The Faith of the Church

Pastor Stoos tackles what some consider the most controversial passage of the New Testament when James asks if faith without works is dead?
He shows that what James teaches about faith & works in NOT in conflict with the Apostle Paul, the salvation we find in the Gospels nor our great reformation creeds which rightly proclaim the truth of salvation by faith alone!
Pastor Stoos even quotes Martin Luther in defense of James arguing for an ‘active and energetic’ faith! James is concerned about practice and not just theory, calling upon the Biblical examples of Abraham and Rahab to show that ‘faith without works is dead.’
Q & A 86

Q. Since we have been delivered from our misery
by grace through Christ without any merit of our own,
why then should we do good works?

A. Because Christ, having redeemed us by his blood,
is also restoring us by his Spirit into his image, so that with our whole lives we may show that we are thankful to God for his benefits,1 so that he may be praised through us,2 so that we may be assured of our faith by its fruits,3 and so that by our godly living our neighbors may be won over to Christ.4

1 Rom. 6:13; 12:1-2; 1 Pet. 2:5-10
2 Matt. 5:16; 1 Cor. 6:19-20
3 Matt. 7:17-18; Gal. 5:22-24; 2 Pet. 1:10-11
4 Matt. 5:14-16; Rom. 14:17-19; 1 Pet. 2:12; 3:1-2