James: Jesus Works

Sources: Luke Timothy Johnson, The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation, rev. ed. (Fortress, 1999); William F. Brosend II, The New Cambridge Bible Commentary: James and Jude (Cambridge, 2004); Bart Ehrman, The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings, 3d ed. (Oxford, 2004); I. Howard Marshall et al., Exploring the New Testament: A Guide to the Letters and Revelation (IVP, 2002), chapter 21; Geert Lernout, "Reception Theory," in Michael Groden and Martin Kreiswirth, The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism (Johns Hopkins, 1997).

I. Is James an Outlier?
Note: Our supposedly 'marginal' texts so far (like the main ones to follow) reflect

the Father establishing Christ above all powers and authorities,
Christ establishing OT promises in the Kingdom of God,
the Spirit establishing his disciples in his mission, and
the suffering church embodying and establishing (imperfectly) the gospel in diverse contexts
as an extension, transformation, and coming fulfillment of Israel.

These new settings shift the OT themes they have relied on from promise to fulfillment:

Human beings have our hero, and we antiheroes can now follow in his footsteps.
God's people are still unreliable and fail, but they are no longer incapacitated.
A lot still needs to change, but God's provided and providing Spirit affords new relationships with God and the world.
The shape of the future and present remain apocalyptic, but the Messiah's coming has made it clearer.

James seems different. Where did these emphases on Father, Son, Holy Spirit, suffering church, and apocalyptic context go?

II. Why the Conflict over James' Parenesis?
James' unusual character has generated conflicting interpretations and conflicts.
Christians have historically received James in wildly different ways. Is James

... Judaism with a Christian label or veneer (as Luther suspected)?
... Christian faith for Jews only?
... embryonic Christianity (e.g., on the way "from Jesus to Christ")?
... inconvenient proof that Protestants preach cheap grace?
... in the context of the whole NT a warrant for a multicultural Church?
... the Jewish core and goal of Christian faith?
... an ethic for Christians to 'work out' the new life that Christ's grace has given them?

This letter is missing some already familiar elements:

The conventional thanksgiving and concluding sections of a Hellenistic letter.
And it lacks the 'indicative' part of that common Jewish-Christian indicative-imperative (cf. Ex 20).

James is full of parenesis (amicable, consensual moral instruction or exhortation; e.g., Schoolhouse Rock).

There is similar parenesis in Jude 20-23, 2 Pet 3:11-18, Heb 12-13; Rom 12-15, Eph 4-6, 1 Thess 4, and many other biblical exhortations.
But James is not prefaced by the kind of foundational material that leads those other texts.
That begs questions about its conceptual, historical, cultural, or developmental setting.

Is James' theological framework absent, embryonic, or presupposed? Is his audience's?
Clues, like tips of an iceberg, suggest that both are presupposed.

So James is not really the outlier it might seem to be.

III. James' Deeply Biblical Framework
From "James a servant of God and [the] Lord Jesus Christ":

probably the leader of the Jerusalem church.
Likely from Jerusalem, probably in or before 50's AD.

To "the twelve tribes of the dispersion."

James' letter, like the others so far, has a general (or 'catholic') audience.
Referring to Jewish Christians (cf. 2:21), or multiethnic Christians?
Scattered among literal Gentiles, nonmessianic Jews, or nonbelievers in general? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

James refers to the breadth of Israel's scriptures throughout the letter, esp. its 'wisdom literature':

Torah	Gen 1:26-27, 4:10, 22:9, 22:12; Ex 10:5, 20:13-14, 23:6; Lev 19:13-18; Deut 5:17-18, 11:14, 24:14-15
Prophets	Josh 2:4, 2:15, 6:17; 1 Kings 17:1, 18:42-45; Isa 5:9, 40:6-7; Jer 5:24; Dan 12:12; Zech 1:3; Mal 3:5-7
Writings	Job 5:11, 34:19; Ps 18:6, 21:9, 34:13, 102:4, 102:11, 103:8, 111:4, 140:3, 141:3; Prov 3:34, 10:12, 27:1; Eccl 7:9; Sir 5:11, 15:11-13

These wide, deep influences demonstrate a whole 'worldview' or framework of understanding.

IV. Jesus Reframes Judaism
James seems the most positive author toward rabbinical Judaism, critically but broadly affirming his culture.
James subtly re-frames Jewish traditions (especially wisdom traditions) under Christ's reign and teachings:

Halakha refers to the body of practical Jewish law and tradition,
whereas aggadah means non-legal traditions or teachings.
Both are bodies of living reception of God's Torah (covenantal law or instruction).
"The faith of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2:1) gives new life to the OT's threads of halakha, or practical law.
The Law of Moses becomes the law of liberty (1:25) under which we operate (work) out of trust (faith) (ch. 2).
The writings become life-giving aggadah, wisdom from above (1:5-8, 1:19-24, chs. 3-4).
The prophets become prophets of Christ's judgment on both the faithful and unmerciful (1:2-4, 1:9-18, 1:26-27, chs. 4-5).

Allusions to the Sermon on the Mount and other teaching traditions of Jesus:
ask and you will receive (Matt 7:7, Luke 11:9)	1:5, 4:2-3
the kingdom belongs to the poor (Matt 5:3, Luke 6:20)	2:5
do not treasure up wealth (Matt 6:19-20, Luke 12:33)	5:2-3
those who laugh will mourn (Luke 6:21, 25)	4:9
the humble are exalted (Matt 23:12, Luke 14:11, 18:14)	4:10
woe on the rich (Luke 6:24)	5:1
swear no oaths (Matt 5:33-37)	5:12
... and much more teaching material, especially from Matthew and Luke
Tips of James' christological iceberg:
"a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ"	1:1
"birth by his word of truth, that we might become a kind of firstfruits"	1:18
"believe in our Lord Jesus Christ of glory"	2:1
"heirs of the kingdom he has promised to those who love him"	2:5
"the Lord and Father" (?)	3:9
"the Spirit he has made to dwell in us" (?)	4:5
"the coming of the Lord is near ... the Judge is standing at the doors"	5:8-9

V. James' Ethical Agenda
James' major themes are previewed in ch 1:

Favoritism is judgmentalism that violates both the gospel's inclusive love and the Torah's.	1:9-11	1:27-2:9, 4:13-5:6
The word is a mirror: God has conferred ("implanted") our standing, which we forget through neglect.	1:22-27	2:10-26
The tongue can transform from a destructive fire to a restraining bit to a guiding rudder.	1:19-21	3:1-12
Inward and outward conflicts are struggles against our new God-birthed selves, rectified through "wisdom from above."	1:5	3:13-4:10
Trials call not for mistrusting God, but for patience and readiness in hope of the Lord's coming.	1:2-4, 12-18	5:7-11, 19-20
Passive neediness and unstable "double-mindedness" contrast with patient, insistent, powerful prayerfulness.	1:6-8	5:13-18

James is characteristically (but not at all uniquely) and distinctly ethical in its theology.

N.T. Wright (After You Believe) contrasts the NT's priority on Christian character development
with our contemporary culture's reliance on rules or authenticity.
James frames character not in (Greek, patristic, and medieval) terms of virtue and vice,
but in basically Jewish apocalyptic terms of "sin leading to death" and receiving "the crown of life."

(Outlines below are for your own further investigation.)

Rich and Lowly (1:9-11, 1:27-2:9, 4:13-5:6)
"Boast in being brought low" (1:9, cf. Luke 1:46-55):

The word's universal justifying mercy triumphs over the tyranny of judgment according to social status (2:5, 13).
All the Kingdom's heirs (2:5) serve alongside one another in the assembly ('synagogue', 2:2).
Favoritism (2:1) is judgment (cf. 4:11) that violates both the gospel's inclusive love and the Torah's (Lev 19:15, 18).
Favoritism also mocks God's reversal by sharing in the wealthy's sin against the lowly (2:6-7, 9, 5:4).
Is only ill-gotten wealth (2:6, 5:4-6) dangerous? Or is all wealth (1:11, 4:13-5:3, cf. Matt 6:24) dangerous?

In this way, James' social ethic implies sturdy doctrines of salvation, the church, the end-times, and many others.

Discuss: What do our churches' social ethics assert that God has, and hasn't done?

Doing the Word (1:22-27, 2:10-26)
"'Law' [nomos], above all, is what members of the community are to do" (Brosend 69).
Can we read James' halakha out from under Paul's shadow?

And perhaps in light of Jesus' halakha in Matthew (cf. Matt 7:24-27)?
Discuss: What does James seem to be complaining about here?
James interprets verbal professions of faith through the professors' actions:

If a relationship's object is ...	... trustworthy	... tntrustworthy
exercise active trust? ("works")	Duh!	Wha?!
express 'trust' that is not acted upon? ("faith")	Wha?	Ugh.
exercise mistrust (dismissal or disobedience)	Wha?!	Duh!

The word is a mirror: God has conferred ("implanted", cf. Matt 13:18-19?) our standing, which we forget through neglect.

We do not gain our standing through works; that would make the word a window, not a mirror.
One's works are to one's spirit as one's faith is to one's body. (Does 2:22's "finishing" echo Matt 5:48? Gen 2:7? Ezek 37:8-14?)

"Doing" looks like holiness and mercy on the lowly;

"merely hearing" fails to overcome anger, filthiness, and wickedness.

Discuss: In James, what do justification and sanctification have to do with each other?

Dallas Willard: "Effort doesn't imply earning."

Taming the Untamable Tongue (1:19-21, 3:1-12)
Speech is further integrated with inner dispositions and outward actions.

Cf. Matt 12:33-37 on the heart: "How can you speak good things when you are evil?"
and Matt 15:11: "What comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them."
So our words compete with the implanted word, like tares and wheat (Matt 13:24-30);
however, here any impurity is a tragic flaw (cf. 2:10).

"This ought not be so" (3:10). James' implied goal is perfection:

purification of the heart (4:8),
transformation of the tongue from a destructive fire to a restraining bit to a guiding rudder (3:3-6),
"making no mistakes in speaking" (3:2; through 1:19's listening and silence?),
freedom from partiality and hypocrisy (3:17), and
fitness for teaching (3:1b, cf. Matt 23:8-10, 13:51-52), leadership, and inheritance.

This material (and what follows) sketches James' doctrines of sin, depravity, and grace.

Discuss: Is 'taming the tongue' a practical way (like CBT) to discipline the heart and achieve integrity and perfection?

Wisdom from Above (1:5, 3:13-4:10)
Inward and outward conflicts reflect warring pleasures (hêdonai),

"friendship with the world ... enmity with God" (4:1-4, cf. Hosea 3).
The wise, by contrast, exhibit consistent righteousness (3:18).

Such conflictedness is a sign of God's ongoing pursuit of us (4:5, which does not seem to be a quotation, and 4:6).

We are struggling against our new God-birthed selves (1:18), rather than striving to attain them.
James is no Pelagian!*

Our stubborn, ugly impurity can be rectified through "wisdom from above" (3:17).

Here reception looks like humbling, drawing near, submission, cleansing/purifying, lamenting, resisting evil:
not moral or spiritual heroism but trust, vulnerability, and perseverance.
(Is this the wisdom Joseph Smith was asking for?* Cf. 1:2-4.)

The contrast and change suggest a doctrine of the Holy Spirit. (And Pentecost?)

Discuss: How does this compare with Gal 5 on the Spirit versus the flesh? How does it apply in your church life?

Enduring Trials (1:2-4, 1:12-18, 5:7-11, 5:19-20)
A temptation: When suffering, we can project the consequences of our own desires onto a God we then mistrust (1:13).

God the Father bestows only good.
God's specific intent is for his word-birthed heirs to be (sacrificial?) "firstfruits" of new creation (1:18).
So trials are not abandonment but refining and glorifying.

Trials call for patience and readiness in hope of the Lord's coming (5:7-11, cf. Beatitudes in Matthew 5's context).

Impatience and patience manifest themselves in a variety of different, sometimes nonintuitive, behaviors (4:13-5:5, 5:10-20).

James' doctrine of God and apocalyptic eschatology* are key to his "interim ethic."

Discuss: What do eschatological impatience and patience look like in your context?

Trustful Prayer (1:6-8, 5:13-20)
James contrasts passive neediness, unstable "double-mindedness," and patient, insistent, powerful prayer.

(Similar to unbelief, 'faith,' and 'works' in 2:14-26?)
The differences lie in the faith and hope of those praying.
The setting (and underlying doctrine) concerns reconciliation,
and implies an ecclesiology with determinative relationships to God and others.

Discuss:

Does James' assurance underwrite a prosperity gospel?
Does unanswered prayer imply spiritual inadequacy?
What would you advise for passive, untrusting, unstable, or hopeless people to do?