I've been spending some time reflecting on a couple things over the course of the week. Here is a rather zoomed-out perspective, tying to a larger, New Testament-focused theme. Read on:
1.) James 2:14-17. It was the scriptural verse this last Sunday at the church I went to, and between the ideas expressed and the interpretation the pastor gave for his sermon, it's given me a bit to think about. The issue raised is works and faith. The argument that the author of James gives favors the need for works, and he argues that faith without works is dead. The pastor talked about how that contrasted Martin Luther's idea that faith is more important than works, and he went on to defend the verses in James. I came away pleasantly surprised, with the conclusion (at least as I understood it) that one really needs both. Faith is important, but so is works, to prove that it's an active faith. I've found it's really tough to balance, because there's always the danger of showing a "passive" faith (i.e. not very many works), as well as the danger of serving for purposes other than God's. But at least it's inspired me to look into more of the new testament in general (to date I have familiarity with the Gospels, and Acts and Romans a little bit, but that's about it).
2.) I've been praying for a friend of mine who's going through a tough time with his faith in the church. He recently went to a service where, in his opinion, the pastor gave a hate-filled sermon and used parts of the Bible to back it up. I've kind of just been praying and thinking about some of the issues he raised, and looking through the scriptures for some further in-depth reading to see exactly what they're saying.
One thing I've learned through talking with friends is the difference between the Old and New Testament, and how the new testament focuses on Christ and God's love, and that's the brand of faith I've found I embrace; hence my recent skimmings through as many of the books as I can.