The text:

You believe that God is one. You do well, the demons also believe, and shudder. (James 2.19)

Key words:

"believe"- Gk. pisteuo. verb form of pistis. the conviction of the truth of anything; belief; trust; faith
"shudder" -Gk. phrisso. to shudder, to be struck with extreme fear, to be horrified

The Observation:

Here, in the context of James explanation of the relationship between faith and works (in which a non-working faith is not faith at all), comes this shocking truth about true, justifying faith. Demons, if they were wrapped up in human flesh, by their knowledge of God, would look like Christians! They believe in God, and not just God as a generic divine, but as the triune holy God of scripture. They believe in Christ as God, they believe He died, they believe He rose, and they believe He rules from heaven. They are so attuned to the holiness of God, that they shudder with horror. More shocking, is they can discern TRUE believers from FALSE ones (Acts 19.15)!

The Question:

If a demon's "theology" or belief is that extensive, and they are damned, how much more is the necessity that our faith produces FRUIT, or in other words, is evidenced by works?

Part of the Answer:

The problem with demons is they have this extremely accurate theology, yet perform their activities as if God didn't exist. They are reverent in their knowledge, but irreverent in their actions.

Name an action/good work rejoiced over in Scripture, even when it is performed with IMPURE motives.

Follow up idea: What does that say about the necessity of that work?

Here's how to do a word study using only the internet. This is for those who do not have all the solid resources such as concordances and lexicons handy.

    1. Pick the passage
    2. Click here
    3. Type in the passage; Be sure to choose "NAS Strong's Version"
    4. The words you can look up are underlined and colored blue
    5. Click on a word
    6. The next screen (Lexicon) gives you lots of information including the "NAS Verse Count" in which it will list for             you every time in the Bible the same original word is used and translated.
    7. Play around with it. You'll be surprised at the richness of original language.
    8. Have fun, and blessings to you in your time in the word.