6. The rest of the other side of the truth about being justified by faith, you will find in Jas. 2:14, 18-24, R. V. +"What doth it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith but have not works? Can that faith save him?"+ We see here that a faith that a man merely says he has, but that does not lead to works along the line of that which he claims to believe, cannot justify, but to go on, verses 18-24, +"Yea, a man will say, thou hast faith, and I have works, show me thy faith apart from thy works, and I by my works will show thee my faith. Thou believest that God is one; thou doest well: the devils also believe and shudder. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son, upon the altar? Thou seest that faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect+ (i.e., in the works to which Abraham's faith led, faith had its perfect manifestation); +and the scripture was fulfilled which saith, and Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. Ye see that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith."+ Some see in these words a contradiction between the teaching of James and the teaching of Paul, but there is no contradiction whatever. But James here teaches us an important truth, namely, that _the faith that one says he has, but which does not manifest itself in action along the line of the faith professed, will not justify. The faith that justifies is real faith that leads to action accordant with the truth we profess to believe._ It is true that we are justified simply upon faith apart from the works of the law, _but it must be a real faith_, otherwise it does not justify. As some one has put it, "We are justified by faith without works, but we are not justified by a faith that is without works." The faith which God sees and upon which He justifies, leads inevitably to works which men can see. God saw the faith of Abraham the moment Abraham believed, and before there was any opportunity to work, and counted that faith to Abraham for righteousness. But the faith that God saw was a real faith and led Abraham to works that all could see, and these works proved the reality of his faith. The proof to us of the faith is the works, and we know that he that does not work has not justifying faith.
We must not lose sight on the one side of the truth which Paul emphasises against legalism, namely, that we are justified on the single and simple condition of a real faith in Christ; but on the other side we must not lose sight of the truth which James emphasises against antinomianism, namely, that it is only a real faith that proves its genuineness by works, that justifies. To the legalist who is seeking to _do_ something to merit justification we must say, +"Stop working and believe on Him that justifieth the ungodly"+ (Rom. 4:5). To the antinomian, i.e., to the one who thinks he can live a lawless, careless, unseparated, sinful life and still be justified, the one who boasts that he has faith and is justified by it, but who does not show his faith by his works, we must say, "What doth it profit, if a man _say_ he have faith, but have not works? Can _that_ faith save him?" (Jas. 2:14, R. V.) We are justified by faith alone, but we are not justified by a faith that is alone, but a faith that is accompanied by works.