James Writes to the Believers
James has been hearing reports and feel compelled by the Spirit to write to the believers. At this time, the church has scattered from Jerusalem for safety.
This story is another of the ‘dropped stitches’ that I mentioned earlier. I’m jumping back a ways to right that omission in the timeline of the early church.
With distance from the apostles comes the introduction of differing ‘gospels’. When Stephen was stonedThis is upsetting to all of the apostles as reports come in. James is the first of all the apostles to write to the believers. His letter is encouraging and correcting.
The James who writes this letter is none other than the brother of Jesus. He didn’t follow Jesus during His ministry but he saw the truth after Jesus’ resurrection. And he became a devout follower and a leader among the church. Let’s look in on the time that James is writing this letter.
Holy Spirit lead me on this journey in Your word. Direct my attention. Hive me a picture of the events in my spirit, so I can feel the ground beneath my feet in James’ story.
♥ ♦ ♥
Stephen’s death is still on the hearts and minds of the believers in Jerusalem. So many have left the city in hopes of escaping persecution. At first, that hope was fulfilled, but time spreads the hate as well as the gospel.
With the spread of the gospel and persecution also come ‘strange teachings’ claiming to be from Jesus as well. These doctrines are confusing the followers of Jesus. Reports reach Jerusalem of the damage.
“I can’t believe that our own people are falling for these… lies” Peter cries on despair. “Don’t they remember what they received from us; who received if from Jesus Himself? If we can’t keep even the beginning of the church strong, what chance does it have of standing the test of time?”
“You forget brother that it is not OUR work to keep strong. God preserves His word and His elect” Andrew counsels him.
“You are right, but my heart grieves with every new report.”
James, the brother of Jesus, sits listening to the conversation. He did not believe in his own Brother during His time on earth. He is reluctant to offer his opinion, feeling inferior to those who walked with Jesus daily. As he listens though, a burning desire rises in his spirit. He knows it is the Spirit of the Lord. He has come to recognize his ‘Brother’s’ voice as well as any of the apostles. Yet, he waits to see what the others plan to do.
Peter hangs his head and wags it side to side in despair.
“We should pray about this situation brothers” Andrew says to the group.
All agree. They begin entreating the Lord. Asking what He would have them do. As they pray, the voice inside James grows stronger.
“Stand up and lead” James hears firmly in his heart.
“How? Where?” James asks in reply.
“By writing My words to those who are struggling.”
“What words, Lord?”
“The ones I give you.”
“But I…”
“But nothing” the voice says with authority. “There is NOTHING impossible or too hardd for those whom I call. And I DID call you James, son of Joseph.”
James stops fighting. “Yes Lord. Lead me where you will. Give me Your words to share with Your children.”
After settling this in his heart, James speaks up in the group. “I have been called to write a letter to the brothers and sisters who have gone out from among us.”
“This is wonderful” exclaims John. “What will you wright?”
“I don’t know yet, but He does. I will trust my Lord to give me the words the brothers need. Words of correction and encouragement that will last for generations to come.”
All the apostles offer whatever assistance James might need, including a scribe, if he so chooses. James decides to take them up on their offer. A skilled scribe who is fluent in Greek is retained for however long James requires.
Before uttering the first word of this letter to the church, James spends three days fasting and praying.
“Lord, You know that I am a simple man from Galilee. I don’t have the words to convey Your majesty. But I trust Your Spirit to work within my. This letter is Yours even more than mine. Lead me in the way You want me to go. Quicken my spirit with understanding and discernment. Speak through me Your words alone.”
James also takes the letters to his home and lays them before the Lord. “Show me what to address and how to do it with love and authority.”
After four days of preparation, he is ready to begin. The scribe is ready as well. They are secluded away from the others, so that nothing will interrupt the work of God.
“Are you still sure You want me to do this Lord? You know there are others more qualified” James whispers before starting.
He doesn’t hear a booming voice telling him to get going or to stop. What he does feel is a burning desire to begin. “Almost like Jeremiah” he thinks, to himself as he prepares to speak his first words.
“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
“To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion:
“Greetings” (James 1:1).
James waits for a minute. “Do you think I should reword that” he asks the scribe.
“It sounds fine to me.”
“But should I add something more?”
“This is going to be a LONG process if you doubt every word you speak. Trust the Lord to give you the words to say, and trust that the words you say are His.”
James nods. “Alright. It’s time to get to work.”
James returns to dictating the letter.
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:2-4).
James stops again. He turns to the scribe and says; “I know I’m lacking something that can only come from the Lord.
“What would that be?” asks the scribe.
“Wisdom” James says with a far away look in his eyes.
The scribe can see the wheels turning in James’ mind. He is poised with his pen ready. Knowing that what comes next is important.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him…” James raises an admonishing finger. “…But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:5-8).
James stops again to think. After a moment he continues in a slightly different direction. “Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits” (James 9-11).
James eyes light up as he continues. “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him…” James raises his finger again and his face becomes stern. “…Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures” (James 1:12-18).
James’ eyes turn towards Heaven as he contemplates the good gifts God has given him. After a moment of reflection, he turns to a topic that is crucial for the believer’s growth and the churches survival.
“Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:19-27).
This crucial point stays in James’ heart. He knows that the Spirit is focusing on ‘putting feet to faith’ with the believers. This is a topic dear to his own heart. And it crosses into all aspects of life. The Spirit gives James examples to share with the people.
“My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ while you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there,’ or, ‘Sit down at my feet,’ have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?
“If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. For he who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
“What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what go is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
“But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead” (James 2:2-26).
James takes a breath. Still keeping with the idea of faith and works together bringing life, the Spirit turns James’ attention to the single member in every body that can destroy what is being built up.
“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things.
”How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing…” James eyes fill with tears at this thought. “…My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water” (James 3:1-12).
James raises his hands, as if asking his audience a question.
“Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (James 3:13-18).
James breathes a sigh of relief and gratitude to the Lord for giving man His righteousness and peace. These are true gifts of God. Yet he, and the Spirit, KNOW that not all is peace in the new body of believers. This strife, internal and external is the Spirit’s next focus.
“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions…” James shakes his head in frustration. “…You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God…” James looks to his ‘listeners’ with pleading eyes. “…Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, ‘He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us’? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you…”
James takes a breath. He prays that those who read this letter will do just as the Spirit commands; humble themselves before the Lord. It is time to go on.
“Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” (James 4:1-12).
James voice has risen again. He stops to recenter himself again. He knows that the Spirit is raising this passion in him. The Spirit leads him into another direction and has him wagging his head as he begins.
“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin” (James 4:13-17).
The Spirit brings James away from faith and works finally. James moves onto the future for the believers and the unrighteous.
“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you…”
James’ eyes soften as he thinks about the patient believer.
“…Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
“But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your ‘yes’ be yes and your ‘no’ be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation” (James 5:1-12).
James feels the end coming. It is time to follow the Spirit into a closing exhortation and promise.
“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.
“My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins” (James 5:13-20).
James breathes a sigh of relief. He felt compelled by the Spirit to deliver these words. They were burning to be released. Now that they are free, he turns to the scribe for his opinion.
“How did I do?”
“I am in awe of the work we have just done. It will take me a few days to get it all neatly copied, but I can see the hand of the Lord throughout this whole letter. I am honored to have been chosen to assist you.”
James bows his head at the praise. “I am grateful for all your help, including helping bolster my confidence in following the Lord’s command.”
“I knew that the Spirit had called you to this work. Now I see its fullness. I am excited to get this into the hands of the new believers. After finalizing the first copy, I will make many more to be distributed throughout the churches.”
“Will there be an extra cost for this?” asks James.
“Not a single shekel. This will be my gift to the Lord.”
James smiles as the scribe gathers his tools and leaves to dive into the refining part of his work.
It takes a full week before the first copy of the letter from James is ready to be reproduced and distributed. There were a few areas that James had to clarify, but nothing substantial, as the Spirit saw to the flow of words.
A month after the first letter was released, several more copies are released and reports begin to flow back in. The believers are welcoming the teaching. It is the first written direction they have received.
James is pleased with the response and gives all glory to the Lord. He returns humbly to his leadership role in the body. And earnestly prays that God will find someone else to write the next letter. This one still gives him pause to if he said everything the right way.
(to be continued)
I don’t know for certain if James was reluctant or not in writing to the people. It just felt right as the story went along. I don’t believe that being the brother of Jesus ‘went to his head’ in the least. He probably felt guilty for not believing for so long and for trying to get in Jesus’ way. But God used him mightily in spite of that guilt. Maybe his guilt actually was part of what formed his character and role in the church. God uses our mistakes to make masterpieces!
James is instrumental in caring for Paul as well before he is martyred. He was thrown from the pinnacle of the temple, stoned, and finally beaten with a club. This is shortly after Paul’s release from house arrest in Rome.
Father God, thank You for second, third, and even fourth chances. Thank You that I am never beyond Your ability to use my messes. That the things I thing would ‘disqualify’ me for Your use are the very things that make me sensitive to the needs of others.
Forgive me Father for taking so long in writing. I haven’t been coming to You every day as I did before. I know that You know the reasons and what is on my heart. Thank You for giving me other ways to serve You as well. Return the excitement and joy of writing Your stories as You lift the heaviness from my heart. I surrender it all to You.
