Chris' Christian Blog

Faith without Actions

"Faith without Actions" 



Over the past few days I have used this blog to preach about the importance of faith. I have stated and proven from the word of God, that God requires anybody who seeks Him to have faith in Him. Today we are going to look at what faith is and see what it looks like. We'll begin with Hebrews 11, which is often called the "Hall of Faith" because it lists some important Bible characters who had great faith. We read "To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see," Hebrews 11`: 1. GNT

From this we can gather then that faith is trust. We believe something to be true and we trust it without any doubt. Ask any child if they believe in Santa Claus and you will likely find that they emphatically believe. God wants that kind of belief out of us as well. However there is more to faith than merely believing something is so. If merely believing Jesus could and does save was enough to save us then even the demons would be saved. The New Testament writer James makes this clear. "Do you believe there is only one God? The demons also believe - and tremble with fear," James 2: 19. GNT

Believing alone is not enough to do anything for us. Our belief must spur us to take action. The Hall of Faith in Hebrews chapter 11 is called the Hall of Faith because the people listed there all acted on their faith. Abraham is listed in Hebrews 11 for two reasons: 1). He left his home and his people to dwell in a strange land because God promised him that land. 2). He willingly placed his son Isaac on the altar and raised the knife to sacrifice Isaac believing that God would raise Isaac from the dead.

Moses' parents are listed there because they believed God would save their son. Thus they made a basket covered with material to make it float, put Moses in it, and set him adrift in the Nile.

All these people had great faith. However their faith did more than just cause them to believe. Their faith spurred them to take action. God expects our faith to spur us to take action as well. James again says "But someone will say "One person has faith, another has actions. My answer is "Show me how anyone can have faith without actions. I will show you my faith by my actions," James 2: 18.

It's easy to talk the talk. One might even believe the talk. However that simply isn't enough. God wants us to walk the talk. James again says "So then, as the body without the spirit is dead, also faith without actions is dead,: James 2: 26.