Shabbat Shalom everyone. I would like you all to open your Bibles please today and turn with me please to the book of Yaakov, the book of James. In the Brit HaChadasha, in the New Covenant, James. Today we continue in our study of the book of James, the book of Yaakov, in the second chapter. And we are going to deal with a very practical part of the book of Yaakov, the book of James. You see, this Hebrew man, the half-brother of our Lord Yeshua, Jesus the Messiah, was writing because he knew that there were certain needs among the brethren, the Achim, the Jewish brethren who believe in Yeshua the Messiah who are scattered abroad among the nations of the world Jewish believers in Yeshua the Messiah and he was writing to them because he wanted to help them to be practical in their walk with the Lord Yeshua the Messiah so he wrote to them this very practical letter in fact you will notice that Yaakov, that is James he's writing and he's speaking straightforward he doesn't beat around the bush he doesn't talk.

Merely theologically though he does but he's very practical and I think you and I will admit as we are studying this kind of book the book of Jacob the book of James you will notice how practical he is and how many lessons you and I can learn from this book and today's message is really title faith prove itself through works if you say that you are a believer if I say that I'm a believer in the Lord Jesus the Messiah it's not a sufficient only to say I believe without an evidence of this in our day-by-day living we know it very well sometimes we use words but when it's come to our real practical day-by-day living for the Lord, we know very well that we fail drastically.

So today we are going to begin with verse 14, James 2, Yaakov chapter 2, verses 14 to 26. And please follow me as I'm reading those verses. And so we read, what does it profit my. Brethren though a man say he has 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 does it profit? Even so faith If it has no works Is dead being alone Yea men may say Thou hast faith and I have works Show me thy faith without thy works and I will show thee my faith by my works.

Thou believest that there is one God, thou doest well that demons also believe and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar seest thou how faith wroughteth with his works and by works was faith made perfect and the Scripture was fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness and he was called a friend of God Ye see, then, how that by works man is justified, and not by faith only. Likewise also was not Rachav the Harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?

For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. I'm going to stop here. In this portion, there is so much material here. I really do not know how to even begin, but by the grace of God, I trust that the Lord will help me in this ministry meeting. This is very practical. If there is any one of us that is doubting here, That it does not speak to each and every one of us this passage that Yaakov, that James is really sharing here with the 12 tribes, the Hebrews of the 12 tribes, believers that are scattered abroad the nations of the world.

We have to really make sure that this is really speaking to our own hearts because we know many times that we who believe in Yeshua the Messiah, we are oftentimes not practicing what we know in theory, what we know in our hearts. We're not really practicing it day by day in our lives as believers, as messianic believers, as Christians, as believers in our Lord Jesus the Messiah. So really what we really have here in these verses 14 to 26, James, that is Yaakov, is now dealing with the importance of practical life of the believer. If you say that you believe in Yeshua, there must be an evident that you really belong to Yeshua the Messiah.

If there is not a change in one's life who claimed that he believed in Jesus, in our Lord Jesus the Messiah, then immediately a question may arise whether this person is altogether have accepted the work that Yeshua have done for him or for her on the tree, Now what Yaakov does in this passage, he is really taking the words that Yeshua spoke on the Sermon on the Mount some years earlier before he died on the cross, on the tree. And I want you to turn for a moment to Matthew chapter 7 for a second. If you remember Yeshua, when he was ministering among our own nation Israel, and he was there in the area that is called the Galil, Galilee.

And there he went on a mountain up high and he ministered to the multitude that were right below. And we read in chapter 7 and verse 21 where Yeshua said unto the multitude that were there gathering around him. And he said unto them in verse 21, he says, Not everyone that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of God or kingdom of heaven. But he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say unto me, in that day, Lord, Lord, Adon, Adon, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name have cast out demons, and in thy name have done many wonderful works?

Then will I profess unto them, he says, I never knew you, depart from me ye that work iniquity. In other words, what Yeshua have anticipated, when he's going to say that in the future day, Many will come to him and are going to say, Adon, Adon, Lord, Lord, didn't we do all these things in your name? And as they listed this here, haven't we done, we prophesied in your name, we have cast out demons in your name, we have done many things in your name. Lord, haven't we done it? And the Lord will have to tell them, notice he says to them, I never knew you.

Not that I used to know you, and now I don't know you anymore, but there was never a beginning. The seed was not really sown in the heart of this person, and grown, and a new life had begun, because that person never knew that Yeshua, that Jesus, is Lord. Never accepted Him as the Messiah, as His or her Lord and Savior. That's why it is so important for us as believers in Yeshua, when we preach the gospel to make sure that people understand the importance of faith in Yeshua the Messiah because salvation is by grace through faith in the person and the work of what the Lord Jesus the Messiah have done for us.

And so I remember years ago when I used to hand out trucks in the city of New York and some people we got to talk to them and there were vendors and I never forget it i would tell him listen what do you think of Jesus of Yeshua some of them were Jewish some of them were not Jewish and i remember very well when some of them said what about the Lord do you want to accept the Lord as your Savior right here and now there is an opportunity for you to become born from above to have your sins forgiven and accept the Lord and some of them i remember very clearly have prayed with us to accept the Lord but the moment that we have left they were.

Looking at us and laughing at us we succeeded to trick them we told them that we believe in Jesus in Yeshua but really it was just a trick we have tricked them we really didn't mean business with the Lord what the lesson that i have learned from this at this time is that someone can play the fool and think that he's going to trick God as if God doesn't know our hearts as if God we're going to come in somehow into heaven in some other ways and we have tricked God as if we said to him I believe but never made the Lord Jesus truly the Lord of our life saying Lord I'm a sinner I need you to forgive my sins I deserve to go to eternal separation from God and you have sent your dear son Israel's Mashiach to save me for my sins and Lord I'm accepting you Lord for what you have done for me true salvation is simply by faith but if there is true faith there will also be evidence.

Of works in the life of the believer a change will happen and you see this is exactly what Yaakov that is James is writing to these 12 to believers among the 12 tribes of our people Israel who were scattered abroad and he began by saying to them in those verses by dealing with the importance of having true faith which works not merely saying I believe but believing which will be evident in the life of the believer so James is answering to a question that will be what kind of faith really saves and in those verses 14 to the end of the chapter James is answering the question by explaining that there are three kinds of faith and only one of them is really a saving faith he explained this here there is a faith which is dead verses 14 15 16 and 17 there is a faith which is a demonic faith verses 18 and 19 and there is a faith which is a living faith verses 20 to verse 26 that's how he break for us this passage.

In the Scripture that we have read today so let's begin brothers and sisters let's talk a little bit about this today first of all i want you to notice he began in verse 14 and yakov is saying to the brothers he's writing to them of course and i want you to notice he used the word if a man say you notice as it says in verse 14 what does it profit my brethren though a man say he has faith and have not works can faith save him or in other words let me say it this way can this kind of faith save him and I want to highlight this thought here a man say apparently perhaps it's very possible because he's writing to them and he called them my brethren Achim Shaliv apparently they were his brethren he knew that they have accepted Yeshua the Messiah but maybe somebody is going to come among them and they are going to say notice a man say a person might come and say to you something like that oh yes I believe.

But there is no evidence of works in his or her life and he asked the question can this kind of faith really save you know somebody is going to come and say well just like those vendors that I remember from years ago in the city of New York. They said, oh yes, let me say the sinner's prayer. I'm going to repeat after you. Repeat, Jesus, I'm a sinner. I want you to come into my life and I want you to be my Lord and my Savior. And then you say these words and then in your life, you really haven't had a change in your life.

You haven't accepted him really into your own heart, into your own life. You haven't invited him to your own life in order to change you. And he asked the question, can that kind of faith really save? And the answer is, no. We cannot fool God. We cannot say to God, I believe, but really does not have a truly new birth, new life. The seed that had been planted in the heart and the conscience of the person who accepted Yeshua will germinate and will grow and there will be a change. Now, it doesn't mean that we don't sin and fall. It doesn't mean that we don't fail at times and so on, but the pattern of life ought to change.

The desire of the heart ought to change. We will stumble, we will fall, just like David of old, and Abraham of old, and Moses of old, and the New Testament men, including Paul, who himself said, I am the chief of sinners. The things that I want to do, this I don't do, and the things that I don't want to do, this I do, all wretched men, that I am, he said in Romans chapter 7. And so faith that is real and genuine will have evidence that it will work. And so the question that he raises up, can this kind of faith really save? What does it profit, my brethren, when a man say he hath faith and have not works?

Can this kind of faith save him? He actually knows the answer that they will give him. Yaakov, the answer is no. We know this Yaakov. We know this James. The answer is no, because faith in Yeshua, the Messiah, must be real. It might be appropriated to our own hearts. And we can say with that man of all, he says, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. I deserve to be judged, and you love me. Send your son the Mashiach to save me for my sins thank you for giving your son the Messiah Yeshua for me so in the next verses 15 and 16 he presents before the brethren an illustration and you know I love the way he does his teaching Yaakov he gives you an illustration to help you to understand the theology he's very practical but he wants us to understand theology by practical lifestyle and notice this illustration in verse 15 and 16 he's speaking about the person who have a need and he says look and see if his need was met if a brother or sister be naked and destitute of daily food and one of you say unto them depart in peace and be warmed and filled notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body, what doth it profit?

He gives an illustration, and he says, if one brother or sister will come into your midst, and he will have, as it says here in verse 15, naked and destitute of daily food, hungry. And you come and you say to him or to her, oh, brother or sister, he says, it's a Hebraic expression, Lechu le shalom, go in peace. Oh, go in peace. Be warmed and be filled. Nevertheless, ye give them not those things which are needful for the body. What does it profit? It's very practical. He says if somebody is going to come and he or she will have really serious need in our midst, are we going to tell them, Lechu le shalom, go in peace.

And then we don't help them? At least to meet some initial need they may have, but sending them away naked and unable to take care of themselves with no food to be able to eat, is that right? He's asking. He says, what does it profit? Oh, you say that you believe in Yeshua the Messiah and you belong to him and claim that you're going to go to heaven one day to be with him, but you don't assist in this very practical need that exists in this moment. What does it profit, brothers and sisters? And you notice he called them my brethren. My dear, beloved brethren.

He many times used the word Achim, Echai, my brothers and sisters. You know, this is very real, very practical. This illustration that he presented before them, it's very, very interesting. What does that prophet, if you are going to tell them that you can carry on, just go lechu le shalom, but you don't meet their need? That's not practical Christianity. That's not practical Messiah following. It's not practical because this kind of faith which does not show it's evident by works is not that which Yeshua would want to see in the life of the people of God. And so he is presenting the need there, the situation, and then he's saying if you are acting in such a way you are really not meeting the need of this individual.

That is not practical faith. Just turn with me to Galatians chapter 5, in verse 6, we read there, For in Yeshua the Messiah neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love. In other words, faith, it's not important whether one is Jewish or non-Jewish, circumcised or uncircumcised, but what is important in the life of Yeshua the Messiah among the people of God is that faith will work itself in the way the brethren love one another you remember what we read in John 13 Yeshua said to the disciples in the upper room in the city of Yerushalayim he said to them by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if you have love one towards another in other words practical love not only an embracing affection in love but also a practical love the way we treat each other and help each other and support each other here's another verse turn to the epistle of first John chapter 3 and verses 17 and 18 look at this but whoso has this world's good and seeth his brother have a need and shut us up his bowels of compassion from him how dwelleth the love of God in him my little children let us not love in word neither in tongue.

But in deed and in truth you see what he is really saying if we shut our bowels to a person that have a need to that extent that we don't some small way assist a person how can we say that the love of God dwells in one in him or in her see James is very practical beloved brothers and sisters and really speaking every one of us can say Lord i know i failed in that myself i don't need to look at somebody else i know myself that i failed this and help me Lord to be more practical we don't want have a dead faith we want to have a living faith a faith that is evident in our day by day as we walk with the Lord so he challenged them in verse 14 of James chapter 2 Yaakov chapter 2 he gave them an illustration in verses 15 and 16 and then in verse 17 he's saying to them this kind of faith is really dead.

It's lifeless. Look at that. And again, I'm back to James and to our chapter and to chapter 2. And there I'm reading now in verse 17 where Yaakov is saying to them in verse 17, Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead being alone. Alone, there's no practical walk and practical movement on the part of the child of God or person who claimed to be a child of God. He says, faith, if it has no works, it's being dead, being by itself. That expression here, being alone, can be really said, being by itself. There's no such a thing of true faith in Yeshua the Messiah without an evident of that in a practical way.

Now, some people say oftentimes that Yaakov, that is James, is contradicting the teaching of the Apostle Paul. Now, let me remind you that it is really not so at all. Both of them were Hebrew believers, Yaakov and Shaul, James and Paul. Both of them were saved by grace and by grace alone. But Yaakov was dealing with one issue while Paul was dealing with another issue. Paul, by the way, wrote later, after Yaakov wrote his epistle As we have been already talking about this epistle One of the first epistles that were written In about 45 to 50 AD was written by James, by Yaakov The half-brother of Yeshua, the Messiah Paul wrote his epistle later In fact, Paul was saved later, if you remember Paul have accepted Yeshua on the way to Damascus much later when Yeshua was already glorified while James already have accepted his half-brother because he was born to Miriam as well with Yosef but he also accepted the Messiah but prior to the Apostle Paul long before Paul have accepted Yeshua in fact Yeshua came to reveal himself after the resurrection to James but when it's come to the apostle Paul, he, on the way to Damascus, he said to him, Shaul, Shaul, why are you persecuting me?

He was already glorified. He was already in heaven. He was already in the right hand of the majesty on high. And Shaul said to him, what will thou have me to do, Lord? And he. Accepted the messiahship of Jesus. And so we have to see that Paul and James were not contradicting each other but Paul was dealing with those who thought that in order for them to be saved they have to work and work and work and then what he said to them by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified he says you need to be justified by grace i is saved through faith and that is not of yourself it is a gift of God that any man should boast Ephesians chapter 2 verses 8 and 9 so Paul was dealing with those who thought that they can earn salvation by doing good deeds or by even seeking to abide by the law to be saved and Paul says no by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified only by faith but James is saying if you are justified by faith then works will be evidence in your life and so you notice that it's like i think one brother said it's like this.

They are not standing one against each other with sword trying to attack each other but the opposite they have one back against each other and they are fighting two different battles Paul is dealing with those who thought that through works they're going to be saved and he says no by grace are you saved through faith and even this is not of yourself it is the gift of God James is saying what does the prophet a man if he say that he has faith and he has no works can this kind of faith save him the answer is no and that's why he gives us the illustration in verses 14 to 17 and he says here it is brethren this is a faith which is dead no life and that's kind of a faith it does not save anyone and that's why it is so important for everyone that hear me now to make sure that i believe in Yeshua the Messiah because of what he has done for me i need him.

He died for me he paid a price for me he was judged by a holy and a righteous God that i a sinner will be saved if i will accept him and embrace him and if i did you will see a change in your life there will be a change in one's life and the person that once have accepted Yeshua the Messiah all of a sudden his appetites are different he or she want to live for the Lord they want to read the Bible. They want to hear about Yeshua. They want to be with friends who are believers. There is an evident in their life that they became believers in Yeshua, the Messiah.

Will they fail in their life? Sure they will. Will they sin? If any man said that he have not sinned, he is a liar and the truth is not in him, John said. But they will not live a life in such a way. They will get up, they will confess repent and turn to him and their faith will be a faith that is living and not a. Dead faith as it's mentioned here in verses 14 15 16 and 17 and so Yaakov continue now he talked about faith which is dead and in verses 18 and 19 he is telling about another kind of faith what we would call it the demonic faith or faith of the demons of the fallen angels and I want you to read with me verses 18 and 19 and he's challenging them in verse 18 and he's saying to them yeah a man may say thou has faith and I have works show me thy faith without thy works and I will show thee my faith by my works thou believers that there is one God thou doest well the demons also believe and they tremble you see beloved brothers and sisters now Yaakov is moving on from dead faith to what we call a demonic faith he's really saying look he says in verse 18 again I want you to know that he used the word a man may say this is the second time he used this expression.

In verse 14 a man say in verse 18 a man may say and i want you to notice he doesn't say that this is among the brethren to whom he wrote but he's saying someone might come and men may say not you brethren but a man may say to you these things and though this man may say you have faith and i have works show me thy faith without thy works and i will show thee my faith by my works you see it's very interesting how can we prove that we really belong to Yeshua how can we really prove everybody say oh i believe in God have you heard this expression Actually, as far as we know, the whole world believes.

Everybody believes. The Hindus believe. God, many gods. The Muslims believe. Everybody believes. Everybody says, I have faith. I believe in God. Some who believe in themselves as being gods. Everybody believes. You know God gave us the ability to believe in the need to believe but we have to believe in the right person we have to believe in the word of God we have to believe in the right person we don't have faith in faith we have a faith in a person we have a faith in the living God and the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob the one who sent the Messiah Yeshua to this world and therefore it's not sufficient to say oh i believe well your faith should show itself in a practical way that what he's saying so in verse 18 if a man may say you have faith and i have works so show to me your faith without works is it possible you can't show somebody your faith without an evidence in your life that you really believe in the person of Yeshua the Messiah and the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob it has to be evident in the life of the believer it must be a change have to happen.

A desire to live for the Lord has to happen it must happen with all the failure that we may have but a change must happen and so he continued in verse 18b and he says you know what you show me thy faith without works and I will show thee my faith by my works. The important is that if a person is truly believed in Yeshua the Messiah his life will be evident in some small way. The words we say, the manner in which we conduct ourselves the desires that we have in our heart the appetites that we have in our hearts for the things of the Lord we would desire to read the word of God we desire to pray and to sing to him we desire to be helpful to assist the people of God there got to be a change in the life of a person to claim that he or she belong to God and have faith in God so now in verse 19 he says listen even the demons believe in God it says in verse 19 thou believe that there is one God you say well the demons also believe and they even tremble but are they saved those are the fallen angels this word for demons simply mean angels that kept not the first estate that fail and disobeyed God.

Violated his command followed after Satan became what is known today as the demonic activity that happened throughout the ages in fact even today where we read in Ephesians chapter 6 for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers in a heavenly realm. In other words, the demons, the fallen angels are attacking the people of God, seeking to harm the things of the Lord, shooting these arrows at us at the places where we are at the time in a weakness point in order to cause us to stumble and to fall. Like Satan does, who beguile us. The devil beguile. You know, the devil is the one that is beguiling, that when we go through temptation, to tempt us, to cause us to fall and to stumble, that is the ministry, you might say, or the service of Satan and his demons.

And so he's saying, listen, even the demons, it says here in the King James, the devils, but there's only one devil, the rest of them are demons, fallen angels, it says the demons believe and they even tremble. Now, I want you to notice, and that's why it is important when you read a text to read its context because it says in verse 19 you believe that there is one God now you notice he's talking to Jewish believers why because it's only the people of Israel who believe that there is one God we just recited today here oh Israel the Lord our God the Lord is one we just recited this in Hebrew shema Israel Adonai eloheinu Adonai echad there is only one God the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob this is the living God the God of the universe the creator the upholder the sustainer there is only one God and Israel our people the nation of Israel were called to serve and to live for this one God and so he says you say that there is one God and you say well you do as well but he says even the demons believe in that one God and they even tremble but what they believe in that one God what they say about that one God never calls them.

To submit to him and instead of submitting to him they end up following the devil and doing the devil's work rather than God's work now look at this brothers and sisters I want you to just turn with me to Matthew chapter 8 and read with me from verse 28 Yeshua is ministering here in the land of Israel it says and when he this is Yeshua Jesus when he was come to the other side of the country of the gatherings there met him too possessed with demons they're coming out of the tombs exceeding fears so that no man might pass by that way look at this these are the two possessed by demons and the demons are really crying out and saying what have we to do with thee Jesus thou son of God are thou come thither to torment us before the time now I want you to notice that they knew who Yeshua was they knew that he was God the son the son of God they knew his name Yeshua you remember how they knew it when he was born Matthew 1 21.

The angels have declared you shall call his name Yeshua Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins the good angels knew about him the evil angels knew about him the good angels never failed they submitted to God but those fallen angels the demons they knew not only his name in his humanity they knew that he was God in his divine nature but they also knew that he's going to judge them one day that's why they said to him you come hither to torment us notice before the time well why did they say before the time because they knew very well that there is a coming day when Yeshua this Jesus this Yeshua who was rejected as the lamb of God at his first coming he is going to become the judge of this universe at his second coming when he's going to reign and rule at the end of the tribulation period he's going to judge this world in righteousness actually the whole tribulation period but at the end.

He is going to cast those that rejected God and rejected him into the lake of fire and they are going to be this also actually going to happen at the end of the millennial kingdom where you remember that the great white throne judgment where he is going to judge this world and he's going to cast Hades into the lake of fire why do you come to torment us before the time it's not the time yet they are saying to him the demons believe in God and they do tremble I'm just going to read another verse that I have before me in Mark chapter 1, verse 23 and verse 24, where we read these.

I'll read in verse 21, I'll read it. And they went into Kfar Nachum, and straightway on a Shabbat day, he entered into the synagogue, and he taught. And they were astonished at his doctrine, for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribe. And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit and he cried out and he said let us alone what have we to do with thee thou Jesus of Nazareth Yeshua of Nazareth are thou come to destroy us I know thee who thou art the holy one of God he is a man that had an unclean spirit a demon he knew who Yeshua was and he says i know you you are the holy one of God he recognized Yeshua as the holy one of God well but he was a demon he was a fallen angel a spirit and he's due to be judged in the coming days as the days will come and he recognized that Yeshua was the Messiah the son of God the holy one of God and yakov is saying to the brothers and sisters in verse 19 you know what even the demons believe they say that they have faith but they tremble you see they believe so this kind of demonic faith does not save the.

Demons or anybody else he's saying in verse 19 of our chapter and therefore after dealing with the dead faith in verses 14 to 17 in verses 18 and 19 he told them about a demonic type of faith that faith does not save either. The demons believe that there is one God and yet they themselves are lost, are eternally separated from God because they have fallen. See, the kind of good angels, you might say the angels who serve God, Michael and Gavriel and others, the cherubim and the seraphim and the angels who serve God's people, they are the ones who will be continuing to serve God. There will be the one who will say, worthy art thou, with the redeemed company who will sing, worthy is the Lamb, worthy is the Lamb.

But in this case, the demons have a faith that is unsavable. It's not a true faith, even though they believe they really are not able to be right with God any longer. Well now let's look at the final verses 20 to 26 here he's now describing before them a true living faith which really works that's the kind of faith he likes to see is evident is a faith that needs to be evident in the life of every believer and so he's now beginning in this verse 20 and again i want you to notice again he's talking about this man this time he says no or vain men. You remember?

In verse 14, a man say. In verse 18, a man may say. Now in verse 20, he's talking to this man who may say something and he's now going to give him a clear-cut explanation of what living faith is all about. Living faith does work. Evident in the life of a person. And so he's saying in verse 20, But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? This kind of faith that does not have an evident in itself in the life of this particular person, it's really dead, it is lifeless. The Greek word for dead here, nekros, which means lifeless. All vain men, I want you to know that faith without works has no life.

It's not real. It's not genuine. And so he began now in verses 21 to verse 26 to give us two additional illustrations in the life of two individuals. One of them was Hebrew. The other one was a Gentile. The first Hebrew man was Abraham, our father. The other one was Rahab. Notice, a Jew, you might say a Hebrew and a non-Hebrew, a male and a female. He's just presenting this before the brothers and sisters in these local areas to which he was writing to. And so he began, and in verses 21 to 24, Abraham's evidence of his faith was works in his life. Verse 21. Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness. And he was called the friend of God. Ye see then how that by works, man is justified and not by faith only. I want to underline the word only. Because of course a man is being justified only on the basis of faith. But if it is truly a real faith, it will be evident in his life, in his works. And so he's talking about Abraham. Again, to remind you, he's talking about the father of these Hebrews to whom he wrote.

Abraham, our father, he takes us back all the way to the years when God called Abraham to leave his family, to leave his father's house, to leave everything behind and to go into the land which God will show him of. And Abraham was faithful and he went and he went all the way and he came into the land of Canaan, even though he had some laps along the way. And so he says, look, Abraham our father, in verse 21, faith was seen by him willing to offer his son Isaac. You remember when Abraham, can you imagine when God said to him in Genesis chapter 22, he said, take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest Isaac, and take him to the Mount Moriah, the mount which I will tell thee of, and offer him there for me as a sacrifice.

Can you imagine what God have expected from this man Abraham to take his son, to offer him as a sacrifice upon an altar on that Mount Moriah? Well, Abraham, you could see the evidence of the trust in God. Now I know that if God is going to tell you and I today, you take your son that you love or your daughter, And you bring her or him to a certain mountain and actually sacrifice her or him for me, you know what, that will be like a knife in our hearts. We love him. And you imagine Abraham loved Isaac so much. Isaac was the son of the one that was promised, the promised son of Abraham.

And he waited for so many years. And God said to him, in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And now he's telling him to take the very same one that he made promises to him through. And he says, now take this very one and I want you to offer him for me on that mountain as a sacrifice for me. And Abraham faithfully, there's a chapter that we can read, a beautiful chapter 22 of Genesis, where Abraham took one step at a time. He took Isaac. He took the knife. He took the fire. And he went all the way to Mount Moriah. And there he was ready to offer Isaac, Yitzchak, his son, upon that altar as a sacrifice for God.

The evident of his faith in God was his works. He was willing to do so. Then he continued in verse 22, by his works, faith was really completed. He says, Seest thou how faith wrought with his works and by works was faith made perfect or completed? Look, he's saying to them, look at the evidence in the life of Abraham. He believed, but it was evident in what he has done in his life. Now that is an extreme. Now God, thank God he does not ask for us to do such a thing. But what he's really saying, look at the evidence. In the life of this man by the name of Abraham.

And then in verse 23 he said, The Scripture had been fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness and he was called the friend of God. He's quoting Isaiah 41 in verse 8 where Abraham was called the lover of God. The word friend should be lover or have Elohim, Not really friend, but a lover of God in the Hebrew text when you read it. And so you noticed it. Abraham's faith did bring fruit. And the evident was when he was willing to offer his son Isaac. Now some people have a problem, of course, with this text. Not realizing that verse 21 speaks about one period of time in Abraham's history.

And verse 23 speaks of another period of time in Abraham's history. You notice that in verse 23, where it says, And Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. That takes us back to Genesis chapter 15, when Abraham didn't have Isaac as yet. He was about 80 years of age. And God promised him he was waiting for the birth of the son, and there was no son born, And he said, God, why don't you take my servant and make of him a promise for me? And God says, no, I'm going to give you a son later on. And so what we see, Genesis chapter 15 is linked with verse 23.

But in verse 21, it's much later. In verse 21, it's really Genesis chapter 22. Years have passed by. Perhaps he was at about, imagine, Isaac was born when Abraham was 99, actually 100 years old, Isaac was born. By the time he was going to take Isaac and to offer him on Mount Moriah, he must have been at about 120, 130 years of age. Actually, Abraham died when he was 175 years old. So years have passed by from Genesis 15 to Genesis chapter 22. In Genesis 15, Abraham believed God and God had reckoned to him as righteous. Genesis chapter 22, Abraham's righteousness, Abraham's true faith was evident in what he was willing to do for God. That's the lesson that we learn here.

And it is illustrated very nicely here in the life of Abraham. Beautiful to see, beloved brothers and sisters. Turn for a second to Hebrews chapter 11. All this 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews was written to Jewish believers of 1st century. And the writer wanted to show them that every believer of Old Testament period of time had practical faith. He was not only saying he is a believer, he was practically practicing that. Hebrews chapter 11, and I'm reading in verse 8. By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, he obeyed. And he went out not knowing whither he went.

By faith he sojourned the land of promise. He dwelt in tabernacle with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs of him of the same promise. And then we read in verse 11 about his wife. Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed. Notice, the people of faith, it was evident in their lives. It was not merely a say-so faith, it was an active faith. It was faith that works, as we read concerning the life of Abraham in verses 21 to 24. And I'm back to James 2. In verse 24, he says, Ye see then how that by works man is justified and not by faith only. James Yacob is emphasizing works importance.

If you really believe, there ought to be a change in your life. And so finally, he's talking about another person. And we know very well this person, and we just had this text read to us today in our reading, Joshua chapter 2, a woman by the name of Rahab, Rahab. And so we read of her in verse 25. Rahab, the evident of faith was with her as well. It says in verse 25 Likewise also Rahab, the harlot justified by works when she had received the messengers and had sent them out on another way you remember what we just had read for us in Joshua chapter 2 and how when Rahab heard about Israel coming to the promised land she said to these spies who came to her house she says we heard of your God and we trembled and now she wanted to believe she believed in the living God and when those two spies came there she hid them not allowing the king to capture them the king of Yericho of Jericho she hid them and then when the soldiers of the king have left she sent those spies another way and they made her a promise in the chapter that we read today.

They made her promise that when Israel is going to come into the promised land her family will be spared because her faith really worked she showed her faith by the manner in which she acted and she said i know that the Lord had given to you this land Joshua chapter 2 verse 9 and that your terror is fallen upon us and that all the inhabitants of the land feigned because of you for we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the red sea and so on for you she became believer in the God of Israel but the proof of her faith was her works when she hid the servants that were sent by Joshua to spy the lamb and so we read of her also in the book of Hebrews as well we read by faith Hebrews 11 31 the harlot Rahab perish not with them that believe not when she had received the spies with peace with shalom she have accepted them she have hid them and she proved that she believed in the God of Israel and therefore she.

Was spared well brothers and sisters James conclude this session by saying this and I want to conclude with this as well verse 26 he concludes and he says for as the body without the spirit is dead so faith without works is dead also you remember that when we go sometime we're going to a funeral service and we see a body of a person that once was among us and when the spirit is no longer in him he or she are no longer alive they are dead that's the way Yaakov is ending this discussion here he says just the same like a body without the human spirit is dead so faith without evidence without works is really dead and therefore he's encouraging the brothers and sisters by challenging them he says don't have a dead faith, don't have a demonic faith, but have a living faith that works.

Prove it in your life, he's saying to them. Show it in your attitude, in your conduct. And there is the way in which God will find pleasure in the life of every one of us who have accepted Yeshua the Messiah. May the Lord help us, dear brothers and sisters, that we will show this in our day-by-day life that we really belong to our Lord Yeshua, the Messiah.