Biblenoter’s Notepad
Hi, I’m Jake, the creator of BibleNoter.
I share commentary and study notes because I believe the Bible isn’t just for scholars — it’s for everyday people like you and me.
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James Chapter 1
The Author
James was the brother of Jesus.
Originally he didn’t believe that his brother was… um…. GOD. Personally, I get it. Remember, Jesus didn't even start His ministry until He was 33ish.
But after his brother came back from the dead, James was not only a believer but a leader in the church of Jerusalem
That was a difficult time. There was widespread persecution and as we will see in verse 2, a lot of King Jesus’s followers in Jerusalem were scattered.
Eventually James was killed for his belief, and his teachings that Jesus was the Messiah
The Audience
This letter (I know, we think of this as a book, but this was a letter) that James writes, to “the twelve tribes in the Dispersion”, was written to the believers in his church that were scattered abroad due to persecution.
Many believers lost or had to leave their homes due to the the intense persecution of the followers of Jesus
MORE DETAILS:
This was possibly one of the earliest of the new testament books.
Written somewhere between 40-50ad
Verse 1
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion:
Who was James
Brother of Jesus
Considered an apostle but not one of the 12
Leader of the Jerusalem council church
He could have flexed on us.
Grew up with JESUS!
JESUS'S BROTHER?
Can you imagine being the brother of the Messiah?
Lol Always your fault
He is never wrong
Why can't you be more like your brother
Calls him a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ
This is a general term that represents God's people living in other cultures. They were dispersed and scattered outside Israel. See John 7:35
Don't we feel like that ? I do at times.
We live in a society that by and large doesn't adhere to the word of God, and sets us up as outcasts and even demonizes us for our beliefs.
From the order of the home, to sexual identities, to how we live in general. We are just different, as we should be.
And that is or seems to be so far what the whole book of James is about how to live differently as Christ followers
Verse 2-4
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
What are these trials?
For them it was displacement...
Remember the audience here. This is written to those in the dispersion.
They're facing persecution,
the loss of family,
the loss of their homes.
They likely feel like outcasts and strangers and like the way they do life isn't the same as those around them...
Sound familiar?
Be perfect...
That's easy enough.
Perfect here is the word telios, which means mature or complete.
Pure joy? None of what they're facing sounds joyful in the sense that I know joy. So what does James mean here?
I think what he is getting at is something we all know. There ARE benefits to hard things.
Picking up heavy things hurts but it makes your muscles strong when they repair.
Failed relationships hurt but they let you know what to look out for in the future.
Fixing cars yourself is a pain in the rear, but it forces you to learn AND saves you money
My coach in high school would say
“learn to love the pain” I never did. BUT I learned how to endure it because I knew I would be stronger and a better wrestler if I did.
Verses 5-8
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
If any of you lacks wisdom…
Have you ever been here? You're in a hard place and you just feel like you're spiraling and don't know how to act as a follower of Jesus would or should. You NEED direction directly from God?
Here James makes it simple. Ask God.
Ask in faith (knowing that HE will answer)
Without doubting
I know… I have been there too. I prayed, but in the back of my head im going, “im gonna have to take care of this on my own”
Here is the thing, at that point, why ask? I know you're desperate but you're probably not going to believe it was Jesus answering your prayer anyway.
Doubting makes you unstable because you either won't believe Jesus answered you, or you won't listen if he did.
That's been my experience.
Verse 9-11
9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and the rich in his humiliation,
because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.
This verse looks so out of place to me, that's why it's so important to remember the context, and here specifically the audience.
Who is he writing to?
The dispersed
The scattered
The members from his church who left or lost their homes.
Considering that, its easy to see that if there were a bunch of people who lost or left their homes, some would end up in worse living conditions than they had, and some would end up in better living conditions than they had.
They might have
More or less land
Bigger or smaller houses
More or less opportunity
Either way I think the point here is to not let your circumstances define you.
Good or bad, in the end, your standing with King Jesus is what matters and it is the only thing that will last
Verse 12
12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
No matter the circumstances you find yourself in, whether
Displaced
Homeless
Hurting
Jobless
Lost loved ones
Etc
You will be blessed if you have an eternal mindset that is fixed on the reality of who you are in King Jesus. When it is all said and done, you will receive the Crown of Life, if you love Jesus
Verse 13-15
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
I can only imagine that the things they are witnessing outside of Jerusalem were vastly different than what they were used to.
With a new setting comes new temptations and I can see how a person could start to wonder if God was tempting them away from him.
The truth is that God does not tempt us away from Him. That is so far against His nature. He wants good for his people, to draw them in. But with a new setting, and probably a less Jesus focused community around them, I wonder if they got confused.
Either way, James sets the record straight here. We, as humans, are tempted by the bait that catches our attention.
The bait that tempts me, might not be all that tempting for someone else.
Whatever the bait is, when we give in and chase the bait, the hook is set, and death follows
Verse 16-17
16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
Don't be tricked. Don't be fooled
If it is a gift that is good and complete, it comes from God
God will not change based on your circumstances.
God is still and always has been, good.
Its like James is saying, “I know your whole world is turned upside down, everything seems like it has changed, but God is still good and constant, you can depend on him”
Verse 18
18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
Of his own will…
He did not HAVE to create us.
God Chose to create us
Be thankful
By the word of truth
This reminds me of Jesus being called “the word” in John, but it predates it I think.
Eph 1:13; Col 1:5; 2 Tim 2:15 the word of truth here describes the Gospel Message.
When I JUST read this, I think to myself, God created me and he didn't have to, his word is true and I can trust him.
First fruits of his creatures.
The idea of first fruits in the old testament, is to sacrifice our first and best back to god.
If WE are the first fruits, we are Gods first and best creations.
Humans are the greatest thing God created. Better than angels and trees and mountains and lions and whales and any other creature
WE ARE IMPORTANT TO GOD
Verse 19-21
19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
When you are in a rough spot and everything is falling down around you, how are you acting, usually?
For me? My go to is
I can't listen
I talk before i process
I get angry
AAAND James says to do the opposite lol;
He says (inspired by the Holy Spirit to write all this)
Be quick to hear (listen)
Process before you speak (slow to speak)
Don't automatically respond in anger (slow to anger)
Okay, so I do all of this wrong at times haha, if you are out there and you are going “Okay but why? See verse 20
Anger does not produce the righteousness of God.
This is a REMINDER that even in turmoil, our goal should be to look like King Jesus so that we can represent him well.
Therefore put away… or get rid whatever it is you are doing in response to your anger and panic.
Rid yourself of anger and rage or any habitual sin in your life
Return to the word of god.
Why? Because it can save your souls forever
Because when you rid yourself of sin you look more like jesus
Because it produces in you, the righteousness of God
Verse 22-25
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror.
24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
If you ask God what needs changed in your life, what needs to go, in order to look more like Him, thats a good thing.
Ask God, Go to His word and see what needs changed
The bible is like a mirror and you will see where you fall short
A Doer - finds the answers and changes
A Hearer - finds the answers and changes nothing.
If you ask God to show you, you can ask him to change you.
Verse 26-27
26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.
27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
You call yourself a christian?
Control you tongue. If you can't you may think your heart is full of love and righteousness, but if what comes out of your mouth is vile and mean, you are not showing that .
The bible says out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.
This is some of what a christian looks like
We care for outcasts
We try to look like Jesus