1. James 1:1. Which “James” is this?

This is the half-brother of Jesus. The Apostle James meets martyrdom early in the book of Acts. James and Judas (Jude) finally do accept Jesus after His glorious resurrection. They become leaders in the early church and give us two books of the Bible. Quite a turnaround from the men who doubted Jesus’ mission, though they were raised in the same house as the Savior.

2. James 1:13. Is “temptation” here the same as “trial” in verse 2?

The trials of the early portion of the chapter seem to be troubles that come our way and test our character. We are to embrace them with joy, says James. The discussion of these trials seems to end in verse 12.

In verses 13ff, James seems to be introducing what we would call temptation, a call to sin that can only come from below, not Above. There is no rejoicing or embracing here. And the warning is given not to blame God for any of this, since the temptation only succeeds as we are drawn away by our own desires.

There is a common thread though. In both cases, we are tested and tried and proved. And both cases are universal to the Christian. We all will have problems. We all will be tempted of the Enemy.

3. James 1:25. What is the perfect law of liberty?

Perhaps a better question: What is the perfect law? And the answer is liberty. James is not specific here, but he could well be referring to the Gospel itself. The old Law of Moses was a law of bondage to moral codes and rituals and sacrifices. Do one thing wrong, and you are lost.

But Jesus said, “Whom the Son sets free is free indeed.” Free from sin, free from sin’s consequences, free from death and hell, free from myself and my wicked inclinations. Free. No longer under the law of sin and death, but the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus.

4. James 1:27. Does this verse say that religion is bad?

Perhaps a small point, but have you heard religion-bashing from your pulpit? If you haven’t you probably will. The line goes, “God is not interested in religion, but in relationship.” Or, “I was once bound by religion, but now I am free!”

In this, the only passage of Scripture that deals with the English word “religion”, it becomes clear that there is nothing wrong with religion at all. Now, there is a vain religion, a hypocritical religion, a religion that damns. That’s what everyone is talking about in their statements.

But read on: “Pure and undefiled religion… is to visit orphans and widows… and to keep oneself unspotted by the world.”

The word religion is neutral. It can be good or bad. When it is good, it is very good before God.

5. James 2:14, 17. James asks, Can faith (alone) save him? How do you answer this?

The age-old conflict between faith salvation and works salvation shows up here in James. Many cling to this brother’s statements as proof that works must be part of our salvation.

To James’ question. Someone says he has faith, but he has no works. Can that faith save him?

Short answer, No. But look again. Someone says he has faith. He believes in Jesus. You see him in church. But he has never trusted Christ for salvation. He does nothing with or for Christ during the week. We call this person an unbeliever. He is not saved by this faith because the faith that saves produces works. James is simply saying that saving faith cannot be separated from works that follow.

Verse 18 is key. One man says he has faith, another says he has works. Which one is saved? A difficult question, Brother James, because you cannot have saving faith without works attached.

James is not talking here about how to get saved. He is talking about how to identify true Christians in our midst.

6. James 3:1. Why a stricter judgment for teachers?

The church is built by teaching. The early church continued in the apostles’ doctrine, or teaching. It is a serious thing to represent before men the truths of God. Paul talks about how some build on the Temple of God inferior materials, and will face judgment for it. So here.

One might also extract from this warning that a man who teaches obviously knows more things than the one he is teaching. If he knows things, he is responsible to live these truths, more than the one who does not know. He seems to be saying that we will be held accountable for every word that the Spirit imparted.

7. James 3:18. (Proverbs 11:18) How do you sow “fruits of righteousness”?

The NASB has it, “…the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace…”

So, we are not sowing fruit, just seeds. The proper seeds will produce a harvest of righteousness. Not only the proper seed is in view here, but the proper sower, a peacemaker. This in contrast to the bitter, jealous, ambitious, earthly, natural, demonic, disorderly sowers that sometimes surface in the church.

Good man, good seed, equals good results.

8. James 4:5. Should “spirit” be capitalized here?

Good question. It would be informative for readers to examine the array of translations of this verse. In many, the verse is meant to accuse men of a lustful spirit. This would perhaps fit better with the preceding verses, where man is called an adulterer desiring friendship with the world. In this case the word should not be capitalized. It means merely the human spirit.

But in translations that seem to be quite valid also, it is affirmed that God desires the Spirit to dwell in us, or words to that effect.

Another problem with this verse is that no one has been able to connect James’ words with an Old Testament Scripture, even though James affirms that he is quoting one.

Hate to leave it there, but I offer my opinion that the first option is the better of the two for the context of this passage. As to the quote, it could be that James was simply saying that the Scripture’s teaching affirms the sentiments of the quote (which is therefore not a quote at all, but a summation of the intent of Scripture).

9. James 4:11. How is it that “he who speaks evil of a brother… speaks evil of the law”?

To speak evil of a brother is to break the law of God. One who breaks God’s law obviously does not have a high regard for it, and in fact has judged it to be inferior to himself.

10. James 5:4. What is “Sabaoth”?

It is not a variation of the word “Sabbath”, that is for sure. The Lord of Sabaoth is the Lord of hosts, or armies. David and the prophets use this term hundreds of times. Paul quotes it in Romans. And here James uses the word as a reminder to those who dare cheat their laborers, that there is a God who has access to unlimited reserves of soldiers, on duty day and night, to deal vengeance as needed.

11. James 5:1-6. Who is being addressed here?

I ask this because the wording seems uncommonly harsh if thought of in church terms. We meet the decadently rich, who have given their lives to amassing a fortune, but to no avail eternally. We see them cheating poor people to get ahead. Lives of luxury and pleasure. Murders.

Definitely not the people of God being addressed. James is giving a shout-out to the world and reminds them of their undesirable position before God.

12. James 5:8. “Near”. “At hand.”

They all seem to say it. Jesus, Paul, John. The coming of the Lord, near. The Greek is “at hand.” We cannot quibble about words here, but if the Biblical speakers are telling literal truth, we must believe it to be so.

In the first century the coming of the Lord was “at hand.”

In the 21^st century, the coming of the Lord is equally “at hand.”

What has stopped the Lord from just ending it all, even many generations ago? Not sure, but it has to do with His longsuffering, as in the days of Noah. It has to do with His grace, and His elect, and His waiting on all who will be saved to get saved.

Surely the world will know they were given a chance to seek this God Who has been seeking them.

13. James 5:12. Why this sin “above all”?

Why is swearing considered the number one offence against God, per James?

For one thing, James is addressing Jews who failed often in this area of their lives. For them, swearing would continue to be a stumbling block, and for them, this is the sin that needs to be addressed “above all.”

You will note here that the swearing sin is mentioned by James’ half-brother in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:33-37. Much of the same wording is there, with the solution to the problem added on.

And there, swearing is listed in a catalog of things to be avoided by the child of God, the person of the Kingdom, and is not singled out as “above all.”