Go! And… Live the Faith You Profess
The Final Sermon in the “Go! And…” Series
INTRODUCTION – Bringing the Series to a Climax
Church—today we arrive at the end of our Go! And… series.
We have travelled through Scripture together:
Go! And proclaim.
Go! And forgive.
Go! And trust.
Go! And obey.
Go! And fight the good fight.
Go! And pray.
Go! And live ready.
Go! And call upon the Lord.
Go! And walk in the Spirit.
And many other Go! And Sermons
And now, as I draw the series to a close, God gives us one final command—a command that sums up everything we have learned:
Go! And… Live the Faith You Profess
Because the world has heard enough Christians talk.
The world is longing to see Christians walk.
Not merely professing the faith—but possessing it.
Not merely agreeing intellectually—but living sacrificially.
Today we bring the series home with two verses that stand as bookends of Gospel truth.
James 2:24 (NLT): “So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.”
Romans 3:28 (NLT): “So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.”
Two verses.
Two apostles.
One Gospel.
One truth that calls us to a faith that moves.
1. Go! And… Understand the Root and the Fruit of Faith
Romans 3:28 is the trumpet blast of reformation:
“We are made right with God through faith…”
James 2:24 is the echo of transformation:
“…we are shown to be right with God by what we do…”
Paul addresses people who try to earn salvation by religious works.
James addresses people who claim to have faith but show no change.
Both expose spiritual error.
Both magnify the Gospel.
Paul speaks of root.
James speaks of fruit.
Paul speaks of justification before God.
James speaks of justification before people.
There is no contradiction—just completion.
Ephesians 2:8–10 (NLT) “God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.”
Paul and James agree perfectly:
Grace saves us.
Faith receives it.
Works reveal it.
Tim Keller helps us here: “We are saved by faith alone, but not by faith that remains alone.”
Keller reminds us that saving faith is a living seed—it grows, it produces, it bears fruit.
If nothing grows, nothing was planted.
This is why this sermon is the final message in the Go! And… series.
Everything God has taught us in this series is meant to produce fruit—obedience, trust, surrender, service, holiness.
2. Go! And… Embrace a Living, Visible, Obedient Faith
James gives us two powerful illustrations: Abraham and Rahab.
Abraham – Faith that Acts
James 2:21–22 (NLT): “Our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete.”
“His faith and his actions worked together…”
The Greek word is sunergei—“to cooperate, to work together.”
A living faith cooperates with obedience.
Rahab – Faith that Risks
James 2:25 (NLT): Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road.”
“…shown to be right with God by her actions.”
Rahab’s faith moved her to risk her life.
Faith always moves.
Faith always responds.
Matthew 7:17–20 (NLT) “A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”
“A good tree produces good fruit…”
“…you can identify people by their actions.”
Jesus teaches exactly what James teaches.
Fruit never creates the tree—
but fruit reveals the tree.
John Piper said: “Faith is the root of salvation; love is the fruit of salvation.”
This is the heartbeat of James.
Fruit is not optional; fruit is inevitable.
If the Saviour lives in you, the Saviour lives through you.
And so as we conclude this series, God asks us:
Does your life reveal Christ?
Does your daily walk match your Sunday profession?
Is your faith visible to a watching world?
3. Go! And… Reject Dead Faith and Pursue Transformation
James makes a shocking statement.
James 2:19 (NLT) “You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.”
“Even the demons believe this, and they tremble…”
Demons have accurate theology.
Demons believe intellectually.
Demons acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God.
But demons do not love Him, obey Him, or trust Him.
Belief without surrender is dead faith.
Belief without obedience is dead faith.
Belief without transformation is dead faith.
Greek word: nekra—“lifeless, useless, powerless.”
A 21st-century Tragedy: Millions of people are convinced they are Christians because they prayed a prayer, attended a service, or agreed with a doctrine— but their lives show no obedience, no love, no repentance, no fruit.
Think about a burning house
A firefighter cries, “Come, follow me—I can save you!”
You say, “I believe you.”
And sit down on the sofa.
You perish—not because the fireman lacked power, but because you refused to respond.
Faith responds.
Faith moves.
Faith obeys.
Faith changes.
Galatians 5:6 (NLT) For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love.
“…faith expressing itself in love.”
A Faith that does not lead to obedience is a false faith – A counterfeit faith.
In the 21st Century there are many counterfeit Christians who attend counterfeit Churches.
They listen to the counterfeit teaching about Jesus and reject the Lordship of Christ in their lives.
Instead of fixing their eyes on Jesus, and placing Him at the centre of their lives – Jesus has second place or even last place in their priorities.
My final sermon in this series calls us to examine ourselves with seriousness.
Is your faith living—or dead?
4. Go! And… Rest in the Finished Work of Christ Alone
In this last message, it is crucial to reaffirm the heart of the Gospel:
Romans 3:28 (NLT) “So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.”
“We are made right with God through faith…”
Not by works.
Not by rituals.
Not by achievements.
Not by efforts.
Because Jesus Christ has already done everything necessary for salvation.
He lived the life we could not live.
He died the death we deserved to die.
He rose with the victory we could never secure.
When He cried “It is finished!”
He meant it.
We obey God not to be loved by God but because we already are loved by God.”
Obedience is the joyful overflow of grace—not the price of grace.
This brings the entire Go! And… series into focus:
We do not “Go!” to earn God’s acceptance.
We “Go!” because God has accepted us in Christ.
Saved people serve.
Forgiven people forgive.
Loved people love.
Transformed people bear fruit.
5. Go! And… Live Out the Gospel in a Watching World
As we close the series, this last command from God becomes the summary of all others:
Go! And… live the faith you profess.
The world has enough armchair Christians.
It needs living epistles.
Visible disciples.
Observable obedience.
Faith that is seen, not just said.
Titus 3:5 (NLT) “he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.
“He saved us… because of his mercy.”
Our works don’t save us—
but they show our Saviour to the world.
Most of the people you encounter in life don’t want to hear you tell them what Jesus can do for them…
But they will observe what He has done for you.
If you live a Jesus-filled and Gospel-based life, you will become a sermon without words.
Your life can attract others to Jesus louder than any words you could ever speak.
This is the call as the series ends:
Go! And let the world see Jesus in you.
THE GOSPEL CALL
My friends, here is the truth as we conclude the Go! And… series:
You cannot earn salvation.
You cannot save yourself.
You cannot work your way to heaven.
But Jesus Christ has done it all.
He bore your sins.
He suffered your judgement.
He died your death.
He rose for your justification.
And now He calls you to repent, believe, surrender, and follow.
Not with dead faith.
Not with hollow confession.
But with living, saving, transforming, fruit-bearing faith.
If today the Spirit of God is awakening you—respond.
Turn from sin.
Surrender your life to Jesus.
Trust in His sacrifice.
Receive His mercy.
Ask Him to give you a living faith.
Ask Jesus to make you His.
CALL TO ACTION FOR BELIEVERS – THE FINAL CHALLENGE
Church—
This series ends, but your mission continues.
Go! And live the faith you profess.
Go! And walk in visible obedience.
Go! And shine Christ in dark places.
Go! And bear the fruit of transformation.
Go! And be the hands and feet of Jesus.
Go! And demonstrate grace, truth, holiness, and love.
Go! And let your life reveal the Saviour who redeemed you.
BENEDICTION – Final Words of the Series
May the God who saved you by grace
empower you to walk in obedience,
strengthen you to display His love,
and fill you with the Spirit who produces His fruit in your life.
Go now, in the name of Jesus,
to live the faith you profess.
And may the world see Christ in you.
Amen.
