James 2:25-26

NIV: In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

The Message: The same with Rahab, the Jericho harlot. Wasn't her action in hiding God's spies and helping them escape—that seamless unity of believing and doing—what counted with God? The very moment you separate body and spirit, you end up with a corpse. Separate faith and works and you get the same thing: a corpse.

Yet another example here of someone who was made right with God because of what they did. It remember, just as with Abraham, Rahab's actions here were a demonstration of her faith. Have you ever read A Lineage of Grace by Francine Rivers? She takes the stories of five women from the bible (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary) and adds to them, puts background to the details we are given in the bible. It is such a good book and well worth reading, as it really brings out the traditions of the time, what these women were brought up to do, to believe, and it effectively puts meat on the bones. Of course, it is only fiction, not fact, but the story of Rahab, for instance, brings out the fact that Rahab had started to believe in God before the Israelites arrived at Jericho. Her hiding the spies was actually a result of the faith in God. Her works were evidence of her faith in action.

It should be the same with each one of us. No matter whether we do it consciously or subconsciously, we should demonstrate our faith through the things we do each day. We don't all have to be missionaries in India, China or wherever, work with children on the streets in Mexico or Hong Kong, smuggle bibles like Brother Andrew and so on. We are each called to do different things and god has a plan for each one of us. Yes, he may want us to end up in China or Outer Mongolia (although does that country even exist now?!!!) but He may just as easily want us to work exactly where we are, in that mundane job, with our family, in our neighbourhood. We may be called to do great things, give masterful sermons that draw millions to Christ, be the backbone of our local church, be an amazing Sunday School teacher whom children remember years afterwards as having taught them right from wrong. But we may just as easily be called to make the teas and coffees after church, to offer a friendly smile to an elderly neighbour, to be the light and salt to our family and friends. Things that may seem inconsequential and something anyone could do. But God may have asked me or you to do that particular task.

It depends on how open we are to God, how willing we are to be used by Him. Rahab was probably the only believer in Jericho, yet she took a stand, helped the spies when it could have cost her and her family, their lives. She showed how much she believed by putting her faith into action.

You can't have faith and not do the works. You can have the works without the faith - look at all the good many people do and yet they do not believe in God or in Jesus. Yet they (and we) would class them as "good" people. But if you have a real, genuine, deep and abiding faith that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He came down to earth, was born as a man, crucified for our sins, rose from the dead and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father, then that faith should (and will) be reflected in the things that you do. You may not think you do much, that you are a pretty poor Christian if all you do is x, y and z when others are doing a, b and c. Yet you would be surprised at what others really think and the effect you are having on their lives.