Faith without deeds..

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EndlessGrace

Guest
#1
#1
It is written "As the body without spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." (James 4:26)

My question is: what do you think modern day "deeds" would be? Volunteering at a soup kitchen, donating to charity, etc.? I would like to step out of my comfort zone and really touch people with the love of Christ.

Thoughts & suggestions please :)
 
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Adrianv125

Senior Member
#2
Jan 17, 2011
567
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#2
Deeds means fruit of the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 (New King James Version) = But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

External deeds are worthless without the Holy Spirit. Because you can do external things without the fruit of the spirit. Before we can ever please God with our actions, we must first live Holy Before Him. That means being truly born again. Also means we stop being practitioners of sin, because those who practice sin are not of God. Once the Holy Spirit has taken residence in you He'll prepare you and equip you and make you grow. Once this happens and once you have sought after Him enough to understand what true sane doctrine is, then He will use you. We must first know the God we are serving before we can serve Him.

God Bless you!
 
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Adrianv125

Senior Member
#3
Jan 17, 2011
567
12
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#3
And as for external deeds... Go to the place where you congregate and serve. We can even glorify God by cleaning. Serve Him and don't serve to have favor or praise before men :)
 
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EndlessGrace

Guest
#4
#4
Thanks! :) God bless you too
 
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Forgiven66

Guest
#5
#5
I would compare James 2:14-17 with I John 3:16-18, I think this make it abundantly clear that the deeds is true love of the Spirit (Romans 5:5). For we read that love covers sin (Proverbs 10:12, I Peter 4:8), Paul states without love "...I am nothing. " I Corinthians 13:2

Galatians 5:6
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
Love is the true work of faith.
 
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EndlessGrace

Guest
#6
#6
So basically the Bible is saying if you believe in Christ Jesus, you have to walk in love (and other fruits of the spirit) and not just say you believe in Him and go to church while your heart is full of wordly darkness (fruits of a bad tree)? That makes sense. Doing good things for people would be a result of walking in love, but doing good things for people isn't what makes your faith alive, right? Because anyone can do something nice for someone. :)
 
resurrection33

resurrection33

Banned
#7
Dec 19, 2009
27,513
128
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#7
EndlessGrace said:
It is written "As the body without spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." (James 4:26)

My question is: what do you think modern day "deeds" would be? Volunteering at a soup kitchen, donating to charity, etc.? I would like to step out of my comfort zone and really touch people with the love of Christ.

Thoughts & suggestions please :)
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My church provides many opportunities for service. The committees in my church have responsibilities. Musical people participate in the music ministry. There is visitation of the elderly. My church seems always to be asking people to volunteer to serve as Sunday school teachers and assistants. People volunteer to provide weekly refreshments after church services and work in the kitchen during church meals and potlucks. One man volunteers to plow the church parking lot out after a heavy snowstorm. People volunteer to be greeters or ushers for Sunday morning services.
 
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Adrianv125

Senior Member
#8
Jan 17, 2011
567
12
18
#8
YOU GOT IT RIGHT endlessgrace!! That is correct :)
 
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Ramon

Guest
#9
#9
EndlessGrace said:
It is written "As the body without spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." (James 4:26)

My question is: what do you think modern day "deeds" would be? Volunteering at a soup kitchen, donating to charity, etc.? I would like to step out of my comfort zone and really touch people with the love of Christ.

Thoughts & suggestions please :)
Click to expand...
AMEN AMEN AMEN!!
 
VW

VW

Banned
#10
Dec 22, 2009
4,579
9
0
#10
Jesus gave us a new commandment, because the old was fading away. This new commandment is to love one another, even as He has loved us.

I know of no way to fulfill this commandment other than by abiding in Jesus,'being filled with His Spirit.

As we live in Him, we find ourselves being perfected in love. If we are not living in Him, we not only do not manifest His love in the world, we are not being perfected in His love.

We sin against God, but the sin is against those Jesus died for. This is why perfect love casts out fear, because perfect love will not sin against another, and so there is no fear of punishment.

God is love. Jesus is the light of the world. The judgment is that men loved the darkness rather than the light, and did not come to the light because their deeds were evil, that is, not of love. But everyone who loves the light comes to the light in order that their deeds might be manifest as having be wrought, or created in, God.

God created good deeds before the foundations of the world were laid, that we should walk in them. So where did the deeds come from?

In Christ,
 
Red33

Red33

Banned
#11
Jun 24, 2010
3,822
19
0
#11
EndlessGrace said:
It is written "As the body without spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." (James 4:26)

My question is: what do you think modern day "deeds" would be? Volunteering at a soup kitchen, donating to charity, etc.? I would like to step out of my comfort zone and really touch people with the love of Christ.

Thoughts & suggestions please :)
Click to expand...
The greatest way to touch people with the love of God is to love them and give them the life of Christ that has been given to you through the cross. There are many ways that we can serve but we have been redeemed and given the life of Christ to give it to others as the gospel. They need to hear in their ear that God loves them and shed His blood for them so they could be reconciled to God and be forgiven and cleansed of all sin when they believe. They need to hear the reason for why Christ died, was buried and rose again on the third day.

To bring the good news of the gospel to the ear of the sinner is the greatest expression and gift of the love of God. It is an endeavor and labor of love and something that we have to purpose to do in our heart. We need to plan and make time to preach the gospel. For that gospel will give them three eternal gifts by grace that will never leave them or forsake them and they are... the gift of God's righteousness (Rom 5:17,18), the gift of eternal life (Rom 6:26) and the gift and promise of the Holy Spirit (Gal 3:14, Eph 1:13) and they will be born again of the incorruptible seed of the word of God (1Pt 1:23). All of these things come from the one and only true God, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

We have been sanctified by the truth and Christ as our high priest is making intercession for us and and for those that believe upon Him through our word (Jn 17:20).
 
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