James 2:14-26, Faith Made Perfect

We have made a commitment to publishing our Hebrews verse-by-verse posts, a commitment we intend to keep.  However, we are looking for the best time, and it will likely be after the end-of-the-year holidays.  We mention this now because today’s post from James builds on a key theme of Hebrews, which is “let us go on to perfection” (Heb. 6:1).

In Hebrews, and throughout the NT, this term (telios/telioo) does not refer to “sinlessness.”  It emphasizes “maturity” which Heb. 5:12-14 indicates, where the perfected person is a spiritual adult and not still an infant.  I want to repeat a definition of the term that we use in Hebrews.  Remember that Jesus, the sinless One, was “perfected” by which Hebrews means, “He learned obedience by the things which He suffered” (Heb. 5:8-9).  This definition comes from Kenneth Wuest, for almost 30 years professor of NT Greek at Moody Bible Institute.

The fundamental idea in this word is the bringing of a person or thing to the goal fixed by God. The word speaks here of Messiah having reached the end which was contemplated in His divinely appointed discipline for the priesthood. This consummation was reached in His substitutionary death on the Cross.

While James is a NT epistle with a variety of subjects, the theme of “perfection” is noted early and is fundamental to each of the subjects.  The term is used twice (adjective and noun) in 1:4: But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.  By the way, the word “complete” has the idea of being “whole in all it’s parts” (used in 1 Th. 5:23).  Again, the emphasis is on someone who is growing or maturing until they come to have competency in the various facets of the Christian walk. 

The other use in James is in 2:22: by faith works was made perfect.  The maturity we are called to is in the realm of “faith.”  The sphere in which this perfection is coming to reality is in the “trials” of life.  That is, of course, the context of James 1:2-4.  We need the trials for faith to develop.  There are three illustrations of this process.

·       The first is Christ, and it comes from Hebrews.  Let us just note: He “learned obedience from the things He suffered.”  He was not just God in the flesh who was sinless because He was God.  He was actually tried and tested in His humanity and through those trials was perfected.  The Garden of Gethsemane was the last place of struggle, though His perfection was complete on the cross.

·       Another illustration is Rahab (Jas. 2:25).  She heard about and trusted in the God of Israel.  But her faith was perfected when she risked her life to hide the spies.

·       The prime illustration is Abraham (Jas. 2:21-23).  Abraham believed the promise of God that he would have a son from his own body, a son through whom would come the Savior.  Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness (Gen. 15:6; Jas. 2:23).  It is akin to our believing in the Christ of the gospel.  That is the beginning of our walk of faith, and those who have begun the walk are the ones who are encouraged to go on to perfection!  So Abraham’s faith was perfected on Mt. Moriah, when he was about to take the life of Isaac, and the LORD stopped him, saying, … now I know that you fear God (Gen. 22:12).  Between Gen. 15:6 and 22:12 Abraham stumbled.  His faith was weak in the face of some of his trials.  But in the “test” (Gen. 22:1) on Mt. Moriah, Abraham was seen to have come to perfection.  He learned obedience from the things that he suffered.

One last thought on “perfection” from James.  James 3:2 says that the person who is able to control his tongue is one who has come to this maturity.  Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us go on to perfection!