The Narrow Path Ministries

In my opinion there are different types of works:

1) The works of Christ on the cross where he died and on the third day he rose again. This type of work produced and completed our salvation.

2) The works of the Holy Spirit. The works of the Holy Spirit are the ff: He convicts us of our sins, He leads us to do the right things, He gives us the ability to do the will of God, He tells us when to go right, left, straight or backwards.

3) Our works. This type of works is the result of the works that Christ and the Holy Spirit have done.Our works is our willingness ( to participate in the program of God. Again our willingness to believe is the result from the works that Christ and the Holy Spirit have done. Why are we willing to believe? We believe because of what we see, hear, smell, touch,read and feel ( emotion associated from the conviction of the Holy Spirit). Therefore we can not boast about this type of work because this work is simply the result from the finished works of Christ. When James said that without faith works is dead I believe he meant that without our willingness to participate our faith is not a true faith because we have not responded from the conviction of the Holy Spirit. I would also like to add that the conviction of the Holy Spirit produces faith in us but we still have the choice to reject that conviction.

The thief on the cross who was crucified together with Jesus Christ was convicted by the Holy Spirit of his sins. After the Holy Spirit convicted the thief, the thief responded with open heart ( faith) and asked Jesus to bring him in his Kingdom. And the finale is the death and resurrection of Christ in which no one can stop.

The works of the Holy Spirit are the ff:

Does "FF" = "following four"?

I recently heard an analogy that clarified my thinking on point 3. I'm not exactly sure where I heard it, but it's extremely likely that it was one of Steve's lectures. (I'm kind of overdosing on Steve's lectures these days.)

Anyway the analogy was this:
I believe that if I would get out and exercise more, and watch my diet a little more and made sure I got a more correct amount of sleep that my health would improve. I truly believe this. I'm convinced and convicted of it. However, unless I actively do something with this conviction, it really doesn't matter how strongly or correctly I believe it. It's not making any difference. It's a dead faith.

This analogy crystalized my thinking on the second chapter of James.

Probably not new stuff to you guys, but a helpful analogy for me.

Perry

Anyway the analogy was this:
I believe that if I would get out and exercise more, and watch my diet a little more and made sure I got a more correct amount of sleep that my health would improve. I truly believe this. I'm convinced and convicted of it. However, unless I actively do something with this conviction, it really doesn't matter how strongly or correctly I believe it. It's not making any difference. It's a dead faith.

Good thinking, Perry, but I'm not sure it works. Believing that certain things might be beneficial would be the "disposing means" to better health but the actual doing of the healthful habits would be the "efficient means". But the good works cited by James are not the "efficient means" of our salvation.

I thought the topic was "works". "A means to salvation" would be a different subject.

Perry

But the good works cited by James are not the "efficient means" of our salvation.

No, they are not the efficent means of our salvation; they are the evidence of our salvation, that is, they are the evidence that we are in the process of being saved from sin and the self-life.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
James 1:22

I think the analogy that Perry gave is excellent. I may hear and believe that exercise and diet will cause me to lose weight, but if I am not a "doer" of this word, I am not losing weight. Likewise, if I am not a doer of Christ's word, I am not being saved from sin.

What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? James 2:14

Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. James 2:18