Good Works

James 2:26 (NKJV)
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

We know that according to Titus 2:14 that God is looking for people that are excited to do good works for Him and His kingdom. We also know that we can’t just live a successful life in Christ based on our faith alone, we need to mix our good works with our faith for it to be made perfect.

James 2:22 (NKJV)
Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?

So the question that is on a lot people minds is; what exactly are good works? A lot of people equate the term good works to specific actions that they take, whether it may be volunteering your time to help others, being a faithful giver, helping the homeless etc... True all of these actions can be accounted to someone as a part of good works if they are done out of the right motives from the heart. Sadly this is where the good works stop for a lot of people. There is much more to good works than just taking actions to help out.

1 Peter 2:11-12 (NKJV)
Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evil doers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

There are two sides to completing good works; you have the action side where you are obeying Gods command and setting out to do works that involve your actions, whether that may be preaching, teaching, volunteering, etc… then there is the conduct side. The conduct side is the side of good works where you are living out your life everyday in Christ for everyone to see.

Let’s take Jesus for example, Jesus went around doing a lot of good works, he healed the sick, he taught in the synagogues, he disciple people personally, etc… But while he was doing all the good actions he also fulfilled the conduct side of good works. He lived a life of a Holy character for all to see. Imagine if Jesus went around doing all those good actions but at the end of the day His character didn’t line up with His actions. What if at the end of the day He went and got drunk at the local bar, or He cussed someone out that got on His nerves. If this were to happen I think all of His good actions He performed earlier in the day would have gone in vain because His example of Christ would have been flawed.

So let’s look at our own situations, and lives; first, do we even obey God when He asks us to do good actions such as giving of your time to help someone out, giving of your finances to bless someone, volunteering at your church or local help centers? Second, at the end of the day when it’s all said and done are we portraying the character of Christ in our personal lives? When people look at you are they seeing Christ in you or are they seeing someone that goes to church, loves God, but is living no better of a life than they are living in the world.

Remember that good works involves more than just doing good deeds, you are the good work.
I pray that this has been a blessing on your lives.

Daryle Houston II
Kingdom Vizion Ministries
www.kingdomvizion.org