Define "Good"

What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? [James 2.14]

Define "good."

Where should we get our definition of good? I would say Jesus would be our safest source:

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. [Acts 10.38]

If Jesus went around "doing good," then we can simply review what He did to see what "good" actually is. Acts 10.38 gives us our first clue (healing all who were oppressed by the devil...) but all the Gospels combined provide ample evidence of what "doing good" looks like.

However, even James, in the context of James 2.14 gives a glimpse into "doing good:" 

Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? [James 2.15-16]

Is this not precisely what we see Jesus doing when He fed the 5000 and then the 4000? But we see much more than just feeding people in Jesus' ministry. We see total unlimited ministry in the person of Jesus - pretty much whatever a person or group needed, Jesus provided. It just so happened that in Jesus' time, health issues were prominent, so we see Jesus healing the sick regularly.

Hello, health issues are still with us. And, so are hungry destitute people. Oh, and people still battle demons of all kinds (although we usually define it as depression or mental health issues). If we are overwhelmed by this, then we are getting close to the kind of faith Jesus demonstrated. If we are unable to meet people's needs from our own resources, then we are close to the circumstances we see Jesus in where faith shines.

The 'elephant in the room' however, is James' statement regarding the lack of faith. If our faith does not show itself, how can we be sure we have believed the Gospel unto salvation? James indicates that we can't!

So, walking by faith is not an option for a "believer." Even though we have become so accustomed to saying we believe in Jesus for our salvation, we are far too quick to excuse our lack of faith shown by our actions. James does not give us that right!

Father, help us to show our faith by our actions - actions of good like Jesus demonstrated for us and commanded us to do also.