James 1:1
August 23, 2009 · Pastor Miles DeBenedictis
In this teaching
Pastor Miles introduces the book of James as likely the first New Testament letter written, presenting the historical context within Acts and demonstrating James's deep correlation with Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. He then reads through the entire letter and draws out the practical, life-transforming purpose of God's word, especially James's teaching on counting trials as joy.
- Studying the epistles chronologically alongside Acts brings clarity to the New Testament, since context is king.
- Several factors mark James as the earliest letter: no mention of Gentile believers, use of "synagogue," no reference to the Jerusalem council, its unsystematic "Proverbs of the New Testament" style, and over 26 echoes of the Sermon on the Mount.
- James, the half-brother of Jesus, did not believe during Jesus' ministry but became a servant of the Lord after seeing the risen Christ.
- The epistles were written to address the specific issues believers faced in their day, and God's word remains specifically applicable to us today.
- Trials can be counted as joy only because they produce patience and sanctification, and God gives wisdom liberally to those who ask in faith.
- Religion that does not bridle the tongue is vain; Christ came to save us to the uttermost and transform our lives now.
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. ()
Why the first letter ever written to the church still speaks directly to the trials you will face tomorrow.
Studying the Epistles in Context
I've thought for years that it would be valuable to go through the epistles in line with the book of Acts, studying them chronologically. If you look at the timeline of Acts, we are right at the council in Jerusalem, , in the middle of the history of the book. Just before that was Paul's first missionary journey, where he planted four churches in Galatia, to whom he would ultimately write his first letter, Galatians. But the book of James was written somewhere between 46 and 49 AD.
So I want to take a brief detour and talk about James, to get a sense of the context in which these letters were written. This brings great clarity to your understanding of the New Testament, because you begin to see the reasons why these letters were written. From the time I started attending Calvary Chapel at about eleven years old, I've been told that context is king, and a text without a context is a pretext.
Half of the New Testament letters were written during the period of history covered by Acts. Acts begins with the ascension of Jesus and the birth of the church, and ends while Paul is in his first imprisonment in Rome, about AD 63, covering roughly thirty-three years. Now, James appears near the end of your New Testament, but it was the first letter written to the church. Dr. J. Vernon McGee has a good explanation for the placement of these letters, but I think it's best to study them in the order they were written.
Why James Was Written First
James is a letter written to believers from a Jewish background, and several factors together suggest it is the earliest letter in the New Testament.
First, there is no mention of Gentile believers or their relationship to Jewish Christians. In , Peter preached the gospel to Gentiles at the house of Cornelius, around AD 39 or 40, the first Gentile converts. Somewhere between then and the Jerusalem council in AD 50, James pens this letter, writing primarily to scattered Jewish believers.
James, the servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad. Greeting. ()
Remember that in and 9, persecution pushed Jewish Christians out of Jerusalem into the surrounding areas—exactly what Jesus intended when He said in , "You shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts." Later there was also a famine in Jerusalem, so severe that Paul and Barnabas brought funds from Antioch to support the church there. Famine also scattered believers. It doesn't mean there were no Gentile believers, but the church at this point was made up primarily of Jewish converts.
Second, James uses the Greek word synagogue when referring to the assembly of the body of Christ in , the Jewish meeting place. Third, James does not mention the Jerusalem council of , even though he was the man who oversaw it—which suggests his letter came before that event.
Fourth, nearly every other New Testament letter has a fairly systematized theology, especially under Paul. Read Romans, Galatians, or Ephesians and you find the truth of God presented systematically. James, by contrast, has been called the Proverbs of the New Testament. It jumps around and is difficult to outline; he machine-guns truth at you in a powerful way.
James and the Sermon on the Mount
But the most telling clue is James's correlation with the teaching of Jesus. In , Jesus commissioned His disciples to teach the nations "to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you." The early church's teaching was built on what Jesus taught. When you read James, you find at least twenty-six references to the Sermon on the Mount.
Jesus said, "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake" and "Rejoice and be exceedingly glad" (). James says, "Count it all joy when you fall into diverse trials" (). Jesus said, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (). James says, "Let patience have her perfect work, that you may be perfect and entire, lacking nothing" ().
Jesus said, "Ask and it shall be given unto you" (). James says, "If any man lacks wisdom, let him ask of God" (). Jesus said the Father gives good things to those who ask (). James says, "Every good and perfect gift comes from above... from the Father of lights" ().
Jesus warned against anger toward a brother (); James says, "Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath" (). Jesus taught about the man who hears His sayings and does them, building on the rock (); James says, "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (). Jesus warned that not everyone who says "Lord, Lord" will enter the kingdom (); James writes about religion that is vain when the tongue is not bridled ().
The parallels continue: the poor in spirit as heirs of the kingdom (; ); keeping the whole law yet offending in one point (; ); commands against murder and adultery (; ); the merciful obtaining mercy (; ); worthless faith that says "Lord, Lord" (; ); and knowing a tree by its fruits (; ). Again and again, James echoes what Jesus Himself taught.
The Man James
James is an interesting character. He was the brother of Jude, the author of the second-to-last letter in the New Testament, and Jude was the half-brother of Jesus. Yes, Jesus had earthly half-brothers; Mary and Joseph had children after Jesus was born by the Holy Spirit.
The remarkable thing is that Jesus' brothers did not believe He was the Messiah during His earthly ministry. In , they mock Him, saying, "If you are the Christ, show yourself at the feast." At one point His family thought He was out of His mind and went to protect Him. Yet James becomes the author of the first letter in the New Testament and the overseer of the church in Jerusalem. Why? Because he saw the risen Lord.
How powerful that must have been. James grew up in Nazareth with Jesus, watching His sinless life. Imagine being the younger brother of a sinless older brother—you break something, and when Mary asks, "James, what did you do?" you can't say, "It was Jesus." He watched Jesus' ministry from a distance, not as one of the disciples, and became a follower only after the resurrection.
Notice his introduction: "James, a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ." For a younger brother, this is a powerful statement. The word servant is the Greek doulos, meaning slave—and the Romans understood slavery well, since more than sixty percent of the empire were slaves. James calls himself the slave of God and of the Lord Jesus. He doesn't say "Jesus of Nazareth"; he says "the Lord Jesus Christ." The word Lord is kurios, the master and owner of a slave. James places himself as the slave of his master, the Lord Jesus, who is also the Christ, the Messiah of the Old Testament.
His introduction is brief and to the point compared to Paul's fuller greetings. He writes to the twelve tribes scattered abroad—Jewish believers who had converted to Christianity and dispersed. The letter addresses the practical things they were facing in their day. When you come to a New Testament letter, it's important to read it as it was sent in the first century, rather than only breaking it apart verse by verse and parsing the Greek.
Reading the Whole Letter
So we read through all five chapters as the early believers may have heard them. [The full text of :20 is read aloud here, exhorting believers to count trials as joy, ask God for wisdom, be doers of the word, show no partiality, demonstrate faith by works, bridle the tongue, pursue heavenly wisdom, submit to God, avoid presumption about tomorrow, warn the rich, be patient unto the coming of the Lord, and pray for one another in faith.]
As we read, you likely saw still more echoes of the Sermon on the Mount. "The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace" () recalls "Blessed are the peacemakers" (). "You ask not... you ask amiss" () recalls "Ask and it shall be given to you" (). "Friendship with the world is enmity with God" () recalls "No man can serve two masters" (). "Purify your hearts" () recalls "Blessed are the pure in heart" (). "Be afflicted and mourn and weep" () recalls "Blessed are they that mourn" (). "Speak not evil of another brethren... who are you that judges another?" () recalls "Judge not, that you be not judged" ().
James's warning against presuming on tomorrow () recalls "Take no thought for tomorrow" (). His woe to the rich () recalls "Woe to the rich" (). His "garments are moth eaten" () recalls "Lay not up for yourselves treasure upon the earth, where moth and rust do corrupt" (). His mention of the prophets as examples of patience under suffering () recalls "So persecuted they the prophets which were before you" (). And his command, "Let your yes be yes and your no no" (), directly echoes Jesus' words on oaths in .
Sixteen years or so after the ascension, James is still echoing the words of Jesus. If you ever wondered what the early church was teaching and preaching, this is it.
Written to Real Problems—Then and Now
More than that, notice how the epistles speak specifically to what the people of that day were dealing with. We'll see this in , when Gentiles come to faith in Galatia and a group of Pharisees who had become Christians insist that you must be circumcised to be saved. The apostles gather, conclude that you don't, and send a letter telling the Gentile believers to abstain from sexual immorality and food sacrificed to idols, and otherwise follow the Lord.
Some say, "Then all we need to do is abstain from those two things." But you must recognize what these Gentile churches were dealing with. In cities like Lystra, Derbe, and Iconium there were great temples to Apollo and Diana. In Corinth, two thousand temple prostitutes would come down at night, for that is how they worshiped their false gods. The early church wrote specifically to the problems the people faced.
And God's word is applicable to the specific things you and I deal with today. If I gave you a list of fifteen things to do to go to heaven, you might check off every one and still be a glutton or a drunk, because it wasn't on the list. That's even the problem with how people treat the Ten Commandments—they check them off and think they're fine. But in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus throws the list out. You say, "I've never killed anyone." Have you been angry without cause? Then you are guilty. "I've never committed adultery." Have you looked with lust? Then you have. Jesus deals with the heart.
That is why God has given us His Holy Spirit—with us, in us, and upon us—convicting us on the spot. The things I struggle with are very likely not the same things you struggle with. As James says, whatever is not of faith is sin. God's word is applicable to us right where we are, in 2009, on Sunday the 23rd of August.
Saved to the Uttermost
Jesus came to save us to the uttermost. He didn't only come to change our final destination, wonderful as that is—a destination that for most of us may be years out. We still have a life to live tomorrow, and the next day. Jesus saves to the uttermost, transforming our lives today by the washing of the water of His word. His Spirit delicately applies God's word to specific areas of our lives and says, "That's sin," and we confess and repent.
James writes to people dispersed from their homes by persecution or famine, in the midst of trial, and says, "Count it all joy when you fall into diverse trials." How many of us are good at that? The secret is in the very next verse: "knowing this, that the trying of your faith works patience" (). You cannot count a trial joy unless you recognize that God is doing a work of sanctification through that very trial, that you may be complete, lacking nothing.
There is a breed of Christians today who say, "Follow Jesus and everything will be perfect, with no trials." Jesus never said that. He said, "In the world you shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." Paul says in , "All things work together for good for those that love God and are called according to his purpose." Even the difficult trial you face this week, God has allowed into your life to transform you.
Asking God Who Gives Liberally
You say, "But I do lack." That's all right. "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that gives to all men liberally and without reproach" (). Trials reveal our lack, while showing us that God is not lacking. When you cry out, "Lord, I need wisdom," He doesn't look at you and say, "I don't really like you." He gives to all liberally, without reproach, for He is not a respecter of persons.
But ask in faith, for "he that wavers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed." Some of you find yourselves driven and tossed with unbelief today. I'm thankful that when Jesus came off the Mount of Transfiguration, He met a man whose son was demon-possessed. Jesus said, "All things are possible to him who believes," and the man cried, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief." Jesus didn't refuse him—He healed his son. The Lord can help your unbelief too, bringing you to recognize Him as the supreme provider of all things.
Religion That Is Not Vain
says, "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridles not his tongue... this man's religion is vain." We live in a religious culture. Even the irreligious are religiously irreligious, more devoted to their cause than many believers. Many of the biggest atheists today are more evangelical than ninety percent of the church, evangelizing people for their wickedness. They have an air of religion; they look spiritual and heady, and people assume they must be wise.
But there are tens of millions of people whose religion is vain—empty, not even practical for today, and certainly of no help on the day of Christ Jesus. Let it not be said of us that our walk with Christ is vain. We believe in and follow the living Lord who wants to transform our lives. That is why we go through the word of God verse by verse, chapter by chapter, and why we'll go through the epistles as we come to them in Acts. I think it will bring clarity to the New Testament—but more than anything, I pray it will transform our lives.
Closing Prayer
Father, I thank You that Your word is truth. Jesus, You prayed in , "Father, sanctify them by Your truth; Your word is truth." You are able to cleanse us and transform us by the renewing of our minds as we yield ourselves to Your Spirit to go through Your word. So Lord, as we are dismissed in just a moment, I pray that You would take Your word by Your Spirit and plant it deep in our hearts, and cause it to grow in such a way that it would produce fruit, that those on the outside who don't know You would see our good works and glorify You, our Father in heaven. We ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.
Scripture in this teaching
17Passages opened in this message
Related teachings
12Other messages that open the same passages