Why did Luther ever question the Book of James? - RC Sproul
James 2:24 reads, “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” On the surface, this text clearly seems to repudiate sola fide in that it states explicitly that justification is by works and not by faith alone. The problem is intensified by James’ earlier statement: “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?” (James 2:21). Thus, James seems to declare that men in general and Abraham in particular are justified by works.
The problem is exacerbated by the fact that James apparently is in conflict not just with Luther, but, more seriously, with the apostle Paul. In chapter 3 of his epistle to the Romans, Paul declares that justification is by faith apart from the works of the law. But if justification is by works, as James says, then it cannot be by faith apart from works. Conversely, if it is by faith alone, it cannot be by works.
Some critical scholars have argued that Paul and James were simply locked in an irreconcilable contradiction between mutually exclusive doctrines of justification. The irony of this is that most critics see the conflict between Paul and James as irreconcilable, yet at the same time they insist that the differences between the Reformation and Roman Catholic views of justification are reconcilable. In fact, recent declarations of accord between Lutherans and Roman Catholics and between some professed evangelicals and Roman Catholics have affirmed that such reconciliation has been achieved.
However, Rome has insisted historically that the ground of justification must be inherent righteousness (though resting on grace), while the Reformers insisted that the only ground of justification is the imputation of the righteousness of Christ that is not inherent in us. This is irreconcilability—the ground of justification cannot possibly be both in us and outside of us at the same time and in the same relationship. The only way reconciliation can be achieved is for at least one party to abandon its historic position. So far, every accord to resolve the conflict that I’ve seen has witnessed a Protestant retreat from the Reformation position.
By contrast, Paul and James are not irreconcilable. Luther finally accepted James, not because he saw a way to reconcile himself with Roman doctrine, but because he saw that Paul and James were not in ultimate conflict. He realized, as Calvin did, that though Paul and James both discussed the word justify and both appealed to the same Old Testament figure—Abraham—they were discussing distinctly different issues. They were not answering the same question.
Paul addresses this question: “How can an unjust person ever be acceptable to a just and holy God?” His answer to this profound human predicament is his exposition of the Gospel, which Good News declares that we are justified freely by what was accomplished for us by Christ in His life and death. By faith we receive the benefit of having our sin/guilt imputed to Christ and His perfect righteousness imputed to us. Paul teaches that the moment Abraham believed (in Gen. 15) God counted or reckoned him just, before he did any works. Paul also labors the point that it is by faith, prior to any works, that we are reconciled to God, because Christ is our righteousness.
James is answering a different question. His concern has to do with what kind of faith justifies. He frames the issue in 2:14: “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?”
The issue here is this: Are we saved by an empty profession of faith? Neither Paul nor Luther ever taught that justification is by profession alone. Both insisted that what was professed must actually be possessed for justification to exist. Both Paul and Luther taught that if true faith is present, it necessarily produces the fruit of works. If works do not follow from “faith,” that is proof positive that the “faith” is not genuine but is a mere claim to it. However, even if all good works do come from faith, these works still have no part in the ground of justification. They add no merit to us. The only work that contributes to our justification is the work of Jesus; not the work of Jesus in us, but the work of Jesus for us. His merit is the only merit that counts for us.
When James says that Abraham was justified when he offered Isaac on the altar, he uses the term justify with a different nuance than Paul. He is saying that in this work Abraham demonstrated that his faith was genuine; he “justified” his claim to true faith. Jesus used the term in a similar sense when He said, “ ‘Wisdom is justified by her children’ ” (Matt. 11:19b). In other words, true wisdom is shown to be wise by its fruit, so a person who claims to have faith is vindicated on his claim when he shows forth his faith by his works. This is the sum and substance of James’ concern in chapter 2, and in this regard he has no conflict with Paul or with Luther.
The Reformers, such as Luther, were reconciled with James. The Roman Catholics have yet to be reconciled with Paul. (2000). Tabletalk Magazine, May 2000: Faith Works: The Book of James, 6–7.
