Do you believe that faith alone will save you?

Question

James 2:14-26
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
http://www.fisheaters.com/solafide.html

Thank you for the respectful insightful posts. I amnot implying that works is enough either but that both are required. We are saved through Grace but called to serve.

Answer 1

NO> we must live good lives also by following God's commandments . Read mathew 7:21-23

Answer 2

eph 2:8-9 " for it is by grace that we are saved through faith - it is the gift of God, not of works, that none may boast." How does one evidence this saving grace? through good works performed out of thankfulness and worship, not as an attempt to earn that which was freely given.
gal 3:10-13
1 john 5 :11-12
consider this. heaven is a free gift. rom 6:23 tell that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life. if i were to give you a birthday gift and your response was to dig into your pocket to give me "something towards it," i would be insulted. Eternal life has to be a gift because man is a sinner. rom 3:23 tells that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. we cannot meet the standard. What is the standard? matt 5:48 - be therefore perfect as your father in heaven is perfect. think about it - all the good we do is like filthy rags. no matter how much good we do, the sin in our life pollutes. For illustration - consider that i am making you a birthday cake. carrot cake - homemade, with cream cheese icing - your favorite. i grate the fresh organic carrots, measure all the ingredients , and do a lot of good. but suppose that when i slic ethat cake, we see a fly baked into the middle. the cake that seemed so good is now garbage. so are our lives.
many people do not understand what sin is. there are 3 types of sin - sins of omission, comission, and sins of thought. scripture tells us that anyone who breaks one part of the law is guilty of it all.
Since God is loving and merciful, He does not want to punish us. but, being just, He must punish sin. our problem is solved thru the person of Jesus. Jesus died on the cross, paid the penalty for our sins, rose from the dead, and has offered us a place in heaven. this gift is received through saving faith - trusting Jesus alone for eternal life.

Admit the truth abt yourself - that, like everyone else, u are a sinner and your sin has separated u from God.
believe the truth that Jesus can and will set u free. ask Him to be lord of your life, and saviour of your soul.
do it today.

i hope you leave legalism behind - Jesus did. He values the spirit of the law over the letter. God bless!

Answer 3

As we are trying to be like Jesus, and He someone who did a lot of good works, We therefore should do good works because we have faith in Christ. Faith is a principle of change and action. We can also do many good works with out having faith (many people in the world do these everyday) and they will be rewarded for them as well. But you can not have faith with out doing any good works. This does not mean that our good works will save us (even though Christ does ask us to do some things - Believe in Him, Keep His commandments, be baptized, and such) but that we are becoming more Christlike.
You can always tell how someone is like (regardless of what they say) by the fruit of their actions.
So in short, good works are a way that we show our faith.

Answer 4

Faith without works is dead. How can you say you have faith if you don't do the works of Jesus?

We are saved by Christ's grace alone, through faith and works done in charity inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Answer 5

The answer is yes. A good statement is "We are saved In Mercy through Grace by Faith". Faith is enough because if you have real faith it will make you work for God and follow His Will. That is what James is saying. If you don't desire to do God's Will you don't have real faith. Ephesians 2:8 "For is is by grace you have been saved, THROUGH faith..."

Answer 6

The Bible says that, "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the GIFT of God, not of WORKS, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour is the only way to receive salvation. However, if you have true faith, then you will do good works, just don't put your trust in those works. The Bible tells us that no one is good enough (or can do enough good works) to inherit eternal life.

Answer 7

James answered this question to further clarify the teachings of Paul, who advocated salvation by faith. What he means is that a person who is truly saved by faith, will naturally perform the works in accordance to his new beliefs i.e. a born again believer. This will authenticate his own confession of faith.

A person who does not believe by faith, cannot by his works alone, expect salvation through his own efforts. This is consistent with what Paul preached that salvation cannot be earned, only given freely to those who are willing to accept.

Answer 8

This scripture will tell you. Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith. Not of yourselves its a gift of God. Not of works lest any man should boast.

Answer 9

To have a saving faith without a reciprocal love for Christ, shown through works, is cause to question the faith proclaimed. For example, if you said you are a christian, but do not have any change in behavior or attitude, it is a question of the indwelling of the Spirit, whom Christ said he will send to us. Worship is a verb, carried out through works just as much, if not more, than singing and praying to the Lord.

Answer 10

If at some time in a persons life they accept Jesus the Christ (Saviour) as their own personal Saviour.
Realize that HE, Jesus, died for his or her own personal and individual sins.
Is truly sorry (repents) for all the sins he or she has committed and for the evil thoughts and deeds done.
Asks Jesus to "come in to his or her heart" and "wash it clean" of sins.
Accepts Jesus as THE ONLY SAVIOUR and accepts that Jesus is TRULY GOD.
That person is SAVED from Hellfire FOR EVER! This person is now "converted".


The process of becoming saved is called JUSTIFICATION.
The penalty for sins committed are removed. Romans 4: 7f. 2Corinthians 5:19.
The condemnation is gone. Romans 8: 1, 33f.
There is peace with GOD. Romans 5: 1. Ephesians 2: 14-17.
One is restored to GODS favour. Romans 4: 6 1Corinthians 1: 30. 2Corinthians 5: 21.
The believer is now clothed in a righteousness not his own, provided by Jesus, and is therefore acceptable to fellowship with GOD.