It appears that the bible lists different categories of faith. You already know of little faith when Jesus wondered why the disciples were afraid and described them as having little faith (Matthew 8:26). Apparently, Christians who worry about material things – what shall I wear, what shall we eat – also have the little variety of faith (Luke 12:28).
Then there is great faith. This was demonstrated by a stranger to faith, a centurion when he said to Jesus But say the word and my servant will be healed (Luke 7:7, New King James Version). Jesus described that faith as the great variety of faith. These are the people who tap into the creative power of God’s word; they do not speak carelessly, they may end up as deliverance ministers, genuine ones, not the fake ones like the one described in Acts 8:9-11, but that is a story for another day.
This time, we want to consider a variety of faith that was introduced by the book written by James, the brother of our Lord Jesus Christ. He says that faith without works is dead (in James 2:26). He had earlier referenced this dead variety of faith in James 2:17 & 20. Obviously, this concept needed to be re-emphasized and so, he makes it plain; faith that is not accompanied by any evidentiary acts does not even qualify to be called faith and if one insists on saying that he is a man or woman of faith, there is only one conclusion – such faith is dead, as dead as Dodo, totally useless.
A careful examination of James 2:26 gives a clearer picture, For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. Just as the Spirit gives life to the body, so your acts of faith give life to your faith. The acts you perform, whether it is prayer or bible study, whether it is acts of kindness to others or to yourself (such as not over sleeping or over eating) are the life of your faith. Without those acts, your faith may be of the dead variety.
You can breathe life into your faith today with acts of kindness based on that faith.