Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
What is faith, and is faith alone really all God expects from us? Doesn’t God also expect us to do good works?
“Faith” vs. “works” became a central debate of the Protestant Reformation, where theologians including Martin Luther quoted Paul to argue “by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Luther’s opponents regularly quoted the Epistle of James which seems to make a direct counter argument: “faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead” (2:17). Paul’s argument speaks to our true motivations: if we can earn salvation by doing good deeds, we are effectively mercenaries. We aren’t doing good because we are good; we are doing good to earn a reward or avoid a punishment. Nevertheless, James has a point that being good needs to be backed up by good actions.
Join us this Sunday as we explore why works matter to James and reflect on how his teaching can deepen our spiritual growth and renew our commitment to peace and justice in our communities.
We invite you to share this hour of reflection, prayer, meditation, music, and fellowship with the Beyond the Walls global community on 📅 Sunday, July 26, 2026.
This year we are focusing on witnesses of God’s revelation beyond the four canonical gospels, including the letters of Paul, Hebrews, and the letters attributed to James, Peter, Jude, and John. We will also read Acts, Revelation, and some important early Christian texts that were not included in the canon: the Didache (or Teachings of the Twelve Apostles), the sayings Gospel of Thomas, and the Gospel of Mary (Magdalene).
📖 Full worship bulletin: centreplace.ca/bulletin
🎵 All music performed by the Beyond the Walls Choir and @MichaelKarpowicz. Copyrighted music with permission by OneLicense A-739874
🌐 Beyond the Walls is an online worship service with live ministry from around the world. Our global congregation gathers every Sunday at 12:00 pm ET and 6:00 pm ET. We’re an inclusive, non-dogmatic, progressive Christian community that affirms all gender identities and expressions, embraces interfaith and skeptical perspectives, and rejects literal interpretations of scripture.
#churchonline #churchservice #worshipservice
What is faith, and is faith alone really all God expects from us? Doesn’t God also expect us to do good works?
“Faith” vs. “works” became a central debate of the Protestant Reformation, where theologians including Martin Luther quoted Paul to argue “by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Luther’s opponents regularly quoted the Epistle of James which seems to make a direct counter argument: “faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead” (2:17). Paul’s argument speaks to our true motivations: if we can earn salvation by doing good deeds, we are effectively mercenaries. We aren’t doing good because we are good; we are doing good to earn a reward or avoid a punishment. Nevertheless, James has a point that being good needs to be backed up by good actions.
Join us this Sunday as we explore why works matter to James and reflect on how his teaching can deepen our spiritual growth and renew our commitment to peace and justice in our communities.
We invite you to share this hour of reflection, prayer, meditation, music, and fellowship with the Beyond the Walls global community on 📅 Sunday, July 26, 2026.
This year we are focusing on witnesses of God’s revelation beyond the four canonical gospels, including the letters of Paul, Hebrews, and the letters attributed to James, Peter, Jude, and John. We will also read Acts, Revelation, and some important early Christian texts that were not included in the canon: the Didache (or Teachings of the Twelve Apostles), the sayings Gospel of Thomas, and the Gospel of Mary (Magdalene).
📖 Full worship bulletin: centreplace.ca/bulletin
🎵 All music performed by the Beyond the Walls Choir and @MichaelKarpowicz. Copyrighted music with permission by OneLicense A-739874
🌐 Beyond the Walls is an online worship service with live ministry from around the world. Our global congregation gathers every Sunday at 12:00 pm ET and 6:00 pm ET. We’re an inclusive, non-dogmatic, progressive Christian community that affirms all gender identities and expressions, embraces interfaith and skeptical perspectives, and rejects literal interpretations of scripture.
#churchonline #churchservice #worshipservice
