Scary Message

Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Graham. A book of James is one of, if not the most frightening passage in all of the Bible. Because it is possible to believe in God, to believe in Jesus, and to die and wake up in hell. And it's frightening and terrifying to consider that a person could be in church and not have a real genuine faith. So really this message is about saving faith. Because not all faith is saving faith. And that's what we read in the book of James chapter 2.

So beginning in James chapter 2 and beginning in verse 14. What good is it my brothers if someone says he has faith but does not have works can that faith save him? That is a faith without works.

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food and one of you says to him go in peace be warmed and filled without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself if it does not have works is dead. But someone will say you have faith and I have works, show me your faith apart from your works. And James says I will show you my faith by my works because of my faith and by my works. Verse 19, here's the scary part. You believe that God is one, you do well. Even the demons believe and shudder.

Now let's stop right there. This is a sobering, startling passage, shocking really, passage of scripture. That I could somehow say the right words, believe at least intellectually in all the right things, practice a right religion, traditions and rituals and all the rest and not go to heaven, not be saved. Now when I say saving faith, what does it mean to be saved? To be saved means that all your sins are forgiven, every one of them, past, present and future. Saved from our sin. It means that God, Jesus lives in us, that we are alive in Christ, that His very presence possesses our lives. That's what it means to be saved.

That it means to know for certain that when you die or when Christ comes that you will spend eternity with Him. That's what it means to be saved. And everybody needs to be saved.

The whole world needs to be saved. And it is how we are saved that becomes the issue. And James is telling us that it's possible for you to be saved. It's possible for you to say you're saved, think you're saved, and not be saved. Now before we go any further, I want to make it absolutely clear that we are not saved by doing good works of any kind.

Our good deeds, our efforts to gain heaven, we don't earn it, we don't deserve it. We're saved by the grace of God. James tells us that earlier in James 1.18 when he says, By the living word of God.

Look at it verse 18 of chapter 1. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth. That is we are birthed by the word of God.

Of His own will God graciously, lovingly brought us into His family. It was His work, His act, the finished work of Christ on the cross. We are saved not by our deeds but by His deed when He said it is finished, paid in full, He accomplished it, He did it all.

He did it all. Paul says this clearly in Ephesians 2, 8 and 9. For by grace you are saved through faith and then not of yourselves. It is the gift of God not of what?

Not of works lest anyone should boast. Paul said in Titus 3, 5, Not by works of righteousness that we have done but according to His mercy. He has saved us. So it is grace through faith. The just shall live by faith. We are justified by grace through faith in a living Christ. Now a great debate has ensued over the generations as to what James meant and even denominations have been birthed and churches have split over the issue of faith and works. And some have wanted to make it this great debate faith versus works. And personified Paul versus James.

In other words, which is it? Are we saved by grace through faith in Christ alone or are we saved by grace through faith that works alone? James and Paul are not debating. They're not fighting each other face to face but someone described it as James and Paul back to back fighting different enemies. Paul is fighting legalism. Paul is fighting legalism which says you have to keep the law, keep the commandments. Do all these things in order to be justified, in order to be saved. And it was the battle cry of the Apostle Paul as well as the great reformation that we are justified by faith in Christ alone by His grace.

James on the other hand is fighting a different kind of enemy. It's license. It's the attitude which says it doesn't matter how you live. You come to faith in Christ. You're saved by grace.

You go from there. It doesn't matter whether you do good works or not. So James is fighting against this kind of license which says anything goes once you become a Christian. Here's another way of looking at it. Paul is dealing with our vertical relationship with God. Our relationship with God in justification and James is looking at our horizontal relationship with God as we relate to people and relate our faith to people. It's the sanctifying side of our salvation. So both by faith and by works we are saved.

How so? Paul said in 2 Corinthians 13 verse 5 examine yourself and ask yourselves whether you be in the faith. And I want to call upon you, everyone who's watching, everyone who's listening today to take a look, an honest look at your life and your works and your faith and your deeds and to see if you are a true believer. Number one, saving faith is a laboring faith.

Look again in chapter 2 verse 14. What good is it my brothers if someone says he has faith but he does not have works? Can that faith save him? That faith. A faith without works. Can that save him?

The answer is no. Here's someone who has a say so faith but not a show so faith. Someone who professes faith but does not possess Christ in their lives. James says that kind of faith is faulty. It is foolish. It is futile.

It is worthless. There are some who have faith and nothing to show for it. There's no fruit. There's no evidence.

There's no proof. The evidence the proof are the deeds, the labors, the works that you live and give. The writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 6 verse 9 speaks of those things which accompany salvation. They accompany salvation. They're not salvation but come alongside with salvation. They accompany salvation. You know as Forrest Gump would say, you know like peas and carrots. Like ham and eggs.

They go together. Faith and works in the Christian life go together. A person is not saved by works but is saved by a faith that works. And we put into practice, into proof what we truly believe. What are the things that accompany salvation? A love for God.

A desire to know Him and serve Him. And with our love for God a hatred for sin. We don't want to live the way we used to live. I'm not the same person I used to be. Jesus changed His life and some people need to stop enduring religion and start enjoying salvation in Jesus Christ.

Because that's the kind of faith that labors for the Lord. Lives for the Lord. People walk up to you students and say, there's something different about you. What's changed in your life? What's happened to you? And you have to say something like, well God's been good to me. God's grace is changing me. I have a new life in Christ.

If there's a difference in me then praise God for what Christ has done in my life. Scary message. Pastor, this month we have a special gift for our listeners who give a gift to PowerPoint. It's your brand new book, Reignite.

What can you tell us about this powerful resource? My latest book, Reignite is out and it is definitely needed. The message of this book is needed today. It was actually born out of a personal experience, an emotional crisis in my life after a cancer surgery. And I discovered some things about Reignited my life that I want to share with you.

If you find yourself exhausted, tired, depressed, anxious, uncertain about your future, then I believe this book is going to encourage you. Call today and get Reignite as our thank you for your gift. Call 1-800-795-4627. That's 1-800-795-4627. Or text the word PowerPoint to 313131.

Text PowerPoint to 313131. Now let's get back to today's message, scary message. It's also this saving faith, a loving faith.

Here's what I mean by that. James gives us a brief illustration, a word picture in verse 15. He says, If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in food, verse 16, and one of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? That's a rhetorical question and the answer is obviously, well, nothing. Here's a person has great needs. They're destitute. They're homeless. It's not just that they have a little food. They don't have daily bread.

They're not clothed properly. And so someone comes along and he's talking to people who are gathered in the church body. And so you come along and you see this person in great need like that and you just say, Oh, well, God bless you. I'll pray for you. Be warmed and filled.

Hope you get better. Have a nice day. And you walk away. Where's the love? Where's the labor? James is saying if we don't make an effort to help hurting people, broken people, then our faith is a pseudo-faith.

It's not real. You walk up on somebody who has a need. Don't just pass by. Don't just say, God bless you.

I'll pray for you. But God is putting someone at your doorstep. God is putting someone in your life.

God is putting someone in your pathway that you might serve them and love them and help them in Jesus' name. That's the faith that saves that is not alone. The works follow in that same passage that I quoted earlier from Paul in Ephesians 2, 8 and 9. Remember, for by grace you're saved through faith and that not of yourselves. It's the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast. Do you know what verse 10 says? For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works. Okay, theology lesson. Are you ready?

Put your thinking cap on. I'm going to give you three simple prepositions and if you can get these prepositions straight, your theology of salvation, faith and works will be straight. For by grace, by grace, through faith unto good works. By grace, through faith, grace is God's riches at Christ's expense, God's gift. Faith is forsaking all, I trust Him, F-A-I-T-H, forsaking all, I trust Him. By grace, through faith, unto good works.

And if we can get that straight, we can make a difference in this world. After all, didn't Jesus say when you clothe the naked, when you feed the hungry, when you give a drink to the thirsty, when you welcome the stranger, you have done it unto me. They said, how have we done that unto you, Lord?

He said, when you've done it unto the least of these, you've done it unto me. You've served me by serving people. You love God by loving people. It's a loving faith. It's a laboring faith. But one final thing, it's a living faith. Look at verse 19, you believe God is one, you do well, even the demons believe and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless?

Look at verse 26, for as the body apart from the Spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead. Now, James talks about two kinds of religion here. First of all, a devilish, demonic religion. He says, do you believe in God? 94% of Americans say they believe in God.

Okay? You believe in God, congratulations. You've got the faith of a demon because the demons believe in God. The devil and all the hordes of hell, they're not atheists. They're not even agnostic. They're believers in God. They know God exists. They know God is one. If a demon, let's say a demon came forward today during our invitation and wanted to join the church. And so we say, do you believe in God?

First of all, we say, what's your name? My name is Mr. Beelzebub. Okay, Mr. Beelzebub, do you believe in God? Absolutely, I know God exists. Do you believe in Jesus?

No question about it. We're told in the New Testament that the demons, spirits, they confess Jesus as the Son of God. They said, Son of God, why are you tormenting us? They said Jesus is the Holy One, the Messiah. So, Mr. Beelzebub, do you believe in Jesus?

Absolutely. I've met Jesus. Oh, do you believe He died on the cross? Oh yeah, I was there. Do you believe He rose again?

No question about it. I know Jesus is alive from the dead. Do you believe Jesus is coming again? Demons believe that. Oh yes, Mr. Beelzebub says, absolutely, Jesus is coming again. You see, demons are orthodox. They're not heretical. They believe in all the creeds. And we would say, Mr. Beelzebub, you're going to make a great member of this church.

Come right on in. You believe all the right things. But if we were probing a little more, we would say, Mr. Beelzebub, will you follow Jesus and give Him your life? And He would say, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

I played for the other team. I've already decided not to follow Jesus. So many people have the faith of a demon. You ask them, do you believe in God? Oh yeah, I believe in God. Jesus, He's a good man.

The best man. I believe in Jesus. I'm just not that into it though. I'm just not that committed.

It really doesn't make that big difference in my life. I would be kind of a C student. I'm not shooting for A's. I'm not going to make A's in Christianity.

I'm a C with a few drops and a few incompletes. I'm pretty sure when I die, I'm going to go to the happy place. I'm going to go to a better place. Because after all, I'm not that bad.

I'm better than a lot of people. So I'm not going to try harder. I'm not going to do anything. I'm not going to commit. I'm not going to love.

I'm not going to serve. But I believe. James says congratulations, you've got the faith of the devil. You know that passage? It says the demons believe in God and they tremble. And it's a cool Greek word which means shudder or shake or shiver. It means your hair's standing on end. Your skin's crawling. But they're not saved.

Why? Because their faith is dead, not alive. He gives two examples. He gives Abraham and Rahab. Two polar opposites in the Old Testament. Abraham, the father of the faithful, a godly, dedicated man, a Jew, a friend of God. And then Rahab who was not a patriarch but a prostitute. Not a Jew but a Gentile, a pagan. And yet both of them had saving faith in common.

Do you know why? Because James tells us Abraham believed God and he was willing to sacrifice his own son to lay Isaac on the altar. He was so in that he says my faith in God means that I will follow him no matter what. And then Rahab. She was living in Jericho and when Israel was marching on Jericho the spies came in and she hid those spies. She lied to do it. You say, well is that a good example?

No. But she was a pagan. But she believed and she risked it all.

She risked her own life to identify with the children of God and she was a believer and she risked and put her faith in action. That's what faith does. It's a living faith. Otherwise it's a dead faith. As long as you've got breath you've got a purpose in your life.

Certainly. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and today's message, Scary Message. Chances are you've faced your share of crisis. Maybe you're even in the fight of your life right now. Or maybe you're simply feeling exhausted by the busyness of life and sapped of spiritual strength.

Whatever you're facing. We want to help fan the flame of faith in your life by sending you Dr. Graham's newest book Reignite. This personal account of how God led Dr. Graham through his own crisis will help you focus on God during difficult seasons so you can experience fresh passion and joy in Jesus. And we'll send you a copy as thanks for your gift today. So call now to request your copy of Reignite. Call 1-800-795-4627. That's 1-800-795-4627.

You can also text the word PowerPoint to 313131. And don't forget to visit Jack Graham.org where you can shop our e-store, give a gift online or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email devotional. Our website again is Jack Graham.org. Pastor, what is your PowerPoint for today? It's been said that if your religion hasn't changed your life, you'd better change your religion. The truth is only Jesus can change your life and genuine faith produces that transformation. It's very, very important to remember that real spiritual change comes from God's grace and not man's works. That our salvation is in Christ and Christ alone. So the faith that we have in Christ, genuine faith, real faith is laboring. That is it works. It is loving and it is living.

It's real. If I'm in Christ, I will be doing certain things because of my relationship with Christ. I will be giving.

I'll be serving. I'll be working in His Church and in His Kingdom. It's a laboring faith. It's also a loving faith. James tells us that if we don't make an effort to help hurting people, broken people all around us, then our faith is a pseudo faith.

It's not real. A faith that is loveless rather than selfless is a selfie faith and that's not a real faith. Finally, it's a living faith.

It's not simply head knowledge. It's heart knowledge, believing from the heart. The scripture tells us that even the demons believe all the truths about God, but their hearts don't trust Him or believe in Him or receive Him.

They don't live for Him. So authentic faith, genuine Christianity is a laboring faith, a loving faith, and a living faith. If we are in Christ, we will live our faith so we don't just say so when it comes to our relationship to Christ.

We show so and therefore we know so because by their fruits you shall know them. And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember, when you give a gift to PowerPoint today, we'll send you Dr. Graham's brand new book, Reignite, as our thanks. Call 1-800-795-4627.

That's 1-800-795-4627. You can also text the word PowerPoint to 313131. Text PowerPoint to 313131. Join Dr. Graham next time as he brings a message about how you can use your words to speak life. That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministries.