[metmom]

To use James’ terminology: The spirit is what makes the body a living body. Likewise works are what make faith a living, saving faith.

But the works are done by the body and the faith is in the spirit. So that analogy would be backwards.

Living faith is what produces works that bring God glory and accomplish His purpose on earth.

As the writer of Hebrews says, faith accomplishes its purpose after the works are done.

Where?

And faith's purpose is accomplished by the works, so in that respect, faith is completed, but faith alone is still what saves someone to go on to produce works.

I think one of the problems is that people can do what are considered good things, good works, for whatever reason, and yet they are not the fruit of faith.

Additionally, the works are works that God prepared before hand for the believer to walk in, not works that people by themselves decide to do thinking that it contributes to attaining salvation.

[LearsFool]

Thank you...Yes, I was only half-right - but half-wrong!:

Faith makes works into "living" works (James 2:26), while works make faith a "saving" faith (2:14).

Where?

In Hebrews 11, for instance:

"By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they had been compassed about for seven days."

The walls fell by faith, after the marching, not before. Did they fall by faith alone? No. Would they have fallen by faith if there hadn't been marching? No.

They fell by faith, not by marching...but only after marching. Would they have fallen without the marching? The marching was faith in action. Without the action, what good would their faith have been? It wouldn't have accomplished its purpose without action.

Consider Naaman: Was his leprosy cured before dipping in the Jordan? Would it have been cured without the dipping? Without the action, what would've been accomplished?

And one last example: By faith we have remission of our sins, after baptism. Baptism is faith in action. Without baptism, faith does not accomplish its purpose.