James 1

Study Guide 160: James 1:1-2:13 FAITH’ S LIFESTYLE Overview James is thought to be the earliest of the New Testament’ s letters. It was written when there was a company of Jewish believers, probably between a.d. 45-48. The author is James “ the Lord’ s brother,” not James the Apostle (see Acts 12:17; Acts 15:13; Acts 21:18; 1 Corinthians 15:7; Galatians 1:19; Galatians 2:9). James the Apostle, the brother of John, was martyred about a.d. 44 (Acts 12:1-3). Like the other brothers of Jesus, James did not believe in Him at first (John 7:2-5). But after the Resurrection this brother was not only converted but became a key leader in Jerusalem and at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:1-41). One tradition nicknames James “ camel knees,” because of the calluses he was supposed to have developed from long hours spent in prayer. James’ theme is “ faith.” But here faith is not saving faith, or justifying faith. James’ theme is practical: he looked at the lifestyle which is to be produced by faith in Jesus. James knew, with Paul, that true faith generates obedience, and so he gently encouraged the early Jewish church to live a life that was worthy of their profession of Jesus as the Christ. In structure, James is much like Proverbs. He gave a series of short, pithy exhortations, touching on a variety of subjects important in the Christian life. What a wonderful book to teach if we, like James, want to help our people learn to live for the Lord.

Commentary The church we see portrayed in the early chapters of Acts was both typical of what the church is to be, and yet different. At first the Jewish people viewed Christianity as a sect, as much an expression of Judaism as Sadduceeism, Phariseeism, or the withdrawn Essenes. Recognized and named “ the Way,” the Christian community took part in the life and culture of Judea, worshiped at the temple as did the others, and maintained the lifelong patterns of obedience to the Law. It is in this context that the first of our New Testament letters was penned. Later sharp distinctions would occur between Christians and Jewish doctrine and practice. Later would come the exploration of the meaning of a faith that reaches out to encompass the Gentile as well as the Jews. But none of this is found in the Book of James. Instead of emphasizing salvation by faith, James presupposed the apostolic teaching we see in Acts 2:1-47 and Acts 3:1-26. What James emphasized is the life of faith, which followers of “ the Way” are encouraged to live.

By Faith One of the striking features of the Book of James is its frequent references to faith. In spite of this, though, James had not always been well received. Martin Luther, that great advocate of faith from the time of the Protestant Reformation, looked on James with suspicion and called it an “ epistle of straw,” certainly not a letter with the weight or importance of his favorites, Galatians and Romans. Why did Luther hold such a dim view of the Book of James? The reason is not hard to find once we set Luther’ s position against the backdrop of his cultural context and personal religious odyssey. In Luther’ s day, the church was enduring one of its periodic cycles of corruption where the pattern of biblical truth was perverted. A playboy pope, Leo X of the house of Medici, had succeeded to the papal chair and was selling the offices of the church to whomever could pay well for the privilege. The archbishop of Mainz, the primate of Germany, having borrowed the money to buy his office, was allowed to issue indulgences to recoup his expenses. These indulgences promised the complete and perfect remission of all sins to those (or their dead relatives or friends) who subscribed to the building of Saint Peter’ s Cathedral in Rome (though only one half the money went for this purpose, the rest repaying the archbishop’ s loan). A popular jingle of the time phrased the promise well: As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, The soul from purgatory springs. Luther had recently discovered for himself the tremendous truth that salvation, a person’ s entrance into a personal relationship with God, is a free gift received through faith in Jesus Christ. He realized that the Gospel then consists of what God, in Christ, has done for human beings. No one could ever buy salvation! Thus Luther and the other Reformers were drawn to those books of the Bible which stress the meaning of Christ’ s cross for all who trust Him. James, with its ethical and practical emphasis on man’ s response to God’ s initiative, found little favor. In their situation, James even seemed at times to support the other side!

Interpreting Scripture Luther’ s suspicion and others’ misunderstanding of the Book of James point out an important feature of good biblical interpretation. We must be careful to read Scripture in the context of its own time — not of our time. Viewed from the perspective of the Protestant Reformation, James even seemed to contradict what is taught in the Books of Galatians and Romans. All of James’ talk of being “ justified by works” seemed to deny Paul’ s affirmation that justification is by faith alone. With “ salvation” viewed as the entrance into relationship with God, James’ approach (in which salvation is viewed as the continual outworking of the meaning of Christ’ s presence in the believer’ s life) is easy to misunderstand. Today too if we approach the New Testament with neat definitions of Bible terms fixed in our minds, remaining unaware of possible other meanings, we are liable to misunderstand some of the interplay of great Bible truths. One of the best ways to avoid misunderstanding the Bible then is to take a look at the circumstances in which a book was written. Then we go on to define the author’ s purpose. An important corollary is to look at the range of possible meanings of each significant Bible term and then decide which, in the context of the author’ s purpose and time, is intended. We will want to keep the following two principles of interpretation in mind as we read the Book of James: (1) understand the settings, and (2) look at all the possible meaning of terms. These two principles will help us discover not only the message of James, but the message of many other passages in God’ s Word. The setting. What then was the setting in which James wrote? What was his purpose? And how do these differ from the setting of a book such as Galatians? James wrote to the earliest church. He wrote in the days when the church was Hebrew-Christian, made up of men and women who had known the God of the Old Testament and who, under the dynamic preaching of the Apostles, now recognized Jesus of Nazareth as their resurrected Lord and Saviour. The Book of James is not an evangelistic book written to people in a culture where faith is foreign. The Book of James is a book of guidelines for living, which was written to the family who had a full knowledge of who Jesus is, and who had chosen to make Him the center of their lives. Essentially then James was concerned with how the new faith in Jesus is to find expression in the lives of members of that early community. James and Paul were, in fact, exploring different aspects of a common salvation. Paul, the obstetrician, was explaining what happens at birth. James, the practical nurse, was changing diapers and holding the hands of toddlers as they learned to walk. Because the setting and the purpose of the two writers differed, a difference in emphasis naturally followed. As John Calvin pointed out in Luther’ s day, “ It is not required that all handle the same arguments.” It is helpful to note several contrasts between the setting of James and the setting and purpose of Paul’ s letters.

JAMESPAUL stresses the work of the believer in relation to faithstresses the work of Christ in relation to faith is concerned that the outcome of faith be fruit (James 2:14), so that no one be able to confuse creeds with Christianityis concerned that the object of faith be Christ, unmixed with self-reliance or self-righteousness writes shortly after the Resurrection, when the church is Jewish and the Old Testament well knownwrites later, when the conversion of Gentiles raised questions never asked or thought of earlierThese are important contrasts which help us see that we must study James in James’ own terms, not in view of later developments in the early church or in church history. Key terms. We’ ve already noted that “ faith” is a key term in the Book of James. And we have suggested that faith has more than one kind of impact in a believer’ s life. It is by faith we enter into relationship with God. But it is also by faith that we continue to live the Christian life (see Romans 1:17; Galatians 2:20). What we must avoid when we read the Bible then is reading either the “ saving” or the “ lifestyle” meaning of faith into a particular verse until we have considered which meaning is intended by the author. Studying God’ s Word demands that we read to discover the writer’ s meaning, not to read our own impressions and theological biases into the text. Another word that is often read into rather than read, occurs not only in James but also throughout the New Testament. It is “ saved.” To many people, whenever this word is found, it is automatically read as though the passage deals with entrance into a personal relationship with God. With some passages this creates no problem: “ Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13), or, “ There is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Clearly these verses are dealing with that invitation to enter into eternal life through faith in Jesus. But some other passages trouble those who have only a narrow view of the meaning of “ saved.” James asks in James 2:1-26, “ Can such faith save?” (James 2:14) He seems to answer that human works are somehow necessary. Is he denying Paul’ s teaching of salvation by grace through faith, apart from works? (Ephesians 2:8-9) Paul himself wrote in Phi 2:12, “ Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Was Paul contradicting here what he had written elsewhere? Is the Bible inconsistent? Is its teaching about salvation unclear? The answer comes when we go back into the Old Testament and note that the root meaning of “ salvation” is deliverance. In most cases the deliverance the Old Testament speaks of is from present dangers and enemies. Only infrequently does “ salvation” in the Old Testament context look beyond this life to focus on an individual’ s eternal destiny. The underlying theme is that God is a real Person who does intervene in human affairs on behalf of those who trust Him. In the New Testament it is more clearly defined just how God intervenes. Strikingly, God’ s intervention is pictured as something with past, present, and future implications. In the past, God acted in Jesus Christ to provide us with forgiveness of sins and a new life. By a simple act of faith, we enter into all that Christ has done for us in history, and at that point we “ are saved.” But God’ s intervention for us is not finished yet! In the person of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Himself has come into our lives. He has linked us to Himself with an unbreakable commitment; and because He is present in us, we are also “ being saved.” This is clearly what Paul spoke of in Philippians: “ Work out your salvation with fear and trembling,” he wrote, “ for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose” (Phi 2:12-13). We approach life seriously, but with confidence. Christ’ s present-tense deliverance is being worked out in our lives even as we continue to trust and rely on Him, and as we demonstrate that trust by meeting life boldly, head-on. There is a future dimension of salvation as well. The Bible tells us that Jesus will return, and then we will be fully saved. We will be fully delivered from all that sin has done to twist our personalities and to warp us away from God (see Romans 8:18-24). It is important then when we come on the word “ saved” in the Bible not to impose a single or narrow meaning on it. What “ salvation” is in view here? Past tense? Present tense? Future? If we make this simple distinction and realize that each aspect of salvation affirms God as One who acts in the lives of those who trust Him, we are freed both from misinterpreting our Bible and from many an agonizing doubt about our personal standing with God.

James Let’ s return then to the Book of James, and view it as God’ s guidance concerning present-tense salvation. Let us see it as guidelines for living our faith; for a lifestyle that emerges from a vital, intimate relationship with the Living God.

Outline I. Practicing Faith’ s Lifestyle1:1-2:13 A. Personal implicationsJam_1:2-18 B. Interpersonal implications1:19-2:13 II. Principles of Faith’ s LifestyleJam_2:14-25 III. Problems for Faith’ s Lifestyle3:1-4:17 A. Taming the tongueJam_3:1-12 B. Subduing the self3:13-4:10 C. Judging the judgeJam_4:11-12 D. Humbling the haughtyJam_4:13-17 IV. Prospects and Promises for FaithJam_5:1-19 A. Future redressJam_5:1-6 B. Present resourcesJam_5:7-19LINK TO LIFE: YOUTH / ADULT Give a minilecture as an introduction to this book. Contrast the concerns of Paul and James, and discuss the importance of knowing which of several meanings a word has in its context. Then distribute outlines of James to each group member. You may need to take up to 20 minutes for this overview, and even longer if your group raises questions.

Faith’ s Personal Impact: James 1:2-18After a very brief introduction, James immediately confronted his readers with a number of practical, personal implications of a living faith. Each of these looks within, and asks the individual to probe his own reactions, values, and perceptions. Our attitude toward trials (James 1:2-4). James called on us to actually welcome trials and difficulties. These are to produce unmixed joy, not because the trials themselves are pleasurable, but because we look beyond the immediate experience to foresee the result. God permits such experiences as a test (intended to show the validity, not weakness) of our faith. Such trials call for perseverance, which in turn produces maturity and spiritual wholeness. If we are able to look beyond the present and see the product God intends to produce through our suffering, we will experience joy. This perspective is impossible for most men. But those who have confidence in God value character above pleasure, and eternity above the present moment. Our expectation of God’ s aid (James 1:5-8). Trials are likely to panic us. When a person doesn’ t know which way to turn, he or she may fear to make decisions or may constantly change his or her mind. James reminded us that ours is a giving God, and one of His gifts is wisdom. This “ wisdom” is practical: it is the capacity to apply spiritual truth to daily decisions. James promised that God will show the person who asks the way to go. “ Belief” here suggests a willingness to respond and act on God’ s guidance. The wavering individual, who hesitates to respond obediently, will be unable to receive what the Lord is eager to give. Our awareness of our identity (James 1:9-11). Human beings tend to evaluate themselves by various standards. One of the most common has to do with status and income. James called on those who are poor and once angry about their poverty, to throw off the old attitude and realize that, in this new relationship with God, they have been raised to riches. And the wealthy, once confident in their pride, are to remember their spiritual poverty. The old symbols of status, like this present life itself, are as perishable as grass. Our acceptance of responsibility (James 1:12-15). Faith brings the believer a new sense of personal responsibility. It’ s common for human beings to excuse sins by blaming God or Satan (“ The devil made me do it” is for some more than a saying). James knew that many different circumstances may stimulate our desire to turn from God’ s way. But James analyzed the situation carefully. It is not the external thing itself that tempts us; it is our reaction to it. An alcoholic may be tempted overwhelmingly by the smells wafting from a brewery, while a teetotaler is repelled. The odor is the same in each case. What differs is the reaction the odor causes. Candy is a terrible temptation to a fat person on a diet, but another who dislikes sweets won’ t even notice it. James showed us that God brings no experience into our lives in order to drag us down. His gifts are always and only good. If we feel temptation, the problem is in our own inner desires. Unless we deal with our temptations on this basis, our initial desire will grow into sinful acts, and this to a sinful lifestyle. If we recognize temptations as flowing from our own nature, we can deal with them by rejecting sin and responding as the new in us directs. Our expectation from God (James 1:16-18). James reminds us that we are to expect only good gifts from God. And there is a good gift which counters the tendency to sin that makes us susceptible to temptations. God has chosen to “ give us birth through the word of truth.” The old nature which responds wrongly is balanced now by a new nature, which responds to God, for it has been created as a “ kind of firstfruits” of all He created. The promise of complete righteousness in the resurrection is guaranteed as we see God creating righteousness within our hearts now. Faith’ s lifestyle then calls for us to adopt various personal perspectives on life. We are to see the long-term purpose in trials, and rejoice in that purpose. We are to expect to receive wisdom from God, and to ask for and act on His guidance. We are to see our identity as rooted in relationship with God, to accept responsibility for our temptations, and to expect God’ s good gift of a new nature to enable us to overcome. LINK TO LIFE: YOUTH / ADULT List the topic paragraphs on the chalkboard (James 1:2-4, James 1:5-8, James 1:9-11, James 1:12-15, James 1:16-18). Work in pairs to (1) title each paragraph, (2) identify the attitude that faith engenders, and (3) contrast it with the attitude which might be seen in those who do not maintain a living trust in God. Hear reports and list insights on the board. Then discuss: “ Which of these attitudes that faith calls for seems most important? Why? Most difficult? Why? What experiences may have helped to develop that (those) attitude(s) in you?”

Faith’ s Interpersonal Impact: James 1:19-2:13 James then moved on to explore another aspect of faith’ s life. Men and women in relationship with Jesus find that that faith also transforms their relationships with others. Our responses to others (James 1:19-21). Human nature is charged with selfishness and pride. These show up not only in immorality (the use, rather than the valuing of others), but also in anger and antagonism. James told us that the quick, hostile reactions of men to one another are changed by faith. Patience and meekness replace anger and pride. Our standards of behavior (James 1:22-25). At the heart of the believer’ s new way of living with others is the realization that God’ s Word is to be acted on, not just heard. The doer of God’ s Word is “ blessed” in his doing (James 1:25). Our view of religion (James 1:26-27). Christian faith gives us new perspective on religion. It no longer is a ritual kind of thing, but now is seen to be a response to others that mirrors the concern of the God who is Father to humankind. Pure religion is now understood to “ look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” Our welcome to others (James 2:1-7). The unity found in Christ has its source in the fact that in His church, all are family. Rich and poor stand side by side in Him. Thus, in the church, believers are to reject all artificial distinctions and to affirm unity in every way. Rich and poor are to be treated with equal respect and appreciation as persons; anything else is to blaspheme the name by which we are called. Our calling of love (James 2:8-13). As persons of faith, responsive to the royal law (the command to love one another was uttered by King Jesus [John 13:33-34]), we are to love our neighbors without partiality. Making distinctions between rich and poor and thus showing favoritism, is as much a violation of the divine intent as the more obvious sins identified in the Law. It’ s important to understand James’ point when he said “ whoever keeps the whole Law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking it all.” The Law of the Old Testament is a unity. As a whole balloon is broken by just one pinprick, so a person becomes a “ lawbreaker” by violating just one requirement of the Mosaic Law. LINK TO LIFE: YOUTH / ADULT Use the same procedure to explore this passage as was used to study James 1:1-18. The paragraphs that pairs should title and study are: James 1:19-21, James 1:22-25, James 1:26-27; James 2:1-7, James 2:8-13. James, as a leader of the Jerusalem congregation, was showing a pastor’ s heart in this brief letter. He knew that faith in Jesus can and will change our lives. And he encouraged his congregation by showing them the new attitudes and relationships which faith will produce.

Teaching Guide Prepare As a “ pastor” to your group, what evidences do you see of faith’ s impact on their lives?

Explore Begin with a minilecture on the Book of James, and the distinctive view of “ faith” which shapes this short letter. See “ link-to-life” above for ideas.

Expand

1. Set pairs to work on each of the brief paragraphs in James 1:1-18. Each is to carefully analyze the lifestyle James linked with a living faith in Jesus as a prelude to group discussion. See “ link-to-life” above.
2. Or set half the pairs to work on James 1:1-18 and the other half on 1:19-2:13. Again, use the approach suggested above.

Apply Go around the circle asking each person to share one way in which he or she has seen his or her lifestyle changed by faith in Jesus.