Ahhh, I just love the book of James… Did I mention that already? Anyway, in James 2 there are some powerful words about faith and works we Christians love to wrestle with. There are some of us who like to believe that faith alone is sufficient. Then there are those of us who think works are necessary for either salvation or proof of a changed heart. My humble opinion is there is more to the story. Verses 17 – 19 bring a lot to the discussion, 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that–and shudder. Faith alone implies that belief is sufficient and in verse 19 it clearly states that “even the demons believe”. Our faith and our belief should lead us into relationship with God, which in turn should compel us into action and to serve Him. We simply can not take Jesus’ sacrifice and accept it as the end of our responsibilities when He clearly commanded us to be His hands and feet. Remember Matthew 25:44-45?? 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ If we are not producing action and following His commands based on our faith then as verse 17 says it is dead. For some reason there are Christians who believe that works somehow cheapens Christ’s sacrifice for us. I believe that our actions reinforce the power of a changed heart that can only come from His sacrifice and perfect love for us.