnal)
- immature saints who think they know more than their teachers (immature and carnal)
- more interested in proving THEIR beliefs than submitting to sound doctrine (prideful and carnal)
Those we are reading about in James seem to fit rather nicely into this group in that he presents them as antagonistic as we will see in the coming verses.
“(18) But someone will say,
“You have faith and I have works.”
Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works.
(19) You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear. (20) But would you like evidence, you empty fellow, that faith without works is useless?”
Now to be fair James seems a little confrontational as well here, but with good reason. These believers, like to artificially generate a distinction between saving faith and the lordship of Jesus.
This kind of faith is largely intellectual – which is NOT to say that it is not real faith. James does not say this is “fake” faith, only “dead” faith.
We need to remember that there are at least two reasons for faith not having works.
One is that it is not true faith in the first place. Such is the kind of belief which can arise from intellectual learning and acceptance as academic fact. It can even be ardently stood up for and defended, but if it is not accompanied with actions springing from submission to Christ in obedience then it is a non-relational faith and therefore devoid of intimacy and life. Ergo “dead faith”.
“Where there are no signs of a new life, there never was genuine, saving faith.”
The second we see illustrated in Jesus’ ministry, and it is recorded for us in John 12:42-43,
“(42)Nevertheless, even among the rulers many believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they would not confess Jesus to be the Christ, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue. (43) For they loved praise from men more than praise from God.”
The word here for believed is the same as it is for anywhere else. This was true faith FOR salvation, but like the 2nd heart in Jesus’ parable of the heart soils, these drew back from faith due to considerations of the flesh. In this case it was that their love for the praise of man was greater than that from God. In other words – they did not truly fear God.
I’m not sure you remember me telling you about it, but this is just like a conversation I had with two young ladies on Facebook about 6 weeks ago which goes to illustrate how relevant it still is even today. Those two young women actually believed they were sincere, but in reality they were and are deceived.
They believe that salvation which leads to heaven is the result of faith in the gospel, but quite independent of that are works which they clearly said was the result of discipleship. Meaning that one can have salvation and not works and be saved. They even pointed to the thief on the cross, which I immediately debunked since he did in fact have correlating works through his public confession of Jesus as Messiah and King and in his rebuke to his fellow thief for not fearing God.
In a sermon entitled “On Taking Too Much for Granted” Tozer once said,
“A whole new generation of Christians has come up believing that it is possible to ‘accept’ Christ without forsaking the world.”
James goes on to say…
“(21) Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
(22) You see that his faith was working together with his works and his faith was perfected by works.”
As we’ve seen many times, the Eastern world thinks much more holistically than we.
Things were typically viewed more as “interconnected systems” which contained various parts but which were not complete without each part doing its share.
In similar fashion, scripture presents true living faith as a cyclical process.
- It could begin with simple information- though if the source was trusted and known it could start off with relational knowledge.
- From there it had to be accepted as truth, received in the mind as such and valued or treasured.
- As this was turned over in the heart through reflection and meditation it would grow and eventuate in action.
In this way the process of Faith becomes “complete” only when your faith takes feet.
The whole process plays out almost exactly like temptation leading to sin which we read about in the first chapter of James.
If you recall, it begins with a temptation, which is a type of evil grace – an influence of the enemy which he sows like seed into our hearts in hopes of it bearing fruit unto death.
Paul uses this analogy in Romans 5:7.
- The process is a word is sown into the heart.
- The heart receives it and accepts it.
- The heart ponders it as desire grows.
- Desire eventuates in action – in this case it would be sin, leading to death.
If at any point you stop the process before taking action it is not considered sin.
In the same way if at any point in the process you draw back from the Word deposited in your heart and don’t follow it through to action it isn’t considered faith or alive!
You may remember an example from the life of Jesus where the passage says many believed him but would not confess Him for fear of the Jews.
This is an example of what Jesus said and another time when He said,
“How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?”– John 5:44
If these people had respected God and treasured His word more than the acceptance of the religious elite of their day, they would have pressed through to the action of confessing Him. As such their faith would have been mature and complete. Life-giving faith!
As it is the word was received with gladness but as soon as “the sun rose with its burning heat” as the parable said, through the opposition of the religious leadership, it withered having borne no fruit.
So you can readily see that both sin and righteousness begin with an influence upon the heart. This is grace.
If the result is sin then the influence came from satan. That influence resonates with desires we harbor in the flesh.
If the result is righteousness, then the influence comes from God. That influence resonates with your spirit and that part of your mind which is already under obedience and submission to Christ.
The next step is critical!!!
Which direction you go will depend on which one you feed the most, even as our brother Steven here at the church often likes to say with the analogy of the Wolves.
But the real key is this – The one that you will feed the most IS THE ONE IN WHICH YOU SEE OR ESTEEM AS POSSESSING THE HIGHEST VALUE TO YOU.
In the example given by James, he points to Abraham.
This reminded me of the suggested backstory to Abraham’s testing given by Tozer in his book, ‘The Pursuit of God’ chapter 2 entitled, ‘The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing.”
In it Tozer sees Abraham as a father in love with his son but with a love that had grown impure. He suggests that Abraham’s love for Isaac had begun to eclipse all other loves including that for God Who gave Isaac to him.
Tozer says that this was the reason why God chose the action He did for Abraham.
“(23) And the scripture was fulfilled that says,
“Now Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.”
Do you see the result of a “living faith”? It ends in eternal life – which is intimacy with God.
You cannot bear relational fruit with non-relational seed.
Peter says that when we endure, we receive the end result of our faith which is the ‘salvation of our souls’, which results in the same conclusion. The salvation of our souls is about taking on the fullness of Jesus’ character. Since light cannot fellowship with darkness, then the completed act of soul salvation ends in the fullness of eternal life!
You reap the character of the seed you sow.
“(24) You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
(25) And similarly, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another way?
(26) For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”
As we wrap up this teaching on “faith and good works” I will indulge myself in two additional quotes from Tozer…
“The difficulty we modern Christians face is not misunderstanding the Bible, but persuading our untamed hearts to accept its plain instructions. Our problem is to get the consent of our world-loving minds to make Jesus Lord in fact as well as in word. For it is one thing to say, “Lord, Lord,” and quite another thing to obey the Lord’s commandments. We may sing, “Crown Him Lord of all,” and rejoice in the tones of the loud-sounding organ and the deep melody of harmonious voices, but still we have done nothing until we have left the world and set our faces toward the city of God in hard practical reality. When faith becomes obedience then it is true faith indeed.” — A W Tozer
“The man that believes will obey; failure to obey is convincing proof that there is not true faith present.” — A W Tozer
Blessings!
Tri
