Meditate on this!
Faith without works is dead, so is love without hope. James 2:17 and 1 Corinthians 13:13
Have
you notice your life in a personal way? I mean that you are with you all day
long, seven days week, twenty fours a day; equaling one thousand four hundred
and forty minutes daily. You simply cannot get away from you. No matter where
you are or whatever you are doing… there you are, period! The apostle Paul has
a lot to say about the body, our personal body and the body of the church,
notice! 1 Corinthians 6:18-20. Run from immorality; sins as these are done
within the body, also the body is the temple where the Holy Spirit dwells. Immorality
and holiness cannot share the same temple. 1 Corinthians 9:27 it is necessary
to discipline our personal body, we discipline others and we expect them to
shape up while we remain or become disqualified. From this platform the apostle
steps into the church, 1 Corinthians 10:14-22. Just as we personally must flee
immorality, the church as a whole body must flee idolatry. Then in 1 Corinthian
11:17-29 we are remembering the holy sinless body of Christ as it was broken
for the unholy sinful body of each personal body within the church. As we are responsible
in fleeing sins which cripple the personal body, so the church is responsible
to flee sins that cripple the church body. This results in a sanctified body of
believers who abide personally and corporately as a church in faith, hope and
love. 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. Finally; what is sown a natural body in weakness
and dishonor will one day be glorified and raised in power, a spiritual body
with power. 1 Corinthians 15:35-49.
James
James
2:14-26 – There is faith and there are works, but works does not produce faith
and faith of itself does not produce works. I sort of want to stop here and be
done with the subject, not because I feel that I don’t understand, but because
there is so much confusion in Christendom. We reach out to the brother or
sister in need. We seldom tell someone to depart in peace without providing
some provision; but we do at times, when we feel used or abused as a person or church,
stop providing further help.
People
do this commonly, even the unbelieving people reach out to help and will stop
helping when they feel used and abused. Matthew 7:1-25 whatever you want others
to do to you, you must be willing to do the very same thing to them… Matthew
7:12. However, faith takes a more positive or solid foundation to stand on. Jesus
says that everyone who hears these saying of His and does them is like a wise
person who builds his or her house on the firm foundation of faith, so we must
hear Him and not our listen to our own way which may dictate differently.
And
you say, I know all of that so what is the point? Faith/works is stepping out
of the comfort of what is normal to mankind. Hebrews 11:1 faith is the
substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen; or as the
apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, love for God and people produce
works that are backed by faith. Faith, hope and love produce works pleasing to
God, this is the fruit of the Spirit of God who motivates you and me to do
biblical good works.
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