EXEGESIS OF THE OPENING VERSES OF JAMES

James 1:1        "James, a bond servant of God, and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad."

James begins his Epistle by addressing the Jewish believers who have been scattered from Jerusalem during the great persecution.

James 1:2        "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience."

The trials and hardships that follow on the heels of poverty are not in vain.  Suffering, pain, hardships and trials have meaning and purpose to those who will seek wisdom from those hardships, one benefit being patience.

James 1:3        "But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing."

James admonishes his audience that by patiently enduring their trials of poverty, God will give them spiritual insight that will make them a more whole person.  They will have profound spiritual insight into the nature of trials, and to the nature of man, by which insight they might more effectively navigate trials with a godly lifestyle, and have empathy toward the needs of others when they endure their own trials.

James 1:4        If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

James encourages the believers who are scattered abroad that God is willing to give them the wisdom to navigate the suffocating trials of homelessness and poverty if they but ask.

Moving forward from these introductory verses of Chapter 1 of James, let us go on to JAMES 2:14-17, examining SALVATION IN THE BOOK OF JAMES against alternative heuristics.  As demonstrated by the passages above, the heuristic of James is that he is addressing the plight of the poor of the church, and the need to do something.  In the following section, consider two alternative heuristics for James 2.  According to one heuristic, James is talking about the delivery of the poor from trials and suffering.  According to the other heuristic, somehow, with no contextual justification, James has jumped the tracks, and is talking about eternal salvation!  You make the call!  After each of the following verses, you, the reader, are urged, not simply to read, but to look away, and, in view of the foregoing data, contemplate which interpretation makes sense, and which looks utterly ridiculous.