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Paul and James Harmonized | Austin McCormick

by | Aug 26, 2024 | New Testament, Preaching, Systematic Theology

 

*Editor’s Note: This blog post is a portion of Pastor Austin McCormick’s sermon manuscript from a message titled “Faith Without Works is Dead, Pt.3.” The author was greatly helped by the commentators Matthew Poole and Francis Turretin in arranging these four points. For a more thorough examination of the differences between Paul and James on justification, the author encourages readers to consult Poole and Turretin.

 

In James 2:21, James uses the word “justified” for the first time in his letter. And within this part of his argument, he teaches that we are “justified by works” three times. Upon an initial glossing of this phrase we have an apparent, although not an actual, contradiction to Paul’s teaching in Romans 3:28 that we are justified by faith alone. I have intentionally called this an “apparent” contradiction because the phrases themselves initially seem to contradict one another. But when we consider them in their respective contexts, we should be able to discern that they are not actually contradicting one another. Rather, their teachings perfectly harmonize. Let us then look at four contextual factors that help us see that Paul and James are not at odds with one another.

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I. Different Contexts

First, consider the problems that these authors address. When Paul says that we are justified by faith alone, he confronts those who rely upon their obedience to the law to become Christians… Paul argued against the Pharisees and the Judaizers who were trusting in their own merits and their own self-righteousness as the grounds of their acceptance before God… To combat this error, Paul teaches that our works don’t merit God’s approval of us. If our works merited our salvation, then salvation wouldn’t be a gift that we freely receive! It would be a wage that God would owe us… And this would only cause us to boast in ourselves for our accomplishments… But Paul teaches that God gets the glory in our salvation and that we become Christians through the instrumentality of faith alone.
But James combats a completely different issue! James confronts those who merely profess to have faith but then use that profession as a license to continue in sin. To correct that error of lawless living, James teaches that good works function to evidence who is truly planted into Christ. In the New Covenant, God has written his law upon the hearts of his people and has given them a desire in the inner man to obey Him… Disciples of Christ, then, evidence that God has regenerated their hearts by their good works.

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II. Different usages of “faith”

Secondly, it is important to recognize that these authors use the word “faith” differently. When Paul says that we are justified by faith, he refers to a true and living faith, a sovereignly gifted faith from God, a faith that passively receives and rests in Christ and His righteousness in order to become Christians… But James frequently uses the word “faith” to refer to a false faith. He concedes, for the point of making an argument, that false faith is a form of faith. But he calls it a “dead faith” and a “useless faith.”

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III. Different usages of “justify”

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Not only do Paul and James use the word “faith” differently. Thirdly, these authors also use the verb “justified” differently. When Paul uses the verb “justified,” he speaks of that act of God’s free grace whereby God freely pardons all our sins and accepts us as righteous persons because of the righteousness of Christ imputed to us… For Paul, “justification” refers to the legal verdict that we are accepted as beloved ones and pronounced “not guilty” by God.

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But when James uses the verb “justified,” he means “proven to be right” or “shown to be true.” And Scripture frequently uses this original word (δικαιόω) in this sense. So, for instance, Luke 7:29 says that all the people “justified” God… They didn’t forgive God of his sins and declare him to be “not guilty.” No! They justified him, meaning they “showed that it was true,” that He is God. Similarly, when James uses the word “justified,” he means “shown to be true.”

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IV. Different types of persons

And lastly, Paul and James speak of different types of persons who are justified. Categorically, only two types of people descend from Adam by ordinary generation. There are lost sinners under the guilt of the broken covenant of works. And there are believers who have been brought into the covenant of grace through the blood of Jesus. The former are ungodly; the latter are beloved of God. And these two categories of people help us to distinguish between different types of persons who are justified.

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When Paul refers to justification, he is referring to the justification of an ungodly person who is then declared “not guilty” through faith. James, however, refers to the justification of persons already godly who prove themselves to be “not pretenders” by their works.

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Summary

So, after considering these four factors that help us harmonize Paul and James, we could paraphrase their teachings like this:
Paul teaches that an ungodly person is declared “not guilty” through the instrumentality of faith alone, which rests in Christ alone.
James teaches that a believer is proven “not a pretender” when they produce good works that flow from their union with Christ, and not by a mere profession only.
Paul speaks of the cause of our justification; James, the effect. Paul addresses the root of our faith; James, the fruit. Paul talks about how we become justified; James talks about evidencing that we are justified. There is no contradiction.

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Use #1: We need both Paul and James on justification.

And we need to understand them as sweetly complying with one another! Paul will guard us from the errors of legalism and self-righteousness. James will guard us from the errors of antinomianism, easy-believism, and licentious living. Paul will guard us from the errors of justification by our sincere obedience or justification by our faithfulness… James will guard us against an erroneous understanding of eternal security, which teaches that we can just make a profession of faith, join a church, and then live like God-offending heathens for the rest of our lives.
Well, let us then continually sit at the feet of these divinely inspired Apostles and soak in what they are teaching us! Getting Paul and James right will help us get the law and the gospel right. May we get the law and the gospel right so we’re not tossed to and fro by every wave of deceptive doctrine.

 

Use #2: We should unwaveringly affirm that the Scriptures cannot be broken, that there are no faults or errors in them, and that they are the very words of God Himself, who cannot lie.

Each seemingly contradictory passage in Scripture is only such because of some fault in our understanding of Scripture, not in the author of Scripture, nor the content of Scripture. So, whenever we don’t fully grasp God’s Word, let us not call into question its authority. Instead, let us prayerfully call out to the God of order and truth to teach us the beauties in His Word so that we may behold wondrous things from his law.

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