James 2:24
Verse
Context
Sermons
Dwight Pentecost
John Piper
Dale Gish
Zac Poonen
Leonard Verduin
Thomas Bradbury
Clement of RomeSummary
Commentary
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Tyndale
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
Ye see then how - It is evident from this example that Abraham's faith was not merely believing that there is a God; but a principle that led him to credit God's promises relative to the future Redeemer, and to implore God's mercy: this he received, and was justified by faith. His faith now began to work by love, and therefore he was found ever obedient to the will of his Maker. He brought forth the fruits of righteousness; and his works justified - proved the genuineness of his faith; and he continued to enjoy the Divine approbation, which he could not have done had he not been thus obedient; for the Spirit of God would have been grieved, and his principle of faith would have perished. Obedience to God is essentially requisite to maintain faith. Faith lives, under God, by works; and works have their being and excellence from faith. Neither can subsist without the other, and this is the point which St. James labors to prove, in order to convince the Antinomians of his time that their faith was a delusion, and that the hopes built on it must needs perish.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
justified and, not by faith only--that is, by "faith without (separated from: severed from) works," its proper fruits (see on Jam 2:20). Faith to justify must, from the first, include obedience in germ (to be developed subsequently), though the former alone is the ground of justification. The scion must be grafted on the stock that it may live; it must bring forth fruit to prove that it does live.
John Gill Bible Commentary
Ye see then how that by works a man is justified,.... Not as causes procuring his justification, but as effects declaring it; for the best works are imperfect, and cannot be a righteousness justifying in the sight of God, and are unprofitable in this respect; for when they are performed in the best manner, they are no other than what it is a man's duty to perform, and therefore cannot justify from sin he has committed: and besides, justification in this sense would frustrate the grace of God, make void the death of Christ, and encourage boasting in men. Good works do not go before justification as causes or conditions, but follow it as fruits and effects: and not by faith only: or as without works, or a mere historical faith, which being without works is dead, of which the apostle is speaking; and therefore can bear no testimony to a man's justification; hence it appears, that the Apostle James does not contradict the Apostle Paul in Rom 3:28 since they speak not of the same sort of faith; the one speaks of a mere profession of faith, a dead and lifeless one; the other of a true faith, which has Christ, and his righteousness, for its object, and works by love, and produces peace, joy, and comfort in the soul. Moreover, the Apostle Paul speaks of justification before God; and James speaks of it as it is known by its fruits unto men; the one speaks of a justification of their persons, in the sight of God; the other of the justification and approbation of their cause, their conduct, and their faith before men, and the vindication of them from all charges and calumnies of hypocrisy, and the like; the one speaks of good works as causes, which he denies to have any place as such in justification; and the other speaks of them as effects flowing from faith, and showing the truth of it, and so of justification by it; the one had to do with legalists and self-justiciaries, who sought righteousness not by faith, but by the works of the law, whom he opposed; and the other had to do with libertines, who cried up faith and knowledge, but had no regard to a religious life and conversation; and these things considered will tend to reconcile the two apostles about this business, but as effects declaring it; for the best works are imperfect, and cannot be a righteousness justifying in the sight of God, and are unprofitable in this respect; for when they are performed in the best manner, they are no other than what it is a man's duty to perform, and therefore cannot justify from sin he has committed: and besides, justification in this sense would frustrate the grace of God, make void the death of Christ, and encourage boasting in men. Good works do not go before justification as causes or conditions, but follow it as fruits and effects: and not by faith only: or as without works, or a mere historical faith, which being without works is dead, of which the apostle is speaking; and therefore can bear no testimony to a man's justification; hence it appears, that the Apostle James does not contradict the Apostle Paul in Rom 3:28 since they speak not of the same sort of faith; the one speaks of a mere profession of faith, a dead and lifeless one; the other of a true faith, which has Christ, and his righteousness, for its object, and works by love, and produces peace, joy, and comfort in the soul. Moreover, the Apostle Paul speaks of justification before God; and James speaks of it as it is known by its fruits unto men; the one speaks of a justification of their persons, in the sight of God; the other of the justification and approbation of their cause, their conduct, and their faith before men, and the vindication of them from all charges and calumnies of hypocrisy, and the like; the one speaks of good works as causes, which he denies to have any place as such in justification; and the other speaks of them as effects flowing from faith, and showing the truth of it, and so of justification by it; the one had to do with legalists and self-justiciaries, who sought righteousness not by faith, but by the works of the law, whom he opposed; and the other had to do with libertines, who cried up faith and knowledge, but had no regard to a religious life and conversation; and these things considered will tend to reconcile the two apostles about this business.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
2:24 not by faith alone: That is, not like the demons who merely believe something is true (2:19), but by a belief that results in generous deeds like those of God himself (1:17). Though some have thought that this teaching contradicts what Paul taught, it does not. Paul does not speak against good deeds themselves, but about trying to receive forgiveness of sins through good deeds (Rom 3:28; Gal 2:16). Just as Paul understands that love and generosity necessarily issue from a true faith (Gal 5:6), so also James knows that good deeds can result only from authentic faith that results in a commitment to God (Jas 2:18, 26).
James 2:24
Faith and Works
23And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called a friend of God.24As you can see, a man is justified by his deeds and not by faith alone.
- Scripture
- Sermons
- Commentary
Ministry From James-02
By Dwight Pentecost1.3K28:38JAS 1:1JAS 2:14JAS 2:24In this sermon, the preacher addresses the apparent conflict between the teachings of Paul and James regarding justification by faith and works. He emphasizes that there cannot be two different systems of justification in the Bible, so there must be a way to reconcile these teachings. The preacher uses three illustrations to make his point: the hungry and cold, the demons who believe, and an Old Testament biblical example. He concludes that faith without works is dead and proves itself to be not genuine faith at all.
Why We Believe the Bible - Lesson 1
By John Piper1.3K1:50:22MAT 7:29JHN 5:39ACT 17:2ROM 3:28ROM 15:4JAS 2:24In this sermon, the speaker addresses the importance of understanding and affirming the Bible as the Word of God. They emphasize that the Bible is fully inspired and without error, written under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and holds supreme authority in matters of faith and conduct. The speaker highlights the need to know why we believe in the Bible's authority, and presents ten reasons to support this belief. They also discuss the challenges faced in a secular society that criticizes the Bible as a mixture of truth and error, and urge listeners to come to terms with their own views on the Bible.
Separation From the World (Part 2)
By Dale Gish66855:49MAT 6:33ROM 16:261CO 6:192CO 6:14EPH 5:181TI 2:9JAS 2:24In this sermon, the preacher warns against following worldly trends and fashions, using the example of hairstyles. He emphasizes the importance of listening to the voice of God rather than the voice of the enemy. The preacher also references Ecclesiastes 3:15, suggesting that history repeats itself and that we should be cautious of drifting away from God. He concludes by encouraging listeners to examine whose voice they are hearing and to align their lives with the teachings of the Bible.
Justification
By Zac Poonen2GEN 3:7ISA 64:6ROM 4:5ROM 5:2ROM 8:31JAS 2:24Zac Poonen preaches on the profound truth of justification by faith, emphasizing that forgiveness of sins removes guilt but doesn't make us perfectly holy. Justification, through the perfect righteousness of Christ credited to us, allows us to stand before God as if we had never sinned, enabling us to boldly enter His presence without fear. This free gift from God, not based on our works, covers us with Christ's righteousness, contrasting with our futile attempts to cover our sins with 'fig-leaves' of good works.
(Reformers and Their Stepchildren) Introduction
By Leonard Verduin0MAT 7:21ROM 3:281CO 1:101CO 3:1GAL 2:16EPH 2:8JAS 2:241PE 2:91JN 2:4Leonard Verduin discusses the emergence of deep-seated differences within the dissenters against the medieval order, leading to the Reformers facing opposition on a 'Second Front' from the Radicals. This Second Front significantly impacted the course of the Reformation, causing the Reformers to shift their focus and theology. The Radicals, also known as the Stepchildren of the Reformation, challenged Luther's emphasis on justification by faith alone and the role of good works in salvation, standing to the right of Luther on crucial theological points. The conflict at the Second Front centered around differing views of the Church of Christ, with the Stepchildren advocating for a Church based solely on personal faith, leading to their departure from the Reformers.
It Is God That Justifieth
By Thomas Bradbury0PSA 139:23MRK 9:24JHN 14:1ROM 1:7ROM 3:24ROM 4:25ROM 5:9ROM 5:19ROM 8:331CO 6:11JAS 2:24Thomas Bradbury preaches about the comprehensive justification provided by God through Jesus Christ, emphasizing the triumph of redeeming love over sin, death, and hell. He highlights the role of the Kinsman-Redeemer, Jesus Christ, who entered heaven to intercede for His people, sending the Holy Spirit to complete the canon of Scripture and comfort believers. The sermon delves into the universal proclamation of the Gospel to gather all objects of God's everlasting love, showcasing the diverse testimonies of believers from different backgrounds coming to bow before Jesus and receive blessings from the covenant of grace.
Various Thoughts on Different Subjects
By Clement of Rome0PRO 10:121CO 1:18EPH 2:8HEB 12:6JAS 2:241PE 3:81PE 4:81PE 5:51JN 4:7Clement of Rome delivers a sermon urging believers to forsake wicked works and evil desires, seeking holiness and humility to receive God's grace. He emphasizes that righteousness and truth through faith bring blessings, not self-justification or works. Clement highlights the danger of knowledge without humility and unity in Christ, calling for obedience to God's commandments and love for one another. He encourages sacrificial love, bearing blame to maintain harmony and protect the concord passed down to believers.
Works Before and After Justification
By J.H. Newman0ACT 10:4ROM 3:28EPH 2:10JAS 2:24J.H. Newman preaches on the contrast between works done before and after justification, emphasizing that works before justification do not please God as they do not spring from faith in Jesus Christ and are considered to have the nature of sin. On the other hand, works after justification, which are the fruits of faith, are pleasing and acceptable to God in Christ. The sermon delves into the importance of divine aid in performing good works, highlighting that even works before justification, when done with God's help, can lead to receiving the grace of justification, as seen in the example of Cornelius.
(A Good Foundation) 3. Election and Justification
By Zac Poonen0ISA 64:6ROM 5:2ROM 8:31ROM 8:33EPH 1:42TI 2:19JAS 2:241PE 1:1REV 13:8Zac Poonen preaches on the glorious truths of God's election of His children and His justification of them. He explains that God elected us according to His foreknowledge and chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, giving us tremendous security. Justification means God credits the perfect righteousness of Christ to us, making our standing before God as perfect as Christ's, allowing us to boldly enter God's presence. Poonen emphasizes that justification is a free gift from God, not based on our works, and warns against taking sin lightly under the misconception of being elected and justified.
The Antinomian "Christian"
By David Servant0LUK 24:46ACT 20:20ACT 26:19ROM 6:1JAS 2:24David Servant preaches about the importance of understanding the inseparable connection between faith and works, emphasizing that true faith is validated by works and that works are a natural outflow of genuine faith. He highlights the dangers of antinomianism, the belief that obedience to God's laws is unimportant, and the need for a balance between faith and works in the Christian life. Drawing from the teachings of Martin Luther and various biblical figures, he stresses the significance of repentance as a necessary response to the gospel, leading to a transformed life marked by obedience to Christ.
The Doctrine of Justification 9. Its Evidence
By A.W. Pink0Faith and WorksJustificationGEN 15:6JOB 34:32JHN 15:14ACT 3:19ROM 3:28GAL 5:6HEB 9:14JAS 2:17JAS 2:241JN 3:17A.W. Pink explores the doctrine of justification, emphasizing the apparent contradiction between Paul's assertion that justification is by faith alone and James' claim that works are necessary for justification. Pink clarifies that Paul speaks of justification before God, while James addresses the evidence of faith before men, asserting that genuine faith is always accompanied by good works. He warns against the danger of empty professions of faith that lack spiritual fruit, illustrating that true faith manifests in love and obedience. The sermon highlights the inseparable relationship between justification and sanctification, urging believers to demonstrate their faith through their actions.
Justification by Faith Only
By J.H. Newman0ROM 3:28ROM 4:5GAL 2:16EPH 2:8JAS 2:24J.H. Newman preaches on the wholesome doctrine that we are justified by faith alone, emphasizing that faith is the sole means and instrument of justification. He clarifies that this does not deny the role of baptism or good works in justification, but rather highlights the distinct senses in which each operates. Newman explains that faith is the impetrating principle that pleads for justification and constitutes our title to it, while also being the beginning of justifying righteousness that will ultimately be fulfilled through divine graces.
Day 53, Galatians 6
By David Servant0JAS 2:24David Servant emphasizes the distinction between the Law of Moses and the law of Christ in his sermon on Galatians, highlighting the importance of faith, holiness, and sowing to the Spirit for eternal life. He warns against the heresy of living in sin under the guise of faith alone, referencing James' statement on justification by works. Paul stresses the insignificance of circumcision compared to being a new creation in Christ, denouncing those who boast in outward rituals rather than the cross of Christ. True Christians, transformed by God's Spirit, are called to live differently from the world, seeking to please God and do good.
The Way to Holiness
By James Blaine Chapman0PSA 51:7JHN 17:17ACT 26:18ROM 15:16TIT 3:5HEB 13:12JAS 2:24James Blaine Chapman emphasizes the importance of being sanctified through various means as outlined in the Bible. The theologians explain that we are sanctified instrumentally by the Word of God, efficaciously by the blood of Jesus, conditionally by faith, and efficiently by the Holy Ghost. It is crucial to adhere to the terms laid down in the Word for sanctification, as Bible holiness is the only true holiness. The blood of Jesus is the sole price of our redemption, and faith is the prime condition for deliverance, leading to victory. The Holy Spirit plays different roles in convicting, regenerating, and sanctifying believers, coming in Pentecostal fullness and power for entire sanctification.
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Tyndale
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
Ye see then how - It is evident from this example that Abraham's faith was not merely believing that there is a God; but a principle that led him to credit God's promises relative to the future Redeemer, and to implore God's mercy: this he received, and was justified by faith. His faith now began to work by love, and therefore he was found ever obedient to the will of his Maker. He brought forth the fruits of righteousness; and his works justified - proved the genuineness of his faith; and he continued to enjoy the Divine approbation, which he could not have done had he not been thus obedient; for the Spirit of God would have been grieved, and his principle of faith would have perished. Obedience to God is essentially requisite to maintain faith. Faith lives, under God, by works; and works have their being and excellence from faith. Neither can subsist without the other, and this is the point which St. James labors to prove, in order to convince the Antinomians of his time that their faith was a delusion, and that the hopes built on it must needs perish.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
justified and, not by faith only--that is, by "faith without (separated from: severed from) works," its proper fruits (see on Jam 2:20). Faith to justify must, from the first, include obedience in germ (to be developed subsequently), though the former alone is the ground of justification. The scion must be grafted on the stock that it may live; it must bring forth fruit to prove that it does live.
John Gill Bible Commentary
Ye see then how that by works a man is justified,.... Not as causes procuring his justification, but as effects declaring it; for the best works are imperfect, and cannot be a righteousness justifying in the sight of God, and are unprofitable in this respect; for when they are performed in the best manner, they are no other than what it is a man's duty to perform, and therefore cannot justify from sin he has committed: and besides, justification in this sense would frustrate the grace of God, make void the death of Christ, and encourage boasting in men. Good works do not go before justification as causes or conditions, but follow it as fruits and effects: and not by faith only: or as without works, or a mere historical faith, which being without works is dead, of which the apostle is speaking; and therefore can bear no testimony to a man's justification; hence it appears, that the Apostle James does not contradict the Apostle Paul in Rom 3:28 since they speak not of the same sort of faith; the one speaks of a mere profession of faith, a dead and lifeless one; the other of a true faith, which has Christ, and his righteousness, for its object, and works by love, and produces peace, joy, and comfort in the soul. Moreover, the Apostle Paul speaks of justification before God; and James speaks of it as it is known by its fruits unto men; the one speaks of a justification of their persons, in the sight of God; the other of the justification and approbation of their cause, their conduct, and their faith before men, and the vindication of them from all charges and calumnies of hypocrisy, and the like; the one speaks of good works as causes, which he denies to have any place as such in justification; and the other speaks of them as effects flowing from faith, and showing the truth of it, and so of justification by it; the one had to do with legalists and self-justiciaries, who sought righteousness not by faith, but by the works of the law, whom he opposed; and the other had to do with libertines, who cried up faith and knowledge, but had no regard to a religious life and conversation; and these things considered will tend to reconcile the two apostles about this business, but as effects declaring it; for the best works are imperfect, and cannot be a righteousness justifying in the sight of God, and are unprofitable in this respect; for when they are performed in the best manner, they are no other than what it is a man's duty to perform, and therefore cannot justify from sin he has committed: and besides, justification in this sense would frustrate the grace of God, make void the death of Christ, and encourage boasting in men. Good works do not go before justification as causes or conditions, but follow it as fruits and effects: and not by faith only: or as without works, or a mere historical faith, which being without works is dead, of which the apostle is speaking; and therefore can bear no testimony to a man's justification; hence it appears, that the Apostle James does not contradict the Apostle Paul in Rom 3:28 since they speak not of the same sort of faith; the one speaks of a mere profession of faith, a dead and lifeless one; the other of a true faith, which has Christ, and his righteousness, for its object, and works by love, and produces peace, joy, and comfort in the soul. Moreover, the Apostle Paul speaks of justification before God; and James speaks of it as it is known by its fruits unto men; the one speaks of a justification of their persons, in the sight of God; the other of the justification and approbation of their cause, their conduct, and their faith before men, and the vindication of them from all charges and calumnies of hypocrisy, and the like; the one speaks of good works as causes, which he denies to have any place as such in justification; and the other speaks of them as effects flowing from faith, and showing the truth of it, and so of justification by it; the one had to do with legalists and self-justiciaries, who sought righteousness not by faith, but by the works of the law, whom he opposed; and the other had to do with libertines, who cried up faith and knowledge, but had no regard to a religious life and conversation; and these things considered will tend to reconcile the two apostles about this business.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
2:24 not by faith alone: That is, not like the demons who merely believe something is true (2:19), but by a belief that results in generous deeds like those of God himself (1:17). Though some have thought that this teaching contradicts what Paul taught, it does not. Paul does not speak against good deeds themselves, but about trying to receive forgiveness of sins through good deeds (Rom 3:28; Gal 2:16). Just as Paul understands that love and generosity necessarily issue from a true faith (Gal 5:6), so also James knows that good deeds can result only from authentic faith that results in a commitment to God (Jas 2:18, 26).