“But what am I supposed to DO?!” This exasperated answer was in response to my admonition to BE what God was calling her to be, allowing God to reveal, in His own timing, what she was supposed to DO. She was looking for a checklist of tasks, a schedule of activities, that would point her in the right direction, allowing her to feel like what she was doing mattered.
Her heart was in the right place, but she had forgotten that faith comes before action.
When we look at James’ teaching regarding the importance of our deeds, we are reminded that we cannot have one without the other: faith and deeds, deeds and faith. They are intricately connected and cannot be separated because one without the other is worthless.
True, grounded faith, a walking with God in relationship and communication, transforms who we ARE and informs what we DO.
Yes, actions speak louder than words.
And it is true that the demons believe and shudder.
But how does my belief, my faith, or who I am in Christ, inform and transform what I do?
What are my actions saying?
And when I say that I believe, what am I doing to distinguish myself from the demons?
James 2:14-19, 26
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.
May we live out our faith in such a way that shines through our actions and shapes our identity in Christ.