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Scripture Reading: James 2:1-26
In 2 Tim. 2:15 Paul speaks about cutting straight the word of the truth. To cut straight the word of the truth means to unfold the Word of God in its various parts rightly and straightly without distortion. Throughout the centuries many teachers have tried to cut straight, or rightly divide, the holy Word. However, many Bible teachers were not able to do this very well.
At the time of the Reformation, Luther took the lead to rightly divide the holy Word. He saw that justification by faith should be divided from works. Although Luther could divide the Word in the way of certain principles, or in the way of a sketch, he did not have the ability to divide the Word in details. We may say that he knew the main roads of the Word, but not the streets and lanes.
In the eighteenth century Zinzendorf was raised up by the Lord, and to some extent he improved the dividing of the holy Word. In the nineteenth century the British brothers under the leadership of John Nelson Darby were raised up, and they were much more able to divide the Word properly. Much of today’s fundamental theology follows the line of the theology of the British brothers. In this century we were raised up by the Lord by His sovereignty and mercy. Standing on the shoulders of those who have gone before us, we are now able to divide the holy Word not merely according to the main roads, but also according to the streets, lanes, and alleys.
We have pointed out that Luther called the Epistle of James an “epistle of straw.” Luther said this mainly because of what is written in chapter two of the book of James. This word of Luther indicates that he did not understand this chapter properly and that he was not able to divide the Word in a detailed way. He did not realize that the word “save” in 2:14 has nothing to do with eternal salvation. This verse says, “What is the profit, my brothers, if anyone says he has faith, but does not have works? Can that faith save him?” Some have wrongly used this verse to teach that salvation is not only by faith.
The word “save” in verse 14 is related to the judgment spoken of in verse 13: “For the judgment is without mercy to him who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.” According to the context, in this chapter to be saved is to be saved from judgment without mercy. The judgment mentioned in verse 13 is not the judgment at the white throne. That judgment determines whether people will be saved or perish. The judgment in this verse is the judgment by Christ at His judgment seat in the air at the time of His coming back. After all the saints have been raptured, they will appear before the judgment seat of Christ. The matter of eternal salvation will have been settled already. However, the Lord will still judge the saints according to the law of freedom, that is, according to the entire New Testament, not according to the law of Moses. This judgment will not determine our eternal salvation; rather, it will determine whether we shall be rewarded or be judged without mercy.
In order to be saved from judgment without mercy, we need to have the works of mercy and love. These works testify that our faith issues in being saved not only from perdition, but also from judgment without mercy at the judgment seat of Christ. Those who do not have the works of mercy and love will suffer judgment without mercy. This means that they will be disciplined as a result of judgment at the judgment seat of Christ.
Many of the past teachers of the Scriptures have not seen the “lane” in these verses. They saw only certain main streets. By the Lord’s mercy and through the help we have received from those who have gone before us, we can see the proper way to divide the Word here. In this chapter we have a certain lane. Because we are able to divide this portion of the Word properly, we can see that salvation here is not salvation from perdition; instead, it is salvation from unmerciful judgment at the judgment seat of Christ.
According to this chapter, to despise a poor brother is to murder him (2:3, 11). This is to fail to have mercy on the brother. If we do not show mercy to a poor brother, when the Lord comes back He will exercise unmerciful judgment upon us, and we shall suffer as a result. If we would be saved from such unmerciful judgment, we need to have works of mercy and love toward the brothers. These works toward the poor brothers will testify that our faith is living, even issuing in our being saved from unmerciful judgment at the judgment seat of Christ. This is the proper understanding of these verses, the understanding that comes from rightly dividing the Word in a detailed way.
Through the centuries there have been different opinions concerning the Epistle of James. Whereas Luther said that this book is an Epistle of straw, a number of pious and godly people have sided with James. The Brethren, especially Darby, wrote about James from the standpoint of dispensation. Darby pointed out strongly that this Epistle has a Jewish character. However, not even Darby saw the real position and intrinsic contents of this book.
A number of years ago we interpreted the Epistle of James in such a way as to reconcile justification by faith with justification by works. Now we see that, under the light we have today, that interpretation was not accurate. In chapter two James speaks of being saved by works. In the past we interpreted this to mean that justification by faith is something inward and that justification by works is outward. Justification by faith is the seed inwardly, and justification by works is the fruit produced outwardly. This interpretation is rather general, and the application is not accurate. In chapter two of James, to be saved by works is related to the salvation of our soul (1:21). This is not a matter of eternal salvation from perdition; it is a matter of the salvation of our soul from unmerciful judgment at Christ’s judgment seat.
In 2:9 and 10 James says, “But if you respect persons, you commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law, yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.” To respect persons is to look down on a poor brother and to uplift a rich brother. According to what James says in 2:11, to look down upon a poor brother is to commit murder.
In verse 12 James goes on to say, “So speak and so do as those who are about to be judged by a law of freedom.” This judgment will not be that at the white throne, for the judgment at the white throne will be the judgment of unbelievers. In verse 12 James writes concerning the judgment of believers at the judgment seat of Christ. We need to be clear that this judgment is not for eternal salvation or eternal perdition; on the contrary, this judgment concerns reward or punishment. Furthermore, the judgment at the judgment seat of Christ will not be according to the Mosaic law, but will be according to the law of freedom, that is, according to the New Testament. The Mosaic law will be used for the judgment at the white throne, but the law of freedom will be the basis for the judgment at the judgment seat of Christ.
In verse 13 James says that judgment will be without mercy to him who has shown no mercy, and that mercy triumphs over judgment. If we look down on a poor brother, we do not show mercy toward him. If we do not have mercy on a brother today, when we stand before the judgment seat of Christ, Christ will not have mercy toward us.
In verse 13 James tells us that mercy triumphs over judgment. Mercy is the first step that leads to love. If we do not have mercy, we will not have love. We need to realize that before Christ we are extremely poor. If we have mercy toward the poor ones today, then at the time of the judgment at the judgment seat of Christ, Christ will have mercy on us. This is what it means for mercy to triumph over judgment.
Let us consider verse 14 again: “What is the profit, my brothers, if anyone says he has faith, but does not have works? Can that faith save him?” Now we understand that this verse refers to being saved from unmerciful judgment at the judgment seat of Christ. We may say that we have faith and yet not have mercy upon a poor brother. This means that we claim to have faith and yet do not love this brother. Can this kind of faith save us from the coming judgment at Christ’s judgment seat? To be sure, this kind of faith cannot save us from that judgment.
Verses 15 and 16 support this understanding: “If a brother or sister is without clothing and lacks daily food, and anyone of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, yet you do not give them the necessities of the body, what is the profit?” These verses are a further indication that the judgment in verse 13 is related to how we treat the brothers. This is a strong proof that the judgment here is not a matter of eternal salvation or eternal perdition. Verses 15 and 16 speak of our attitude toward the brothers and the way we treat them. Our attitude toward the saints will be a deciding factor regarding whether or not we are rewarded at the judgment seat of Christ.
In verses 17 and 18 James continues, “Even so faith, if it does not have works, is dead in itself. But someone will say, You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” The works here are works of mercy and love toward the brothers. Once again, in these verses faith and works are not a matter of eternal salvation, but are related to being saved from judgment at Christ’s judgment seat.
The writing of James is very much involved with the matter of dispensation. But his view was not clear concerning God’s dispensation. By dispensation here we mean God’s New Testament economy. “Economy” is an anglicized form of the Greek oikonomia, a word that means household arrangement and refers to God’s management.
James was born of Mary, who was also the mother of the Lord Jesus. If you read Mary’s praise recorded in chapter two of the Gospel of Luke, you will see that it contains many quotations from the Old Testament. This indicates that Mary was very godly, much like the parents of John the Baptist. As a godly person, Mary was knowledgeable concerning God’s word in the Old Testament. James, therefore, was raised by a godly mother. No doubt, Mary’s godliness was in the Old Testament dispensation, and certainly she taught her children to be godly in this Old Testament way. However, Mary may never have seen God’s New Testament economy.
Eventually, James believed in the Lord Jesus. This, no doubt, was a great turn for him to make. But before James believed in the Lord, he may already have been godly in an Old Testament sense.
We may compare this James with Peter, James, and John. John and James were brothers and also cousins to the James who wrote this Epistle, for their mother was a sister of Mary, the mother of the Lord Jesus and this James. Like Peter, John and James were uncultured Galilean fisherman. The Lord Jesus even called the brothers James and John “sons of thunder.” After the Lord’s resurrection, this James became one of the apostles (Gal. 1:19). Eventually, he became the leading elder in the church at Jerusalem (Acts 12:17; 15:2, 13; 21:18). By comparison, James may have been more godly and cultured than Peter, John, and James. He knew the Old Testament, probably the book of Proverbs especially, very well. Those in Jerusalem regarded James highly, and he became the most influential person among the believers there.
The fact that James was the most influential believer in Jerusalem is proved by what is recorded in Galatians 2:11 and 12. Here we see that before certain ones came from James, Peter ate with the Gentiles. (Paul does not say that they came from Jerusalem, but that they came from James). After the ones came from James, Peter was afraid, shrank back, and separated himself. This indicates that even Peter was afraid of James and also proves that James was the top influence in Jerusalem. Chapter fifteen of Acts also proves that the influence of James was prevailing. Furthermore, in Acts 21 we are told that when Paul went the last time to Jerusalem, he went to see James. Acts 21 does not say that Paul went to the elders, but that he went to James, where all the elders were assembled. James, therefore, was the center of the eldership. He was prevailing, and the entire situation was under his influence.
In Acts 21 we can see what James’ influence was. James pointed out to Paul that in Jerusalem tens of thousands believed in the Lord Jesus and were zealous for the law. Therefore, James encouraged Paul to go to the temple with certain men who had a vow on them. James’ word in Acts 21 gives us a view of the intrinsic contents of his writing.
James definitely believed in the Lord Jesus. Several points in his Epistle prove this. First, James says that we have been begotten by the Father of lights by the word of truth (1:17-18). This is New Testament regeneration. James also speaks of receiving with meekness the implanted word (1:21). This also is a New Testament matter. Then James goes on to speak of the perfect law, the law of freedom (1:25), and of the indwelling Spirit (4:5). In chapter five he refers to the church when he mentions the elders of the church. In addition, in 2:1 James speaks of “the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory.”
However, along with these positive matters concerning God’s New Testament economy, James brings in things of the Old Testament. For example, he speaks of the synagogue. He also indicates that for him keeping the perfect law is a matter of visiting orphans and widows. This word is full of the Old Testament flavor. James does not speak of living Christ, of walking in the Spirit, or of having a life for the building up of the Body of Christ. Rather, his illustrations are from the Old Testament or have an Old Testament flavor. Even James’ way of praying is according to Elijah’s way. James charges the elders to pray for the sick according to the way Elijah prayed in the Old Testament. In a similar way, he charges us to wait for the Lord’s coming back in a way that is similar to Job’s endurance and to the longsuffering of the prophets. Again, both examples are drawn from the Old Testament. Therefore, what we have in the Epistle of James is a mixture of the things of the Old Testament with God’s New Testament economy.
Although we have all the Life-study messages on the writings of Paul and although we may have seen the central focus of the divine revelation in the New Testament, we still may be in a cloudy atmosphere. We may think that to have good character means that we are godly. We may also have a natural understanding or religious understanding of what godliness is. Our view of godliness may not be according to the New Testament economy of God. Once again we see the need for a clear vision of God’s New Testament economy.
