What good is it, my brothers, if a man says he has faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? <...> Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. <...> Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.
what is the context of this?
(Jas 2:14) What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
(Jas 2:15) If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
(Jas 2:16) 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 doth it profit?
So 'save' in the context of these verses is about deliverance.. helping someone out. In regards to the individual.. this would be like saying God will help me without doing anything about the situation you are in. So the person isn't looking after themselves to allow God to work with them.
Faith can save someone eternally without works.. that is called entrusting your salvation with Jesus. It's not a work.. but a response to God tapping on your heart. Romans chapter 10 shows this.. John 3:16.. John 5:24.. Acts 2:21 etc..
This is what James is getting at:
Jas 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.
Anyway, I am going to study James some more to really get it. I know James doesn't contradict Paul when you read the context by studies I have done before.