Ye see that a man is justified on the principle of works, and not on the principle of faith only.
James closes his argument about faith and works by pointing to Abraham and Rahab. His words sound like the opposite of what Paul writes in Romans about faith and works. Everything turns on two questions. What faith does James mean? And what question is he answering that Paul is not?
Two Writers, Two Questions
The clash disappears once you see that the two writers are answering different questions.
One writer deals with the root, with what is "before God" (Rom. 4:2); the other with the fruit, and so says "show me" before men. Both agree that, where God gives faith and gives souls new life by the word of truth, good works are the fruit and the outward witness of faith. In fact there is nothing to reconcile, because there is no real disagreement. … In the one, the question is how a sinner can be justified by grace; in the other, what God looks for from someone who professes faith.
One writer puts it bluntly when asked how the two verses fit together: the trouble is not in the Bible.
The two passages do not need reconciling. Sometimes people imagine that they have discovered contradictory statements in Scripture, but the flaw is in their own brains, not in the Word of God.
What "Justified" Means Here
Stuart names three sides to justification. Each has its own ground, and none cancels the others.
Scripture teaches that such a person is justified on the ground of merit by blood (Rom. 5:9), by means of faith (Rom. 5:1), and by open proof through works (James 2:24). Without the shedding of Christ's blood, and God's acceptance of it, no ungodly person could be justified. Without faith in God's testimony, set before a person to rest on, no one could be justified. And without works, which are the evidence of real faith, no one could show their justification.
Works matter here for a plain reason: other people cannot see inside you.
A man can be justified in the sight of his fellow men only by works, for no one can see into another person's heart. So people can judge whether his faith is real only by his works.
The Faith James Rejects
The phrase "not by faith alone" does not attack faith. It attacks a particular counterfeit — belief held as an opinion, with no life behind it.
Clearly such faith is a hidden principle in the heart, a bare profession with nothing real behind it. Yet we need not always call this hypocrisy. Education, the influences around us, and outside evidence can produce a settled belief in Christianity and its basic doctrines, as a habit of mind. But in such faith there is no link with Christ, and no source of eternal life.
Abraham: Two Chapters, One Faith
James points not to the moment Abraham believed, but to something he did later. The order of the two matters.
Justification by faith precedes justification by works. So Abraham was justified by faith in Gen. 15; he was justified by works, as James points out, in Gen. 22… Was he, then, justified twice over, first by faith, and then by works? No — he was justified by faith in Gen. 15, and the Scripture which had declared that was fulfilled. It was seen to be true in Gen. 22. Giving up his son to death showed how real his faith was.
Not "Good Deeds" as People Imagine Them
What counts as a "work" here is not what most people expect.
Abraham offered up his own son and Rahab hid the spies in her home. Ordinarily, neither action would be regarded as a good work. On the contrary, one would be considered murder and the other treason. But these works revealed their faith in God, giving testimony to their love of God (Abraham) and their love of the people of God (Rahab).
Where Commentators Differ
Most writers here read James's justification as taking place before men. Not all are content to leave it there. Darby treats the works as fruits of faith that lead to a man being counted righteous before God, and Kelly, elsewhere, warns against pressing the "before men" reading too crudely — pointing out that when God tested Abraham, no one else was present.
A national faith was of no avail, but one which wrought livingly; and then a man was justified, accounted righteous before God.
Summary
- Root. Faith is where justification starts. God justified Abraham in Genesis 15, when he believed — before any work appeared.
- Fruit. Works never replace the root; they grow from it. Genesis 22 did not make Abraham righteous, it showed that Genesis 15 was true.
- Visible. Works are where the root shows. No one can look into another's heart.
- Test. Faith with no fruit may be sincere habit or upbringing. But it has no link with Christ. That is what James refuses — not faith itself.
- Costly. The works James chose would look like murder and treason. Real faith proves itself where it costs everything.