Bible Reading
James 2:14-26 “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and filled,' without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, 'You have faith and I have works.' Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, 'Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness'—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”
[03:45]Genesis 22:1-18 “After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, 'Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.' He said, 'Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.' So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. Then Abraham said to his young men, 'Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.' And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. And Isaac said to his father Abraham, 'My father!' And he said, 'Here I am, my son.' He said, 'Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?' Abraham said, 'God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.' So they went both of them together. When they came to the place that God had told him of, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, 'Abraham, Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.' He said, 'Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.' And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of that place, 'The Lord will provide'; as it is said to this day, 'On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.' And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven and said, 'By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your descendants shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”
[11:07]Joshua 2:1-24 “And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, 'Go, view the land, especially Jericho.' And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. And it was told to the king of Jericho, 'Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.' Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, 'Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.' But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, 'True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.' But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out. Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof and said to the men, 'I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.' And the men said to her, 'Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.' Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was built into the city wall, so that she lived in the wall. And she said to them, 'Go into the hills, or the pursuers will encounter you, and hide there three days until the pursuers have returned. Then afterward you may go your way.' The men said to her, 'We will be guiltless with respect to this oath of yours that you have made us swear. Behold, when we come into the land, you shall tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and you shall gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father's household. Then if anyone goes out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be on his own head, and we shall be guiltless. But if a hand is laid on anyone who is with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head. But if you tell this business of ours, then we shall be guiltless with respect to your oath that you have made us swear.' And she said, 'According to your words, so be it.' Then she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window. They departed and went into the hills and remained there three days until the pursuers returned, and the pursuers searched all along the way and found nothing. Then the two men returned. They came down from the hills and passed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and they told him all that had happened to them. And they said to Joshua, 'Truly the Lord has given all the land into our hands. And also, all the inhabitants of the land melt away because of us.”
[15:02]Observation questions
- In James 2:14–17, what need does James place in front of the reader, and what response is shown to be empty? [03:53]
- What examples of visible actions are named as ways faith can be seen in a person’s life? [08:25]
- What contrast does James make between believing that God exists and the response of the demons? [08:53]
- What actions do Abraham and Rahab take that show their trust in God, even though their situations are very different? [14:07]
Interpretation questions
- Why does James use a person lacking food and clothing to test whether faith is genuine? What does this example show about the relationship between kind words and practical love? [05:37]
- How does the image of a healthy tree and its fruit help explain that good works do not earn God’s grace, but reveal living faith? [06:20]
- Why is it important that Abraham was counted righteous by faith before his costly act of obedience in Genesis 22? How does this help clarify what James means when he connects faith and works? [14:23]
- Rahab acted at great personal risk after recognising who the Lord is. What does her story show about God’s welcome of outsiders and people with a difficult past? [17:00]
Application questions
- Where is there currently a gap between what you say you believe and the way you are living—perhaps in generosity, forgiveness, integrity, or how you treat people who are overlooked? What is one area God may be inviting you to address? [21:55]
- Is there someone near you who has a practical need—a meal, transport, encouragement, financial support, a phone call, or simply someone to sit with them? What could loving action look like this week? [23:03]
- When have comfort, fear, or the desire for security made it hard for you to obey God? What would it look like to trust God when doing the right thing is inconvenient or costly? [20:26]
- Knowing that God has been generous and forgiving toward us, how could that reshape the way you handle money, possessions, conflict, or resentment this week? [19:33]
- Rahab’s past did not determine her future with God. Is there any part of your own past that makes you feel disqualified from serving God or taking a faithful next step? How does her story bring hope? [17:00]
- Rather than trying to “do enough” to impress God, how can you grow in trusting him more deeply? What fruit might naturally grow as that trust becomes more real in everyday life? [19:27]
