Becoming God's Slaves

Looking Back

How can we become resilitent and grow as a Church?

Dr. John Van Epp proposes four stages in a marriage relationship.

I like to suggest we can adapt them to our church relationship.

Introduction

We begin a new year and a new series of teaching on the letter of James.

I forewarn you that this will require some thinking. This is important because so much of our education seems to be thoughtless entertainment.

Like Neil Postman, author of the 1985 book “Amusing Ourselves to Death” states

“There is nothing wrong with entertainment. As some psychiatrist once put it, we all build castles in the air. The problems come when we try to live in them.”

So let’s get into the word. I want to begin this year with a study of James letter to the church.

The Lexham Context Commentary describes it as “something like the Proverbs of the New Testament. It places a unique emphasis on humility before and obedience to a holy God rendered as works of righteousness, in the context of faith.

Mangum, D., ed. (2020). Lexham Context Commentary: New Testament (Jas 1:1–5:20). Lexham Press. Who was James?

James 1:16 NASB95

16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.

Deception is always around us

We need to be discerning people.

Who was James?

James 1:1 (NASB95)

1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,

While there is plenty of debate, up until the 16th century most agreed that he was the brother of Jesus.

When was it written?

The epistle is dated to around CE 45-48. Tradition places James death on CE 62

Greeting to the Diaspora (1:1)

James 1:1 NASB95

1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.

These are not the literal 12 tribes, but rather a

Structure of the Letter

I. The Trial and Fulfillment of Faith (1:2–27)

1. Faith for Wisdom (1:2–8)

(1) Joy for Maturity (1:2–4)

(2) Faith without Doubt (1:5–8)

2. Faith Reversing Status (1:9–11)

(1) The Boast of the Poor (1:9)

(2) The Reduction of the Rich (1:10–11)

3. The Matter of Life and Death (1:12–18)

(1) Trial as Life Giving (1:12)

(2) Temptation as Life Taking (1:13–15)

(3) The Element of Deception (1:16)

(4) The Father and the Firstfruits (1:17–18)

4. The All-inclusive Doing of the Word (1:19–27)

(1) Going Fast and Slow (1:19)

(2) Discarding Offense and Accepting the Word (1:20–21)

(3) The Liberating Mirror (1:22–25)

(4) Worthless Religion and Genuine Religion (1:26–27)

II. All Works in Light of Judgment (2:1–26)

1. Improper Discrimination (2:1–7)

(1) The Glorious Christ (2:1)

(2) Distinctive Seating (2:2–4)

(3) The Discrimination of God (2:5–7)

2. Mercy That Fulfills the Royal Law (2:8–13)

(1) The Excellent Deed (2:8)

(2) Offensive at Every Point (2:9–11)

(3) The Freedom-giving Law (2:12–13)

3. Unjustifiable Faith (2:14–26)

(1) The Open Question (2:14)

(2) Need without Deed (2:15–16)

(3) A Pronouncement of Death (2:17)

(4) A Question of Proof (2:18–19)

(5) Exemplars of Faith with Deeds (2:20–25)

(6) Recapitulation: No Faith without Deeds (2:26)

III. The Formidable Tongue (3:1–12)

1. The Responsibility of Teachers (3:1)

2. The Uncontrollable Tongue (3:2–8)

(1) Analogies of Size (3:2–5)

(2) Analogies of Force (3:6–8)

(3) Analogies of Incompatibility (3:9–12)

IV. Wisdoms from Above and Below (3:13–4:10)

1. Heavenly and Hellish Wisdoms (3:13–15)

2. The Fruits of These Wisdoms (3:16–18)

3. The Truth about Conflicts (4:1–5)

(1) Their Source in Evil Desire (4:1)

(2) Their Outcome in Envy (4:2)

(3) The Enmity of Friendship with the World (4:3–5)

4. On Being a Friend of God (4:6–10)

(1) Grace for the Humble (4:6)

(2) Exercising for Humility (4:7–10)

V. The Way of the Boastful (4:11–5:6)

1. Ill-speaking as Law-judging (4:11)

2. God’s Singular Ability (4:12)

3. When Business Is a Spiritual Liability (4:13–17)

(1) The Irony of Boasting (4:13–14)

(2) The Norm of Human Activities (4:15)

(3) The Sinfulness of Presumption (4:16–17)

4. Judgments against the Rich (5:1–6)

(1) The Misery of Hoarding (5:1–3)

(2) The Misery of Innocent (5:4–6)

VI. Common Life before the Lord (5:7–20)

1. Patience among Friends (5:7–11)

2. Rejection of Oaths (5:12)

3. Effective Prayer (5:13–18)

4. The Ministry of Restoration (5:19–20)

Richardson, K. A. (1997). James (Vol. 36, p. 49). Broadman & Holman Publishers.

doulos

The word servant literally means “slave.” It indicates someone who belongs to a master. It is not a hired servant who is free to change his employer at will, but a slave who is the property of his master, not free to leave his owner. Such a person has no rights of any kind but must show complete obedience and loyalty to his owner. When James applies this term to himself, he obviously means that he is the property of God and of Jesus Christ, and that they have the right to command him and use him. The word, however, does not convey a sense of utter humiliation; it also has a sense of devotion and pride.