July 17, 2025 • 26 mins
A study in the book of James.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to K Wave's Pastor Spotlight featuring the Bible teaching
of our local Southern California pastors. This week we are
pleased to bring you the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor
Brian Sumner. Brian is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel
Pacific Coast in Westminster. Skateboarding fans remember him as longtime
pro skater for Tony Hawk. Since coming to faith in Christ,
(00:25):
Pastor Brian.
Brian has traveled the world using this platform to share
the good news of Jesus Christ. For the last 17
years in ministry, Pastor Brian has preached in local churches,
taught at conferences, and led mission trips and outreaches. He
is looking forward to welcoming you this next Sunday at
Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast in Westminster. And now with today's study,
(00:49):
here's Pastor Brian Sumner.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
And today we dig into one of the deepest topics
in James's letter, the famous issue of faith versus works,
meaning how are we saved? Is it because of what
Jesus did on the cross or additionally because of our works?
James 2:14, what does it profit my brethren if someone
says he has faith but does not have works, can
(01:15):
faith save him?
If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of
daily food, and one of you says to them, depart
in peace, be warmed and filled, but you do not
give them the things which are needed for the body.
What does it profit? The source of faith by itself.
If it does not have works is dead. But someone
will say, you have faith and I have works. Show
(01:38):
me your faith without.
your works and I will show you my faith by
my works. You believe that there is one God, you
do well. Even the demons believe and tremble, but do
you want to know, oh foolish man, that faith without
works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by
works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
Do you see that faith was working together with his works,
(02:01):
and by works faith
Faith was made perfect and the scripture was fulfilled which
says Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him
for righteousness and he was called a friend of God.
You see then that a man is justified by works
and not by faith only. Likewise, was not Rahab the
harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers
(02:23):
and sent them out another way because the body without
the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
And so I don't know how familiar you may be
with church history, even disputes that go on even to
this day, but one of the major discussions or even
cause of division is faith versed works. What is a profit,
my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does
(02:45):
not have works can faith save him?
And at first glance it sounds like he's saying it's
not only faith then but surely there must be works, right?
The famous Protestant reformer Martin Luther once referred to the
book of James as the Book of straw, saying that
the calls to control the tongue, not favor the rich,
were works as though we're trying to earn our salvation,
(03:07):
that we're adding works to our walks instead of by
faith alone.
And the reason Luther called James the book of straw
was because he viewed it as contradictory to Paul's teachings
on salvation, saying that Paul clearly wrote that it was
all about faith. Romans 3:28, for we hold that one
is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.
(03:30):
While here in James we just read James 2:24, a
person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
So is it faith or works, but what we have
to realize is they were writing to different groups. Paul
was writing to Jewish believers in Rome who had lived
for centuries under the law, observing the Old Testament requirements
(03:50):
in order to be forgiven while James is writing to
believers because many were twisting the faith as the works
don't matter and that simply having said a prayer, having
a head knowledge, repeating some words is all it takes
and ask yourself, is faith as shallow as someone.
Simply saying something a few words. I've been at events
where the gospel hasn't even been shared and some relevant
(04:13):
artist stands on a stage telling his fans repeat this
or do this or do that, and the fans repeat
whatever they were told. It's like if a drunk person
stumbled in here and shouted out Jesus as Lord in
his radical drunkenness with no idea what he's saying is
that faith? If that's the case, couldn't we even hold
people at gunpoint, forcing them to believe and cry out,
(04:34):
Jesus as Lord?
See, it's not just some mental decision based on emotion
or a random moment. Either the spirit of God convicts
and begins a work, and there will be evidence with
a life changed or not. What do I mean? That
when Paul says justified by faith apart from the works
of the law, he's talking about salvation, redemption, being declared
(04:57):
righteous apart from the works of the law. It's not
keeping the commandments as no one ever could that's why
we're all.
Guilty instead it's faith but when James says that a
person is justified by works and not by faith alone,
he's saying that the evidence of our faith is that
faith will produce works proving that their faith is authentic
(05:20):
so for the believer these both go together even as
other things do.
Like if I was to say peanut butter and jelly,
salt and pepper, Batman and Robin Ren and Stimpy, Albert
and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, fish and chips, beans on,
come on guys, beans on toast. I am English, but
(05:40):
so this poses the question we should be asking ourselves
what exactly is faith? Faith isn't just hoping God is real,
that the Bible is true, the church is a nice
place to attend. That's not what Christianity is that's just hoping.
When Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3, you cannot see
the kingdom unless you were born again. That means one
(06:01):
moment you are not born again, dead, lost, cannot see,
or guilty. Then suddenly your eyes are opened. Ears hear
God's voice. You have a renewed heart and you were
born again.
And it's a supernatural work a birth that is faith
and so now I don't just hope God is real.
Having faith means I know he is, but I do
(06:22):
have faith in what he's called me to do. I
do have faith in his promises, in his word, what
he's doing in my life and in yours.
And that faith does grow, but it can also be
shaken at times. The passing of a loved one, laziness
of pursuing God, moments of struggle, wrestling with sin, self condemnation.
Our faith can feel like it's being shaken, but we
(06:43):
can't live based on what is happening outside of God's promises,
as 2 Corinthians 5:7 tells us, for we walk by faith,
not by sight. Even John 3:16, for God so loved
the world that He gave His only begotten Son that
what whoever.
Believes that's faith. Whoever believes in him should not perish
but have everlasting life. And so the deeper question should be,
(07:07):
is our faith simply belief? Could someone say they believe
what we believe but never bring up Jesus never consider Jesus,
never bear any fruit of salvation and actually not have
a saving faith? Could someone really meet the risen Christ,
have the spirit of God living in them and it
not become evident in their life?
(07:27):
You know, I often speak at schools and sometimes I'll
encounter the school atheist and they quote this and they
quote that and all the kids will want to gather
around and they'll always say, you know, I used to
be a Christian and I'll say what's the evidence you
were a Christian and they'll look at me wide eyed
like what do you mean? And I'll say, were you
born again? Did the Holy Spirit convict you? Did you
(07:48):
bear fruit you were saved? You're telling me then that
you were convicted by the Holy Spirit so you know
that he is.
And that God is real and that Jesus died for
you will know. OK, so what you mean is you
maybe went to a church, had your name on a
Bible that Grandma got you you went to a youth camp,
you maybe had some motion experiences, you maybe sang the songs.
Let me ask you, where you born again? James goes
(08:11):
on in verse 14, what does it profit my brethren
if someone says he has faith but does not have works,
can such faith save him?
Notice James says if someone says he has faith, it
doesn't say they have faith.
But does not have works can such faith save him
and he's implying no he's implying that the kind of
(08:32):
faith they have isn't alive, has no works, and James
gives us a perfect scenario to illustrate this. He says
if a brother or sister is naked and destitute, that
means lacking of daily food, and one of you says
to them, depart in peace and be warmed and filled,
but you do not give them the things which are
needed for the body. What is a profit?
(08:53):
Oh, we see them and we see their need, but
where is the love? Where is the compassion, desire to serve?
Do we say something nice? We maybe even pray about it,
but is our faith actually alive? I remember one day
after church coming to the Sea Cliff Center to eat
with my family and my kids come running up to me, Dad, dad,
it's mom and I'm like, what? There's a man, there's
(09:14):
some man, and I'm rushing over there adrenaline ready to go,
and there was a man.
And he was right by my wife. In fact, he
was with my wife and let me say this at
the time my kids had a giant fear of homeless
people and in this situation which now involved my wife
and a homeless man, my wife had taken it upon
herself to take him into sad pizza place for pizza. Amen.
(09:38):
Why am I saying this?
Because that's a work by way of her faith seeing
being moved, doing something that's Ephesians 2:10, for we are
his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which
God prepared beforehand that we, she, you should walk in them.
But do you know what Paul said right before this
verse in Ephesians 2:8?
(10:00):
He said, for by grace you have been saved through
faith and that not of yourselves. It is the gift
of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast, for
we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for what?
There's the good works which God prepared beforehand that we
should walk in them. James goes on verse 17.
(10:23):
Thus also faith by itself if it does not have
works is dead, and this is evidenced in the early
church where Jesus' first disciples for hundreds of years lived
out their faith. Did they sit around like Buddhists in
fields meditating on the trees and praying, doing nothing? Did
they withdraw for their own sake and their own spiritual
(10:44):
practices rather than living on mission? Hey, I get it.
I get these practices, but we become so inward focused
on what do I.
Me? Well, I love all these great prayer books from
the past. I love all these old hymns, but when
you think about it, it was a lot of monks withdrawing,
getting out of the world, sitting in some sacred monastery,
(11:04):
focusing on self, reaching no one. Guys, the gospel and
faith is for Westminster Boulevard. It's for Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa,
Orange County, the world aren't we called to go into
all the world, not withdraw from it, to be in
it but not of it.
And see the early church was praying because they were
on mission. They were about to share the gospel, praying
(11:26):
because they did need resources, praying because they might be
persecuted and put to death. Yes we worship, yes we celebrate, yes,
we give thanks yes we withdraw, but prayer was always
accompanied by action. Prayer was actually the foundation for the action.
So James then gives us a hypothetical scenario, but someone
(11:47):
will say you have faith and I have works. Show
me your faith without your work and I will show
you my faith by my works. Show is the key here.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
You're listening to Kwave's Pastor Spotlight featuring Pastor Brian Sumner
of Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast in Westminster. For information about
Pastor Brian's church, visit CCPC.org. Let's get back to our
study for today. Here's Pastor Brian Sumner.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
This is the test that proven that where there is
faith there will be works and we should ask where
am I in this? What does my own faith look
like because it's not an issue of is it faith
or works it's an issue of what kind of faith
do I really have? What do I mean? verse 19,
he said.
As you believe there's one God, you do well. He's
(12:36):
mocking almost. Even the demons believe in tremble, he goes on.
And what James is doing is referencing the Shama from
Deuteronomy 6:4-5, the most basic doctrine of the Old Testament
hero Israel, the Lord our God is one.
And why he's doing this is you have to remember
that to the Jews, even the Gentiles of that day,
(12:57):
even the pagan or esoteric religions, most believe in some
kind of lower case God. They all believed in something,
but even if all these nations believe the true God
may be real, is that enough? Because the demons believe apparently,
and what is their response? They should uh, they tremble, they.
Quver and I'll tell you if you want to understand
(13:18):
the Bible and what it says, ask yourself what do
the demons believe because they have a theology and orthodoxy too.
That's why when people say Jesus never claimed to be God,
didn't claim to be divine, what do the demons say?
Mark 3:11 and the unclean spirits whenever they saw him
fell down before him and cried out, saying, You are
the Son of God. They knew his authority.
(13:42):
Luke 8:30. Jesus asked him, saying, What is your name?
And he said, Legion, because many demons had entered him
and they begged him that he would not command them
to go into the abyss. There's his power. Matthew 8:29,
and suddenly they cried out, saying, What have we to
do with you, Jesus the Son of God? Have you
come here to torment us before the time? That's judgment.
(14:05):
Luke 4:41 and the demons also came out of many
crying out and saying, You are the Christ, the Son
of God, and he rebuking them did not allow them
to speak, for they knew that he was the Christ.
So the demons believe the demons understand, doesn't Satan know
scripture better than anyone.
And then James gives us this amazing and famous example
(14:28):
that we see in the Old Testament, and I have
to tell you I love when the New Testament authors
unpack the Old Testament for us. Was not Abraham our
father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son
on the altar? Do you see that faith was working
together with his works and by works faith was made perfect?
(14:49):
So he says was not Abraham our father justified by works?
He's pointing to what works at the next verse he
says do you see that faith was working together with
his works?
And by works faith was made perfect. James is going
all the way back to Abraham, the father of the Hebrews,
the great patriarch of the faith who what was willing
(15:11):
to take his son Isaac up on the mountain, place
him on an altar, ready to sacrifice him in worship
of God, and you say, OK, Abraham was willing to
sacrifice his son. Didn't all the pagan nations practice this?
Why is it such a big deal?
Well James is saying this is a work. This is
an evidence of Abraham trusting God, saying that faith was
(15:35):
working together with his works and by works, faith was
made perfect. What does this mean?
Well, see, this son Isaac is the son of the
promise to Abraham. This is the one that Abraham had
much later in life. Abraham was 100 years old when
his wife Sarah, who was 90 and had been through
menopause twice probably, gave birth to Isaac. And why this
(15:57):
is such a big deal is because for pagan men,
which Abraham was prior, he had no lineage to leave.
He had no descendants, no children, no grandchildren, so this
would have been a disgrace as a man.
Leaving no one. And remember now Abraham tried to fulfill
this promise by sleeping with Hagar, the maidservant, thus having
a child called Ishmael, who would go on to be
(16:19):
the father of the Arabs and the Muslim nations. But
God would give Abraham an actual son, a son of
the promise who would come through Abraham's actual wife Sarah
miraculously because of her age. And so my question to
you is, when then did Abraham believe?
When was Abraham's faith active? Genesis 15:3 tells us that
(16:42):
Abraham said, Look, speaking to God, you've given me no
offspring indeed one born in my house is the heir,
and behold, the word of the Lord came to him,
saying this one shall not be your heir, but one
who will come from your own body shall be your heir.
Then he brought him outside and said, Look now towards
heaven and count the stars if you were able to
(17:03):
number them.
And he said to him, so shall your descendants be,
and Abraham believed in the Lord and the Lord accounted
it to Abraham for righteousness. So Abraham believed he had
faith and God accounted it to him as righteousness. But
do you know that this is way before Abraham took
Isaac on the mountain? This is years before his wife
(17:26):
ever gets pregnant. So would Abraham done any.
Think yet were there any works in his life? In fact,
Moses wasn't born. There was no Mosaic law. And do
we know what laws were kept by Abraham or in
fact all the righteous Gentiles such as Enoch, Noah, Job?
Because this is all before the Mosaic law, and they
were all Gentiles. This is before the 10 Commandments, before Moses,
(17:49):
the sacrificial system, yet others believe God and God credited.
As what? righteousness. What is righteousness? That's called faith. The
Bible says Enoch walked with God and God took him.
Enoch wasn't a Hebrew, didn't have the Mosaic law. It
was faith and what we do know of Abraham is
that God told Isaac in Genesis 26:5 that Abraham obeyed
(18:13):
my voice and kept my charge, kept my commandments, my statutes,
and my laws.
So here we have this promise of a child by
God which Abraham believes has faith but now fast forward
seven chapters of Genesis. Isaac has been born, has grown.
Some say he is the age of 20, others say 33,
(18:34):
just like Jesus. Jewish tradition says 37, but we read
in Genesis 22 and 4. Then on the 3rd day
Abraham lifted his eyes.
Eyes and saw the place afar off and Abraham said
to his young men, Stay here with the donkey. The
lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we
will come back to you. So Abraham took the wood
(18:54):
of the bin offering and laid it on Isaac his son,
and he took the fire in his hand and a knife,
and the two of them went together, but Isaac spoke
to Abraham, his father, and said, My father.
Here's Abraham willing to take his son Isaac put him
on the altar, give him to the Lord. What is
he possibly thinking? Well, God made a promise, so I
(19:17):
know God won't allow me to kill him even if
I do kill him, God will raise him from the
dead or God will give me another child. Do you
see what this is? This is a work of taking
a son, carrying a knife, building an altar, but it's
all based on.
What faith, faith in God. That's why James can say
in verse 22 that faith was working together with his
(19:39):
works and by works faith was made perfect. See, it's
not about the sacrifice. It's not about killing Isaac. It's
about Abraham's faith in God. God seeing that we believe
our faith evidenced in our works and amazingly what is.
God do? God actually rejects Abraham's sacrifice as it's not
(20:01):
about man's sacrifice, but what? Genesis 22:7. But Isaac spoke
to Abraham, his father and said, My father, and he said,
Here I am, son. Then he said, look, the fire
and the wood, but where is the lamb for the
band offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide
for himself the.
Lamb for a bant offering. So the two of them
(20:23):
went together. Then they came to the place of which
God had told him, and Abraham built an altar there
and placed the wood in order, and he bound Isaac
his son and laid him on the altar upon the wood.
And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife
to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord
called to him from heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. And
(20:43):
the angel said, Do not
Lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him,
for now I know that you fear God since you
have not withheld your son, your only son from me.
And Abraham lifted his eyes and looked and there behind
him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns.
So Abraham went and took the ram, offered it up
for a burnt offering instead of his son, and Abraham
(21:05):
called the name of the place the Lord will provide.
Isn't this radical that God called Abraham to sacrifice his
child just like many of the other pagan nations, yet
when Abraham goes to God instead provides the sacrifice, a
lamb in the thicket of a bush, a picture of who?
(21:25):
Christ Himself on the cross, not Abraham's son, but God's
caught and prepared as the sacrifice. And James goes on
in verse 22. Do you see that faith was working.
Together with his works and by works faith was made
perfect and made perfect means just that, that something is maturing,
(21:46):
bearing fruit. You see then that a man is justified
by works and not by faith only. Verse 25, likewise,
was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when
she received the messengers and sent them out another way.
How amazing that James highlights Abraham as far.
(22:06):
Out of their faith who has walked with God, yet
now as more and more Gentiles were coming into the community,
James highlights Rahab who wasn't a Jew but a gentile
who doesn't walk with God and was even a practicing harlot.
How does this make sense? What did she do? he
said was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works.
(22:28):
So what she say because of a good character, because
of her godly life and focus, living as a Jew,
the Mosaic law.
Ceremonies. No, she was a gentile, but as she heard
this victorious cry advancing towards Jericho, she believed that their
god must be the true God and had faith in
that God. And when the men arrived, she helped them
and in doing so proved that her faith was sincere,
(22:52):
meaning her works were evidenced by her faith, and some
aim to use this passage to say, look, she simply
did good works, but that's not it. Rehab was a
prostitute who committed treason.
And Abraham was about to kill his son. Those aren't
good works. If we take faith out of this equation,
these people were evil by God's standard. If we take
(23:12):
out faith, the good works were prostitution, treason, and child sacrifice.
The lesson from Abraham is that our faith will do something,
anything can worship of God. While with Rahab, she demonstrated faith,
even at great personal risk to herself, trusting God and
willing to rebel against the world.
So for us as believers it's all trusting because verse
(23:35):
26 says, for as the body without the spirit is dead,
so faith without works is dead also what an amazing picture.
Am I like Abraham willing to offer the dearest things
in my life to God? What is your Isaac? Am
I like Rahab willing to turn traitor to the.
Well in order to be loyal to Christ. Maybe you're
(23:57):
even hearing this and you've never confessed, never believed, and
never even stepped out in faith. Well, today you can.
All of us are a breath away from heaven or hell,
but Jesus went to the cross for us, nailing our
sins to it, shedding his innocent blood so that our
sins can be forgiven and washed away.
Romans 10:9 says if you confess with your mouth, the
(24:20):
Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised
him from the dead, you will be saved. That means
you can confess, you can believe, you can repent and trust,
and you will be saved. It's a work of God,
a work of Jesus, a work of the Holy Spirit.
God bless you guys today in Jesus' name. Amen.
Speaker 1 (24:40):
Thank you for being with us here on Kwave's Pastor Spotlight.
Our featured Bible teacher is Pastor Brian Sumner. Pastor Brian
will be back tomorrow at the same time with more
encouragement from God's word. So make plans to join us.
Pastor Brian is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast.
The church is conveniently located at 6400 Westminster Boulevard in West.
(25:05):
about one block east of the 405 in Westminster, worship
service times every week are 100 a.m. Sundays and 7 p.m.
Wednesday nights. Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast is a consistent Bible believing,
spirit-filled church focused on feeding the sheep and reaching the lost.
As Calvary Chapel, they are dedicated to worship, prayer, the word,
(25:28):
and life on.
Mission. They encourage one another to answer the savior's call
to go into all the world and make disciples, preaching
and teaching the gospel. Come and check out their Friday
night skate nights for the whole family, featuring their on-site
newly built spine mini ramp and street obstacles. For more
information on visiting Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast, visit their website
(25:51):
at CCPC.org.
That's CCPC.org. Join us right here at the same time
tomorrow for another time of growing in the grace and
knowledge of Jesus Christ here on Pastor Spotlight. Again, we'll
be featuring the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor Brian Sumner
of Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast in Westminster. We hope you'll
(26:14):
join us. Pastor Spotlight is a production of Kwave Radio.
Welcome to K Wave's Pastor Spotlight featuring the Bible teaching
of our local Southern California pastors. This week we are
pleased to bring you the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor
Brian Sumner. Brian is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel
Pacific Coast in Westminster. Skateboarding fans remember him as longtime
pro skater for Tony Hawk. Since coming to faith in Christ,
(00:25):
Pastor Brian.
Brian has traveled the world using this platform to share
the good news of Jesus Christ. For the last 17
years in ministry, Pastor Brian has preached in local churches,
taught at conferences, and led mission trips and outreaches. He
is looking forward to welcoming you this next Sunday at
Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast in Westminster. And now with today's study,
(00:49):
here's Pastor Brian Sumner.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
And today we dig into one of the deepest topics
in James's letter, the famous issue of faith versus works,
meaning how are we saved? Is it because of what
Jesus did on the cross or additionally because of our works?
James 2:14, what does it profit my brethren if someone
says he has faith but does not have works, can
(01:15):
faith save him?
If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of
daily food, and one of you says to them, depart
in peace, be warmed and filled, but you do not
give them the things which are needed for the body.
What does it profit? The source of faith by itself.
If it does not have works is dead. But someone
will say, you have faith and I have works. Show
(01:38):
me your faith without.
your works and I will show you my faith by
my works. You believe that there is one God, you
do well. Even the demons believe and tremble, but do
you want to know, oh foolish man, that faith without
works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by
works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
Do you see that faith was working together with his works,
(02:01):
and by works faith
Faith was made perfect and the scripture was fulfilled which
says Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him
for righteousness and he was called a friend of God.
You see then that a man is justified by works
and not by faith only. Likewise, was not Rahab the
harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers
(02:23):
and sent them out another way because the body without
the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
And so I don't know how familiar you may be
with church history, even disputes that go on even to
this day, but one of the major discussions or even
cause of division is faith versed works. What is a profit,
my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does
(02:45):
not have works can faith save him?
And at first glance it sounds like he's saying it's
not only faith then but surely there must be works, right?
The famous Protestant reformer Martin Luther once referred to the
book of James as the Book of straw, saying that
the calls to control the tongue, not favor the rich,
were works as though we're trying to earn our salvation,
(03:07):
that we're adding works to our walks instead of by
faith alone.
And the reason Luther called James the book of straw
was because he viewed it as contradictory to Paul's teachings
on salvation, saying that Paul clearly wrote that it was
all about faith. Romans 3:28, for we hold that one
is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.
(03:30):
While here in James we just read James 2:24, a
person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
So is it faith or works, but what we have
to realize is they were writing to different groups. Paul
was writing to Jewish believers in Rome who had lived
for centuries under the law, observing the Old Testament requirements
(03:50):
in order to be forgiven while James is writing to
believers because many were twisting the faith as the works
don't matter and that simply having said a prayer, having
a head knowledge, repeating some words is all it takes
and ask yourself, is faith as shallow as someone.
Simply saying something a few words. I've been at events
where the gospel hasn't even been shared and some relevant
(04:13):
artist stands on a stage telling his fans repeat this
or do this or do that, and the fans repeat
whatever they were told. It's like if a drunk person
stumbled in here and shouted out Jesus as Lord in
his radical drunkenness with no idea what he's saying is
that faith? If that's the case, couldn't we even hold
people at gunpoint, forcing them to believe and cry out,
(04:34):
Jesus as Lord?
See, it's not just some mental decision based on emotion
or a random moment. Either the spirit of God convicts
and begins a work, and there will be evidence with
a life changed or not. What do I mean? That
when Paul says justified by faith apart from the works
of the law, he's talking about salvation, redemption, being declared
(04:57):
righteous apart from the works of the law. It's not
keeping the commandments as no one ever could that's why
we're all.
Guilty instead it's faith but when James says that a
person is justified by works and not by faith alone,
he's saying that the evidence of our faith is that
faith will produce works proving that their faith is authentic
(05:20):
so for the believer these both go together even as
other things do.
Like if I was to say peanut butter and jelly,
salt and pepper, Batman and Robin Ren and Stimpy, Albert
and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, fish and chips, beans on,
come on guys, beans on toast. I am English, but
(05:40):
so this poses the question we should be asking ourselves
what exactly is faith? Faith isn't just hoping God is real,
that the Bible is true, the church is a nice
place to attend. That's not what Christianity is that's just hoping.
When Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3, you cannot see
the kingdom unless you were born again. That means one
(06:01):
moment you are not born again, dead, lost, cannot see,
or guilty. Then suddenly your eyes are opened. Ears hear
God's voice. You have a renewed heart and you were
born again.
And it's a supernatural work a birth that is faith
and so now I don't just hope God is real.
Having faith means I know he is, but I do
(06:22):
have faith in what he's called me to do. I
do have faith in his promises, in his word, what
he's doing in my life and in yours.
And that faith does grow, but it can also be
shaken at times. The passing of a loved one, laziness
of pursuing God, moments of struggle, wrestling with sin, self condemnation.
Our faith can feel like it's being shaken, but we
(06:43):
can't live based on what is happening outside of God's promises,
as 2 Corinthians 5:7 tells us, for we walk by faith,
not by sight. Even John 3:16, for God so loved
the world that He gave His only begotten Son that
what whoever.
Believes that's faith. Whoever believes in him should not perish
but have everlasting life. And so the deeper question should be,
(07:07):
is our faith simply belief? Could someone say they believe
what we believe but never bring up Jesus never consider Jesus,
never bear any fruit of salvation and actually not have
a saving faith? Could someone really meet the risen Christ,
have the spirit of God living in them and it
not become evident in their life?
(07:27):
You know, I often speak at schools and sometimes I'll
encounter the school atheist and they quote this and they
quote that and all the kids will want to gather
around and they'll always say, you know, I used to
be a Christian and I'll say what's the evidence you
were a Christian and they'll look at me wide eyed
like what do you mean? And I'll say, were you
born again? Did the Holy Spirit convict you? Did you
(07:48):
bear fruit you were saved? You're telling me then that
you were convicted by the Holy Spirit so you know
that he is.
And that God is real and that Jesus died for
you will know. OK, so what you mean is you
maybe went to a church, had your name on a
Bible that Grandma got you you went to a youth camp,
you maybe had some motion experiences, you maybe sang the songs.
Let me ask you, where you born again? James goes
(08:11):
on in verse 14, what does it profit my brethren
if someone says he has faith but does not have works,
can such faith save him?
Notice James says if someone says he has faith, it
doesn't say they have faith.
But does not have works can such faith save him
and he's implying no he's implying that the kind of
(08:32):
faith they have isn't alive, has no works, and James
gives us a perfect scenario to illustrate this. He says
if a brother or sister is naked and destitute, that
means lacking of daily food, and one of you says
to them, depart in peace and be warmed and filled,
but you do not give them the things which are
needed for the body. What is a profit?
(08:53):
Oh, we see them and we see their need, but
where is the love? Where is the compassion, desire to serve?
Do we say something nice? We maybe even pray about it,
but is our faith actually alive? I remember one day
after church coming to the Sea Cliff Center to eat
with my family and my kids come running up to me, Dad, dad,
it's mom and I'm like, what? There's a man, there's
(09:14):
some man, and I'm rushing over there adrenaline ready to go,
and there was a man.
And he was right by my wife. In fact, he
was with my wife and let me say this at
the time my kids had a giant fear of homeless
people and in this situation which now involved my wife
and a homeless man, my wife had taken it upon
herself to take him into sad pizza place for pizza. Amen.
(09:38):
Why am I saying this?
Because that's a work by way of her faith seeing
being moved, doing something that's Ephesians 2:10, for we are
his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which
God prepared beforehand that we, she, you should walk in them.
But do you know what Paul said right before this
verse in Ephesians 2:8?
(10:00):
He said, for by grace you have been saved through
faith and that not of yourselves. It is the gift
of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast, for
we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for what?
There's the good works which God prepared beforehand that we
should walk in them. James goes on verse 17.
(10:23):
Thus also faith by itself if it does not have
works is dead, and this is evidenced in the early
church where Jesus' first disciples for hundreds of years lived
out their faith. Did they sit around like Buddhists in
fields meditating on the trees and praying, doing nothing? Did
they withdraw for their own sake and their own spiritual
(10:44):
practices rather than living on mission? Hey, I get it.
I get these practices, but we become so inward focused
on what do I.
Me? Well, I love all these great prayer books from
the past. I love all these old hymns, but when
you think about it, it was a lot of monks withdrawing,
getting out of the world, sitting in some sacred monastery,
(11:04):
focusing on self, reaching no one. Guys, the gospel and
faith is for Westminster Boulevard. It's for Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa,
Orange County, the world aren't we called to go into
all the world, not withdraw from it, to be in
it but not of it.
And see the early church was praying because they were
on mission. They were about to share the gospel, praying
(11:26):
because they did need resources, praying because they might be
persecuted and put to death. Yes we worship, yes we celebrate, yes,
we give thanks yes we withdraw, but prayer was always
accompanied by action. Prayer was actually the foundation for the action.
So James then gives us a hypothetical scenario, but someone
(11:47):
will say you have faith and I have works. Show
me your faith without your work and I will show
you my faith by my works. Show is the key here.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
You're listening to Kwave's Pastor Spotlight featuring Pastor Brian Sumner
of Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast in Westminster. For information about
Pastor Brian's church, visit CCPC.org. Let's get back to our
study for today. Here's Pastor Brian Sumner.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
This is the test that proven that where there is
faith there will be works and we should ask where
am I in this? What does my own faith look
like because it's not an issue of is it faith
or works it's an issue of what kind of faith
do I really have? What do I mean? verse 19,
he said.
As you believe there's one God, you do well. He's
(12:36):
mocking almost. Even the demons believe in tremble, he goes on.
And what James is doing is referencing the Shama from
Deuteronomy 6:4-5, the most basic doctrine of the Old Testament
hero Israel, the Lord our God is one.
And why he's doing this is you have to remember
that to the Jews, even the Gentiles of that day,
(12:57):
even the pagan or esoteric religions, most believe in some
kind of lower case God. They all believed in something,
but even if all these nations believe the true God
may be real, is that enough? Because the demons believe apparently,
and what is their response? They should uh, they tremble, they.
Quver and I'll tell you if you want to understand
(13:18):
the Bible and what it says, ask yourself what do
the demons believe because they have a theology and orthodoxy too.
That's why when people say Jesus never claimed to be God,
didn't claim to be divine, what do the demons say?
Mark 3:11 and the unclean spirits whenever they saw him
fell down before him and cried out, saying, You are
the Son of God. They knew his authority.
(13:42):
Luke 8:30. Jesus asked him, saying, What is your name?
And he said, Legion, because many demons had entered him
and they begged him that he would not command them
to go into the abyss. There's his power. Matthew 8:29,
and suddenly they cried out, saying, What have we to
do with you, Jesus the Son of God? Have you
come here to torment us before the time? That's judgment.
(14:05):
Luke 4:41 and the demons also came out of many
crying out and saying, You are the Christ, the Son
of God, and he rebuking them did not allow them
to speak, for they knew that he was the Christ.
So the demons believe the demons understand, doesn't Satan know
scripture better than anyone.
And then James gives us this amazing and famous example
(14:28):
that we see in the Old Testament, and I have
to tell you I love when the New Testament authors
unpack the Old Testament for us. Was not Abraham our
father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son
on the altar? Do you see that faith was working
together with his works and by works faith was made perfect?
(14:49):
So he says was not Abraham our father justified by works?
He's pointing to what works at the next verse he
says do you see that faith was working together with
his works?
And by works faith was made perfect. James is going
all the way back to Abraham, the father of the Hebrews,
the great patriarch of the faith who what was willing
(15:11):
to take his son Isaac up on the mountain, place
him on an altar, ready to sacrifice him in worship
of God, and you say, OK, Abraham was willing to
sacrifice his son. Didn't all the pagan nations practice this?
Why is it such a big deal?
Well James is saying this is a work. This is
an evidence of Abraham trusting God, saying that faith was
(15:35):
working together with his works and by works, faith was
made perfect. What does this mean?
Well, see, this son Isaac is the son of the
promise to Abraham. This is the one that Abraham had
much later in life. Abraham was 100 years old when
his wife Sarah, who was 90 and had been through
menopause twice probably, gave birth to Isaac. And why this
(15:57):
is such a big deal is because for pagan men,
which Abraham was prior, he had no lineage to leave.
He had no descendants, no children, no grandchildren, so this
would have been a disgrace as a man.
Leaving no one. And remember now Abraham tried to fulfill
this promise by sleeping with Hagar, the maidservant, thus having
a child called Ishmael, who would go on to be
(16:19):
the father of the Arabs and the Muslim nations. But
God would give Abraham an actual son, a son of
the promise who would come through Abraham's actual wife Sarah
miraculously because of her age. And so my question to
you is, when then did Abraham believe?
When was Abraham's faith active? Genesis 15:3 tells us that
(16:42):
Abraham said, Look, speaking to God, you've given me no
offspring indeed one born in my house is the heir,
and behold, the word of the Lord came to him,
saying this one shall not be your heir, but one
who will come from your own body shall be your heir.
Then he brought him outside and said, Look now towards
heaven and count the stars if you were able to
(17:03):
number them.
And he said to him, so shall your descendants be,
and Abraham believed in the Lord and the Lord accounted
it to Abraham for righteousness. So Abraham believed he had
faith and God accounted it to him as righteousness. But
do you know that this is way before Abraham took
Isaac on the mountain? This is years before his wife
(17:26):
ever gets pregnant. So would Abraham done any.
Think yet were there any works in his life? In fact,
Moses wasn't born. There was no Mosaic law. And do
we know what laws were kept by Abraham or in
fact all the righteous Gentiles such as Enoch, Noah, Job?
Because this is all before the Mosaic law, and they
were all Gentiles. This is before the 10 Commandments, before Moses,
(17:49):
the sacrificial system, yet others believe God and God credited.
As what? righteousness. What is righteousness? That's called faith. The
Bible says Enoch walked with God and God took him.
Enoch wasn't a Hebrew, didn't have the Mosaic law. It
was faith and what we do know of Abraham is
that God told Isaac in Genesis 26:5 that Abraham obeyed
(18:13):
my voice and kept my charge, kept my commandments, my statutes,
and my laws.
So here we have this promise of a child by
God which Abraham believes has faith but now fast forward
seven chapters of Genesis. Isaac has been born, has grown.
Some say he is the age of 20, others say 33,
(18:34):
just like Jesus. Jewish tradition says 37, but we read
in Genesis 22 and 4. Then on the 3rd day
Abraham lifted his eyes.
Eyes and saw the place afar off and Abraham said
to his young men, Stay here with the donkey. The
lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we
will come back to you. So Abraham took the wood
(18:54):
of the bin offering and laid it on Isaac his son,
and he took the fire in his hand and a knife,
and the two of them went together, but Isaac spoke
to Abraham, his father, and said, My father.
Here's Abraham willing to take his son Isaac put him
on the altar, give him to the Lord. What is
he possibly thinking? Well, God made a promise, so I
(19:17):
know God won't allow me to kill him even if
I do kill him, God will raise him from the
dead or God will give me another child. Do you
see what this is? This is a work of taking
a son, carrying a knife, building an altar, but it's
all based on.
What faith, faith in God. That's why James can say
in verse 22 that faith was working together with his
(19:39):
works and by works faith was made perfect. See, it's
not about the sacrifice. It's not about killing Isaac. It's
about Abraham's faith in God. God seeing that we believe
our faith evidenced in our works and amazingly what is.
God do? God actually rejects Abraham's sacrifice as it's not
(20:01):
about man's sacrifice, but what? Genesis 22:7. But Isaac spoke
to Abraham, his father and said, My father, and he said,
Here I am, son. Then he said, look, the fire
and the wood, but where is the lamb for the
band offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide
for himself the.
Lamb for a bant offering. So the two of them
(20:23):
went together. Then they came to the place of which
God had told him, and Abraham built an altar there
and placed the wood in order, and he bound Isaac
his son and laid him on the altar upon the wood.
And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife
to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord
called to him from heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. And
(20:43):
the angel said, Do not
Lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him,
for now I know that you fear God since you
have not withheld your son, your only son from me.
And Abraham lifted his eyes and looked and there behind
him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns.
So Abraham went and took the ram, offered it up
for a burnt offering instead of his son, and Abraham
(21:05):
called the name of the place the Lord will provide.
Isn't this radical that God called Abraham to sacrifice his
child just like many of the other pagan nations, yet
when Abraham goes to God instead provides the sacrifice, a
lamb in the thicket of a bush, a picture of who?
(21:25):
Christ Himself on the cross, not Abraham's son, but God's
caught and prepared as the sacrifice. And James goes on
in verse 22. Do you see that faith was working.
Together with his works and by works faith was made
perfect and made perfect means just that, that something is maturing,
(21:46):
bearing fruit. You see then that a man is justified
by works and not by faith only. Verse 25, likewise,
was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when
she received the messengers and sent them out another way.
How amazing that James highlights Abraham as far.
(22:06):
Out of their faith who has walked with God, yet
now as more and more Gentiles were coming into the community,
James highlights Rahab who wasn't a Jew but a gentile
who doesn't walk with God and was even a practicing harlot.
How does this make sense? What did she do? he
said was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works.
(22:28):
So what she say because of a good character, because
of her godly life and focus, living as a Jew,
the Mosaic law.
Ceremonies. No, she was a gentile, but as she heard
this victorious cry advancing towards Jericho, she believed that their
god must be the true God and had faith in
that God. And when the men arrived, she helped them
and in doing so proved that her faith was sincere,
(22:52):
meaning her works were evidenced by her faith, and some
aim to use this passage to say, look, she simply
did good works, but that's not it. Rehab was a
prostitute who committed treason.
And Abraham was about to kill his son. Those aren't
good works. If we take faith out of this equation,
these people were evil by God's standard. If we take
(23:12):
out faith, the good works were prostitution, treason, and child sacrifice.
The lesson from Abraham is that our faith will do something,
anything can worship of God. While with Rahab, she demonstrated faith,
even at great personal risk to herself, trusting God and
willing to rebel against the world.
So for us as believers it's all trusting because verse
(23:35):
26 says, for as the body without the spirit is dead,
so faith without works is dead also what an amazing picture.
Am I like Abraham willing to offer the dearest things
in my life to God? What is your Isaac? Am
I like Rahab willing to turn traitor to the.
Well in order to be loyal to Christ. Maybe you're
(23:57):
even hearing this and you've never confessed, never believed, and
never even stepped out in faith. Well, today you can.
All of us are a breath away from heaven or hell,
but Jesus went to the cross for us, nailing our
sins to it, shedding his innocent blood so that our
sins can be forgiven and washed away.
Romans 10:9 says if you confess with your mouth, the
(24:20):
Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised
him from the dead, you will be saved. That means
you can confess, you can believe, you can repent and trust,
and you will be saved. It's a work of God,
a work of Jesus, a work of the Holy Spirit.
God bless you guys today in Jesus' name. Amen.
Speaker 1 (24:40):
Thank you for being with us here on Kwave's Pastor Spotlight.
Our featured Bible teacher is Pastor Brian Sumner. Pastor Brian
will be back tomorrow at the same time with more
encouragement from God's word. So make plans to join us.
Pastor Brian is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast.
The church is conveniently located at 6400 Westminster Boulevard in West.
(25:05):
about one block east of the 405 in Westminster, worship
service times every week are 100 a.m. Sundays and 7 p.m.
Wednesday nights. Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast is a consistent Bible believing,
spirit-filled church focused on feeding the sheep and reaching the lost.
As Calvary Chapel, they are dedicated to worship, prayer, the word,
(25:28):
and life on.
Mission. They encourage one another to answer the savior's call
to go into all the world and make disciples, preaching
and teaching the gospel. Come and check out their Friday
night skate nights for the whole family, featuring their on-site
newly built spine mini ramp and street obstacles. For more
information on visiting Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast, visit their website
(25:51):
at CCPC.org.
That's CCPC.org. Join us right here at the same time
tomorrow for another time of growing in the grace and
knowledge of Jesus Christ here on Pastor Spotlight. Again, we'll
be featuring the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor Brian Sumner
of Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast in Westminster. We hope you'll
(26:14):
join us. Pastor Spotlight is a production of Kwave Radio.
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