James 2: 14 -26

Life is not a game of monopoly, and salvation is not a get out of hell free card. Obviously, the original readers of James had never heard of monopoly, but they still had the same attitude about what salvation was. They were not looking for salvation that saved them from the life they were living; they were looking for a salvation that saved them from the consequences of the life they were living. They believed that Jesus was the Son of God; they thought that belief was good enough, and they called it saving faith. They had faith in their faith and it gave them peace of mind and allowed them to sleep well at night. That is all it did, it did not change them nor did it motivate them to be changed.

James calls them foolish; he tells them that their faith will not save them. Their faith is no better than the faith of demons and it is a dead faith. Their get out of hell free card is nothing more than a play piece from a game of pretend. They were pretending to be Christians but nothing they did was Christlike. They were claiming to have salvation but they were living like the lost.

James tells them that true faith is life-changing faith. Saving faith changes our relationship with God the Father. We were enemies of the kingdom, and now we are children of the king. As children of the king, we learn to think differently and to act differently. We were paupers but now we are rich beyond measure. That alone changes the way we act and the things we do. When we see the needs of others we do not turn away, we share what we have with faith, believing God will meet your needs. When the moment calls for courage, we step up with faith believing God will never leave us nor forsake us. Faith in Jesus saved us, and we respond by living in faithfulness.