Uploaded May 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Now that we understand the correlation between faith and works (see "Faith or Works?" youtu.be/fAKQI2WxzTY) , let’s look at an example of how they work together. For this we turn to the discussion between Jesus and Nicodemus, in which Jesus famously said
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:14-15)
You can read the full account of the “serpent in the wilderness” Numbers 21. The Israelites had been wandering around the desert as punishment for their lack of faith in God. They had refused to enter the Promised Land and claim it as their home. For forty years they wandered, doing little but complaining.
Finally, God had enough. He got sick of their whining and sent poisonous snakes into the camp. Whenever a person was bitten by one of these snakes, he would become sick and often die. The people pleaded with Moses to do something about this plague, so he brought the request to God.
Rather than simply making the snakes disappear, God allowed them to stay. However, He arranged for a way for the people to be healed when bitten. He commanded Moses to make an image of a brass snake and attach it to a pole. When someone was bitten by a snake, all he had to do was look at the pole and he would be healed.
Now, imagine that you have been bitten by a snake. You are lying in your tent, writhing in pain on your uncomfortable cot, drifting in and out of consciousness. Suddenly your best friend bursts through the doorway and announces that Moses has set up an image of a snake, and you really need to look at it.
A snake, of course, is the last thing you want to look at, so you roll over and turn your back on your friend. However, he persists in trying to persuade you that if you will only believe him and go take a look at the snake, you will be healed.
Slowly, you ease yourself over the side of the bed and hobble toward the doorway, if for no other reason than to get the friend off your back. He helps you down the dusty path, and around the corner toward where Moses had his tent set up. Suddenly, you see it. It’s a pole with the hideous likeness of a snake on it. However, you don’t look for long because as soon as you set your eyes on it, your pain disappears. You are a new man.
Here is the question–what healed you? Was it the act of looking at the “snake on a stick” or was it the faith it took to make you get up to do it?
This illustration shows the relationship between faith and works. In our desire to stress that salvation cannot come by works, we tend to leave them out of the equation altogether. However, faith and works co-exist. To put it another way, if faith, then works.
If you truly had faith that looking at the snake would heal you, you would not have stayed on your bed. If you questioned it, but still got up, that would be an act of faith. Faith produces an action of obedience.
That is exactly what James was getting at when he said that “faith without works is dead.” You can’t tell me you have faith in something if you won’t do anything about it it.
When my youngest son, Braden, was little, he loved the water (shouting “lahder!” every time he saw some). However, he was afraid to get into it. Even with his life jacket fastened securely on him, he would cling desperately to me.Faith would be just letting go and allowing the life jacket to do its job, but he wouldn’t do it.
That is how faith in God works. We may not understand everything about Him. We may not even understand how He can exist. However, He has told us that we can trust Him, and has proved Himself faithful time and time again. Salvation comes about when we let go of our own abilities and just trust Him.
And if we truly trust Him, works will follow.
Read the article: benhammond.org/faith-or-works-james-214-26
Previous video on faith vs. works: youtu.be/fAKQI2WxzTY
#faith #works #saved #salvation #John3 #Numbers21 #calvinism #soteriology #law #Jesus #Nicodemus
Check out my ASL channel here:
youtube.com/channel/UC3lyvykCXlmGZ7V-XwHdhlg?sub_confirmation=1
youtube.com/channel/UCW3e7xQd0mThCLvu2QIVSxw?sub_confirmation=1
Now that we understand the correlation between faith and works (see "Faith or Works?" youtu.be/fAKQI2WxzTY) , let’s look at an example of how they work together. For this we turn to the discussion between Jesus and Nicodemus, in which Jesus famously said
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:14-15)
You can read the full account of the “serpent in the wilderness” Numbers 21. The Israelites had been wandering around the desert as punishment for their lack of faith in God. They had refused to enter the Promised Land and claim it as their home. For forty years they wandered, doing little but complaining.
Finally, God had enough. He got sick of their whining and sent poisonous snakes into the camp. Whenever a person was bitten by one of these snakes, he would become sick and often die. The people pleaded with Moses to do something about this plague, so he brought the request to God.
Rather than simply making the snakes disappear, God allowed them to stay. However, He arranged for a way for the people to be healed when bitten. He commanded Moses to make an image of a brass snake and attach it to a pole. When someone was bitten by a snake, all he had to do was look at the pole and he would be healed.
Now, imagine that you have been bitten by a snake. You are lying in your tent, writhing in pain on your uncomfortable cot, drifting in and out of consciousness. Suddenly your best friend bursts through the doorway and announces that Moses has set up an image of a snake, and you really need to look at it.
A snake, of course, is the last thing you want to look at, so you roll over and turn your back on your friend. However, he persists in trying to persuade you that if you will only believe him and go take a look at the snake, you will be healed.
Slowly, you ease yourself over the side of the bed and hobble toward the doorway, if for no other reason than to get the friend off your back. He helps you down the dusty path, and around the corner toward where Moses had his tent set up. Suddenly, you see it. It’s a pole with the hideous likeness of a snake on it. However, you don’t look for long because as soon as you set your eyes on it, your pain disappears. You are a new man.
Here is the question–what healed you? Was it the act of looking at the “snake on a stick” or was it the faith it took to make you get up to do it?
This illustration shows the relationship between faith and works. In our desire to stress that salvation cannot come by works, we tend to leave them out of the equation altogether. However, faith and works co-exist. To put it another way, if faith, then works.
If you truly had faith that looking at the snake would heal you, you would not have stayed on your bed. If you questioned it, but still got up, that would be an act of faith. Faith produces an action of obedience.
That is exactly what James was getting at when he said that “faith without works is dead.” You can’t tell me you have faith in something if you won’t do anything about it it.
When my youngest son, Braden, was little, he loved the water (shouting “lahder!” every time he saw some). However, he was afraid to get into it. Even with his life jacket fastened securely on him, he would cling desperately to me.Faith would be just letting go and allowing the life jacket to do its job, but he wouldn’t do it.
That is how faith in God works. We may not understand everything about Him. We may not even understand how He can exist. However, He has told us that we can trust Him, and has proved Himself faithful time and time again. Salvation comes about when we let go of our own abilities and just trust Him.
And if we truly trust Him, works will follow.
Read the article: benhammond.org/faith-or-works-james-214-26
Previous video on faith vs. works: youtu.be/fAKQI2WxzTY
#faith #works #saved #salvation #John3 #Numbers21 #calvinism #soteriology #law #Jesus #Nicodemus
Check out my ASL channel here:
youtube.com/channel/UC3lyvykCXlmGZ7V-XwHdhlg?sub_confirmation=1
youtube.com/channel/UCW3e7xQd0mThCLvu2QIVSxw?sub_confirmation=1
