Introductory Issues (James 1:1)
“James”
The author of the letter is a little bit of a question because he merely identifies himself by his name with no other biographical details. This could be a problem because there were so many people named James in the life of Christ, including two disciples and a half-brother. However, one of the disciples died too early to have been the likely author and the other was not a prominent figure in the early churches that we read about. Jesus’ brother, on the other hand, was the leader of the church in Jerusalem after the other James’ death. He is a likely candidate. That is what most people—though not all—throughout church history have believed. Not that it matters too much which of those James, if any, this one was.
This letter (or written-sermon) was also likely one of the earliest books of the New Testament to be penned. The content makes it likely to have been written before the Jerusalem Council in Acts, and also before the teachings of Paul had been widely discussed in the early church. The writer seems aware of Paul’s teaching, and might be trying to caution against some dangers of seeing things through his teaching alone. It is also full of a lot of seeming traditional Jewish thought, as well as the most references to Jesus’ words of any of the New Testament writings.
“A servant”
James does supply one line of description regarding himself, and it is an interesting one. For the likely leader of the largest church in the world at the time, he does not describe himself as such. Nor does he highlight his biological connection to Jesus. His only designation is that of a slave. He does not hold authority dear. He does not claim any special position for himself. He is no more than a servant, at the command of a Master, destined to obey anothers will. And, as we read his thoughts, we will discover that that should be the aim of all who claim to be followers of Jesus.
“…of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”
The will that the servants of Jesus follow is the will of God. But on equal footing with God (or potentially one could read the phrase as “both God and Lord”) is Jesus. Lord Jesus Christ is a good title for Jesus. Both Lord and Messiah, Jesus came to save humanity but is also our King and master, not just our savior. This emphasis on the lordship of Christ will pervade the rest of the letter’s thoughts. You cannot hold Jesus to be your Savior and not follow Him as a disciple following a master. The faith of the Christian is not the acceptance of a worldview where humanity has sinned, and Jesus has died to set them free from their guilt. Asserting that truth is not enough. The faith of Christianity compels us to live differently. We abandon the sin of self-governance and submit to the rule of another lord of our lives.
“To the twelve tribes sown among the nations,”
The letter is written to believers (save for the possible exception of one passage in chapter 5), so these twelve tribes could be a reference to actual Jewish followers of Jesus. But it also could symbolically be referring to all followers of Jesus as the true descendants of Abraham. In either case, we are talking about a writing to Christians. That said, this is a general letter written to believers living all over the place, not just to a specific congregation in a limited context.
“Greetings.” (Charein)
The word James uses as a salutation is formulaic in its use. It was common for Greek letters of the time. It is interesting in the context of James only because of the next sentence, because the literal meeting of the word used for “greetings” here means “rejoice.”
What are we supposed to rejoice over? Trials. Testing. Difficult times.
The author of the letter is a little bit of a question because he merely identifies himself by his name with no other biographical details. This could be a problem because there were so many people named James in the life of Christ, including two disciples and a half-brother. However, one of the disciples died too early to have been the likely author and the other was not a prominent figure in the early churches that we read about. Jesus’ brother, on the other hand, was the leader of the church in Jerusalem after the other James’ death. He is a likely candidate. That is what most people—though not all—throughout church history have believed. Not that it matters too much which of those James, if any, this one was.
This letter (or written-sermon) was also likely one of the earliest books of the New Testament to be penned. The content makes it likely to have been written before the Jerusalem Council in Acts, and also before the teachings of Paul had been widely discussed in the early church. The writer seems aware of Paul’s teaching, and might be trying to caution against some dangers of seeing things through his teaching alone. It is also full of a lot of seeming traditional Jewish thought, as well as the most references to Jesus’ words of any of the New Testament writings.
“A servant”
James does supply one line of description regarding himself, and it is an interesting one. For the likely leader of the largest church in the world at the time, he does not describe himself as such. Nor does he highlight his biological connection to Jesus. His only designation is that of a slave. He does not hold authority dear. He does not claim any special position for himself. He is no more than a servant, at the command of a Master, destined to obey anothers will. And, as we read his thoughts, we will discover that that should be the aim of all who claim to be followers of Jesus.
“…of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”
The will that the servants of Jesus follow is the will of God. But on equal footing with God (or potentially one could read the phrase as “both God and Lord”) is Jesus. Lord Jesus Christ is a good title for Jesus. Both Lord and Messiah, Jesus came to save humanity but is also our King and master, not just our savior. This emphasis on the lordship of Christ will pervade the rest of the letter’s thoughts. You cannot hold Jesus to be your Savior and not follow Him as a disciple following a master. The faith of the Christian is not the acceptance of a worldview where humanity has sinned, and Jesus has died to set them free from their guilt. Asserting that truth is not enough. The faith of Christianity compels us to live differently. We abandon the sin of self-governance and submit to the rule of another lord of our lives.
“To the twelve tribes sown among the nations,”
The letter is written to believers (save for the possible exception of one passage in chapter 5), so these twelve tribes could be a reference to actual Jewish followers of Jesus. But it also could symbolically be referring to all followers of Jesus as the true descendants of Abraham. In either case, we are talking about a writing to Christians. That said, this is a general letter written to believers living all over the place, not just to a specific congregation in a limited context.
“Greetings.” (Charein)
The word James uses as a salutation is formulaic in its use. It was common for Greek letters of the time. It is interesting in the context of James only because of the next sentence, because the literal meeting of the word used for “greetings” here means “rejoice.”
What are we supposed to rejoice over? Trials. Testing. Difficult times.
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