I’m not sure I understand your question. Verse 22 of James 2 says that “faith” and “works” work together. It’s not one or the other. It’s not one without the other . It’s both working together. It’s pretty simple; if it’s not by faith only (verse 24) and He says faith and works work together then the proper conclusion is it’s BOTH— working together, just like verse 22 says. Regardless, of what kind of works He is talking about—it still says NOT BY FAITH ONLY.. To say we are saved by faith only is to blantenly contradict God.
I am not saying that we are not saved by both faith and works. What I am saying is that the faith and works we are saved by are Christ's - from His offering. To be able to perceive this, I believe we must first try to do what you said in a prior post - to compare the spiritual with the spiritual - that a verse should not be taken solely on its face because it was built from/upon the doctrine of other verses. I realize that James 2:24 seems on its surface to be compete and self-evident, but if we look further into being justified before God, we can see that it comes by/through Christ alone - and that is what makes Him the Saviour. Christ's offering has within it His faith and His works (and His righteousness). So, for those whom He saves, they become freely imbued in them. Therefore, any true faith and/or works that we may possess, perform or exhibit, first comes from having been justified by Christ - we cannot justify ourselves, but only by Christ. So, the faith and works spoken of James 2:24, originated from Christ and are given unto those whom He saves, and thereby, are they manifested in their lives.
[Act 13:39 KJV] 39 And
by him all that believe
are justified from all things, from which ye could
not be justified by the law of Moses.
[Rom 5:16 KJV] 16 And not as [it was] by one that sinned, [so is] the gift: for the judgment [was] by one to condemnation,
but the free gift [is] of many offences unto justification.
[Gal 2:16 KJV] 16 Knowing that a man is
not justified by the works of the law, but
by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be
justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
[Rom 4:25 KJV] 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was
raised again for our justification.
[Phl 3:9 KJV] 9 And be found in him,
not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law,
but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
[Heb 7:25 KJV] 25 Wherefore
he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.