Meditation on James Chapter 1
Aug. 4, 2013
***
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the
twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings! My brothers and sisters, whenever you face
trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the
testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full
effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing.
If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask
God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you. But
ask in faith, never doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea,
driven and tossed by the wind; for the doubter, being double-minded and
unstable in every way, must not expect to receive anything from the Lord.
Let the believer who is lowly boast in
being raised up, and the rich in being brought low, because the rich will
disappear like a flower in the field. For the sun rises with its scorching
heat and withers the field; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. It is
the same way with the rich; in the midst of a busy life, they will wither away.
Blessed is anyone who endures temptation.
Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that the Lord
has promised to those who love him. No
one, when tempted, should say, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be
tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one. But one is tempted by one’s
own desire, being lured and enticed by it; then, when that desire has conceived,
it gives birth to sin, and that sin, when it is fully grown, gives birth to
death.
Do not be deceived, my beloved. Every
generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down
from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to
change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of
truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
You must understand this, my beloved: let
everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger
does not produce God’s righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all
sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the
implanted word that has the power to save your souls.
But be doers of the word, and not merely
hearers who deceive themselves. … If any think they are religious,
and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is
worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this:
to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained
by the world. (James 1, selected verses)
***
“My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider
it nothing but joy!” So begins the body
of the Epistle of James, which we will read and discuss during worship over the
next 5 weeks.
Why study James? One good reason is that the Christian Church has
in its history often ignored, overlooked, forgotten, misunderstood, and even outright
rejected this ancient letter. Some have gone as far to say that James is part
of the “junk mail” of the New Testament (Scot McKnight, 9)! Martin Luther hated
James, calling it a “right strawy epistle.” He believed the letter contradicted
the apostle Paul’s teachings and placed too much emphasis on the law and works, with not
enough emphasis on faith.
Modern scholarship, however, notes differences between Paul and James’s style
and teaching, but also similarities, particularly in the emphasis on the need
to not only know God’s law, but to keep it! Paul in Romans 2:13 says that it is
not the hearers of the law who are righteous but the doers of the law who will
be considered righteous.
But who was James? Sadly, we don’t know
for sure. The name “James” pops up more than 40 times in the New Testament! This
may have contributed to the Church’s reluctance to view his letter as Holy Scripture. The Epistle of James was not included in the
Bible until the Council of Hippo in 393 A.D.
Scholars more recently have narrowed the candidates for James’ identity
to four possibilities. Some say he could
be James the son of Zebedee, one of the 12 disciples, who was the brother of the apostle John. But most have
eliminated this James because of the earlier date of his death and the content
of his letter. It is more plausible that the author was James, the brother of
Jesus, who was not one of the disciples. James’ teachings resemble some of the
teachings of Jesus Christ and the Epistle of James has language and structure
that are similar to a letter in Acts 15 attributed to James, the brother of
Jesus.
James, the brother of Jesus, was the leader of the Jerusalem Church in
the early 40s. He was a peacemaker, known
and respected for his wisdom. He listened
to Peter, Paul and Barnabas’ arguments at the Jerusalem Council that God’s salvation
had been opened to Gentile believers, without the need for circumcision. Then James
decided in their favor. The Council accepted James' decision, without quarrel. Thus,
the brother of Jesus steered the Church to make one of its most pivotal
decisions and weather one of its first controversies.
The other two possibilities for James’ identity include someone writing
the letter for James, the brother of Jesus, or someone else entirely, whom the
scholars do not know about.
For our study over the next 5
weeks, we will stick with the majority view and assume that James, the brother
of Jesus, was most likely the writer.
The exciting news that goes along with this assumption—and one more good
reason to study James—is that if the brother of Jesus is the true author, this
letter could be “the earliest Christian document we have” (Scott McKnight, 2)—older
than even Paul’s letters, which were thought to be the oldest writings in our
entire New Testament.
Perhaps the best reason for studying James is that it is as relevant to
the Church of the 21st century as it was in the Church of James’
time. Today’s Church, the Body of Christ
around the world, is still struggling to be the Church; it is embroiled in
conflict and controversies. It is still
struggling to hold onto and live out its faith in the loving manner Jesus calls
it to live amidst trials, sin, and temptation.
***
In the first chapter of the epistle, James stresses the importance of commitment,
submission and obedience to the Lord. If we are, like James, a servant of God
and Jesus Christ, then our attitude and our lives will show it. The word
translated as “servant” in James’ greeting is doulos, which is more accurately “slave.” Doulos means
being in total bondage to the authority of another.
James urges us to consider trials as “all joy” because of what they will
produce in us—an enduring faith. This is the first of 14 instances in James’
letter of the Greek word pistis—faith. What
is needed during trials is wisdom, but God will generously give wisdom to all
who seek Him in faith! Doubt will render prayer ineffective!
Temptation doesn’t come from God; it comes
from one’s own desires and gives birth to sin.
Then James, ever the peace-seeker, takes aim at conflict in the church
by attacking ungodly conversation. As usual, he softens his attack with affectionate,
familial language. “You must understand this, my beloved: Let everyone be quick
to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger, for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.”
He later says that those who do not
bridle their tongues are deceiving themselves if they think they are religious.
What will give us power to rid ourselves of anger and wickedness? The “implanted”
Word of God. That means we should be reading and studying Scripture until it
becomes firmly rooted in our hearts and minds. Only then will we be equipped to
be doers of the Word—not merely hearers.
What are the good works
Christians are called to do? Acts of
lovingkindness and generosity. These
acts, like every good gift, come from above! “Religion that is pure and
undefiled before God, the Father,” James concludes, “is this: to care for orphans and widows in their
distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”
Let
us pray.
Lord God, we thank you for speaking to us
through your Word that is always relevant, in every time and place. Thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ whom you
sacrificed so the world may be saved through Him. Thank you that in Christ we may come to You boldly
to confess our sins, and be cleansed and restored to right relationship with
you and one another. Forgive us, Lord,
when we are stubborn and want things our way.
Implant your word in our hearts and help us to obey. Mold us into your humble, loving slaves.
Grant us peace in the knowledge that our lives are not our own and that we
belong to you! Teach us how to have godly conversations with each other—to be
quick to listen and to listen more, to be slow to speak and speak less, and
never to give in to angry speech. Help
us to be doers of the Word and grant us your wisdom and joy during times of
trial, when you are building in us a faith that will endure. In Christ we
pray. Amen.
