Action Required

Faith can be loud and still be lifeless. James puts a mirror in front of us with one uncomfortable line: faith without works is dead, and we don’t get to edit that down to something easier. We dig into what it looks like when belief stays in our mouth but never reaches our hands, our calendar, or our relationships, and we name the places where “I’ll do it later” is just disobedience dressed up as caution. 

One of the clearest images from the message is simple: faith is the gift, but action is the batteries. You can unwrap belief, celebrate it, and still never see power if you refuse to move. From trials that build perseverance, to the discipline of controlling the tongue, to rejecting favoritism and church cliques, we walk through five concrete ways the Book of James calls us into mature Christian living. We also talk about submission to God, resisting the devil, and why mercy and forgiveness are not optional extras but proof that grace has actually reached us. 

To make it practical, we end with the “Challenge 17” daily rhythm: five minutes of prayer, five minutes in the Bible, five minutes of worship, one small act of faith each day, and one invitation each week. If you want actionable faith, spiritual growth, and a church community that looks like love instead of rivalry, this one will push you in the best way. Subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review, what action do you need to take this week?

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Transcript

Faith Without Works Sets The Standard

SPEAKER_00 0:00

If you look over in James chapter 2, verses 14 through 17, it says, What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say that you have faith, but don't show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Verse 15 says, Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say goodbye and have a good day. Stay warm and eat well. But then you didn't give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you've see, faith is in itself is not enough unless it produces good deeds and it is dead and useless. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for the power that you give us by the blood of the Lamb and the power you give us by the word of our testimony. I thank you, Lord, so much for the heart of this church. I thank you for your presence here today. Bless the rest of this service in your word. In your name, we pray. Amen. Amen and amen. So today we're going to be diving a little bit into the book of James. I said this before. I love the book of James. He did not pull punches, he said exactly what needed to be said, and he would call them out on their faithless living and challenge them to do more than just talk. Because you can talk, but if you don't show love, you're like a clanging symbol. You could say you have faith, but if you do not act out and actually step when God says to step and do when God says to do, you are living in disobedience. It's a bad word. We don't like that word. Turn to your neighbor and say, Action is required. And that is the title of my message today that action, it is required.

Christmas Morning And The Gift

SPEAKER_00 2:01

It reminds me of a Christmas story. Anybody ever I'm I'm 37 years old and I still get excited at Christmas Eve. Now, why do I get excited? How do I know what I'm getting? Well, first of all, I have a personal relationship with Santa Claus. Second of all, I know I've been good all year. Third of all, I know they're trying to shut the coal industry down. And fourth, I ain't giving you number four. Because I bribe my wife with all the stuff I'm gonna tell her. I'm gonna get her. No, I actually keep my my list pretty short, so I pretty much always know what I know what my budget is, and I have one thing I want usually. Hey. But it's like it's like that Christmas morning you wake up early. You go downstairs, or you go to the living room, wherever your Christmas tree is, and you go and you get this package. And if you were a kid like me, I started to understand the older I got, it was usually the smaller packages that actually cost the more, but the bigger the box, I thought the better the present. And so you go, you get the tree, you get under the tree, you grab this present, it's got wrapping paper all over it, and if I wrap your gift, you ain't getting it until seven layers later. And you start undoing the tape. My grandma, my dad said, uh, I'm not gonna say any negative things because I don't know if some of y'all do it, so I'm just gonna put it out there, and I think it's hilarious. She keeps wrapping paper from every Christmas to wrap for next Christmas. Does anybody else do that? Is that what you do? How do you keep it all year? I would lose it. But so I learned that as respect, I had to very carefully. Well, grandma got me something, I couldn't rip it open like at the house. So you start on, you get through all the layers, you're unwrapping, and you get the gift. All of a sudden, you have this thing in your hand that you've been asking for the entire year. Everything has built up to this one moment, and this is the same way in our Christian walk. Everything that we have to do in the word, through the word, God living through you, ends up having to take the path of faith. So faith is like this gift. You say, God, give me. Thank you for one of you knowing what the word was. Y'all would be terrible at filling the blank. Man, I hate filling the blank questionnaires. Man, give me multiple choice. But you ask for you want faith. God, give me faith to know what to pray, give me faith to know how to pray, give me faith to see what you see, to not be uh distracted by what's in front of me, but know that you are still God and you are still on the throne. We unwrap that package of faith, but batteries are always required, and they never come in the package. Faith is the gift, and the batteries are your actions. Your faith cannot be moved if you are not powered by actions. Your faith is pointless if you do not have actions. So, how can we get actions? I'm glad you asked. We're going to be looking at five things, five ways to get you active in your faith, to make your faith beyond just a word, and it be a thing that you do, it be a thing that you are. It's like when you come to Christ. If you still act, talk, think, and do the way that you did beforehand, nothing has changed, and there is no proof or evidence that you have become a new creation. The same with your faith. If you say, I have I'm gonna have faith, but you will not grab somebody's hand and pray in Walmart because you are scared to be embarrassed. Where is your faith? The disciples that saw Jesus perform miracles all the time. Jesus said, Oh, ye of little faith, can you imagine how frustrated he was constantly saying, Where is your faith? And today, church, I ask you, where is your faith? We love scriptures that point us to the oh, lay hands on the sick and they will recover. And we only pray for the sick on Sundays. That's not faith, that's falling into line with everybody else and just doing what everybody else is doing.

Five Ways To Put Faith First

SPEAKER_00 7:06

So, number one understand, have a deep understanding of trials and temptations. James 1 4 says this you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. Isn't it time for the people in the church house, especially the people in the church house, to start acting like mature adults? So, how does that happen? You start by allowing God to have the place in your life that if He chooses to test you with perseverance and patience, we love to say, Oh man, Lord, just give me patience. But we don't like the times where we have to grow that area because it's not pleasant. But no discipline at that time feels pleasant. It's only after you begin to see the rewards, just like faith. Faith at the time will make you look stupid and you will seem dumb and foolish to the world. They won't get it, they won't understand it, but it's not for them to get and understand. You are called to have faith and put that faith into action. Number two, watch your mouth. Let me translate it in the Stephen Tillman version. Shut up. Sometimes we let our mouth run off with things we shouldn't be driving. We shouldn't even be near it, and we let our mouth spout something off. Let me be clear and blunt. That is not being led by the spirit, that is being led by the flesh. We have to learn in the church to shut up unless God tells you to speak. And if he speaks, you better not shut up until he says, be silent. James 1.19 says, My dear brothers, take note of this. Everyone should be quick to listen. Anybody ever heard? You got two ears because you're supposed to listen twice more than you speak. Slow to speak and slow to become angry. This means we must make our flesh shut up and allow the spirit, the spirit to do the speaking. Now, what does that mean? That means when you get upset with somebody, it's best to not say a word. When you're frustrated, when you're mad, don't say anything. I have a policy for me personally. If I am angry or say we go crossways with each other, I will not communicate or get back with you for 24 hours because I need to pray and I need to make sure. Jesse laughs at me all the time because she tells me how blunt I am, and I've had to apologize to people because I've said some things and I said, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way. She said, Baby, you can't say that because I'm saying what I really want to say to my best friend that's not to her. I'm getting it off my chest, I'm letting it out in the air, and by the time I get to the conversation that I need to actually have, I'm not angry. Because I am aiming my flesh at somewhere where it will not hurt someone. The flesh is good about coming up with a snappy comeback. The flesh is so good at saying exactly how I really feel. The flesh is good at getting in the passenger seat and hitting everybody driving down the street. The flesh wants you to be messed up in your life because he understands, he or she, your flesh, the devil, understands that if he can get you functioning in your flesh, there is no room for the spirit to move in your life. Learn to shut up. James 3:8. No man can tame the tongue. You cannot, you cannot overcome fleshly situations with more flesh. Somebody you can't tame your flesh and tame your tongue with more talking and more flesh. You have to invite the Spirit of God inside of you and say, God, I feel like I want to say something. You know, if I said it, oh, it would be true, and you're all about truth, Lord. Come on. We like to twist up things so it fits our narrative. If you want to say it when you are mad, don't. Because the tongue is hard to tame. You will spout off something out of anger. I mean, honestly, it's kind of like fleshly tongues. You sometimes you're like, I didn't mean to say that. I didn't those words, how did that come out of me? Not by the spirit, by the flesh. Verse, I mean, number three, run from clicks. This closes off the community of the body. James 2:1 says this believers in our Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Now, let me point out something. We all have people we get along with better than we get along with other people. Our personalities are different. Some are large and in charge, others are meek and look weak. But let me tell you something. When you get together with somebody who's the opposite of you, you actually are a very well-rounded circle. If you've noticed, I'm loud and obnoxious, and my wife is sweet and quiet. I have to talk a lot to her so that I don't say it to y'all. Run from cliques, do not be in favoritism. Why? Because this begins to do a division and separation in the church. This church should be a lot bigger. But at some point, it had favoritism and division. And it begins to plant seeds in the hearts of the people that cause more division. And number two, it says this. Number two, sorry. Number four is don't run from submission or obedience of the Spirit of God. You must run to it. You must run to it. James 4, 7 and 10, it says this. Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee. When you resist him and you are covered by the blood, he has no option but to flee. There is no other option for him. He cannot sit there and bother you anymore. Now, does this make him magically go away? And your problems are better when you walk outside and there's a rainbow and there's butterflies and doves and eagles flying in the air, whatever they do. No, it doesn't make everything perfect, but it begins to shift something inside your spirit when you begin to submit to the Spirit of God. Do not run from submission or obedience. Because the very thing God told you to do, I promise you, when you begin to live in obedience, it will break something loose in your spirit. When you start living in obedience to the Father, whatever chains have been on you, they begin to break off. Obedience. Therefore, submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee. Verse 8 says, draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. What is this implying in verse 8? That there must be a drawing from your point of view, and he will draw to you. There has to be action in your faith. You must walk towards God, you must pray towards him, you must receive what he has for you. Because I believe the church house is not seeing what we could see because we are not in full submission to the Spirit of God. And when we're not submitting to the Spirit of God, we will not obey. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. This is James. These aren't my words. This is James. Lament and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Now this sounds terrible. But how many of you know that if you stay happy in submitting to the flesh and not the spirit of God, you won't mourn. You won't weep. You will not understand the heart of God because you're not wanting to submit. You're not wanting to let that go. Verse 10 says, Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will lift you up. Let go of the flesh that you have been holding on to. Let go of the struggle and the control that you're trying to wrestle with. You cannot defeat it. Why? Because we are flesh. You cannot defeat flesh with flesh. It must be from the Spirit of God. Number five is this fight for community with each other. Let me go back and I didn't say fight in community with each other. Don't fight in the community with each other. You must fight to keep peace in the house of God. Why? Because we're all different. Some of us are hard to deal with. Some of us, our personalities or even our egos or self-righteousness can barely fit in the door. You're afraid that if you bow your head in submission, that big old noggin won't be able to get back up. Because we're full of self-righteousness. Self-fulfilling prophecy. Like we have things that we feel that we should be in an honor position. And what does Jesus say? Do not go in and sit yourself at the head of the table. Let the person who is there bring you up, and then you will truly be honored. Sometimes we love to be sitting at the head of the table and we honor ourselves and then wonder why nobody else honors us. We have to give space for that to happen. Strive to be close in the church. James 2, 12 and 13 says, So whatever you say, or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that actually sets you free. The very law that sets you free, you also be judged with. Verse 13 says, There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. How many times, and I'm speaking for personal experience, have I received so much mercy and grace from the Father, and then something happens between me and somebody else, and I do not extend that same grace and mercy to them. Who am I to block that from God speaking into their life in such a way? We have to show mercy because if we do not show mercy, you will not be given mercy. The Bible even says, too, that if you do not forgive, you will not be forgiven. There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when He judges you. God wants to actively for us to actively show mercy to each other. And here's the scary part. What you give, you will get.

The Challenge 17 Daily Rhythm

SPEAKER_00 20:38

Plus two. The challenge of 17 is five minutes in prayer, five minutes of reading your word, five minutes of worshiping. Do it before you start your day, and your day will be better. Not that everything will change in your day as you go. Things are going to be as they're going to be, but you have the opportunity to begin your day in such a way that anything that comes your way cannot phase you. Five minutes of prayer, five minutes of reading your word, five minutes of praising, one small act of faith a day, and invite one person to church a week. The challenge is 17. What does that mean? Everything, everything that I just mentioned of what I am challenging you to do, it takes action in your life. It will take sacrifice. It may take you getting up a few minutes earlier. Nobody liked that one. It may mean that you go to bed a few minutes earlier so that you won't be so tired when you try to wake up the next day. Some of y'all patting each other. Sorry. But what you give is what you get. See what happens, and we're church people are really good at this. We're great at two things eating our own and telling everybody else how to do it when we won't do it ourselves. I don't know if they're These are spiritual gifts, but they're on the list. And the church is great at it. We kick our own when we're down, we'll judge them, cast them out in a heartbeat, and then we'll tell them how they live that they should live their lives when we won't even show grace and mercy. Five ways. Understand trials and temptations. Every season that you have is a reason that God has placed you there. Number two, watch your mouth. Spirit speak, not your flesh. You have to be willing to submit your mouth. Some of you don't even understand or know about being filled with the spirit because you won't submit your mouth. God's not going to force you to let him be king of your life. We have to submit. Number three, run from clicks. We've got to treat everybody the same, even if you like them or if you don't. And if you ain't living that way, you're the problem. If you're having a double standard and treating somebody good in the church house, and then you go outside and treat them different outside, you are a liar. Run from clicks. They are God's child just like you are God's child. Do not run from submission or obedience. You must run to it. Number five, fight for community with each other. Love one another. Jesus said, This 11th commandment I give to you. You show each other in God's family, show each other how, show the world how to love each other. Because by the way that you love each other, they will know my love. And if you haven't noticed, the enemy's been busy trying to twist up what real love is. That's why they don't want anything to do with God. Because if they actually talk about really what love is, God is love. They don't want God on their lips. Fight for community with each other, love one another. Because faith without works is dead. And God's desire for his people is for us to be full of life and to be life-giving. We are supposed to be shining through, allowing God to shine through us, and God's desire for his people is to pass that life to other people. This is why Jesus said, go and make disciples.

Can People See God In You

SPEAKER_00 25:39

And we know my father preached it my entire life that Jesus is coming soon. How much more sooner is he coming now than he was then? And we're worried about competing with other churches? Not one rivalry in the body of God has ever brought anybody to Jesus. And chances are it pushed them in the other way, where they didn't want anything to do with us. I want you to ask yourself this. Are you living a life of faith that if somebody doesn't know God, they can see God in you? That how you live, how you react, how you respond, how you talk about other people, are you gossiping or are you worshiping? Because both of those is you serving one or the other master. God has called us to live by the Spirit. God has called us to love one another. I say this all the time. God says in his word, if you were at the altar of sacrifice and you are worshiping him, and there is something that someone else has done to you, not that you did anything wrong, but if someone else has done something to you, you stop and go make it right. Because relationship matters to God. That's why the enemy tries to disrupt it so much. If he could start separating the body of believers with clicks and judgmental attitudes and spirits and diva spirits all over the house, come on, somebody. While studying for this message, I I gotta tell you, I got convicted. You get so busy and caught up being saved, and you forget to just serve. You had no clue. There are people in this church right now sitting here, watching online, people outside that you meet every day, people at your jobs that have had similar stories, but you would never know it. We overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. It's time for people to start speaking out in faith and saying, God is coming out of my mouth, but it's being carried by your spirit. Whatever you do with that, after I do, I live in obedience, that's up to you. I want to ask you today, believer, have you been living a Christian life with no action behind your faith? I was challenged and I can honestly say yes. There have been times where God told me to do something and I didn't step out and do it in the moment, and I beat myself up for it. Thank God for his mercy and grace, even in the midst of my disobedience. So what I've started doing is making it my prayer every day, God, whatever you want me to do today, show me. If it's to talk to someone, pray with someone, just to show love to somebody. What that does is that makes you begin to have an actual authentic relationship with God. That you say, whatever you want, I'm on board. Let me tell you, that's how you have a good marriage. You talk with each other, you say, you know, whatever you want to do. I trust you. I trust you, God. I trust you with my steps, I trust you with my words, I trust you with my family, I trust you with everything I have going on in my life. And then soon, there's gonna be situations and you're gonna have to look those words in the eyes and see if you really trust God or not. Because he will test with perseverance.

Stand Up And Pray For Courage

SPEAKER_00 30:39

If anybody here that knows God today and you haven't been living a faith-filled life with action, I want you to stand up. I want you to lift your hands to God in faith to say, God, make me braver, make me stronger, help me to step out and be who I'm supposed to be. God, I need more faith. Help me to be the man or the woman of God that I need to be. Father, I pray for every person who is standing up right now, that you begin to raise up the warrior inside of them, that you begin to anoint them, begin to let them see who they are through your eyes. I speak to every attack of the enemy, whatever side, whether it be division, whether it be a controlling tongue, God raise up a standard so that we can be exactly who you want us to be. Let us be a church of action and a church of faith. That when we speak, mountains become moved. That when we lay hands on the sick, healings begin to break out. That the Spirit of God be poured out in such a way that every person that comes in contact with this church, something is different. What do you have that I don't have? Begin to open our eyes, God, to where we need to step, to what we need to say, to how we need to say it when we don't need to speak. If you can shut the mouths of a lion, you can shut the mouth of a church member. Give us wisdom, raise up hope and joy in the believers today.