Introduction to the Book of James
Channel: Theophilus Lambo
Date: 2020-12-05

Background of the Book
The Epistle of James is one of the general epistles, including 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John, and Jude. These letters were sent out as circular epistles to be passed around and read in several locations.
Authorship
The writer identifies himself only as “James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (Jam 1:1). Out of the four men named James in the New Testament, only two have ever been suggested as the author—James, the brother of John (sons of Zebedee), and James, the Lord’s half-brother. Since the brother of John was martyred very early, about 44 A.D. (Act
12:2), he is ruled out. The other James, the Lord’s half-brother, later became the leader of the Jerusalem church (see Act 12:17; 15:13; 21:18).

Date and Destination
This is considered to be the earliest of the New Testament epistles. Nothing in the epistle goes beyond Acts 9. The scattered Jewish believers of the persecution of Act 8:1–4 appear to be the recipients (Jam 1:1). The Church was still meeting in synagogues, as suggested by Jam 2:2. These considerations all point to a date as early as 34–35 A.D.
Purpose and Theme
It has long been a common misperception that James has no unified theme and is simply a series of letters and notes strung together in what was called in the ancient world a “string of pearls.” The epistle, however, clearly indicates the writer’s purpose to develop a primary theme. That theme is that believers should meet trials with faith and wisdom, resulting in joy
(Jam 1:2–5). The development of this theme is along three lines suggested in verse 1:19, which become the outline of the book that we will see later. In essence, the letter is that of a sermon in written form. The theme is mentioned at the beginning (1:2–5) and the end (5:7–11) in what
might be called grammatical “bookends.” A strong promise is given at the beginning, of the eternal benefit of meeting trials and temptations with faith and wisdom (1:12). This promise is reinforced at the end of the book (5:19–20) by a practical illustration of the intercession of one believer in behalf of another.

Biblical Parallels (where the Book of James compare with both the Book of Job and Sermon on the Mount in Matthew)
There are many parallels between the literature of the New Testament and that of the Old.
The book of James is particularly related to the book of Job in the Old Testament. Both are considered the earliest book of each Testament. Both deal with the question of suffering in the lives of believers. It seems significant that God would choose this topic to deal with in the
earliest books of both Testaments. This is a problem that every believer has to deal with some time in life. In answer to the age-old question: “Why does God allow His children to suffer?” The book of Job would answer, “because we are part of a spiritual war raging behind the scenes, 
 in which our faith vindicates God” (Job 42:8b), and James would answer, “because God works through trial to purify and refine our faith in order to bring blessings in time and reward in eternity” (Jam 1:12).

We can also see several parallels between James and the Sermon on the Mount, which
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1. Jesus commends “spiritual poverty” (Mat 5:3) as does James (1:9–10)
2. Jesus commends “meekness” (Mat. 5:5) as does James (1:21). 
3. Jesus commends “the merciful” (Mat 5:7) as does James (2:13). 
4. Jesus commends “the peacemakers” (Mat 5:9) as does James (3:18). 
5. Jesus warns of the danger of “taking oaths” (Mat 5:34–37), and 
6. James warns of the same (5:12)—to the point of quoting the words of Jesus. Jesus warns of the “deception of riches” (Mat 6:19) to which James agrees (5:2). 
7. Jesus says, “a tree is known by its fruit” (Mat7:16) to which James again agrees (3:12).  In fact, the more one reads the Sermon on the Mount and the book of James, the more parallels begin to emerge.

Common Misconceptions
We have already seen that many commentators miss the theme that runs through the book of James. We have also noted that to approach the epistle as a series of spiritual sayings (as in the book of Proverbs) is to miss its purpose and unity. But the greatest error, by far, is in the idea that the book of James is written to unbelievers, and that it presents to them the way of salvation.
Nothing could be further from the stated purpose of the author himself. That he is writing to believers is evident throughout by the use of the word “brethren” or “beloved brethren”—at least 19 times! The erroneous approach seems to come from a misunderstanding of how James uses the word “save.” This word occurs five times in the book. The tone for James’ usage is set in 1:21, where believers are exhorted to receive the Word of God in meekness as the means of delivering their souls in times of trial. Since the Word “implanted” in the meek soul makes one a “doer of the word, and not a hearer only” (1:22)