Daily Worship

Life and Work

February 17, 2015 0 0

James 2:14-20

Faith without Works Is Dead

14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill’, and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

18 But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith without works, and I by my works will show you my faith. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder. 20 Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith without works is barren?

The Church’s story has always been one of faith and action, worship and work, heart and soul. But, so often, the church can end up being the soul of a community and not its heart. Offering worship and the message of the Gospel, being the soul of the community is one part of what we do, but sometimes we struggle to find ways in which to be the heart except amongst those who are part of the inner circle of the church community. In the past, the church pioneered education, establishing a school in very parish in Scotland. The church also pioneered, poor relief, social care and in some places even foreshadowed the establishment of the National Health Service. For every generation there is a great work for the church to address the challenge of need and find prophetic, supportive and imaginative ways to support “the least of these” in the light of Christ’s call to care as well as to evangelise. As many have said, the church exists chiefly for those who are outside it. 

Prayer:
God grant us the imagination and the opportunity to be both the heart and the soul of our communities. Help us to trust in the power of the risen Christ that your presence speaks to every generation and if we trust in you we will find the great work you have called us to. Amen