Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. James 2:15-17
“The preaching style of this letter appears here more clearly than elsewhere. James addresses his readers as if they were standing before him and sets out to question and persuade them. He uses a concrete example to make his point: What should one do when faced with a brother or sister in need, lacking even the most basic necessities such as clothing and food? There were certainly many poor people in the churches to which James was writing. Fine sounding words would not feed them, nor would good wishes. Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is deσd. In other words, it needs no enemy to make it disappear.”
Solomon Andria (Madagascar) in “James” in Africa Bible Commentary, Tokunboh Adeyemo, General Editor (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006).
What good is it?
That’s a great question. James hold us a mirror to help us as readers see our actions for what they are. Only hearers can answer. But they need to be asked this question to be moved to change. This text shows the power of a question for influencing human actions.
What good is it?
Suppose you keep living, giving, serving, and loving on the same trajectory. Our African brother, Solomon Andria expounds on this with an African question. Will your influence require any enemy to disappear?
Think about it. Will your life cause the evil one to want your example to stop blessing others or will he celebrate because you look no different from the world around you?
What good is it?
Today marks our final day in Cameroon. The main training event will serve not only workers from across Francophone Africa but upwards of 100 invited guests from the Cameroon Christian community.
Pray for us. The enemy wants us to disappear. Hardships, lost luggage, sickness, and other have beset us this week, but we continue to overcome by the grace of God.
And pray for my friend, Chi-Chung Keung. He retires from paid work today. I leave him with today’s question as he contemplates what I believe will be his best years of service yet ahead of him.
As he asks it of himself and as you ask it of yourself, I pray much good comes of your response and that God sustains you through the attacks of the enemy which seek to make you disappear.