Lesson 10: Faith that is real
 James 2:14-17 
14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?
17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

 Many of the words we have in our Christian language – faith, believe, trust – are words we often think of as only things having to do with our minds. After all, we are told in Ephesians that our faith which saves us by His grace is not anything we do, it is not of works (Ephesians 2:8-10). Faith, to be real, must involve far more than just our minds.

A story from the Bible to show this is found in Joshua 2 – the story of Rahab of Jericho. Rahab had only heard stories of the God of Israel. She had no idea what it meant to “believe and be saved.” She only knew this God of Israel was more powerful than any god she was familiar with or had ever followed. Hebrews 11:31 tells us that Rahab’s faith saved her because she gave a friendly welcome to the spies from Israel. But by giving that friendly welcome, Rahab had turned her back on everything she had ever known. She was now a traitor to her city and country, and the king of Jericho and his army leaders knew it. People were executed for far less, and Rahab had no illusions that she could escape death. She was going to die – either at the hands of Israel when they destroyed Jericho, or at the hands of her own people. The only one who could possibly save her was the God of Israel! She had chosen Him.


 Another story to show what real faith looks like is the story of a man who fastened a rope over a great waterfall. Walking this rope across meant death for him if he fell. A great crowd gathered to watch. When he had safely made it across, he asked the crowd if they believed he could make it pushing a wheelbarrow. They shouted their belief in him, and he crossed the rope with the wheelbarrow. When he returned he asked the crowd if they believed he could do it again with a person riding in the wheelbarrow. Again the crowd shouted that they believed. Then he asked for someone to get into the wheelbarrow.

 Real faith, real believing, results in action, just as our verses today tell us. Rahab did not have faith because she betrayed her city, she betrayed her city because she had faith in God. Real faith means we turn our backs on our self-will, our own desires, our former way of doing things, doing only what is good for ourselves. Real faith follows Jesus where we could never go on our own.

Memorize: Hebrews 11:6 - And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.