Reflection on James

How can James apply to our lives as Christians today?

The book of James is and always has been one of my favorite books of the bible. There is a sense of raw information and commands given here by the Lord. James speaks on practical ways to live out your faith and walk with God daily, some of which can bring serious conviction to those pursuing their faith.

In my opinion, the importance of a book in the bible is unable to be fully obtained without background information on the book and even the author.

The book of James is a letter in the New Testament and is written to Jewish Christians who fled Jerusalem due to persecution. The letter is addressed to “the twelve tribes in the dispersion.” In Old Testament terminology the term “twelve tribes” is the people of Israel. The “dispersion” refers to the non-Palestinian Jews who had settled throughout the Greco-Roman. This is meaning it was written to Jewish beleivers scattered outside of Jerusalem. The book of James is known to be a practical and moral guide, emphasizing on the importance of “faith in action.” James wrote this book to encourage those who were fleeing to gain wisdom, strengthen their faith, display their faith out of obedience to God, and treat others the way God commands.

James, the brother of Jesus, and the leader of the church in Jerusalem is believed to be the author of this book. With being the brother of Jesus, James is known as an apostle. Ironically James started his walk with the Lord a little later than you would expect. It was not until immediately following Jesus’ death and resurrection that James accepted Him as Lord, he no longer could deny the truth of God. From here he became an important figure in early Christian church, mostly a leader in the Jerusalem community. Through being a leader in the church, James played a large role in the spread of Christianity, greatly among Jewish believers.

Now that there is a brief understanding of the background of James I will bring to light some ideas I journaled on in my time of reading.

Why am I called to consider it “pure joy” while being persecuted for my faith? Why are we called to tame the tongue and why is it so difficult? James is a book that brings many questions and debates between Christians. I mean, it is directly telling people how to live out their faith and live a life for the Lord…of course there will be questions regarding the commands shared. These 2 questions listed are some of the many that I dove into, journaled on, prayed about, and now feel comfortable sharing what the Lord has taught me regarding them.

The first half of James 1 focuses on trials and temptations that humans face and how to go about these. James 1:2 states, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds.” What?? Consider it joy when I am being mocked for my faith? When I am being joked behind my back? That’s crazy, how can this bring any joy? James is explaining that trials have the potential to bring good, if we are so confident in our faith that people decide to ridicule us for it, we should consider that joy. The only reason for this is because the Lord has won those battles and He is being seen through us. The devil is using people on earth to try and tear us away from the Lord, so to live for Him and not fold into the ways of the world can be considered “pure joy” in our faith. It goes on to say that these trials we face are testing our faith which builds perseverance. Through perseverance in our faith, we will gain wisdom, and the Lord will use this for His glory. James 1 goes on to speak about heaven. Heaven is RICH in joy, heaven IS pure joy. Our eternal life will be nothing short of pure joy with the Lord, once starting our eternal life on this earth we will experience glimpses of pure joy in meditation with the Lord. This “pure joy” from God is one worth living for.

James 3 speaks greatly on “taming the tongue” and how as a Christian and follower of the Lord there is a higher standard to be held to (Side note - Doesnt it bring you pure joy to know that we are held to a higher standard with the Lord?). This can start with the language you use as it should be honoring and pleasing to the Him. This is clearly an important subject as even back in James 1 there is talk of listening and doing, which can reflect on the power the tongue has. James 1:19 states, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.” Then James 3:5 says, “The tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts.” With the minimal size of the tongue it can have a very large impact, are we going to use this impact for good or for evil? A great comparison shown in James is how fresh water and salt water are unable to flow from the same spring. I mean, can both death and life coming from our tongue be pleasing to the Lord? The answer is clearly no. I love this comparison as it shows that death and life cannot come from the same place, the death from the tongue is coming from the world, and the life is purely from the Lord. James encourages us to hold ourselves higher as Christians and only speak the words of life given by the Lord to others.

Throughout the book, James addresses many topics including trials and temptations, the power of speech, the dangers that can come with favoritism, and the relationship of faith and works. He focuses on encouraging believers to persevere through trials, hold close to God’s wisdom, and seek guidance through prayer. This book is a practical guide for Christians, teaching how to live out faith in tangible ways, showing the love of God and and demonstrating his power and faith.

In life today there are many instances where faith can either be lived out or it can be pushed away. A common misconseption from humans is thinking “oh, this isn't that bad” or “at least I am not doing this.” Next time one of these thoughts come in take a second to step back and analyze what you are doing. Most commonly it is found that the sin being committed is still sin against the Lord. As Christians, we are held to a higher standard, in how we speak, in our actions, and how we go about our everyday life. Sometimes there will even be persection. If you get one thing please hear this, persecution will come in life, will you stand firm in your faith in the Lord or will you step back and deny the faith you own? Think about this and evaluate how you feel about your honest answer.

Surrender it all to the Lord, stand up for the truth you believe, and live out your faith in order to hear the Lord say “well done my good and faithful servant.”

There is so much to gain from the book of James, every verse is of great significance and will benefit you differently. I encourage you to go read the book, it is five chapters and it is VERY packed full. I did not touch on every part of the book and that does not mean some parts are more important than others, the parts I touched on were just the main ideas that stood out to me. I am sorry if it seemed a bit repetitive, I was trying to reflect the best way possible! Thank you for reading and as always, please reach out with any thoughts or questions!

(Cover photo from https://top-bibleverses.com/the-book-of-james/ )