Jump
“Out of the Gideon Groove”
Judges 6

What if you had faith that the full power of God could help you take action in an area where you are defeated?

Faith matters!

Timeless

Hebrews 11
	By faith…

“…without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” – Hebrews 11:6

Faith 
	Believing and trusting 

God allows things that blow up or grow up our faith!
	Practical Truth

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like…” – Jesus, Matthew 7:24-27

“…faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” – James 2:17

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Questions about the difference between Paul and James:

Did James know about Paul’s writings about justification by faith alone?

The question remains: did James know about Paul’s writings about justification by faith alone in Galatians and Romans?

If these three aspects really are borrowed from Paul, then James must have been written later than Romans and Galatians. But did he?
•	Galatians is dated to as early as 49 CE and as late as the end of Paul’s life. And Romans is dated to the end of Paul’s final stay in Corinth in 56 CE.
•	The letter to the Romans was sent west from Corinth—where Paul wrote it—to Rome. It wasn’t sent east to Palestine, where James was located.
•	For James to have read Romans, the letter would have needed to reach Rome, become influential, and be copied. A copy, which would have cost perhaps $2,000 in current money, would have needed to be sent to Palestine before James could have reacted to it. It is unlikely that the historical James, who was martyred by 62 CE, could be responding to Romans.

What Paul and James mean by “works”

When Paul talks about faith and works, he always refers to “works of the law.” But James never uses that phrase.

When Paul wants to illustrate the works of the law he opposes, he uses the example of circumcision, Sabbath, and purity regulations. But when James speaks of the law, he refers to charitable deeds, obedient sacrificial actions, acts of hospitality. (And Paul repeatedly commends acts of charity and hospitality elsewhere—he’s clearly not opposed.)

It’s clear that, even though Paul and James are both writing about works, they are writing about very different things.

What Paul and James mean by “faith”

Paul uses the word “faith” to mean commitment to Jesus (three times in Galatians 2:16 alone).
But James gives only one example of “faith,” and it refers to a kind of belief. He’s referring to the Jewish belief that “God is one,” the foundational statement of Jewish belief. He leaves “faith” undefined in the rest of the passage.

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Actions prove that we believe 

What impedes us from acting on truth?
	
Gideon Groove 
	Defeated - Conquering 

Judges 6

We might need to…
Tear something down
Choose to see God in it
Fight hard despite being tired and exhausted  

Actions prove that we believe
	Jump into obedient faith

Let’s start…
	Confess to God
	Share with someone
	Take a specific step of faith