JAMES 2:14-24, 26; PSALM 112; MARK 8:34-9:1.
Reading 1 Jas 2:14-24, 26
What good is it, my brothers and sisters,
if someone says he has faith but does not have works?
Can that faith save him?
If a brother or sister has nothing to wear
and has no food for the day,
and one of you says to them,
“Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,”
but you do not give them the necessities of the body,
what good is it?
So also faith of itself,
if it does not have works, is dead.
Indeed someone might say,
“You have faith and I have works.”
Demonstrate your faith to me without works,
and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works.
You believe that God is one.
You do well.
Even the demons believe that and tremble.
Do you want proof, you ignoramus,
that faith without works is useless?
Was not Abraham our father justified by works
when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?
You see that faith was active along with his works,
and faith was completed by the works.
Thus the Scripture was fulfilled that says,
Abraham believed God,
and it was credited to him as righteousness,
and he was called the friend of God.
See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
For just as a body without a spirit is dead,
so also faith without works is dead.
Gospel Mk 8:34–9:1
Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake
and that of the Gospel will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
What could one give in exchange for his life?
Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words
in this faithless and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will be ashamed of
when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
He also said to them,
“Amen, I say to you,
there are some standing here who will not taste death
until they see that the Kingdom of God has come in power.”
Today, St James leads us in a reflection on faith and works. He makes a distinction between a living faith and a dead faith. Living faith is demonstrated by good works, faith without good works to accompany it is dead.
This is not inconsistent with Pauline theology that we are saved by grace through faith alone not by works (Ephesians 2:8). St James is simply saying that saving faith will have works that accompany it. As a saying goes: faith alone saves, but the faith that saves is not alone; it has good works with it.
So today, let us reflect on three marks of a living faith.
- It is a faith that expresses itself in concern, kindness and charity to others.
It is faith that moves us to get involved with people in their plight and seek ways to help them. It does not just speak fine words but it prompts us to sacrifice for the well being of others. It is the faith that moves us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick, be present to the lonely, offer our support to the downcast, help the aged, provide relief for those in need, it is the faith that moves us to say “I forgive you from my heart.”
- Living faith is a faith that transforms our lives.
Living faith is not just an assent to a body of propositions – there are three persons in one God, Jesus is present in the Eucharist, heaven is real, hell is real, the Son of God is human and divine, co-substantial with the Father, he took flesh and dwelt among us, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, Mary is immaculately conceived and co-redemptrix et cetera.
St James says even the demons believe these doctrines but it does not change them from being demons. True faith is that which transforms our entire lives, our values, our character, our vision and ideals. It affects how we live, how we revere God and see others. If we understand these theological truths with conviction, believe them with passion and can explain them with precision and yet there is no transformation in our lives, it is empty and denuded of life.
A faith that does not transform our lives cannot save our souls.
- It is faith that makes us hold unto Jesus when it is difficult and challenging.
It is that faith that makes us declare for Jesus when it is safer to be silent and to compromise, it is the faith that drives us to be able, ready and willing to lay aside everything and lay down even our lives if need be for the sake of Christ.
This is the faith that Jesus teaches in today’s gospel, those who have this faith will not taste of eternal death, death will have no power over them, even when they die, they will live again in God’s kingdom.
Sermon preached by Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Okami on February 21, 2020