"Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance. For these reasons the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. Acts 26:19-21

Another point of interest from these three verses is the fact that the call to believe is also a call to repentance and good works. This is not: faith + (repentance + good works) = salvation. Rather, from this we learn that saving faith includes and is validated by repentance and good works. The reason is that just as faith is a gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9), repentance and the heart to do good works are also God’s gifts (Acts 5:31, 11:18, 2 Timothy 2:25). God’s gift of saving faith, repentance, and subsequent good works are a package deal, given by God to all who are born again.

This is what James argued for in James 2:14-26. He was not saying that salvation is the result of faith + repentance and good works, but that true saving faith will always be demonstrated and validated by repentance and good works, not for salvation but because of salvation. Or as James puts it, saving “faith without [accompanying] good works is dead [useless and not saving faith at all]” (James 2:20 & 26).

Though Jesus said we would know who is saved “by their fruits” Matthew 7:15-20), we should not busy ourselves looking for good works in other people’s lives. Instead, let us be ever mindful about the presence of fruit (good works) in our own lives.