Read
21Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was declared right with God because of what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see, he was trusting God so much that he was willing to do whatever God told him to do. His faith was made complete by what he did–by his actions. 23And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, so God declared him to be righteous.” He was even called “the friend of God.” 24So you see, we are made right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.
25Rahab the prostitute is another example of this. She was made right with God by her actions–when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. 26Just as the body is dead without a spirit, so also faith is dead without good deeds.
Reflect
Think of the worst thing that could possibly happen to you. What would it be? I think mine would be if something happened where I lost my wife or kids. I don’t know how I would live without them. Maybe it would be your doctor telling you, you have weeks to live. Everyone has their own worst fear.
Now ask yourself, if God asked you to endure the worst possible thing that you could imagine, would you do it? Abraham had to face that exact situation. We all know about his problems having a child with his wife Sarah. Finally, Isaac was born and God promised Abraham that the fulfillment of His promise would go through the line of Isaac. Then all of a sudden, God asks Abraham to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. Imagine what was going on inside of Abraham. There couldn’t have been anything much more difficult for him to bear than to lose the heir to his covenant with God. The miracle child that God had promised. The only child from his wife Sarah.
As we read in the story, Abraham was faithful. He knew that God would always be faithful to him. Perhaps he thought that God would raise Isaac from the dead - regardless, he knew that his God was a faithful God, so he demonstrated his faith by acting on it. He stepped out of line. He became noticeable. He lived his faith.
We are faced with a similar situation. If we have faith that we are saved by God’s grace, does it do any good to hide it from others? No! In fact, the Bible says that by not stepping out, by not becoming noticeable, we don’t have faith at all! Jesus did not die on the cross for us to be timid!
Respond
Has God ever asked you to do something that you didn’t do?
What did James mean when he said, “Faith is dead without good deeds.”?
How many people would be saved if you received salvation and then kept it to yourself?
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