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Clear Gospel Campaign
— by Ronald R. Shea, Th.M., J.D —
 
Topics Touching the Message of Salvation
— James 2:14-26 —
Curriculum Outline and Study Guide | Resurrection | Assurance | Baptism | The Bema | Calvinism | The Gospel Message & Content of Saving Faith | The Creator | Dispensationalism | Eternal Security | Evangelism & Discipleship | Expiation, Propitiation and Redemption | Faith | Fruit . .. Don't you need it? | Grace | Hebrews 10 | Hebrews 6:1-15 | Heirship and Rewards | James 2:14-26 | Jesus is God | 1st John | John MacArthur | Justification | Bilateral Contract Salvation or "Lordship Salvation" | The Market Driven Church | Perseverance of the Saints | Predestination and Free Will | Public Confession of Christ | Regeneration | Repentance | Roman Catholicism | Salvation | Sanctification | The Sheep and Goats Judgment | Silly Gospel Substitutes | "Sovereign" (Irresistible) Grace | Stewardship of the Gospel Message | The Modern "Testimony" | The Ten Commandments: Their Relationship to the Believer | Theology and Doctrine | Total Depravity and `The Bondage of the Will` | Worship Music | Appendix I: Church History from a Free Grace perspective
Chapter 1: Text of James 2:14-16
Chapter 2: Faith Alone, or Faith plus Works?
Chapter 3: James in Three Peanut Shells: Nutshell 1
Chapter 4: James in Three Peanut Shells: Nutshell 2
Chapter 5: James in Three Peanut Shells: Nutshell 3
Chapter 6: Overview of the Message of James
Chapter 7: What Does it Mean to Be "Saved?"
Chapter 8: Poverty in the Epistle of James
Chapter 9: Wisdom Literature and the Epistle of James
Chapter 10: Eternal Salvation: What does James have to say?
Chapter 11: Irony in the Epistle of James
Chapter 12: The Opening Verses of James
Chapter 13: James 2:14-17--Salvation in James
Chapter 14: James 2:18-20
Chapter 15: Justification and the Epistle of James
Chapter 16: Exegesis of James 2:21-24

 

James in Three Peanut Shells

 

by

 

Ronald R. Shea, Th.M., J.D.

 

Peanut Sell No. 2 -- Justification in James 2:14-26

 

 

When James speaks of being "justified" by works, he is not speaking of being justified before God.  He is speaking of being justified in the eyes of his fellow man.  To be justified is simply to be regarded as "alright" by another person.  It is not automatically directed to God any more than the word "save" is automatically directed toward salvation from hell!

 

One is justified before God by faith in Christ.

 

However, our fellow man is not capable of reading our minds.  And many of them don't really care what we believe about God.  Our fellow man formulates his opinion of us by our character.

 

And our character is reflected by how we repeatedly conduct the affairs of our lives.  If believers who have financial or material resources allow impoverished and homeless Christian brethren to starve in the streets or freeze to death, those Christians having resources are not "all right" in the eyes of the watching world.

 

 

They are selfish and cold hearted religious hypocrites.  They claim that Jesus taught love and laying one's life down for his brethren, but they won't lift a finger to save their fellow Christians.

 

The world does not think you are an "O.K." person simply because you have trusted Christ.  No unbeliever would be attracted to the church so they could make friends who would watch them starve to death or freeze to death in hard times.

 

NOTE:  Neither James, nor the above paragraph, should be understood as teaching that our good works or character "prove" that we have been "justified by God."  James is not discussing justification before God at all.   James is talking about being justified in the eyes of our fellow man by our works.

 

Contrary to popular teachings, not one verse of Scripture teaches that our works prove the authenticity of our faith in Christ.

 


Chapter 4: James in Three Peanut Shells: Nutshell 2

 
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