Title James 2:12-26
Content Main text: James 2:12 -26
*** Love is the fulfillment of all laws. (Verses 12-13)
Whereas most of the law's commandments limit and control people, the law of love sets people free. Since this law of love is the fulfillment of all laws, those who want to keep the law must examine whether they have love and mercy in themselves. No matter how well you keep the law, if you don't have love, it becomes a law that is just a shell, but you cannot receive approval from the Lord. Of course, we must not fall into the situational ethic that any action can be ethically justified if we act out of love, but the importance of love, the core of the law, cannot be overemphasized.
*** Definition of Living Faith (verses 14-19)
Faith is the acceptance of the unseen as real, and saving faith is in contrast to the act of keeping what the law requires. However, if these basic truths are misunderstood, we can think of faith as merely accepting an abstract concept or thinking that we can have faith that leads to salvation even if we exclude concrete actions from our lives. However, the faith that the apostle James says is not only conceptually accepting God but also concretely obeying God's will, and that obedience must be expressed not only in words but in concrete actions toward people. It is not life itself. Am I not limiting my belief in my thoughts by saying I have faith?
*** People of the Living Faith (verses 20-26)
Abraham and Rahab were saved not because their moral behavior was perfect, but because they had faith in God. However, that belief was not only settled in their heads, but it was manifested in concrete actions such as offering their son to the altar with fatherly love, or saving the spies while risking their lives. As such, when faith is embodied in the field of life, that faith becomes complete. A person who believes in God should be able to give up on himself because of God, but his renunciation is bound to appear in concrete life anyway. Am I giving up on myself before God enough to show my faith? Are you holding something in your hand and mistakenly believing that you believe in God?