INTRODUCTION

I. Who was James?

A. The author of the Epistle of James most probably was the James who is identified in Scripture as one of the half-brothers of our Lord Jesus (Galatians 1:19; compare Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3 with Jude 1).

B. As did the rest of the family, at first he accompanied Jesus (John 2:12), but later stood aloof from Him (Mark 3:31) and joined in the open unbelief expressed by his brothers (John 7:2-5). A post-resurrection appearance of Jesus to him personally caused him to believe (1 Corinthians 15:7). He was among the disciples in the upper room at Pentecost (Acts 1:14).

C. In time he became the leading elder in the Church at Jerusalem. As such he led the first great council in A. D. 50 and gave the final pronouncement of that council on the question of Gentile believers (Acts 12:17; 15:4-29; 21:18; Galatians 1:19; 2:9-11).

D. His ministry was primarily to Jewish believers, first in Jerusalem and also in the eastern regions where they had become dispersed. Having a deep background in the Law, he ministered to Jewish believers whose background also was in the Law.

II. When did James write his epistle?

The Epistle of James was the first of the New Testament books to be written, having been composed before A. D. 50. James mentions his name in a matter-of-fact way, as though there would be no question of his identity. This strongly implies that James the brother of John had already been beheaded (circa A. D. 44), because had he written before that event, he would be expected to have distinguished himself from such a prominent apostle. (See Acts 12:2). Also, the epistle makes no mention of the question of Gentile believers, a fact that strongly implies that it was written before that issue reached its climax at the Jerusalem council in A. D. 50.

III. To whom was the epistle written?

A. The Epistle of James was addressed to Jewish believers who had become "scattered abroad" (1:1), mainly throughout the eastern regions, though possibly in the west also.

B. These Jewish believers seemed to be of the poorer socioeconomic levels, with only a few of the more well-to-do persons being among them (see James 2:1-7). During the earthly ministry of Jesus, "the poor heard Him gladly" (Mark 12:37). That many of these to whom the epistle was addressed had followed Jesus and/or were children and grandchildren of those who had followed Jesus is a great probability. Persecution had further impoverished them, and (as is the case so often with the socially and economically underprivileged) they were tempted to seek the recognition and acceptance of the rich and influential.

IV. Why was the Epistle of James written?

A. Jewish believers in Jesus as the Messiah met with open and violent hostility from unbelieving Jews. These early disciples had become somewhat isolated from the strong fellowship of believers in Jerusalem as they had became "scattered abroad." They needed strong, supportive encouragement from an authority figure in Jerusalem, one who would speak to them the word of the Lord. They had the Old Testament Scriptures; yet they were the first to need and to receive New Testament revelation in propositional, written form. This helped to sustain them in the midst of persecution.

B. Having come into liberty in Christ, these Jewish believers were experiencing the joys of liberation from legalism. But they encountered some spiritual dangers. Isolated from the large community of believers in Jerusalem, ostracized from the strict legal Jewish system, and surrounded by Gentile immorality, they were tempted to drift from liberty to license. They needed to understand that the great moral imperatives are even more active in grace than they were in the Law, that the validity of faith and the vitality of faith are evidenced in its moral dynamic in practice. Faith is not merely an intellectual assent to truth, but a volitional response to Christ.

V. What and how did James write?

A. James's style is typically Jewish. He is concrete, practical, and direct to the point of being abrupt. He uses illustrations, metaphors and similes, much as Jesus did. He is dealing with the practical applications of the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, and so he speaks of real life situations. His aim is not only to encourage Jewish believers in persecution, but even more to charge them sternly with the.fact that the law of faith (being a higher principle than mere legalism) demands a standard of conduct consistent with itself.

B. The Epistle of James speaks directly to the inter-personal and human implications of the gospel. It describes in human terms what love by its very nature does.

C. As Paul wrote to warn against legalism, so James wrote to warn against antinomianism. Faith and works do not conflict, except in the minds of those who misinterpret one of the two. As works without faith are dead works (Hebrews 9:14), so faith without works is also dead (James 2:17).