Saving faith is a faith that is in the heart, not just the head (Romans 10:8-10). It indeed is vocal about what it believes, but it is not just a bunch of words with no fruit or evidence of new life (1 Corinthians 4:19,20).
James tells us today that believing in God is no proof of being a follower of Jesus Christ. Believing in God, my friend, only proves that we are not fools (Psalm 14:1, 53:1). In fact, believing in God makes us no different than demons (James 2:19; Mark 1:23,24). Religious creeds, no matter how fluently I can say them, apart from living deeds of obedience to God, may reveal that I have a brilliant memory, but that certainly is no proof of conversion.
The grace of God that saves us (Ephesians 2:8-9) is the same grace of God that changes us (Titus 2:11-14), and one sure evidence of being saved is that there will be unselfish, good works (Ephesians 2:10) done for the glory of God. We learn today that, as the old saying goes, “the proof is in the pudding.” In other words, to claim to have saving faith apart from works of corresponding actions is a dead faith. Saving faith is an active faith, as we see in Hebrews 11. What we learned in Romans about justification by faith (chapters 3-5) is here proven or validated by the works that stem from genuine faith. Our faith in the Lord Jesus, beloved, is meant to be both seen (Matthew 5:16) and heard (1 Peter 3:15). We are called to be witnesses for Christ (Acts 1:8). Our lives are to reflect the One Who died for us and rose again (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Remember, beloved, if how we talk to others and live is void of the love of Christ, then our faith is useless. People of saving faith are people who make a difference in the world for The Lord Jesus. They are to be people who care for the needy and mourn for those who have yet to come to Christ (Matthew 9:36-38). They are a people whose ultimate purpose is to live their lives for the glory of The Lord by laying their lives down as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1). (1 Corinthians 10:31-33)!
