"What is the use (profit), my brethren, for anyone to profess to have faith if he has no [good] works [to show for it]? Can [such] faith save [his soul]?" (James 2:14, Amplified).
The Bible makes it abundantly clear that faith without works is dead. Your faith in Christ Jesus must be accompanied by practical demonstration of what that faith represents. Otherwise, it would become what I call faith dead on arrival. In the same way, works without faith is also of no value before God. It is important to believe in God. But you must show the proof of what you believe by the good things you do so that your confession of faith does not become worthless.
Abraham, the father of faith was presented to us in Scripture as a man who was "strong in faith" (Romans 4:20). But he was also shown to be a man carried through whatever he believed in by corresponding action.
An instructive reference point is the attempt by Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac as a supreme expression of his faith in God. Abraham's life teaches that when you believe, you must behave.
The relationship between faith and corresponding action is well illustrated in the story of an old Scotsman who operated a little rowboat for transporting passengers. One day a passenger noticed that the good old man had carved on one oar the word “Faith,” and on the other oar the word “Works.” Curiosity led him to ask the meaning of this. The old man, being a well-balanced Christian and glad of the opportunity to share his faith proceeded to show thus:
He dropped the oar labelled 'Faith' and plied the other called 'Works', and they just went around in circles. Then he dropped that oar and began to ply the other called 'Faith', and the little boat just went around in circles again - this time the other way around, but still in a circle.
After this demonstration the old man picked up 'Faith' and 'Works' and plying both oars together, sped swiftly over the water. Then he explained to his inquiring passenger, “You see, that is the way it is in the Christian life. Dead works without faith are useless, and “faith without works is dead” also, getting you nowhere. But faith and works pulling together make for safety, progress, and blessing.”
Dear friends, whatever God has told you or the things you have seen in His words must also be acted upon in order for you to see the physical manifestation. As faith teachers have repeatedly told us, true faith is "acting on the word of God". Such faith that is backed up with right action is the overcoming faith. Such is the faith that pleases God.
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