A Call to Action

HomeGeneralA Call to Action
09
Sep '21

A Call to Action

09
Sep '21
Written by Ahnya Evinger

Faith and Deeds

14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

 

When I look at James 2:14-19, I consider all of the Christians I have encountered in name only, the self-proclaimed Christ followers whose actions don’t align with their words. The promises of prayer without the hands and feet of Jesus. But the reality is that to someone else, the hypocrite that comes to mind might be me.

 

When our actions do not align with our words that Christ is our Lord and Savior, we hurt others. We may even become a hindrance in their faith journey to discover who Jesus truly is. Becoming a Christ follower is not standing on the beach with our toes dipped in the water; it is diving into an ocean of love with trust. When we commit to discipleship, we submit ourselves to be transformed by the Holy Spirit. That’s the greatest testimony others often see.

 

I married a man who grew up in a church, but all he saw as an impressionable youth were people whose actions did not align with the scriptures being preached. He acknowledged that faith in God is great for some people, but he did not want to be a part of a church. He did not stop me from attending, but he was not going to prioritize going with me. He committed to attending church once or twice a year, on holidays, to support my family.

 

Then, our home flooded. The Ohio River swallowed our first floor, and we did not know where to even begin. That is when Jesus showed up. Through the members of this congregation, my husband met Jesus. A dozen or so people from church arrived at our home on the first day the waters receded, taking a boat to reach us. They told us they were thinking about us and would pray for us. But they backed those words up with action. They began working alongside us to gut out our home. That natural disaster was catastrophic to my physical home, but it was transformational to my spiritual home. Because this congregation answered the call to action to show their faith in Jesus with their deeds, my husband’s faith has been renewed. He attends church every week, even when I am out of town. He shows up to a hospital to sit with family while their loved one is in surgery. He serves others because through others’ service, Jesus showed up in his life.

 

Our words and actions when misaligned have the power to drive people away, but when we allow the Holy Spirit to transform us and align our actions and words with the heart of Jesus, people discover Jesus on a new, personal level. Will you answer the call to action to submit yourself to the transformational power of the Holy Spirit and follow Jesus with your words and actions?

One Response to “A Call to Action”

  1. William Schuppert says:
    September 9, 2021 at 1:51 pm

    To call yourself a christian are easy words to say. To live a christian life is often challenging. When you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, Satan will throw the book at you with all kinds of temptations and lies. The bible tells us to TRY THE SPIRITS to determine if the message you’re are receiving is from God Or from satan. We must ask God’s Holy Spirit to guide our thinking, our words and our actions.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

^