People don’t care what you know, they want to know how much you care! The only way to do that is to put your words into action. In James 2:14 we are asked, “What does it profit, if someone says they have faith but does not have works? Can faith save them?” James is not saying that this person actually has saving faith, but rather that the person claims to have saving faith. Actions speak louder that words, and you can claim all you want that you are a “Christian” but if your walk does not match your talk, you better reevaluate your talk. In this passage the orthodoxy of what the person is saying is not in question, what is in question is the evidence of their claim. The type of works that James has already talked about are: Endurance (1:3) , perseverance under trial (1:12) purity of life (1:21), obedience to scripture (1:22-23) , impartiality (2:1-9) and he will later talk about acts of compassion (2:15), control of the tongue (3:2-12), Humility (4:6, 10), truthfulness (4:11), and patience (5:8). It is interesting that this involves the inward integrity of the believer. As a Christian there should be an … READ MORE

Not only is salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, it is in Christ alone. According to the Bible we must understand that Jesus is not A way to God, He is THE way to God! Heaven is the place that God dwells and it is His choice the means to enter His Kingdom. We must understand that it is not built on works (Titus 3:5), nor our interpretation (Romans 1:22), it is determined by God’s own design. The glory of that design is that it is not subject to interpretation, but God has made it very clear to us His plan and purpose. Why would God choose to redeem a people for Himself? Ephesians 2:10 tells us that “we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” God does not manifest His grace to us, only to allow us the privilege of going to heaven, God manifests His grace to us because He has a plan to use our lives to accomplish His purposes in this realm. We are told in 1 Corinthians 1:21 “…it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those … READ MORE

Not only is salvation by grace ALONE, it is through faith ALONE! Our response to the grace of God is faith, but even that is not of ourselves according to Ephesians 2:8 faith is “the gift of God” Faith is nothing we do in our own power or by our own resources. If faith were ours, then it would become our works and we would have some ground to boast in ourselves. When we accept the finished work of Christ on our behalf, we act by faith supplied by God’s grace. When a person’ heart stops beating, there is nothing he can do to make it restart, for all intents and purposes he is dead: If he is going to live again, someone outside of himself, has to start his heart again! A person who is spiritually dead cannot even make a decision of faith unless God first breathes into him the breath of spiritual life. Faith is simply breathing the breath that God’s grace supplies. The paradox of faith is that we must exercise it and bear the responsibility if we do not (John 5:40). The reason we are save by grace ALONE through faith ALONE is so that … READ MORE