Faith without works is useless

There are three men that are being pushed toward the edge of a tall building. Two of the three men believe in gravity, the other does not. Maybe he’s from outer space and never experienced it before. None the less, he doesn’t know of gravity. As the three are pushed to the edge, they all react differently. The one who does not believe in gravity, sees no need to worry or fear, and simply watches as he topples off the edge and falls to his death. The next man, who does believe in gravity, never takes notice that he is being pushed toward the edge of a tall building; instead he is distracted by an airplane in the sky. And so, he too, topples off the edge to his own destruction. The last man, who also believes in gravity, sees very plainly what is happening, and begins to fight and wrestle with the person pushing him. As he gets closer to the edge, his stomach gets that fluttery feeling as he looks down and he goes into total panic mode. He bites and screams and scratches, and finally breaks free and runs as far as he can from the edge.

In this analogy, the belief in gravity is very important to survival. In fact, it is the most important element. But belief in gravity alone isn’t enough to prevent falling off the edge. The belief must be accompanied by action. You see, the last man was motivated to act because of his belief in gravity.

James 2:14 “What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?”

James 2:26 “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”

We are saved only by faith in Jesus Christ, not by our works, but a true faith in Jesus is not just a mental ascent to His existence; a true saving faith will naturally motivate one into service for the King that saved.

Shame

When I was younger, I was into Lord of the Rings. I was the nerd King of Middle Earth. Me and a handful of friends would even play the Lord of the Rings trading card game, and when we got together, we came unglued into complete nerdness.

I had another group of friends that wanted nothing to do with fantasy nonsense; and rather enjoyed sports and outdoors. If we all went to town, half my friends would go to gamestop, the other half to Academy. As a result, when my "Academy" friends came over, I put up all Lord of the Rings Paraphernalia, took off my pocket protector and acted like a good old fisherman, because, after all, that is what they liked. The last thing I wanted was for an "Academy" friend to walk in on our Nerd Time; that would be the epitome of shame.


Unfortunately, this is how many of us treat the Good News of the Gospel. We live two lives, because deep down we are ashamed of the Gospel. And the reason we are ashamed is not because we don't believe it. We truly do believe it, and frankly we like it alot! But we think of it as an option and not a necessity. 


Whether you say it out loud or not, most of us American Christians view Christianity, and the gospel message as if it were a flavor amongst others that must be decided by each individual's personal preference, instead of as a medicine to your sick and dying family and friends.

Just like my Academy friends didn't "need" to like Lord of the Rings, and they didn't want to, so there was no reason to ever bring it up. Maybe our biggest set back as Christians is that we don't fully believe that people "need" the gospel.


Romans 1:15-16 "I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News. For I am not ashamed of this good news about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving those who believe."


Paul viewed the good news of Christ as the very power of God working to save people from an eternal punishment. He saw it as the only Solution to a big problem, not one option out of many to fill people's desires.


The good news is not a fairytale, it's not a hobby, it's not a way. 
It is a true story, The Solution, The only way.


Next time your tempted to be ashamed of the Gospel, remember "what" the Gospel is; the power of God at work, saving those who believe.