EPISTLE OF JAMES....OVERVIEW
“Faith without works is dead”
The letter was probably the first of the 27 new testament documents, written as early as ten years after the ascension around 43 A.D. In most of the early manuscripts it is placed immediately after the Acts, and only later was included in the group of epistles written exclusively to Jewish believers, namely Hebrews, James, and Peter’s letters, forming part of what are called “the general epistles”. It was therefore written before the gospel was officially taken to the Gentiles. Like it’s old testament counterpart, the book of Job, which is actually mentioned in the letter, it contains much of the suffering of the people of God, and the issue of their endurance, in light of the soon coming dawn of eternity. These being the first two books in the old and new testaments respectively, demonstrate the compassion in the heart of God for His suffering people here on earth. God is with His people in their suffering.
The writer He simply introduces himself as “James.” Although there were many of that name he was apparently well enough known for them to recognise him. Almost without exception he is believed to be the brother of Jude who wrote a later epistle and both were the step- brothers of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to John 7v25 none of his brothers believed in him and therefore they were not numbered amongst the twelve apostles. What we do know is that Jesus appeared to him after the resurrection (1st Cor. 15v5-7). He rose to prominence in the early church and is described by Paul in Galatians 2 as “a pillar in the church.” What kind of man was James?
• He was a passionate man often times characterised as being strict and narrow minded, yet he had great sympathy and passion for the people of God undergoing tremendous pressures for their faith in Christ and this comes out clearly in the letter. The repeated phrase “my brethren” or “my beloved brethren” make it clear that he was one of them, that they, with him, were in the family of God. No less than twelve times he addresses them as such (1v2; 1v16; 1v19; 2v1; 2v5; 2v14; 3v1; 3v10; 5v7; 5v10; 5v12; 5v19).
• He was a practical man. Often charged with lacking in doctrine, this epistle is marked by consecutive imperative commands to God’s people of which there are almost 60 using many injunctions like count/let/ask/be/be not/have not/etc. etc. His doctrine if any, is that “faith without works is dead” and he drives a stake into the heart of formal religion which in the sight of God he says is worthless. He presents belief evidenced by behaviour, creed by conduct, and rejects all displays of external religion. The letter could be classed as the book of proverbs of the new testament as he moves from one saying to another in short, sharp commands which challenge all forms of human hypocrisy. This book is intensely spiritual in it’s arguments and underpins the faith of all who believe.
• He was a prayerful man. It was said of James in historical legend that his knees were like “camels knees” because he spent most of his time in prayer and this comes out towards the end of the letter where he appeals for God’s people to spend much time in prayer but not just saying prayers, prayers which are effectual. He would have taken his example from his brother who would have spent much time in prayer in the home.
His audience First we notice his humility and calls himself a servant (slave) of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. He had spent almost 25 years in the same home as Jesus Christ but now he calls him his Lord and puts Him on the same level as God. Perhaps he remembered that astonishing statement by Jesus at the end of Matthew 12 where he said that His spiritual relationship with those who did the will of God was far greater than the earthly relationship with his blood relatives. Although the earthly relative of Jesus he presents himself as his bondservant. He writes “to the twelve tribes. “ This was a statement of great faith because the twelve tribes had never been together for hundreds of years and indeed ten of them were virtually lost in the exile of Assyria. His faith that God would bring them together, no matter what, shines out here, for if he would encourage faith in his readers he must show it in himself. At the time of writing these twelve tribes were “scattered abroad.” They were the “diaspora” which refers to Acts 8v1 “at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria except the apostles.” The word used for this dispersion was taken from the scattering of the seed which would result in a great harvest. It seemed that God used this persecution to spread the gospel far and near but it meant terrible suffering for many of the Jewish believers and it is to them that James is writing compassionately yet practically to help them endure the trials.
The message The words “perfect” and “fulfil” appear throughout the letter and the Greek word used “teleios” means to bring to completion, to bring to maturity, to accomplish the purpose of, and is taken from archery where the arrow is intended to end at the bulls eye. James’ letter focuses on ways of which Jewish believers (and therefore all believers) can bring their lives to maturity no matter the circumstances they are in. In chapter 1 this will mean endurance. In chapter 2 this will mean impartiality. In chapter 3 this will mean temperance. In chapter 4 this will mean separation. In chapter 5 this will mean patience.
James promotes justification by works, whereas Paul, later, teaches justification by faith. There is no disagreement in these as the first views our visible lives before men, whereas the second views our invisible relationship to God. We are saved by faith in Christ, but faith which does not issue in works is vain, and this is because salvation involves the implantation of Divine life.
All the resources of heaven are at our disposal to achieve this perfection, this maturity, this goal to which we are called, and it will require our full cooperation to make it a reality. This is among the most forthright, pointed, thought-provoking, and practical writings in holy scripture and calls for an immediate response from us. We will profit from following each unequivocal step as we proceed.
There is little doubt that the writers of the new testament scriptures were greatly inspired by the old testament and it comes out in the details. For example the two epistles of Peter can be readily divided by the five books of the Pentateuch. Much of Paul’s writings contain doctrine found in seed form in the Tanakh (the Hebrew for the collected writings of the law, the prophets and the wisdom books). The gospel of Matthew contains over 50 times the “fulfilment” of scriptures written before. So, also in James, there appears to be a link with Genesis 49, what is described as “the judgment seat of Jacob”, where Jacob assesses the future of the twelve tribes. We note that James writes to the twelve tribes, and that his name, James, is the modern equivalent of the old Jacob. The trends indicated in Genesis 49 come through clearly in the letter and is a wonderful illustration of the unity of holy scripture. The thought links are as follows;
• Reuben Genesis 49 v4 “..unstable as water thou shalt not excel.” James 1 v8 “...a double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
• Simeon and Levi Genesis 49 vv5-7 “Cursed be their anger for it was fierce, and their wrath for it was cruel.” James1 vv19-20 “Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.”
• Judah Genesis 49 v10 “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh come....”. James 2 v8-12, now that Shiloh has come “...fulfil the royal law...” and “So speak ye and so do as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty”.
• Zebulon Genesis 49 v13 “Zebulon shall dwell at the haven of the sea, and he shall be for a haven of ships, and his border shall be unto ZIdon”. All this suggests trade with the outside world, trust in it’s commerce and bent toward it, while living in the land. James 4 v4 “Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God...”
• Issachar Genesis 49 vv14-15 “Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens......and bowed his shoulder to bear and became servant to tribute”. James 4 vv8-10 “Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you.....humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up”.
• Dan Genesis 49 v17 “Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path that biteth the horses heels so that his rider shall fall backward”. James 3 v8 “...but the tongue can no man tame, it is an unruly evil full of deadly poison”.
• Gad Genesis 49 v19 “A troop shall overcome him but he shall overcome at last”. James 1 v12 “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation for when he is tried (approved), he shall receive the crown of life....”.
• Asher Genesis 49 v20 “Out of Asher his bread shall be fat and he shall yield royal dainties”. James 3 v17 “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peacable, gentle, easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy”......royal dainties indeed!!
• Naphtali Genesis 49 v21 “Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words”. James 3 v2 “If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man able also to bridle the whole body”. Also James 5 v19 good words of restoration “Brethren if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him, let him know that he which converteth a sinner from the error of his way, shall save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins”.
• Joseph Genesis 49 v22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough whose branches run over the wall....”. Many links to Joseph but James 3 v18 is clear “...the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.”.
• Benjamin Genesis 49 v27 “Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf, in the morning he shall devour the prey and in the evening he shall divide the spoil”. James 4 vv1-2 “From whence cometh wars and fightings among you.....ye lust...ye kill...ye desire to have...ye fight and war...”.
James works these o/t predictions into his teaching with a heart of compassion, willing His beloved people to avoid the pitfalls and imbibe the positives of the life of faith. He wants his people like Jacob of old to be transformed to “Israel”; for the man of the flesh to become the man of God. Truly evidence of the living word of God...prophecy spoken thousands of years before made practical in the church of the new age!
“Faith without works is dead”
The letter was probably the first of the 27 new testament documents, written as early as ten years after the ascension around 43 A.D. In most of the early manuscripts it is placed immediately after the Acts, and only later was included in the group of epistles written exclusively to Jewish believers, namely Hebrews, James, and Peter’s letters, forming part of what are called “the general epistles”. It was therefore written before the gospel was officially taken to the Gentiles. Like it’s old testament counterpart, the book of Job, which is actually mentioned in the letter, it contains much of the suffering of the people of God, and the issue of their endurance, in light of the soon coming dawn of eternity. These being the first two books in the old and new testaments respectively, demonstrate the compassion in the heart of God for His suffering people here on earth. God is with His people in their suffering.
The writer He simply introduces himself as “James.” Although there were many of that name he was apparently well enough known for them to recognise him. Almost without exception he is believed to be the brother of Jude who wrote a later epistle and both were the step- brothers of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to John 7v25 none of his brothers believed in him and therefore they were not numbered amongst the twelve apostles. What we do know is that Jesus appeared to him after the resurrection (1st Cor. 15v5-7). He rose to prominence in the early church and is described by Paul in Galatians 2 as “a pillar in the church.” What kind of man was James?
• He was a passionate man often times characterised as being strict and narrow minded, yet he had great sympathy and passion for the people of God undergoing tremendous pressures for their faith in Christ and this comes out clearly in the letter. The repeated phrase “my brethren” or “my beloved brethren” make it clear that he was one of them, that they, with him, were in the family of God. No less than twelve times he addresses them as such (1v2; 1v16; 1v19; 2v1; 2v5; 2v14; 3v1; 3v10; 5v7; 5v10; 5v12; 5v19).
• He was a practical man. Often charged with lacking in doctrine, this epistle is marked by consecutive imperative commands to God’s people of which there are almost 60 using many injunctions like count/let/ask/be/be not/have not/etc. etc. His doctrine if any, is that “faith without works is dead” and he drives a stake into the heart of formal religion which in the sight of God he says is worthless. He presents belief evidenced by behaviour, creed by conduct, and rejects all displays of external religion. The letter could be classed as the book of proverbs of the new testament as he moves from one saying to another in short, sharp commands which challenge all forms of human hypocrisy. This book is intensely spiritual in it’s arguments and underpins the faith of all who believe.
• He was a prayerful man. It was said of James in historical legend that his knees were like “camels knees” because he spent most of his time in prayer and this comes out towards the end of the letter where he appeals for God’s people to spend much time in prayer but not just saying prayers, prayers which are effectual. He would have taken his example from his brother who would have spent much time in prayer in the home.
His audience First we notice his humility and calls himself a servant (slave) of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. He had spent almost 25 years in the same home as Jesus Christ but now he calls him his Lord and puts Him on the same level as God. Perhaps he remembered that astonishing statement by Jesus at the end of Matthew 12 where he said that His spiritual relationship with those who did the will of God was far greater than the earthly relationship with his blood relatives. Although the earthly relative of Jesus he presents himself as his bondservant. He writes “to the twelve tribes. “ This was a statement of great faith because the twelve tribes had never been together for hundreds of years and indeed ten of them were virtually lost in the exile of Assyria. His faith that God would bring them together, no matter what, shines out here, for if he would encourage faith in his readers he must show it in himself. At the time of writing these twelve tribes were “scattered abroad.” They were the “diaspora” which refers to Acts 8v1 “at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria except the apostles.” The word used for this dispersion was taken from the scattering of the seed which would result in a great harvest. It seemed that God used this persecution to spread the gospel far and near but it meant terrible suffering for many of the Jewish believers and it is to them that James is writing compassionately yet practically to help them endure the trials.
The message The words “perfect” and “fulfil” appear throughout the letter and the Greek word used “teleios” means to bring to completion, to bring to maturity, to accomplish the purpose of, and is taken from archery where the arrow is intended to end at the bulls eye. James’ letter focuses on ways of which Jewish believers (and therefore all believers) can bring their lives to maturity no matter the circumstances they are in. In chapter 1 this will mean endurance. In chapter 2 this will mean impartiality. In chapter 3 this will mean temperance. In chapter 4 this will mean separation. In chapter 5 this will mean patience.
James promotes justification by works, whereas Paul, later, teaches justification by faith. There is no disagreement in these as the first views our visible lives before men, whereas the second views our invisible relationship to God. We are saved by faith in Christ, but faith which does not issue in works is vain, and this is because salvation involves the implantation of Divine life.
All the resources of heaven are at our disposal to achieve this perfection, this maturity, this goal to which we are called, and it will require our full cooperation to make it a reality. This is among the most forthright, pointed, thought-provoking, and practical writings in holy scripture and calls for an immediate response from us. We will profit from following each unequivocal step as we proceed.
There is little doubt that the writers of the new testament scriptures were greatly inspired by the old testament and it comes out in the details. For example the two epistles of Peter can be readily divided by the five books of the Pentateuch. Much of Paul’s writings contain doctrine found in seed form in the Tanakh (the Hebrew for the collected writings of the law, the prophets and the wisdom books). The gospel of Matthew contains over 50 times the “fulfilment” of scriptures written before. So, also in James, there appears to be a link with Genesis 49, what is described as “the judgment seat of Jacob”, where Jacob assesses the future of the twelve tribes. We note that James writes to the twelve tribes, and that his name, James, is the modern equivalent of the old Jacob. The trends indicated in Genesis 49 come through clearly in the letter and is a wonderful illustration of the unity of holy scripture. The thought links are as follows;
• Reuben Genesis 49 v4 “..unstable as water thou shalt not excel.” James 1 v8 “...a double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
• Simeon and Levi Genesis 49 vv5-7 “Cursed be their anger for it was fierce, and their wrath for it was cruel.” James1 vv19-20 “Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.”
• Judah Genesis 49 v10 “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh come....”. James 2 v8-12, now that Shiloh has come “...fulfil the royal law...” and “So speak ye and so do as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty”.
• Zebulon Genesis 49 v13 “Zebulon shall dwell at the haven of the sea, and he shall be for a haven of ships, and his border shall be unto ZIdon”. All this suggests trade with the outside world, trust in it’s commerce and bent toward it, while living in the land. James 4 v4 “Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God...”
• Issachar Genesis 49 vv14-15 “Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens......and bowed his shoulder to bear and became servant to tribute”. James 4 vv8-10 “Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you.....humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up”.
• Dan Genesis 49 v17 “Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path that biteth the horses heels so that his rider shall fall backward”. James 3 v8 “...but the tongue can no man tame, it is an unruly evil full of deadly poison”.
• Gad Genesis 49 v19 “A troop shall overcome him but he shall overcome at last”. James 1 v12 “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation for when he is tried (approved), he shall receive the crown of life....”.
• Asher Genesis 49 v20 “Out of Asher his bread shall be fat and he shall yield royal dainties”. James 3 v17 “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peacable, gentle, easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy”......royal dainties indeed!!
• Naphtali Genesis 49 v21 “Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words”. James 3 v2 “If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man able also to bridle the whole body”. Also James 5 v19 good words of restoration “Brethren if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him, let him know that he which converteth a sinner from the error of his way, shall save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins”.
• Joseph Genesis 49 v22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough whose branches run over the wall....”. Many links to Joseph but James 3 v18 is clear “...the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.”.
• Benjamin Genesis 49 v27 “Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf, in the morning he shall devour the prey and in the evening he shall divide the spoil”. James 4 vv1-2 “From whence cometh wars and fightings among you.....ye lust...ye kill...ye desire to have...ye fight and war...”.
James works these o/t predictions into his teaching with a heart of compassion, willing His beloved people to avoid the pitfalls and imbibe the positives of the life of faith. He wants his people like Jacob of old to be transformed to “Israel”; for the man of the flesh to become the man of God. Truly evidence of the living word of God...prophecy spoken thousands of years before made practical in the church of the new age!
No comments:
Post a Comment