Proper 21B
James 5:15-20
Mark 9:38-50
For the last several weeks, the lectionary has provided passages from James for the second lesson. We’ve been pretty much working our way through James. Today is the last Sunday of James.
As I said when we started James, it sometimes gets a bad rap. Luther was famously dismissive of it and would have preferred it not be in the Bible. James talks about the “works” of Christian life. Drawing upon Paul’s writings, reformation theology, like Luther’s, stresses salvation through faith alone. God’s favor, salvation, does not come through works; only through faith or belief.
But I think we have taken that reformation perspective to a real extreme. We have become too focused on belief as the be all and end all of being a Christian. If we don’t have pure belief, we assume we can’t be Christians. We expend a lot of anxiety worrying about the status of our belief. On the other hand folks who are confident or secure in their belief sometimes think that is all they need as Christians.
James provides a helpful reminder that faith is also a verb. In addition to being about belief, faith is also a verb. Faith is not just what we believe; it is also what we do. The two perspectives are not in conflict. And I think we would do well to re-energize the idea that faith is action.
And, although my main focus today is James, I think part of what today’s Gospel reminds us is that faith is action… what you do with your hand or foot or eye matters.
It’s also nice to remember that you can “do” faith even when your belief is a little shaky. That’s reassuring. Even on days or weeks or months or years when your belief may be a bit shaky, you can still live faithfully. You can still “do” faith. On the other hand, James reminds us: “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”
The verses we hear today are from the very end of James’ letter. These are his parting words to the community to whom he writes.
One scholar writes this about James:
[The] epistle of James seeks to encourage and lead us to the conviction that we are indeed endowed by our creator with a rich bounty of gifts for the living of daily life in this world. It is then an extra benefit if the author can teach us some of the practical insights that human wisdom has discovered about a faithful living…
We have been given a rich bounty of gifts for faithful living. Faithful living in daily life. One way I would describe what this means for me is: There is a Christian response to every situation we may face in daily life. There is a Christian action possible in the midst of every human experience. There is always something a Christian can do.
James talks about what these Christian actions are. He gives practical advice. In passages we heard in earlier weeks, James stressed the Christian responsibility to act on behalf the marginalized and powerless… widows and orphans in his world… in our world, anyone who has less power than we do through absolutely no fault of their own. It is always our responsibility to do what we can, to act to help people who are powerless or marginalized.
In today’s reading James’ vision turns a bit more inward. Speaking to the community to whom he is writing, he says: Are any among you suffering? And he probably means more than just suffering under oppression or persecution, although those might have been possible for early Christians. He means suffering under any negative life experience, such as sorrow, depression, a bad family or social situation, or economic distress.
What is the practical Christian response when we are suffering? Pray. We know that, but we need to be reminded to do it. Pray.
Are any among you cheerful? Again, he doesn’t just mean smiley face happy, he means aware of the goodness of life. Are any of you experiencing good within your life? What is the practical Christian response to goodness? Praise. We know that, too, but how often do we really do it? How often do we pause to offer words or acts of praise?
Are any among you sick? And here he means literally, physically sick. What is the practical Christian response when we are sick? Call upon the church. It never occurs to James that there would not be a church community to call upon. Christians exist in community. And when we are sick what Christians do is call upon the church community. For the church’s anointing and for the support and help that other Christians offer.
When James mentions people who are suffering, cheerful or sick, he imagines that he has covered everyone. He means to cover the totality of human existence and present a practical and Christian response for every personal situation. There is always a Christian response.
He means to be encouraging. But he also challenges us in our day, I think, to ask ourselves: how often really am I living, responding to the experiences of life, as a Christian? What percentage of my life am I doing faith? I was reflecting on aspects of my life (and maybe yours?) where I’m not generally consciously acting as a Christian.
For example, entertainment choices. An example came to mind, that I share with a bit of trepidation. Tom Ferguson is an Episcopal priest who serves as Academic Dean at Bexley Seabury seminary. He blogs on life in the church. Church, of course, is only thing that happens on Sundays. One other things is the NFL.
In August Ferguson, who blogs as Crusty Old Dean, posted about his decision, as a Christian, to boycott professional football. I’m not here to pass judgment on those of you who invest your time or resources on professional football as entertainment. I don’t enjoy it that much, so I’m in no position to cast stones. But it is probably a conversation that for some of you is worth having. Start by reading his piece (HERE). It’s four pages long. It’s not a casual or capricious decision. It’s a thoughtful and faithful one.
But I mention it as an example. An example of faithful living. An example of acting as a Christian in the midst of the experiences of daily life.
There is always a Christian action possible just ahead of us in any situation or experience of daily life. In the choice of food that we purchase or consume. In the choice of vehicle we drive. In the sorts of entertainment we participate in. In the way we relate to friends, coworkers, or people on the train. In the work we do. In the ways we spend our time and our money.
James reminds us to live as Christians. There is always a Christian response or a Christian action before us.
James' final words are worth noting. He says that the bestest Christian action we can ever do is to help others in their faith. And doing that covers a host of other sins or Christian shortcomings. (That’s not the best theology; God doesn’t keep score or assign points.) But James’ priority is good. The absolute best thing we can faithfully do as Christians is to help sustain others in their efforts to live faithfully.
