Font Size
If the spirit of mercy is a basic element in Christian faith, then the expression of mercy is an integral part of faith. This expression of mercy constitutes faith in action. Devoid of this energy faith is dead (v.17). Faith is alive in self-forgetting deeds. This removes the tendency to make good works the instrument of salvation. Failure to put faith into practice promotes a selfishness that protects self and withholds material help from those in need. Its heartlessness hides behind the fac̡ade of politeness. Even the demons are more honest about their understanding of God: they shudder for their very existence.
James illustrates full-orbed faith with reference to two OT personalities, one the father of the Hebrew race and the other a pagan harlot. For both, knowledge of and about God informed their faith. Rahab declared, “When we heard of it [what the Lord had done to the Egyptians and the two kings, Sihon and Og], our hearts sank . . . because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below” (Jos 2:11). For both, self-abnegation was operating. Abraham would wipe out his future with the sacrifice of Isaac; Rahab would wipe out her family if her deception were discovered. Faith that is self-centered is only a corpse; it has the appearance of the real, but not the life.