I never said that we are justified by our works. If we have faith, we will have works. They go hand in hand if our faith is alive and not dead. Jesus talked about works, it is very evident in Matthew 25. He said for those that did not feed the poor, clothe the naked, give drink to the thirsty, visit the sick and those in prison, they were cast into hell.
If you love someone, you show them by what you do for them, correct? You show your love to that person by doing things. If we love God, how much more are we to do this? Are we not to do any works at all? What if someone said that they loved you, but sat around all day, did not help with the children, cleaning, bills, did not even help bring in an income when they were capable of doing so (I know there are instances where a person cannot work). They did not even tell you that they loved you. If someone asked if s/he loved you, they would say "yes" but that would be the end of it. Would you eventually wonder if they really loved you at all?
God is our creator. I want to show God my love for Him and that is through works, through the work that He wants me to do. He doesn't want us to sit by and give lip service about how much we believe in Him but then refuse to do anything that He wants us to do.
A question. Is your faith an intellectual faith or is it a faith of action? Maybe we need to define what faith is first. For me, faith is defnintely action. It is beyond intellectual thought. Faith of action must have action. Works. Now when I say works, I don't mean go around boasting of what you do, because that means you want all the honor and glory (IMO). Show God how much you love Him. Do His will, do His work that He has asked us to do.
Yours in Christ,
Jen