Martin Luther on the Book of James

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. - James 2:14-17

Traditionally, this passage has been treated with skepticism in the Protestant church. Back in the 1500s, Martin Luther called James “the Gospel of Straw.” He detested it so much in large part because he was reacting against the culturally dominant version of Christianity which put so much emphasis on earning your way to heaven that people had forgotten that God gives grace freely. He felt this passage gave credence to an approach to Jesus that too heavily emphasized what we do.

One of the difficulties with Luther’s legacy is that now in so many Protestant churches there is an form of belief/faith that is devoid of any actual action. We claim to believe in Jesus but we don’t do what he did… so is that really belief? In some ways, the pendulum has swung and we need less of Luther’s warnings about James!

Has your spiritual journey stressed more what you do or what you think/believe? How has that been helpful? How has that been unhelpful?