Thank you my dear friend for asking about this. Well, the quick answer is “no,” being a “doer of the Word” is not being saved by works, though I will admit that some have misinterpreted the Scriptures in that way.  Now, there are unbelievers who, for whatever the reason, try to show themselves as Christians, sometimes quoting Scriptures, but their hearts do not truly belong to Christ, and often these folks seek to lead believers astray. These we Christians want to recognize, so that we do not fall prey to their heresies. You might be familiar with the words of our Lord Jesus: “by their fruit ye shall know them,” (Matthew 7:15-20). Unbelievers will not bear the fruit of the Spirit, and so ultimately, they will show their true colors, that they are really opposed to Christianity.

But, in the Epistle of James, it is my belief that we are not talking so much about unbelievers, but rather about Christians who read the Word, but do not show their faith by their actions. Such are saved perhaps, but do not always take the Scriptures to heart and do what Scripture tells them to do. Perhaps, when they hear of brothers in need of encouragement or of food or shelter, they might simply ignore that need. So, let’s look closely at what is being said in James 1:22-25, which I believe to be the portion you are referring to: “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”  I should begin by saying that I believe James to have been a Jewish Christian, and that he is writing here to other Christians because he uses the word “brethren” so often in his epistle. Now, you and I both know that a man is saved by faith, and not by works of the law, nor by any good works that he can come up with (Ephesians 2:8,9; Titus 3:5; John 5:24; Acts 16:31; Romans 5:1; Romans 10:9; and please consider the whole argument of Romans 4). So, given that the Scriptures are all inspired of God, and are true and consistent in message, how shall we look at James 1:22-25? Well, I do not believe that James is talking about salvation here, but rather that one who professes to be a Christian ought to act like one.

Those who truly are born again have that new life in them and are saved apart from works (2 Corinthians 5:17), but the Holy Spirit will, through the diligent reading of God’s Word, bring about good fruit in this man’s life. If there is no fruit, it is possible that the man either has never truly believed on the Lord Jesus as his Savior; or, on the other hand, as we read in James 1, it could be that even a Christian who reads God’s Word may show evidence of but little spiritual growth if they do not seek to apply what they have read. This would be like a man who looks in a mirror, then soon forgets what he has seen. When we read in John 3:3-6 that a man must be born again by water and by the Spirit, I think we are seeing that the spiritual growth in being conformed to the image of Christ requires the action of the Holy Spirit, working in the heart by the water of God’s Word. Because you and I cannot see the heart as God does (1 Samuel 16:7), we may not know the true “standing” of a man before God, but we can often see the “state”, or how a man conducts himself. In his Bible Commentary on James 1:25, William MacDonald writes about that one who is a “doer” of the Word as follows: “In contrast is the man who looks into the word of God and who habitually reduces it to practice. His contemplative, meditative gazing has practical results in his life. To him the Bible is the perfect law of liberty. Its precepts are not burdensome. They tell him to do exactly what his new nature loves to do. As he obeys, he finds true freedom from human traditions and carnal reasonings. The truth makes him free. This is the man who benefits from the Bible. He does not forget what he has read. Rather he seeks to live it out in daily practice. His simple childlike obedience brings incalculable blessing to his soul. This one will be blessed in what he does.“ Therefore, I say that it is not salvation that is brought to a man’s soul by such works, but blessing to himself and to others.

In summary, I do believe that James is writing to possibly Jewish Christians here rather than non-believers; but in either case, our author, I believe, is not adding anything to salvation by faith alone, but is telling his audience that “you should walk the talk if you are truly a Christian”. It will not do to say you are a Christian, then to simply ignore the good works that the Bible says we true believers should be known for. This does not say that one in this situation is not saved because he hasn’t done good works, but rather that one who truly is saved should be characterized by good works as expected of the children of God. If he is not, the arguments of James should set out a strong rebuke in order to convince that person to take God’s Word more seriously, and let it impact their lives. Unfortunately, even true Christians can memorize verses and read commentaries on the Bible, and yet, in their lives, they may not show much love or concern for their brethren or their fellow man in general. Thus, the Epistle of James provides some firm guidance as to how a Christian should conduct his or her life in order to be in concert with the will of God.  (SF)  (572.3)