Check out this short video from our brother Mark his YouTube channel, ProclaimHisWord
I hear teachers - prominent, well respected Bible expositors - seemingly mock the simplicity of the gospel, stating that believing on Jesus Christ is not enough, even citing James 2:19 to "prove" it:
"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
So, does James 2:19 negate John 3:16, Acts 16:31, Romans 1:16, Romans 5:1, and the hundreds of other scriptures which state plainly that we are saved by believing? (Note that the Bible uses the words "belief", "faith", and "trust" as synonyms: If I believe God, I am trusting him; I have faith in what he says. Look at Ephesians 1:12-15, and you will see these three words used just this way.)
Someone has said that you can make the Bible say anything you want it to. The key to correctly understanding & applying scripture is context. Look at James 2:19 again. What is the context in which James is writing? Two things stand out that we must look at:
- James chapter 2 is juxtaposing faith in God which only God can truly see with works which men can see. The former has to do with the vertical relationship between God and man; the latter, the horizontal relationship between man and man. We are saved by faith apart from works, but as a man, I cannot see your faith in God. I can only see what your faith in God produces, which is the fruit or the works that come as a result of the new birth. Faith without works is dead. But what must I do to work the works of God? The Jews asked this of Jesus - check out his answer:
"Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:28,29)
- Chapter 2 verse 19 in particular references the fact that there is one God. "Thou believest there is one God;...." Let's stop here: no where in the holy scriptures are we told that a man may be saved by belief in one God. Correct? In fact, according to Romans 1:18-21 all men know that the one true God exists, and have turned away from him, so that they are without excuse. So, comparing the belief James is writing about here and the saving faith of John 3:16 and others is a wrong comparison. Going on with 2:19, "...thou doest well: the devils believe, and tremble." What do the devils believe? That there is one God. They tremble, because they are on the losing end of their war against Almighty God, and know the fate that awaits them, and that their time is short. They know that God has not provided a Savior for fallen angels. Is this clear to you? Do you see this? They indeed know the Lord Jesus, the eternal Son of God, became a man, to redeem man from the consequences of our sin against God. We are commanded to have faith in God, and to have faith in Jesus Christ, that he died on the cross to pay the penalty for man's sin. The angelic creatures who followed Satan in rebellion against God have no Savior, therefore comparing their belief about the reality of the one God with the command for men to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved does not comport: it is comparing apples to oranges, so to speak.
Our mighty creator God has proven himself faithful throughout all of history, as we read in the Bible: all he promises to do, he will do. Because Jesus Christ faithfully fulfilled his mission through his death, burial and resurrection, God can forgive a vile sinner like you or I, not because we are good, but because Jesus Christ paid the debt 2000 years ago. To believe on Jesus Christ is to believe what God has said in his word, that Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3) - for my sins against God, and that looking to him by faith alone, trusting in him, that God will forgive my sin and give me the gift of eternal life. Period. Plus nothing. Minus nothing.
Any "good works" we do come as a result of our new life in Christ, through the power of God working in and through our life, so that God alone gets all the glory, praise and honor. Like Mark says in the video, its all about Jesus! So don't let someone fool you into thinking you must do some work in order to be saved; don't start looking at yourself to see if you are measuring up, because you don't! Neither do I. Keep your eyes upon Jesus, and run this crazy race of life with patience, as Paul writes in Hebrews 12. Yes, striving against sin, but to run the race, to fight the good fight of faith, not to be or to stay saved!
Hope this helps. I love you in Jesus Christ.
Paul.
