Chapter 6

Roadmap of the following detailed discussion of James

1.     The word "saved" simply means to be delivered

from some danger or peril.  One can be "saved"

from a great number of things other than hell.  This

is true in Scripture as well as in contemporary

language.

2.     When James speaks of being "saved by works," he

is not speaking of being saved from hell, he is

speaking of being saved from the consequences of

trials, particularly the trials and hardships of

poverty.  We reach this conclusion by several

compelling facts:

3.     Wisdom literature, as a literary genre, is concerned

about skillfully navigating the currents and eddies of

life, avoiding the pitfalls that shorten our lives, and

that erode the quality of our earthly lives.  Wisdom

literature is simply not directed to the question of

eternal life.  It is concerned with "saving"        us from

the pitfalls of this life, not from "saving" us from

hell.

4.     James is arguably the only New Testament book that

falls into the literary genre of "wisdom literature."

                a)     Among other things, James specifically

        addresses the Hebrew concept of "wisdom" more

        often than any book of the Bible except the Book of

        Proverbs.

                b)     Apart from his use of the word "wisdom,"

James repeatedly focuses on the earthly

consequences that befall those who fail to skillfully

navigate the dangers, pitfalls, trials, temptations and

hardships of this life, which is a primary focus of

wisdom literature.

5.     James goes further than the Old Testament wisdom

literature, such as the Book of Proverbs, which is

largely limited to the impact of one's lifestyle and

works on the quality of one's own life.  James

extends the question of works to the        Christian's

responsibility of charitable works toward his

brethren.  In particular, the Epistle of James is

overwhelmingly directed to the question of poverty,

and the trials and hardships that poverty brings, a

circumstance that calls for wisdom by the

impoverished, and charity by those who have

resources.

6.     In contrast to James' focus on wisdom, that is,

salvation from trials and hardships, only two verses

in the entire Epistle of James even remotely touch

on the subject of eternal salvation from hell.  It is

therefore idiotic to interpret the "salvation by works"

passage of James against the backdrop of eternal

salvation.

        James is wisdom literature, not a soteriological

        manifesto.  He is talking about saving the poor from

        starving, not saving oneself from hell.

7.     Just as being "saved" does not automatically refer to

salvation from hell, "justification" does not

automatically refer to justification before God.  One

can be justified in the eyes of any being capable of

forming a judgment about you,  from God to a drug

dealer.

8.     One is justified (regarded O.K.) before the throne of

God by faith alone in Christ alone.

9.     One is justified (regarded as "O.K.") by their fellow

man on the basis of their works.

10.   If you have a home, a job, and other resources,       but

let homeless and unemployed Christian brethren

starve and freeze to death, you are not "all right" in

the eyes of your fellow man.  Your religion is a

hollow shell, and you are nothing more than a

religious loud mouth who wears his religion on his

sleeve.

11.   James teaches justification before our fellow man by

works alone.  He never teaches justification by faith

plus works" for anyone.

But why the admixture of two soteriological terms,

"saved," and "justify" in a passage not directed to

soteriology (the doctrine of salvation) in any way?

This admixture has caused confusion throughout the

history of the church.  If it has nothing to do with

eternal salvation, isn't it a bit of a coincidence that

James addresses both being "saved" and being

"justified" in the context of the controversy over

"faith" or "works?"

12.   It was at the Jerusalem Counsel that the church first

confronted the question of whether man is justified

by faith alone or by faith plus works (Acts 15:1,5)

The two speakers were Peter (Acts 15:6-11) and

James (Acts 15:13-21).

Acts 15:20 records James' concern at the Jerusalem

Counsel for holiness of those who are already

saved. And Galatians 2:1-10 records the concern for

the poor shared by all of the apostles present at the

Jerusalem counsel, including James and Paul.   No

where, however, does James, Peter, Paul, or any

other apostle, teach that eternal salvation is earned

by faith plus works.

13.   It is therefore likely that the believers from the

Jerusalem church where James served, knew of his

agreement with the doctrine of justification and

salvation by faith alone apart from the works of the

law.  His discourse in James 2:14-26 would

therefore not be interpreted by them as teaching

"salvation-by-works" or "justification-by-works."

14.   Irony is a literary technique that draws attention to

contrasts, similarities, and coincidences, and James

appears to use irony as a literary device more

frequently than any other author in Scripture.

15.   It is ironic that salvation from eternal damnation is

by faith alone, but salvation from virtually every

other danger or circumstance on the planet is by

works alone.  And it is ironic that man is justified by

faith alone before God, but by works alone before

his fellow man.

16.   Faith and works are therefore a perfect backdrop

from which to address the plight of the poor using

rich irony that would resonate with men and women

who had been pastored by James, the brother of our

Lord Jesus Christ, and one of the keynote speakers

at the Jerusalem counsel.  His flock had no doubt

grown accustomed to his sophisticated rhetoric, his

literary analogies, and his ironic style.

Chapter 6: Overview of the Message of James