What does the phrase"faith without actions is not faith at all"mean?
Ive accepted Jesus as my savior,I go to church,I pray and read the bible.Are these the kind of actions the phrase talks about?
If not,please list some.
OK, but ... get ready.
Faith means relying. You're relying on God. Well, that's not just you "saying so." Nobody can rely on a ship to carry him over water, and then roll around on the poop deck like he's drowning in the water.
So what do we typically do if we really rely on God?
We're so grateful for His forgiveness. When we're not forgetful, we take opportunities to tell Him so. That's part of prayer. And if we think His forgiveness is real -- we have to believe HE is real, don't we? So we talk with Him closer than our closest friend, more deserving of our obedience than a perfect Parent. Mmm, that's part of prayer! (and there's more, but you get the point?)
Reading the Bible we're reading a letter from this closest Friend, this perfect Parent. We see where we came from -- what a mess we were. We see what He wants for us -- and it's freedom, not slavery! It's eternal life, not punishment! So all the more avidly we read to know more about what He says about Himself, what He says about us.
The Bible has challenges, too. God cares about more people than just me. If we believe in our forgiveness, we will forgive others of the things that have offended us -- they are so much smaller than we've offended Him. If we trust God, we try to experience His perfect commands, we continue to believe they're right. We struggle to understand and return to Him when we don't do what He wants, because He forgives us. More challenges: He tells us to give freely to others, because we've been given so much. It urges self-sacrifice, because God has sacrificed His Only-begotten Son ... It goes on.
But there's a reason for all this.
The Bible is about redemption -- it's not about laying out stiff requirements for us to reach. It's so easy to slip into the Bible as "stuff I gotta do!" But it's not about that. It's about receiving God's redemption (and how close that is! it cuts right into your soul!). Then from the Bible we find out how deep that redemption goes. With other believers we can see
how real our experience is. And then we spread that redemption among still others.
And that action is called "evangelism". Spreading the Gospel, the Good News.
So you see, the Bible, the Spirit, and your faith are all playing parts in this action and activity. Is all that action going to save you? No. It's
all a result of Who saves you. But the actions show you and grow you. They show you God is at work in you, even when you doubt. And they grow you. You see what's real about faith, and what was a cartoon of true faith, that was you when you were a child.
OK, I'm told I shell-shock people, but your questions -- oh, your questions are so doggone great! They break open the sky. I really hope for your growth in Christ, can I pray for you?
