One of them, yes. But you referred to what James said. And I would assert that Paul did not contradict what James said, nor did James contradict what Paul said.
My men... LOL! Paul was a man, yes, and so was James... LOL!
Ah yes, context. Yours? :) What you assert that context is? :)
Well, he's talking about serving the Lord. And to your statement here, I would also point out what Paul writes to the Galatians:
"Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith" (Galatians 3:23-26).
So I would agree with you here, but not in the way you... would like me to, I guess... :) I would argue that he's talking about fulfilling what he elsewhere calls the law of Christ.
"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." (Galatians 6:2)
"For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith..." (Philippians 3:8-9).
And we know what Christ Himself said:
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets" (Matthew 22:37-40).
You mean as if I didn't before now? :)
Our faith is the work of God. I'm sure it's been quoted here several times already, but Paul's statement is unequivocal:
"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." It is because of the faith that we serve God; He created us for this very purpose, ultimately for His own glory. Making faith out to be a work of man is making God's grace out to be something other than grace. This same Paul says, in Romans 11:6,
"if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace."
MailmanDan is absolutely correct about what James says... "If someone merely
says-claims they have faith,
but lack resulting evidential works, then they demonstrate that they have an
empty profession of faith/dead faith (James 2:14) and not authentic faith."
So, yes, we see eye to eye here. But... see above.
I appreciate your efforts. :) I mean, Mary, everybody here says that, but... :)
Grace and peace to you.
