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Secrets of the Kingdom Life  /  Chapter 39, How to Make Friends with Stolen Money  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 10
The chapter ends by contrasting “justified by faith alone” (attributed to Luther) with James 2:24 (“not by faith only”) and asks, “Whom are we going to believe?”; what specific beliefs about grace, works, almsgiving, and salvation would need to change in your thinking if you took David’s challenge at face value, and what fears or objections immediately rise up when you try to do that?
Another way to ask: If you take David’s challenge seriously about “faith alone” and James saying “not by faith only,” what would need to change in how you think about grace, works, giving to the poor, and salvation? What fears or pushback do you feel right away?

Direct Answer Taking David’s challenge at face value would require changing the belief that almsgiving is unrelated to salvation and accepting that works of mercy are part of how Scripture speaks about justification and final judgment. The transcript doesn’t list every fear explicitly, but it shows people fear this undermines “faith alone” and makes one’s “orthodoxy suspect.”

Support from Transcript:

  • David says modern teachers taught him: “giving alms has nothing to do with salvation.”
  • He adds a social/theological fear: “to even talk about giving alms makes his orthodoxy suspect.”
  • He challenges the slogan: “But nowhere in Scripture does it say we are saved by faith alone.”
  • He quotes James 2:24: “justified by works and not by faith only.”
  • He contrasts authorities: “Martin Luther said we are justified by faith alone. Jesus did not. Whom are we going to believe?”
  • He ties salvation outcome to mercy: early Christians read Luke 16 as helping the poor leading to being “received into eternal homes,” and he links it with Matthew 25’s judgment criteria.
Discussion Follow-ups What objections surface first: “This sounds like earning salvation,” or “This threatens assurance,” or “This is works-righteousness”? How can you let David’s specific texts (Luke 16, Matthew 25, James 2:24) set the terms of the discussion rather than slogans?

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