1016. Introduction to James

Welcome to The Daily Platform from Bob Jones University in Washington, D.C.

The President of Bob Jones University will begin a study series entitled Wisdom From Above, which is a study of the Book of James. And at that moment, you really didn't know what to do. Maybe you found yourself in a position where you got advice, and advice from some people you really trusted in, and from two different people they gave you opposite advice. Or maybe you found yourself in a decision not between what is good and bad, but really between two really good decisions, and you really didn't know what to do other than the fact you wanted to do what God wanted you to do. How many of you have ever found yourself in one of those positions in your life? Would you raise your hand? Okay. Now, to be frankly honest with you, I feel like I live in that position every day.

In some cases, almost every hour. And that is a decision needs to be made, I really want to do what God wants me to do, and I'm really not sure what to do. It is at that moment that you realize you are in desperate need of wisdom. Our theme this semester is called Wisdom From Above, because that's really where wisdom comes from. In the book of James, we're going to look at this semester at really what we call the thematic peak of the book.

That is what it's all about. And that begins in James chapter three and verse thirteen, and it runs to James chapter four and verse ten. And we will begin that series of looking at those verses verse by verse through expository preaching. And this morning what I'd like to do is to simply do an introduction to the book of James and try to get the big picture, or if I could simply say it, I want us to understand James this morning as we begin, so that we'll look at it, we'll set the table and look at it a particular way, and then that will help us as we work through the passage of scripture beginning next week in James three and verse thirteen. So let's begin reading at the very start of James, James chapter one and verse one and we'll read the first five verses. Let's hear God's word. James a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, but let patience have her perfect work that you may be perfect in entire wanting nothing.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him. So as we begin this passage of scripture and this study this semester, let's start by asking some very simple and important questions. Number one, who is the author? Who is writing this book?

Because it really helps us to understand the background to it. Well it's very clear that the author is a fellow whose name is what? James, all right? His name is? James.

Boy, you guys are really bad this morning. His name is? James.

So we're starting at a good point. We know who the author is. The question is, which James is it?

You say, what do you mean? Well, when you read the New Testament, there's at least three Jameses. Number one, there's James, the brother of John, one of the 12 disciples and in the inner circle of Peter, James, and John. So is it that James? There's a second James. He's also one of the 12 disciples, not as well known. He's James, the son of Alphaeus, or they just called him James the Less.

So hey brother Less, how you doing? That's that James. And then there's a third James who's really not quite as well known and that is James, the half brother of Jesus. So which James is it? Well, we know who it's not. We know it's not James, the brother of John.

How do we know that? Well, he's the second martyr of the church after Stephen who was killed by King Herod. So it could not have possibly been him who wrote this letter because he was already in glory. Let me also say that it's most likely not James the Less because he was not as well known and really tradition tells us it's not him. So most likely we believe that this is James, the half brother of Jesus. Now what do you know about Jesus' family?

Well you know his mother's name, her name is what? Mary and dad's name is Joseph. But who are his brothers?

Do you know who they are? Matthew 13, 55 tells us about Jesus' family. He comes from a family of four brothers. Their names are James, Joseph, Jude, and Simon. Four brothers.

You didn't know that, did you? And it says in his sisters, now we don't know how many, it was plural, so let's just keep it simple. He had at least two sisters. So he had four brothers, two sisters, mom and dad, grew up in a small town. You call that a homeschool family. That's where Jesus grew up.

At least five boys, at least two sisters. And tradition tells us that it was James, the half brother of Jesus, who wrote this book. Now what do we know about him? Well we know that he wasn't a believer, he wasn't born again, until after the resurrection.

How do we know that? Because in 1 Corinthians 15 it says that Jesus appeared to his brother James and Matthew 13 tells us that his brothers really were not believers. So after he saw Jesus in his resurrected body, then he became a believer in Christ the Lord. But we also know something else, and that is he quickly became a leader in the Jerusalem church. So you could say it this way, he was the lead or he was the head pastor or the senior pastor of the church in Jerusalem. He was noted to be a very godly, righteous man.

He was called James the just. And I think it's important as you read this book, and I think it will help with some insight, that we could actually look at what James is writing as a commentary on the life of his brother. Because surely he would have heard his brother speak many times and would have remembered his words and in some ways he is writing maybe off of that as a commentary. So that leads me to the second thing, and who is the audience? To whom are the recipients of the letters? And let's go back and note verse one, it says James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to the 12 tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. So a couple of things here, number one, he says he's writing to the 12 tribes. Now when you think of the 12 tribes, you think of what kind of people?

They're called the what? They're called the children of Israel, or we just simply call them Jewish people. So who is he writing to? Well obviously as you read the book, he's writing to people who are believers. So he's writing to Jewish Christians.

And what is their condition? It says they are scattered abroad. Now if you'll go back in the book of Acts chapter 8 and verse 1, it starts out by saying a great persecution arose in Jerusalem against the church. And it's very interesting, it says the same Greek word, it says and they were scattered abroad. So what I believe is he's writing to a group of believers who are Jewish who had been living in Jerusalem and they had been driven out of their homes by persecution.

And the word scattered abroad means a dispersion. And if we would put it in modern language, we would call them refugees. So they were living in Israel, they'd been driven out of their country, and now they're living as refugees. And what is it like to be a refugee? Well think about it, if you're living in your home country, in your own culture, in your own family, you have a home, you have a job, you have stability. But a refugee, everything is unstable. You have no assurance of a job, you're not sure where you're going to live, you're being persecuted, you are suffering, you are alone, you are living in poverty, perhaps abuse and despair.

It is a very, very difficult and painful situation. So James is writing, if I could say it this way, to his church members, okay? He's not writing to people he doesn't know. He's writing to people to whom he has pastored and he calls them brethren and beloved brethren at least 11 times to express his affection and love for them and he is writing them in this particular situation. Some have viewed the book of James as a first century 101 manual for Christian living. Because when you read the book, James' style is very straightforward and it's very simple. It's almost like reading the book of Proverbs where James is not so much focused on doctrinal truth as he is to practical Christian living. There are 108 verses in the book of James and 50 of them and there are 50 definitive commands in those 108 verses. So he's really challenging them in the way they live because really Christianity is about what you believe manifested in the way in which you live.

So that's his audience. Which leads me to the third point and that is what is the main purpose of the book of James? One of the couple things I think that are very interesting is that first of all, that out of the 27 books of the New Testament, beginning with Matthew, ending with Revelation, out of the 27 books in the New Testament, this is what we would say the oldest New Testament book.

In other words, this was written before the apostle Paul wrote anything, before Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, before Peter's epistles or John's, any of those. This is the first book. And so that's very important. And as he writes this book, he has a very clear goal.

And what is his goal? If you look back at what we read, notice he says in verse three, he says, you brothers and sisters are going through trials, okay? He says in verse three, knowing this, the trying of your faith is, your faith is being tested and is producing in you endurance. That's a faith stretched out.

That's becoming practical. And here's the goal, verse four, he says, but let patience have her perfect work or its maturing work. What is the goal that James has for every believer and that is believers become mature.

Now when you read the New Testament letters of Paul, of James, of Peter and of John, those four writers, you will discover that they all have the same goal. The goal was that every Christian grow and mature. So your spiritual growth is crucial and foundational to your Christian faith.

You need to be a growing Christian. But what is very interesting is that when you read the letters of Paul and Peter and John and James, you find the goal is the same but the language that describes maturity is slightly different. For example, when you read Paul's letters, Paul's goal is for, for believers to mature and become like Christ. So we would say Christ's likeness is the goal. I think when you read Peter's letters, his goal is that believers become holy, be holy for I am, as I am holy, the Lord says. You read John's letters, especially 1 John, and you find that John's goal is for Christians to be perfected in love or to become mature in love. So one focuses on being like Christ, one focuses on being holy, one focuses on love. And then you come to the book of James and what is the primary focal point? The focal point is that believers become wise. Look at James 3 verse 13, who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Verse 5, James 1, if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God.

What's his point? You're trying to mature and grow, that's his goal. And how do you get there? You get there through becoming wise. So what is the goal or the main purpose of James? It is to help believers mature into becoming wise people. And actually, it's interesting if you would compare James to Paul and you see a lot of similarities.

You actually see them in Peter also. For example, James says in verses 2 through 5 of chapter 1 that trials produce endurance and endurance produces maturity. You read in Romans chapter 5 where Paul writes in verses 3 through 5, he says trials produce endurance and endurance produces proven Christ-like character. You become like Jesus. So as we look at these words, it's not like these authors have different goals.

They have the same goal but they use a different kind of a language but it's interconnected. For example, look at Paul's use of the word wisdom. Let me just read you some verses. Colossians 1, 9, he says that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will and all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Colossians 1, 28, Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom that we may present everybody mature, perfect in Christ Jesus. Colossians 2, 3, in Jesus are He to all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 3, 16, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom. First Corinthians 1 verse 30, it says but of Him are ye in Christ Jesus who if God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.

Here's the point, it's really simple. That to become like Christ and to become wise are in essence the goal of the Christian life. That if you could say it this way, it's like looking at a mountain, same mountain, at a different angle.

You could look at it from one side or the other side, same mountain, but we look at it differently. Christ-likeness, holiness, love, wisdom. So James' goal is to help every believer mature into a wise man or a wise woman. And I think all of us would be honest this morning and we all recognize our desperate need of wisdom. Which leads me to the fourth question and that is what is the process towards gaining wisdom? How do you get wisdom? And I think it's pretty clear that wisdom is not something you get automatically. For example, you don't necessarily get wisdom by sitting in a classroom. Wisdom does not come through knowledge. I like what Ecclesiastes says, with much knowledge comes great weariness.

How many of you have gotten tired of classes? That's not necessarily wisdom. Wisdom doesn't come by gaining understanding. For example, you can be a PhD and not necessarily be a wise person.

There are a lot of smart people who do really stupid things. So what is wisdom? Wisdom is something more. It is something that only God can give.

That has to be clear in your mind. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God who giveth to all people in a generous manner. Notice Proverbs 2, 6, for the Lord gives wisdom. So then what does one have to do to pursue wisdom? What motivates you to get wisdom? Well when I began the message, I said how many of you have ever come to a place where you didn't know what to do and you needed wisdom?

Well what got you to that place where you didn't know what to do? Well in James chapter 1 verses 2 through 5, he sets it up for us why it is that we pray for wisdom. Why do we need wisdom? Because we are facing some unexpected or unavoidable or unwanted trials and pressures that have come into our life. The best way to get wisdom is through problems. Problem solving. Going through trials. And therefore we are in the midst of this pressure and we have to think properly and we have to respond correctly in a way that honors God and fulfills his will.

I was in a meeting this morning from 9 to a little after 10 o'clock. At the end of the meeting, we concluded that we didn't know exactly what to do and we need to pray and seek God for his mind. Now that's what James is talking about. You and I are going through a trial and we need to see God's perspective. God, what do you want me to do? Lord, lead me.

Lord, guide me. And does God promise that? God promises all the wisdom that you need to make the decisions that are within the purpose and alignment of his will. Someone has said wisdom is seeing life from God's perspective. Wisdom is the ability to make a connection between the trials that I'm enduring and the purpose and the character of God. God, what are you doing here?

What am I to pray for? I'm to pray that the Lord will give me wisdom. Wisdom is having right responses because you have to make a decision.

You can't just burrow in the ground and just sit there. You have to make a choice. What is wisdom? It is becoming skillful in living a Godly and righteous life. How can I go through this trial and come out on the other side a wiser and more Godly person?

So this is what James is communicating in the beginning of the letter. Others face multifaceted trials, physical trials, emotional trials, relational trials, financial trials, governmental trials, spiritual trials, verbal trials. And what are the trials? These are the things that cause pressure or bring stress into my life. And James makes it clear that trials are not things that we should run from. They are not things that we should get out of. They are things that are designed to grow and expand our faith.

However, we are not to be passive in trials. God is growing us up. Think about it. Think of it this way. You cannot be spiritually mature and at the same time be emotionally immature.

Think about that. You cannot be spiritually mature and at the same time be emotionally immature. So what does a trial do for us? It squeezes us and what comes out of us? All kinds of emotions, fear, anger, jealousy, oftentimes depression or discouragement, confusion, feeling sorry for yourself. And what God is doing is He's taking the pressure that produces or squeezes out of these, out of us, this emotionally immature response and He is driving us to seek the Lord, to let God, to trust God, to change us, to work things out so that we can rejoice in His power. So how do I get wisdom? wisdom comes through seeking the Lord in the midst of a trial. God's process of maturing a Christian into a spiritually wise man and woman is through bringing us to greater dependence on God and not dependence on ourselves.

And that leads me to the final thing. And that is what is James' overall concern. That is, he is concerned that believers might undervalue the trial. In other words, he's concerned about having the wrong point of view about your trial. James creates his own word to describe his concern.

And what is the concern? If you read beginning in verse 6, let him ask in faith, nothing wavering, that's for wisdom, for he that wavereth is like the wave of the sea, driven with the wind and toss, let not that man think he shall receive anything of the Lord. And then verse 8, he says a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.

James creates a word that didn't exist. Double-minded. It's the word die sukkos, literally means two souls. The idea is that in the middle of a trial, you and I often have two minds, two hearts and two souls. It's almost like what Paul says in the battle between the flesh and the spirit, because if we're a Christian, we have the flesh and the spirit.

And here's the idea. In the middle of a problem, we're struggling, we know we need God's wisdom. We have a heart for God, but we also have a heart for our own desires, what we want. And one of the problems in trials is that we really want God to work it out the way I want it to be worked out, when in reality, it may not be the way that God's going to work.

John Bunyan described this person as Mr. Facing Both Ways. It's like a person who has a desire for God, it's like a person who has a desire for the world, and he's stuck in the middle. Because all of us live here, all of us have a desire to follow the Lord if we're a Christian, but we also have a desire for the pleasures and the blessings of this world. So here's the issue. Do I continue in an immature state, living out my own selfish desires controlled by anger, controlled by fear, controlled by jealousy, all those emotions, or do I surrender to God and single-mindedly, not with two hearts, not with two souls, but with one mind, do I wholeheartedly seek God and say, God, I want your will and your purpose and your plan and through that, I grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord and I mature in Christ.

That's really what the big picture is all about. And the question is this, will I grow and mature into a wise person? So let me ask you a question. How many of you would say, I really do want to be a wise person?

How many of you would acknowledge that? Raise your hand, all right. God's word is clear and you can become wise as you respond and seek the Lord and pray and follow his word and his will and God will give you all the wisdom that you need. Let's all stand together as we are dismissed this morning in prayer and let's pray that God will help us to have his wisdom. Lord, we thank you for your word this morning. We thank you that through your truth and through your power, you can give us the wisdom that we need to make the right choices right now in alignment with your word and will help each one Lord to grow in wisdom. We pray in Jesus name, amen. You've been listening to a sermon from the book of James by Dr. Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University. For more information on Dr. Pettit's series, visit our website at thedailyplatform.com where you can get a copy of Steve's study booklet entitled Wisdom from Above. Thanks for listening. Join us again tomorrow as we study God's word together on The Daily Platform.