I recall attending a Bible Study group where the text being read was James 2:14-26. This led to a very interesting discussion. It is an interesting passage. Here we read things like this:

• “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you?” [Implied answer: no.]
• “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”
• “Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith.”
• “Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?”
• “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.”
• “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.”

And I was reminded again of the vital relationship between faith and works in the teachings of the Bible. Genuine faith must eventuate in good works — in obedience to God and service to others. While I am never in a position to judge the genuineness of another person’s faith — nonetheless, faith must always make a difference. And, this is one of the reasons I am thankful for the Wesleyan holiness tradition where my early faith was nurtured. Here are some themes that I especially appreciate in the Wesleyan perspective on faith: