Daily Devotional
Are You Producing Good Fruit?
“But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”
James 2:18-20
January 29, 2024
Ponder This
Did you know grace is a unique marker of the Christian faith? Jesus Christ has cornered the market on grace. No one else, except our Lord, teaches salvation by grace. There are only two kinds of religion in the world—grace and works. One is spelled do, and the other is spelled done. We often want to make passages sound contradictory between Paul and James, but there’s no real contradiction here. They’re heads and tails of the same coin.
In Romans 4, Paul wrote about justification before God. James wrote about justification before men. God knows I am justified when I trust Christ. But you can’t see my trust. All you can see is what I say and how I live. Paul was talking about the root of our salvation; James was talking about the fruit of our salvation. The root is beneath the ground; the fruit is hanging out on the tree. But the fruit is the proof of the root.
- What are some fruits of God’s work in your life?
- Is the fruit of faith possible without the root? Why or why not?
Practice This
Encourage a friend about the fruit of faith you see in his or her life.
FOR YOUR GIFT TO THE MINISTRY
Front Porch Moments by Gayle Foster
WITH KEY INSIGHTS FROM HER FATHER, ADRIAN ROGERS
I try to unplug each morning with Jesus with just my rocking chair, my Bible, and a pen.
Having a secret place is very important because I know that Jesus is always there waiting for me. I know where I can find Him! His presence is everywhere, but there are places where it is so thick you can cut it with a knife. You may not even have a front porch, but there is a secret place for you as well. God’s invitations are for anyone who will respond. There is no more important request than the one found in Psalm 27:8: “My heart has heard You say, ‘Come and talk with Me.’ And my heart responds, ‘Lord, I am coming.’”
