¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? ¹⁵ If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, ¹⁶ and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? ¹⁷ So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. ¹⁹ You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! ²⁰ Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? ²¹ Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; ²³ and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. ²⁴ You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. ²⁵ And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? ²⁶ For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

James 2:14-26

The Great Reformation changed the way many people read and interpret Scripture, but not always for the better. Reformers like Martin Luther were reading Romans and Galatians in light of the perversions of the Roman Catholic Church. In those letters, Paul emphasizes that we are not justified by works but by faith in Christ. This seemed to contradict certain practices of the Catholic Church (e.g. the sale of indulgences, a practice that involved the purchase of a certificate to reduce or eliminate punishment for sins in purgatory [another erroneous concept]). Over time, this doctrine of sola fide (faith alone) became so engrained within the minds of those who held to the Reformed tradition that any mention of ‘works’ in connection with one’s salvation would be viewed as heretical.

However, James says in his letter that ‘a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.’ (Jas. 2:24) Are James and Paul at odds? Certainly not. Paul and James were battling two different problems and used similar language in different ways to suit their unique arguments. Like brothers in arms with their backs to each other fending off attacks from either side, they were both ‘fighting the good fight of faith.’ (1 Tim. 6:12) Let’s try to correct this apparent contradiction.

James’ style in this section (James 2:14-26) is called a ‘diatribe’; he introduces an imaginary objector who states his own viewpoint as a foil for James’ argument (18). He attacks the person holding that viewpoint as if he were present (‘you foolish person’, 20); and he appeals directly to his readers to judge the truth of what he is saying (‘you see’, 22, 24). This style strongly suggests that at least some of James’ readers held this incorrect view of faith—that they could be justified by their faith alone, apart from any works.

It is likely that James’ audience had heard Paul’s teaching on ‘justification by faith’ (in Romans and Galatians) but misunderstood it. Properly understood, James and Paul are united in their teaching of ‘faith’ and ‘works’ and their relationship to justification. Any appearance of a conflict is created for two reasons:

1. They are using the same term in different ways — ‘Works’ in Paul’s letters to the Romans and Galatians refers specifically to ‘works of the Law of Moses’ by which no one is justified (Rom. 3:28; Gal. 2:16). ‘Works’ in James refers to works of obedience to God, something Paul taught as well (his mission, after all, was to bring about “the obedience of faith” Rom. 1:5; 16:26). These are two completely different things. Paul’s use of ‘works’ is very specific while James’ more generally refers to obedience to God.
2. They are seeking to correct different problems — Paul is correcting the view that one can be justified in God’s sight according to the Law of Moses. That is, that the way to be right with God is by keeping the stipulations of the Mosaic covenant (circumcision, kosher diet, rituals, feasts, etc.). But this is impossible, as Paul expertly shows, because no one is without sin and the Law made no provision for sin. James is correcting the view that a mere verbal profession of faith in Jesus is enough to be justified and saved. A faith that does not ‘work’ is bogus and good for nothing.

James argues that ‘faith without works is dead’ (17, 26) and ‘useless’ (20). It does not have the power to ‘save’ (14) or to ‘justify’ a person before God (24). True faith issues in ‘works’ (14, 17); faith works with active obedience and is ‘completed by works’ (22). It is the kind of faith demonstrated by Abraham (21-23) and Rahab (25). It is absolutely vital to understand that the main point of James’ argument, expressed four times (17, 20, 24, 26), is not that works are a kind of second, unrelated addition to faith but that genuine faith naturally works.

The practices of the Roman Catholic Church were wrong and Luther was right to criticize them. But his narrow interpretation of ‘works’ in Paul’s writing was unmerited. We should be careful that in our respect of such historical figures, we don’t become blind to their faults. In the Bible, faith in God and obedience to God go hand in hand. We dare not make the error of thinking that a mere verbal profession of faith, without an accompanying life of obedience to God, can justify us before him. But nor should we make the opposite error by thinking we could ever earn God’s mercy through our obedience, as if God could be put into our debt. We are saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8-9).

²³ Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, ²⁴ the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, ²⁵ the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, ²⁶ the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, ²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, ²⁸ the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, ²⁹  the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, ³⁰ the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, ³¹ the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, ³² the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon, ³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, ³⁴ the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, ³⁵ the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, ³⁶ the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, ³⁷ the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, ³⁸ the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

Luke 3:23-38

The above might not be gripping reading to modern people but genealogies serve many important functions in ancient literature. Sometimes, they stitch the narrative together, spanning great lengths of time to connect two stories, as in Genesis. They also hold important clues about a family or an individual within the family. Such is the case here. The Gospels give us two genealogies of Jesus, one in Matthew and the other in Luke. They both have their puzzles and they are both very different from each other. Whenever there are parallel passages in the Gospels, it’s always instructive to hone in on those differences because they usually reveal details that the author wants to especially emphasize. Let’s briefly examine some of those differences between Luke’s ‘family tree’ of Jesus and Matthew’s.

First, notice the scope of Luke’s genealogy. Luke takes in seventy-seven names from Jesus back to Adam. Some see eleven groups of seven names, but I can’t detect any clear pattern or purpose behind it. As we read our way back to Adam, we get the impression that it’s all part of a long story which culminates in Jesus. Matthew’s goes back only to Abraham, emphasizing that he is Israel’s Messiah, whereas Luke’s goes back to Adam, emphasizing that he is the Savior of the whole world, Gentiles included. This fits with Luke’s primarily non-Jewish audience and focus in his Gospel account.

Second, notice the direction of the genealogy. Whereas Matthew’s reads forward from Abraham to Jesus (Mt. 1:1-17), Luke’s goes backward in history from Jesus to Adam. I’m not sure what to make of this but it’s there.

Third, notice the placement of Luke’s genealogy. Matthew puts his smack at the beginning of his account, laying out Jesus’ royal pedigree for his Jewish audience. Luke places his later, inserting it between Jesus’ baptism (Lk. 3:21-22) and his temptation (Lk. 4:1-13). In Luke, we go from connecting Jesus to Adam and then straight to his temptation by the devil. This is Luke’s subtle way of telling us to read the temptation story in light of Genesis 3. Matthew, on the other hand, writes his temptation story in such a way that we would contrast Jesus’ faithfulness with Israel’s unfaithfulness in the wilderness (Num. 14). But by mentioning Adam, Luke wants us to put Luke 4 side by side with Genesis 3.

This helps us see the temptation in a new light. In the beginning, the first Adam was tempted and failed. Here, the second ‘Adam’ is tempted and succeeds. In Genesis 3, Adam faced temptation in the abundance of the Garden. Here, Jesus faced temptation in the desolation of the wilderness. The first Adam was surrounded with provision; the second ‘Adam’ with destitution. Genesis 3 depicts the fall of man. Luke 4 reports the standing of man. Luke 4 is 1 John 3:8 illustrated: “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.” That’s what Jesus is doing in the wilderness. He is beginning to reverse the effects of the fall by meeting evil head on. Jesus is showing us the new way—which was God’s original way—to be human. Jesus is showing us how to overcome temptation and trust in God. He’s proving that temptation can be overcome, but to do so, we’ve got to walk in the footsteps of Jesus.

That’s the ‘easy’ stuff about Luke’s genealogy. There are some puzzles that remain, however. Why are the names in Luke’s genealogy so different than Matthew’s? The list of names are almost in total disagreement. As stated before, Matthew and Luke both have their points to make about Jesus. Matthew traces David’s descendants via the royal line of Solomon and Judah’s kings, while Luke traces his physical descent through another little-known son of David, Nathan or Nahshon (3:31; 2 Sam. 5:14). Both lines converge at Joseph, but both lines have a different precursor to Joseph (Jacob in Mt. 1:16, Heli or Eli in Lk. 3:23). Some speculate that a second marriage is the explanation, one gives Joseph’s physical father while the other lists his legal father. But who knows?

So, there are difficulties here that seem to lack clear answers. What do we do in the face of such textual problems? One thing I’ve learned not to do is to allege that the Biblical authors were careless and made a mistake. Both Matthew and Luke have acquitted themselves over and over again as the most thoughtful and brilliant historians and theologians. They were not sloppy. When there are unanswerable questions like these, I’ve learned to assume the ignorance in mine as a twenty-first century reader and not to pontificate too much on the issue.

¹ What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? ² You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

James 4:1-3

You have to be careful restringing your guitar. When turning the tuning pegs to reach the desired pitch, the tension audibly builds higher and higher. If you over-tighten one it can easily snap, lashing out wildly to scratch you.

Some local congregations can be ‘high strung’ too. It may be just an undercurrent for a while, but little things can increase the tension over time until… SNAP! The flood gates open and people get hurt. What causes tensions in the church and what are we to do about them? The Christians addressed in James’ letter were an agitated bunch. Both external and internal factors contributed to their tension.

Outwardly, they were facing persecution. They were poor and being taken advantage of by wealthy landlords (5:4-6). They were also being hauled into court by the rich (2:6) who scorned their Christian faith (2:7). These outward pressures were no doubt a great source of stress so James admonished them to meet their trials with endurance, trusting that through them they were being shaped and strengthened by God who would eventually give them victory (1:2-4, 12).

Inwardly, they were struggling with worldliness. James was concerned that their culture was influencing them instead of the other way around. He warned that “friendship with the world is enmity with God” (4:4) and highlighted that one key ingredient of “religion that is pure and undefiled before God” is keeping “oneself unstained from the world” (1:27).

When we think like the world instead of like Christ (what James calls “earthly wisdom” in 3:13-18) and then encounter some form of persecution, we are not poised to respond in God-honoring ways to that stress. Worldliness in the church manifested in several ways: a deference to the rich and a callous indifference to the poor (2:1-4); uncontrolled, critical speech (3:1-12; 4:11-12; 5:9); envy and selfish ambition that degenerated into quarrels (3:13-4:3); arrogance (4:13-17); and, most of all, an essential “double-mindedness” with respect to God that short-circuited the effectiveness of prayer (1:5-8) and resulted in a failure to put faith into practice (1:22-27; 2:14-26). James called upon these Christians to repent from this worldliness by humbling themselves before the Lord so that the Lord might exalt them (4:7-10). Then they could work diligently to bring other sinners back from the error of their ways (5:19-20).

Perhaps we can attribute tensions within the church to three failures:

A failure to think like Christ — Jesus has sanctified us (‘set us apart’ from the world) “in truth” (Jn. 17:17). We are called to shape our thinking after God’s word and resist the world’s efforts to squeeze us into its mold (Rom. 12:1-2). James tells us to adopt the wisdom from above that is “first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere” (3:17). When we think according to Christ’s wisdom we begin to sow seeds of peace within the church, reducing and resolving tensions, producing a “harvest of righteousness” (3:18). If there is tension within the church, check your heart first. Is there tension there? James says that his readers were at war with each other because their “passions [were] at war within [them]” (4:1). Many quarrels between Christians are not due to justifiable zeal but self-indulgent desire.

A failure to forgive like Christ — Many tensions can be traced back to an unwillingness to forgive those who have wronged us in the past. We must remember that wisdom from above is “full of mercy” (3:17) and that “judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy” (2:13). It may be argued that Jesus taught us only to forgive those who repent of their sins (Lk. 17:3). While true reconciliation (the repairing of the relationship) cannot take place until there is contrition and ownership of one’s sin, we must always have the mindset of mercy. When we truly want reconciliation, we are ready to forgive and pray for it. Jesus prayed for those who crucified him, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Lk. 23:34) Many of those for whom he prayed never repented but some did. The point is, Jesus had a heart primed with mercy and ready to reconcile.

A failure to restore like Christ — Perhaps all the steps have been taken to reconcile (Mt. 5:21-26; 18:15-17) but tension still exists. When full restoration is lacking it may be due to a failure to forgive as we have been forgiven. Paul clobbers us with instructive grace: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (Eph. 4:28) How did God in Christ forgive us? Once we repented and came to him for mercy, he did “not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” (Psa. 103:9-13) So Paul urges us to look to God as our model for forgiveness. Psalm 103 poetically describes how God forgives us in Christ: he does not dwell on our forgiven sin, use it against us, gossip to others about it or let it come between us and him.

Christians will always experience tension as we live in this world while not being of this world. But the church should be a place of peace, mercy and goodwill.

²⁴ Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, ²⁵ of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, ²⁶ the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. ²⁷ To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. ²⁸ Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. ²⁹ For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Colossians 1:24-29

Since Paul had never met the Colossians in person he introduces himself and his ministry to them in this section. The apostle’s description of his ministry bears three distinguishing marks, marks our service to the Lord should also bear.

First, Paul’s ministry bore the afflictions of Christ (24). He suffered greatly in his service “for [their] sake.” How so? Paul wrote this letter from prison. In bringing the gospel to the Gentiles, Paul was, in a sense, drawing the enemy’s fire to himself, granting small Gentile churches, like that in Colosse, a chance to grow in peace. Paul’s suffering served another purpose: “filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.” This does not mean, of course, that Jesus’ suffering on the cross was somehow incomplete or insufficient. Rather, there is a certain measure of suffering that saints must endure until God executes his judgment (cf. Rev. 6:9-11). Paul’s ministry essentially made him a punching bag for God’s enemies.

This brings us to an important point. In the west, it is common to see “church ministries” for everything under the sun: they come with a T-shirt, clever branding and advertise entertainment for all ages. But “filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions”? Not so much. Paul teaches us that true Christian ministry is marked by the hardships of Jesus. That’s how it has always been from Abel on. Serving the Lord means bearing the marks of the Lord. Though our ministry to Christ is often a great source of joy, we can also be wounded with “affliction” in the line of duty. Even so, we can rejoice even in our “sufferings” because they identify us with our Savior. Does your ministry bear the afflictions of Christ?

Second, Paul’s ministry revealed the mystery of Christ (25-27). “Mystery” is Paul’s shorthand for God’s eternal plan that in previous times had been hidden but has now been revealed by the Spirit to the church in the gospel. The gospel reveals “how great… the riches of glory” are “among the Gentiles.” That is, God welcomes Gentiles as full members into his covenant family. So intimate is his fellowship with Gentiles that Paul can say the essence of this mystery is “Christ in you.” He is not only the Christ above you (1:15) who created and sustains you (1:16-17), the Christ beyond you (1:18) who also died for you (1:21-23). He is the Christ “in you!” Jesus being “in” us is a way of saying that he takes up residence within us and transforms our lives from the inside out. We begin to think and act just like him. Christ living within us is our “hope of glory,” our hope of appearing with him in glory at the end (3:4). But how does this relate to ministry?

Part of what makes a ministry distinctly ‘Christian’ is that it reveals these riches of the gospel. Our service for Jesus must communicate the marvel of God’s grace toward us (“how great… the riches of glory”), the intimacy of his fellowship (“Christ in you”) and “the hope of [future] glory”. If we are not sharing God’s spiritual wealth with others in our ministry, then is our ministry even ‘Christian’?

Lastly, Paul’s ministry had as its goal the maturity of Christ (28-29). Paul’s aim was to “present everyone mature in Christ.” He toiled and struggled to prepare people to meet their God. How does one go about making Christians mature? Paul did so by teaching them about Jesus (“him we proclaim”) and he did so in a balanced way (“struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me”). That is, he recognized his responsibility to work hard but knew that when he did God’s will God was the one working within him. By striving with the strength that God supplies (1 Pet. 4:11), Paul never experienced ‘burn out’ in his ministry. His teaching took the form of both negative and positive instruction (“warning” and “teaching”). To grow in Christ, we need the gospel positively applied to the whole range of life’s circumstances (“teaching”) but because we often get things wrong, we also need constant “warnings” to keep us on track and correct us.

Christian ministry is a word-centered ministry because what Christians need more than anything to be mature is God’s truth. That is why our sermons and classes are not full of entertaining stories with a sprinkling of Bible quotations to make them ‘spiritual’ but serious expositions and applications of Scripture. That is why our children’s classes are not free day care but aimed at teaching them God’s will at their level. There are other legitimate Christian ministries (Paul mentions a few in Rom. 12:3-8) but none can prepare people for heaven like the ministry of the word. Only a word-centered church can produce Christ-like disciples.

Paul was a true minister, a servant of the church, and his ministry bore all the distinguishing marks of Christ. We understand that as an apostle, Paul’s ministry was unique, but our service, at least in principle, ought to resemble his in these three ways. Keep in mind that Paul’s ministry had no board of directors, no annual budget or any of the other administrative scaffolding of so many denominational ministries today; but it was authentic, effective and distinctly Christian. Does your service for Jesus bear the marks of Christian ministry like Paul’s?

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:15-17

The following is George Herbert’s poetic prayer to God entitled “Gratefulness.”

The Elizabethan language can be difficult, but Herbert’s basic prayer is this: God has blessed him so much, but in order to fully appreciate all that God has done, he must give him one more vital gift—a grateful heart. Without a constant mindset of gratitude, a heart that “pulses” with God’s praises, God might as well have not given him anything to begin with. God knew we would be reliant on his gifts, petitioning him again and again, but it pleases him to hear our prayers because it provides him opportunities to our out his love to us. So Herbert resolves not to stop praying until he obtains that grateful heart.

We too must learn this lesson. When ancient Israel experienced success and blessing, instead of humbly giving thanks, they were inflated with pride. In their comfort they forgot God and slipped into rebellion, despite God’s warning before entering the promised land (see Deut. 8:11-18). In Colossians 3:15-17, Paul emphasizes gratitude with a triple repetition of “thanksgiving” words, clueing us in on three things to be grateful for.

Grateful unity (15) — When love binds us together in “one body” (Col. 3:14), we can allow the “peace of Christ” to “rule [our] hearts.” “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” (Psa. 133:1) How marvelous that Jesus brought such diverse people like us together “in one body” to cooperate in serving him and each other? We ought to “be thankful” for our spiritual unity because it is by no means an automatic thing. Christ had to die to create it (Eph. 2:13-14) and we must live to maintain it by exercising attitudes of humility and patience (Eph. 4:1-3). Be grateful for the fellowship we forgiven sinners share in Christ.

Grateful praise (16) — When we “let the word of Christ dwell in [us] richly,” we can offer praise to God that is both mutually encouraging (“teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom”) and acceptable to God (“with thankfulness in your hearts to God”). Worship without gratitude is not worship. If we find our minds wandering by the third verse of the hymn, we are not singing “in all wisdom.” That is, we lack mental discipline and must chasten ourselves to refocus (1 Cor. 14:15). We focus by allowing the “word of Christ” to take up residence within us, to be at home in our minds. We prepare to worship God with the church by filling our minds with the teachings and stories about our Lord. Then, filled with his word, we can offer worship “with thankfulness in [our] hearts to God.”

Grateful living (17) — Finally, Paul admonishes us to “do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” To act in Jesus’ name means to act on his behalf. Acting in Christ’s “name” restricts us; it acts as a check on our behavior by getting us to ask ourselves, “Would Christ be pleased if I did this or that?” But acting in Christ’s “name” also encourages us; it acts as a motivation to persevere with difficult tasks that we undertake for him. We know that when we act “in his name”—doing his will—he will provide us with the necessary strength to carry the task out.

When Christ’s peace rules us, Christ’s word fills us and Christ’s name guides us, our hearts will truly be thankful for what we have in Christ. Then we are prepared to worship God and live grateful lives for him. God save us from cynicism, ingratitude and selfishness and give us thankful hearts.