Faith, what is it? Does it work?

There are many in our country today who wonder at and ask these questions. Do you have an answer for them? In the book of James, he wrote that “Faith without works is dead”. This is one of the prevailing truths of the Christian faith but do we put it into practice today, in the 21st century?

Many would say that the church doesn’t do anything for their communities. Is this true in America? I do know of churches that help others in their community. Big churches and small churches, they all help in the way that they can. The church that came to life a few hundred years after our Lord’s resurrection did far more that we do. They did not rely on the government to help others, they did it. They took care of orphans, widows, those in need and others themselves, from what the church could do and from their own pockets!

The work that could be done by Christians today far exceeds what the early church could do but we don’t. Why? Are we waiting for someone else to do it? Are we waiting for permission? Jesus told his followers to go and do likewise meaning to do what He had been doing and more! So, why isn’t the church doing that today?

We give money to missions and to people who have lost their homes but what about the homeless, the sick who don’t have insurance, those who are less fortunate than us regardless of their circumstances? Our faith and belief in Jesus can save us individually but what about the work needed to get things done to show others our faith?

I have faith that a house can be built with the right tools and material. I also have faith that seeds planted will produce a garden and vegetables but if I don’t do anything, my faith will not produce those results on its own. The church is supposed to be the “body of Christ” in these times and yet if our faith doesn’t have works to go with it, no one will recognize us as any different from anyone else will they?

Just something to think about.