| Subject: Devotional #18: August 15 |
Author:
Gail
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Date Posted: 20:28:46 08/14/01 Tue
Topic—Master Builders
Power Point—Without action to accompany our faith, our faith can become a rancid smell to God.
This Week’s Memory Verse—2 Corinthians 5:18
Access Database—James 2:14–26
Dead Things Stink
by Eric Partin
Years ago when I was a young man in college, my friends and I would spend the summers on the beach in Florida as lifeguards. One season, as the summer was drawing to a close, we had a big party for everyone heading back to school. One fellow, Bill, was driving out the next day for his school in upstate New York. Being the practical jokers that we were, we hid seven frozen cigar minnows in his car. (A cigar minnow is a baitfish about 6–7 inches long.) These fish were frozen stiff, so they didn’t start to smell until sometime the next day. By the time he got to back to college, he had to drive with all his windows down, spraying Lysol in the car with his head hanging out the window the whole time. He eventually found all the fish, but he never could get rid of the horrendous smell. Eventually, he had to sell the car…for a cheap price, I might add.
As you well know, dead things stink. Nobody wants to be around dead things because of the stench. In this chapter of James, he says that if you have faith and it is not accompanied by some action, then that faith is dead. After a while that dead faith becomes a stench to God. Nobody wants to be around dead things—especially dead faith! The smell is just too bad.
If you claim to have faith but there are no actions to support that faith, do you really have faith? In 1999, a gunman put a gun to the head of Cassie Bernall and asked her if she believed in God. She said she did (even the demons believe that!). But her actions proved her faith when she was martyred for her belief. It’s not enough just to say, "I believe." It’s not enough just to say you believe for a revival in your school. It’s not enough to say you believe for the salvation of your friends. There has to be action backing up that belief.
Remember, our faith without actions stinks, and nobody, especially God, likes to be around dead, stinky things.
Now go back and read James 2:14–26 one more time.
Identity Matrix—Disciples of Christ...
Know God—In what way did God reveal Himself to you as you read His Word?
Live for God—What one lifestyle change is God calling you to make?
Love Others—In what way is God calling you to minister to someone in need?
Bear Fruit—In what ways will you set the example and the standard for others to follow?
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Feedback: 
Nice Analogy