Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
The church firmly teaches that faith is necessary for salvation and can be cited throughout scripture. Good works alone do not merit salvation. We cannot buy our way to heaven with enough good deeds, or good intentions. The road to heaven is not simply paved by niceness or sincerity. It is the passion and suffering of Christ going to the cross that opens this path for us; and our acceptance of this gift freely given. At the same time, we are called to engage in works of love, reflections of the goodness of God. Christ commands action–”whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” (Mk 8:34) Both faith and works; our first reading today expounds upon this great relationship imperative to our salvation. James brazenly tells us (a la ‘you ignoramus’), “just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.” (Jas 2:26)
I cannot help but consider the many other powerful relationships that have been forged over the years and etched into the fabric of my life and our society (or at least our taste buds). Peanut butter and jelly, thunder and lightning, macaroni and cheese, Bert and Ernie, movies and popcorn, grilled cheese and tomato soup...it’s difficult to imagine the existence of one without the other--some might say impossible. We are asked, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?” (Jas 2:14) Is it enough to merely believe in One God, the Father Almighty, etc. as we recite together at mass each week in the Nicene Creed? Does our acknowledgement of God’s existence suffice? Is it okay to go through the motions? Today, we get a resounding ‘NO!’--“faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (Jas 2:17).
Several years ago, it was explained to me like this: Faith is a noun. It is the state of having trust in God, a radical form of trust. Belief is a verb. It is the act of trusting God--the actions of living out that faith, that radical form of trust that we have in this creed that we commit to live by. In the same way, Jesus challenges us in the gospel to consider our faith by the works of our life. “What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? What could one give in exchange for his life?” (Mk 8:36-37). By this profession, we are called to live both in faith and by works. My actions at home, work, in the community, on social media, at the grocery store should be a reflection of the words I profess to live by. We do not "earn" our salvation. It is an inheritance, freely given to us in our baptism. We cannot earn it but we can lose it. We tend to love the phrase, “actions speak louder than words”. May we allow our faith to fuel our works and live out loud the call to be disciples. May our discipleship be an expression of the radical love, radical trust we have in the Gospel of Jesus...both faith and works.
Peace,
Brandon Meyer