Email from Abiding Place Daily Bread – March 14, 2025 (The Sixth Day – Genesis 1:24-31) James 2:24 – You see then that a man is shown to be righteous by works, and not by faith only. Being Made Righteous Produces Righteous Behavior Martin Luther and other reformers said, “Sola Fide,” or “faith alone”, but were they correct? James said faith alone does not make righteous. (James 2:24). Furthermore, James also cites Abraham as a source for what he said, just as Paul did. Were James and Paul contradicting each other? Or is there a way to understand what they said without a contradiction? Both Paul and James are speaking on the basis of the same authority. They were both given the commission to reveal God’s Word to His Church. James is not making works the means by which a person is made righteous, but instead is underscoring the change that is brought about because a person has been made righteous. James is referring to the same works every voice in the New Testament refers to including Jesus (Matthew 5:16, 16:27; Ephesians 2:10; 1Timothy 6:18; 2 Timothy 3:17; Titus 1:16, 2:7,14, 3:8). James is not saying that a person is made righteous by works. (We can be certain James believed a person is made righteous by faith.) Rather, what he is saying is that if a person is made righteous by faith, then the person’s life will demonstrate that righteousness (James 2:14–18, 20–26). Blessings, Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
Daily Bread 3/14/2025
