What is Faith?

What is faith? This is probably the most important question that we can ask ourselves as we seek to trust the Lord with our salvation. Is faith simply saying you believe and nothing more? Or is it doing something with your faith?

In his epistle James writes,
"For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." James 2:26
Our bodies are nothing but empty shells without our spirits filling them up. Granted our bodies are amazing in their construction, but they are useless without the breath of God breathed into them.
Let's look a little closer at what James is saying in chapter 2.
"What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?
If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,' but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?
Thus also faith by itself if it does not have works, is dead.
But someone will say, 'You have faith, and I have works.' Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.< You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe - and tremble!
But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.' And he was called the friend of God.
You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." - James 2:14-26

Some people seem to think that James is contradicting what Paul says in Galatians 2:16 "for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified."
However, look at what Paul says in his letter to the Romans -

(for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; - Romans 2:13

Paul and James are not in opposition to each other since they were both inspired by the same Holy Spirit!
We are NOT saved by our works (Ezekiel 33:13), but rather, our works PROVE that our faith is REAL!
If we do good works in accordance with the Torah, out of love for God and His people then we have shown our faith is more than just an empty shell.
Though most people still choose to believe that faith is simply saying you believe and nothing more. "God knows my heart" they say, yet they overlook what the Lord says in His Word about walking in obedience to His commandments:
"I will put My Spirit within you and CAUSE you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and DO them." - Ezekiel 36:27
"Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches the, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." - Matthew 5:19
He who has My commandments and KEEPS them, it is he who loves Me." - John 14:21
"You are my friends IF you DO whatever I command you." - John 15:14
"Through Him [Christ] we have received grace and apostleship for obdience to the faith..." - Romans 1:5
"Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision?" - Romans 2:26
"Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law." - Romans 3:31
"But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should SERVE in the newness of the Spirit [Jeremiah 31:31-34] and not in the oldness of the letter." - Romans 7:6
"I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself SERVE the Law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin." - Romans 7:25
"that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit." - Romans 8:4
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:8-10
"work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." - Phillippians 2:12b-13
"who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works." - Titus 2:14
"Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, 'I know Him' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk just as He walked. Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandmentis the word which you heard from the beginning." - 1 John 2:3-7
"and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dad, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests [by implication to SERVE] to His God and Father ..." - Revelation 1:5-6

There are more Scriptures that show us that faith is more than just "saying" we belive. It is an action, something we DO. Proof of our faith.
Not proof for God, since He does see our hearts, but proof for ourselves and those around us. This is an essential part of God's design for our relationship with Him and those who are in Him.

Faith IS what saves us, but again, our works are proof of that faith which makes them very important. God wants us to know beyond the shadow of a doubt that we are saved by faith and that our faith is alive.