“James, the Transformed Brother” (James 1:1)

Series: “James: True Faith Works” #1Text: James 1:1

By: Shaun Marksbury Date: September 22, 2024

Venue: Living Water Baptist ChurchOccasion: PM Service

Introduction

We use the term “hello” to greet each other so frequently that it’s surprising how new this is. Before the late 1800s, folks didn’t use the term hardly at all. “Hello” or “hullo” was originally a term of surprise, not greeting, and the earliest record of it was 1827. It was the invention of the telephone that transformed this term into a popular greeting.

After Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, he initially suggested using the term “Ahoy” as the standard greeting for answering a call. However, Thomas Edison recommended “hello” instead. Edison’s idea won out, and “hello” became the dominant form of greeting for telephone communication. That usage soon spread to person-to-person meetings.

This evening, we’re reading a written greeting that was relatively normal for its time. However, the letter doesn’t just start with what we translate here as “Greetings.” The writer wanted to communicate more to his audience with his opening words. As we consider the meaning of this greeting, we’re also considering what the divine Author intends for us to see both here and in the rest of this book.

The Holy Spirit composed the Book of James through a man who did not always believe in Jesus, and he wrote to some of the earliest Christians. This book is often called a “wisdom book,” paralleling books in the biblical canon like Proverbs. It shares practical instructions for godly living. Yet, there is also a lot of theology in this book which both the early church needed as much as we do. In doing so, this book is immanently practical for our lives.

Let’s examine James 1:1 to gain insight into this transformed brother and the lessons he provides for us. We’ll note two features of this opening. First, a transformed brother and slave writes (James 1:1a). Second, he expects a transformed but suffering people to read (James 1:1b). Let’s consider this first of these.

A Transformed Brother and Slave Writes (James 1:1a)

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

Now, this letter says it is written by a man named James, but that sounds like a name we might hear in England. In the Greek language, the name sounds a bit different, though. It’s “Ἰάκωβος” (Iakōbos), and that comes from the similar sounding name in Hebrew ya‘ăqōb, or Jacob. When coming through the Latin into English, the Hebrew “Y” sound often becomes a “J”, and we see this with names like Jacob, Jesus, and Jerusalem. “Jacob” is a better translation than “James,” but the history of the English language has how now left us with this name instead.

Now, which “James” are we talking about here? This is a somewhat-debated point, for there are four people in the New Testament named James, including apostles. However, two of those candidates were most likely not the author. For instance, we’re most familiar with James, the son of Zebedee, John’s brother (Matt. 4:21), but he was martyred early, back in Acts 12:1–3. The next James was the father of Judas, not Iscariot (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13), though he seems unlikely. Then there was James “the less” (perhaps a reference to his stature), the son of Alphaeus (Matt. 10:3; Mark 15:40; Acts 1:13), but he also isn’t a probable candidate in the end. That only leaves us with one other James — eldest of the younger brothers of our Lord.

Now, we have a question; he was the half-brother of our Lord, offspring of Mary and Joseph. Though Roman Catholics teach the perpetual virginity of Mary, she was only a virgin when Jesus was miraculously conceived. After His birth, there’s no biblical warrant for the belief that she remained a virgin the rest of her life. Scripture records that Jesus had siblings, the oldest of which after Jesus was James.

This James is an interesting choice. He was a skeptic of Jesus throughout the Gospels. Growing up with Jesus, James, along with his other brothers, did not believe in Jesus as the Messiah (Mark 3:20–22; John 7:5). This is similar to the way, in the Old Testament, Joseph’s brothers did not believe in or respect him (Genesis 37). James even mocked Jesus at one point, suggesting He should publicly show Himself (John 7:3–5). At another time, James and the others disrespected Jesus by trying to interrupt His teaching (Matt. 12:46–50). He and his brothers did not even attend Jesus’s crucifixion, leaving Mary at the cross by herself (Mark 15:40; John 19:25).

Yet, James’s turning point came after the resurrection when the risen Christ appeared to him personally (1 Cor. 15:7). This personal encounter radically transformed James’s life. As such, he, Mary, and the disciples were gathered in the upper room when the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost in Acts 2. No longer just the brother of Jesus, he was a believer, a leader in the Jerusalem church (Acts 15:13), and a man known for his righteousness, earning the name “James the Just.” In Galatians 1:19, we read that James was one of the first people Paul seeks out after his conversion, demonstrating the prominence James had in the early church.

This is the best candidate for the letter. He’s alive at the right time and influential in Jerusalem. We even read in Acts 15 a letter he helps craft, and MacArthur notes the number of similarities between this letter and that one. And the author of this letter was certainly familiar with the culture and climate of that time. There is no real reason to doubt that he wrote this letter.

The next question is when he might have done so. This may well have been the first book written in the New Testament. The debated date is anywhere between ad 40–62, though the late forties is highly probable. Though this book talks about suffering and oppression, there’s no mention of Roman persecution. The tumult that claimed John’s brother James and spread out the church in Acts 12 occurred in ad 44, and this letter makes no mention of the decision reached at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15 (ca. ad 49), so a date before ad 50 seems likely. So, he was probably writing from Jerusalem to the scattered brethren, as we’ll consider in a few minutes.

Consider now how James describes himself. He says he is “a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.” It’s fascinating that James identifies himself not as “the brother of Jesus” but as a “bond-servant,” or slave, of God and Christ. This humility reflects the deep transformation that occurred in James’s life.

It is also interesting that James chooses to call his brother Jesus “Lord;” in doing so, he places Jesus on the same level as God. Compare this to 1:5–7, where James also calls God “Lord.” In 5:10, he likewise references the Old Testament prophets “who spoke in the name of the Lord.” Thus, whether he fully understood it or not, he demonstrates knowledge that his brother Jesus was not a mere man, but God in flesh. Yet, he also affirms that God the Father and God the Son are distinct.

In fact, we’ll note that James borrows quite a bit from his brother’s teachings (as Doriani noted, p.11):

Love of neighbor is a great command (James 2:8 and Matt. 22:39)

Self-exaltation leads to humiliation (James 4:6–10 and Matt. 23:12; Lk 14:11; 18:9)

Take no oaths (James 5:12 and Matt. 5:33–37)

Do not judge (James 4:11–12 and Matt. 7:1–5)

Moth and rust destroy riches (James 5:2 and Matt. 6:19)

The Lord is coming; He is at the door (James 5:8–9 and Matt. 24:33)

He also has similar themes to Jesus in this book:

Believers must rejoice in trials (James 1:2 and Matt. 5:11–12)

The goal of the righteous is maturity (James 1:4 and Matt. 5:48)

We must ask God for good gifts (James 1:5 and Matt. 7:7).

We are doers, not just hearers, of the Word (James 1:22 and Matt. 7:24–27).

Disciples must keep the whole law (James 2:10 and Matt. 5:19).

We must act upon our profession of faith (James 2:14–26 and Matt. Matt. 7:21–23).

We are accountable for every word (James 3:2 and Matt. 12:36–37).

Peacemakers are blessed (James 3:17–18 and Matt. 5:9)

We cannot serve two masters or friends (James 4:4 and Matt. 6:24).

So, James went from someone mocking his brother to someone quoting Him! It shouldn’t surprise us, then, that this man who literally grew up with the gospel extends a call to repentance and faith is his letter. He says that God saves those who turn from worldly ways and humble themselves (James 4:4–10), who repent and draw near to Him. He looks for those willing to submit to Him. If you chafe at words like submit and slave under God, why? Do you not understand that He is a good and gracious Father, one who loves His children and wants to see them mature? Do you not understand that the devil already has you enslaved, and desires to destroy your life and kill you? Do you not understand that you have earned much of the suffering in this life, and that you need to swallow your pride and allow the tears to well up, to weep over your wretched states outside of God? Do you not understand that God gives grace to the humble?

James’s transformation in Christ challenges us to consider whether we have allowed Christ to transform our own lives. He wrote to challenge Christians, as we see in our next point. Let’s turn there next.

A Transformed but Suffering People Read (James 1:1b)

To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.

A we noted earlier, James was probably writing from Jerusalem to the scattered brethren from the persecutions beginning with the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 8:1–4) and the persecution under Herod Agrippa I (Acts 12). Yet, let’s consider the language he uses here to get a better handle on that. He addresses his letter to “the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad,” and expression that most often refers to the Jewish people.

Historically, this phrase refers to the Jewish diaspora. A diaspora is a scattering, much like seed on the ground, and we could translate this “dispersion” (LSB). In Israel’s past, it refers to what happened to the Jews in and after the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles, and other oppressions of the Gentiles (cf. John 7:35). Even today, we know that the Jewish people remain scattered among the Gentile nations, including in our country. And we know that all twelve tribes will be present in the kingdom (Luke 22:30).

Now, is national Israel all that James (or Jacob) meant by this? Well, keep in mind that, for much of the church’s history until that point, there had only been Jews coming to believe in the Messiah. A few key Gentiles were believing, starting in Acts 10, but it’s not until Acts 15 that their inclusion is fully answered. As such, even though prominent Jewish individuals were leading persecutions which were scattering the church, the Christian faith at this time was still nearly exclusively Jewish. James likely had no qualms at the time considering the church in Jewish terms, even if it includes non-Jewish Christians.

This gives us an important glimpse of the ecclesiology of the early church. As Baptists with a dispensational bent, we have heard teachers sometimes say that there are two people of God in Scripture, the Jews in the Old Testament and the church in the New Testament. However, we see that there is more unity than that in the early church, where James sees believers as the true continuation of the twelve tribes of Israel. While the kinsmen according to the flesh still play a part in the end-times scenario as places like Romans 11 indicates, we should not miss the fact there is a true Israel of the heart highlighted in Scripture, a single people of the redeemed.

So, the audience to James’s letter likely included Jewish Christians who had fled persecution and faced many trials. Now, despite their physical scattering, James calls these Jewish Christians to remember their spiritual heritage. Like Israel in exile, they needed to hold onto their identity as God’s chosen people. He reminds them that trials and hardships are opportunities for growth in faith (James 1:2–4).

He extends greetings to them because they need to know they are not alone. He starts this letter like how he started the letter to the churches from the Jerusalem council (Acts 15:23). The word in the original language (chairein) can mean “rejoice” and is similar to the word for “joy” (charan). They need a word of joy, considering the trials which has befallen them. So, he writes this letter to them so they know how to endure trials while practicing the works arising from true faith.

So, he gives them practical teaching. He also helps them to see the points of theology they need. This letter has Christology (teaching on Christ); James 1:1 and 2:1 are hints as to the nature of the author’s view of Christ as the Lord incarnate. He also presents soteriology (teaching on salvation), presenting us with the themes of sin (1:15; 2:9; 4:17; 5:15, 16, 20; also 4:8) and deliverance (1:21; 2:14; 4:12; 5:15–20); it’s clear that even at this early date, Christians were preaching the same gospel themes we do today! Perhaps the most prominent theological theme people know James for is on suffering/testing; this starts with the second verse and continues on throughout the book (cf. 1:2, 12, 13, 14) — and the related theme of endurance appears throughout, particularly in 1:3, 4, 12, and 5:11.

That is the relationship between law, grace, and faith, the very themes which would later be tested at the Jerusalem council. We see the Christian application of the law in James 1:25; 2:8–12; and 4:11–12, in line with what Jesus had to say (Matt. 5:17–20). However, he sees salvation as a work of God alone, not one of self-effort or lawkeeping (James 1:18, see also 1:3, 6; 2:1, 5, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 26, 5:15). The goal is Christian maturity, as we see in 1:4, 17, 25, and 3:2 (see also 1:4, 6-8; 2:4; 3:2, 8, 11–12, 16–17; 4:4–5, 8). Christians must know how to live their faith in this world, and James gives dispersed believers practical tools fir that purpose.

As Christians, we too are dispersed in a world that is often hostile to our faith. We must remember that our true citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20). Like James’s audience, we are called to persevere through trials, knowing that God uses them to shape us and mature our faith. As we look to God’s Word for wisdom, we can also know how to walk as exiles in this world.

Conclusion

If you truly believe that you are a born-again Christian, then this book has some words for you. James warns us not to fall into a “earthly, natural, demonic” wisdom (3:15). He writes, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (vv. 17–18). So, which kind of wisdom have you bought—earthly or heavenly? As James says in 1:22, “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.”

James is a man who grace has transformed. He is now in humble submission to God and Christ, surrendered to his Brother’s lordship. And he writes to people transformed by the same grace, calling them to the same, humble surrender.

As we go through the Book of James, we will see how true faith works itself out in practical, everyday living. May we be likewise transformed by the risen Christ, embracing our identity as bond-servants, and even responding to difficulties with joy. Let us, like James, submit fully to Christ and walk in the wisdom and grace that comes from above.