"What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless." James 2:14-17
William Wilberforce once said, "You may choose to look the other way, but you can never say again that you did not know." How many injustices happen in the world that we are aware of, yet we do nothing about? How many people in our own neighborhoods, schools and communities are mistreated and hurting that we come in contact with, yet we wish them well and pass them by?
The Scriptures are clear- good works don't save us. We can't earn our way into heaven. No one can ever be good enough to achieve salvation on their own. But the scripture above clearly says that if our faith in Jesus Christ doesn't produce good deeds, it isn't really authentic faith. It's actually dead. What this means is that true faith in Jesus will result in a desire to do good to our fellow man. If we are truly followers of Christ, we will be his hands and feet extended to the world around us.
Reflect on your life right now- how do your faith and deeds measure up? Are they lopsided? If you have faith but no deeds, you may need to re-evaluate the level of your commitment to Jesus and His commands. If you do a lot of good things but your faith is weak, take some time to think about why you're doing what you're doing. Are you trying to earn something that can't be earned? Rest in knowing that God loves you as you are and any good thing you do should only be in response to His love.
Take a moment today to follow this link and watch some news coverage about something happening in our world right now that shows how even the media can play a part in social injustice.
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