The LDS James & Paul Proof-text Clash

One of the favorite arguments using the Bible-as-proof-text that the LDS church uses to "prove" that salvation through faith by grace alone is wrong, is the book of James.

Verses from James that are used to bolster the LDS arguments are typically in this range:

James 2:14 What [doth it] profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?

James 2:17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

James 2:18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

James 2:20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

James 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

James 2:22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

James 2:24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

James 2:25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent [them] out another way?

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

James 3:13 Who [is] a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.

Which most Evangelical Christians would counter with the entire book of Romans, but rather than head down that expected road, let's take a different approach. Let's actually look at the Bible with an exegetical hermeneutic and discern what James was trying to accomplish with his book, who he was writing to, and the context of his statements.

The keystone example of James' argument is Abraham, when he references Genesis, "Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?"

Interestingly the book of Romans appeals to this example of Abraham as well, to make an argument for salvation through faith by grace alone. So what are we to make of this apparent contradiction in scripture?

Using Genesis chapter 15 (verse 6) as your guide, can you fill in the blank:

Abram _____ the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness.

Is the correct answer "performed for" or "was going to sacrifice his son for?" No, the correct answer is "believed" which is the basis of the concept of faith. If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

By the time Abram had Isaac placed on the altar, his faith had already been credited to him as righteousness -- before the covenant symbology of circumcision. BEFORE circumcision! Do you understand the significance of that? BEFORE Abram acted, "his faith was credited to him as righteousness."

When was Isaac placed on the altar? Genesis 22, where Abram worked to show his faith -- but God had already credited Abram's belief as righteousness in chapter 15. This correct context of the story proves to be very problematic for the LDS proof-texting use of James.

Compounding the contextual use of James versus Romans, is what the objective of the books was at the time of their writing.

Unlike James, in Romans Paul is writing very objectively to the church in Rome about the gospel message.

Unlike Paul, James was appealing to his readers that a living faith in Jesus is going to manifest itself in actions that reflect Christ. James was writing subjectively to a visibly dead church, where he heard verbal profession of faith that had no visible manifestation of that faith. James was clearly disgusted with the abuse of the mindset that the road of following Christ stops with "salvation through faith by grace alone" that he was seeing manifested in the church body he was addressing. James was writing to shock a fallen church into living for God; admonishing them for living the way that the LDS Church accuses Christendom of living -- with so-called "cheap grace."

Was James contradicting Paul? No. James was "smacking them upside the head" to get them to see that they needed to stop living for themselves, and begin living for Christ to SHOW themselves workmen for God who need not be ashamed (2 Timothy 2:15). James was emphasizing that a life proclaimed unto God without action is to no use for the Kingdom. Abraham's commitment to God, his willingness to obey and thereby showing himself a worthy servent, and foreshadowing the sacrifice made by Jesus, was taking his faith and actually acting like he believed it.