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The German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "Only he who believes is obedient, and only he who is obedient believes."

A tightrope walker was known for taking a wheelbarrow across the wire on his high-air act. Before he got on the wire, he stopped and spoke to the crowd below. He asked them if they believed he could walk across the wire with the wheelbarrow. Most said yes because they had heard of his reputation. He then pointed to a man below who enthusiastically affirmed that the tightrope walker could do it and said, "If you believe, you can come up here, get in the barrel, and let me wheel you across the wire." The man kept his feet planted on the ground. If the man had really believed, he would have gotten in the wheelbarrow.

Salvation is free, but discipleship is always costly. Works can never save us, but saved people do good works. James says faith without works is dead. He challenged his readers to show their faith without works but said he would show his by his works (James 2:17-18). James was not saying that works produce our salvation, but rather that they result from our redemption.

The key trait of a disciple of Christ is obedience. It's not something God does for us but something we actively choose to do. We are not passive recipients of God's grace but active participants in working out our salvation. Following Christ always involves cross-bearing. The cross of Christ involved rejection and shame, and so will yours.

Be obedient to Christ and demonstrate your faith to others.