Doctrinal Differences: James vs. Paul

Spread throughout the 13 books that Paul wrote in the New Testament is the doctrine that salvation is based on “faith alone.” Appearing to be in opposition is James 2:17 which states that “faith without works is dead.” James was the brother of Jesus. He also was an early leader of the Jerusalem Church during the Apostolic Age. Christianity teaches that James, along with three others named in the New Testament as “brothers” of Jesus, were not the biological children of Mary, the mother of Jesus, but were possibly cousins of Jesus, or step-brothers from a previous marriage of Joseph.

James explains his position with this explanation in James 2:14-26. “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?

Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

In opposition to James, Paul wrote in Romans 3:27-4:5. “What is left for us to brag about? Not a thing! Is it because we obeyed some law? No! It is because of faith. We see that people are acceptable to God because they have faith, and not because they obey the Law (Mosaic Law). Does God belong only to the Jews? Isn’t he also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, he is! There is only one God, and he accepts Gentiles as well as Jews, simply because of their faith. Do we destroy the Law by our faith? Not at all! We make it even more powerful. Well then, what can we say about our ancestor Abraham? If he became acceptable to God because of what he did, then he would have something to brag about. But he would never be able to brag about it to God. The Scriptures say, ‘God accepted Abraham because Abraham had faith in him.’ Money paid to workers isn’t a gift. It is something they earn by working. But you cannot make God accept you because of something you do. God accepts sinners only because they have faith in him.”

In Galatians 5:6, Paul reconciles the difference between his doctrine of faith and James’ doctrine of works by writing that “faith must work through love.” Consequently, the outgrowth of genuine faith is the good works it produces. Martin Luther, who started the Protestant Reformation in the 1500s, said that the book of James should be “ripped out of the Bible.” Luther said that because of his feeling of inadequacy — driven by his desire to earn salvation by being a better person. Likewise, James emphasizes the need to put faith into action.

HHJ News