Who, Who, Who Wrote The Book of James?
James the Son of Zebedee or James the Lesser?
Lesson in Rightly Dividing:
What to do with James?
James, James, James... what to do with James?
I heard it said that Martin Luther said that he lights his fire with James, meaning that he didn't think it should even be in the Canon of Scripture. He had a problem with James in that it taught salvation by "faith and works" instead of the Grace of Galatians.
Martin knew that James didn't belong, and anyone who reads it knows that it sure ain't grace, but the thing he, along with several million other Christians, didn't, and don't understand is that its the "other Gospel" which Paul alluded to in Galatians 1.
Ga 1:6 ¶ I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
7 Which is not another;
Now, keep up with me here because I'm going to comment on something that Paul didn't say ...
Paul didn't say that there wasn't another gospel here; he said that the gospel that mixed Grace and Works wasn't another gospel. That's what they were doing to the Galatians - they said fine, you're saved but you still must be circumcised -- its as if they didn't know (those Jews that were insisting this) of the Circumcision of Christ spoken of in Colossians 2!
Col 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
And, its as if our great scholars of today (just ask any of them - they all agree, rme's) don't know of this either. They're so use to wrangling the words of God to make it say what they believe, they actually reconcile the Book of James to the Doctrine of Grace --(I know, I'm lol'ing right now too)-- thereby missing key elements to this Dispensation and missing the whole Revelation of this Age!!!
Here's an example of what they normally say to get around James:
Since the whole Epistle of James is dealing with the life and works of Christians it does not proclaim the Gospel of grace, rather it assumes it. James certainly knew that salvation was not by works, for in 2 v 10 he says 'For whoever will keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.' The obvious implication being that no-one is able to keep the whole law absolutely perfectly.
Now, this is typical of a modern day scholar who had copied other modern day scholars, to explain to those who will not question what he says, a reconciliation between the two gospels in the New Testament of which he thinks there's only one.
While I'm not picking on anyone here the problem goes much further than this one instance of mistake. It goes to the root of the problem in that we now have those who teach this kind of stuff and who then in turn, teach it to others and all the while they proclaim it as the only legitimate orthodoxy. That's right! Those who should be sitting in a pew until they really work this stuff out now are in the pulpits (and have been for years) teaching others this obvious error.
But, somehow, they feel more than qualified to correct the Bible ...
Ignorance is bliss - Unknown
The problem with this is a snowballing type of effect that it has in the whole of Christianity and to those whom do not believe yet, but still have the ability to think (for themselves). Those that can still think away from the maddening crowd this is a great stumbling block for which, the above try at an explanation just will not pass the mustard.
But for those who can Rightly Divide the word of Truth there is no problem.
First off, the Rightly Divider (RD) will notice that James is a Gospel of the Kingdom Epistle and especially a Great Tribulation Epistle.
Jas 1:1 ¶ James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.
2 ¶ My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Where are the 12 tribes listed in the New Testament?
Re 7:1 ¶ And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.
2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
And down further in that passage it actually lists 12 Tribes!!!
Its like the Bible knows.
And further down ...
Jas 1:12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
Sound a little familiar? This leads back to the battle cry of all cults today --
Mt 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
But look at the next group of verses!
Mt 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
Yes, they're preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom -- not what we preach today!
Secondly, and more to the point I wanted to make, this was written by James - who was killed in Acts 12 by Herod ( a great type of son of perdition in Acts 12). I know that all the bestest scholars all agree and all that that James wasn't written by this James - instead most choose the other James which shows up in Acts 15 preaching grace, but that's why it can't be him. Its too late to be him - he's preaching grace now and one thing for sure -- James doesn't preach grace!
There's especially one passage that I'd like to draw your attention to:
Jas 2:14 ¶ What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
Note the terms here -- faith and works -- not Grace!
This point is significant for it must have been before Acts 15 when the Doctrine of Grace was then settled in Jerusalem as that of the day. This is clearly for those who are in Tribulation, or getting ready for the Great Tribulation!
Jas 2:15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?
17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
Compare that with this:
Mt 25:31 ¶ When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
It meets it exactly! It fits like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and we don't have to pound the pulpit to make the square peg fit into the round hole.
So when people give you "faith and works" just tell them that we don't preach the Gospel of the Kingdom. We are in the Dispensation of Grace which is in between the Gospel of the Kingdom.
And, as if by some answered prayer,
I've had another give a history of attestations of James Z being given as the author of James.
I have often thought that if they didn't know who it was that wrote this Book of James, why is it in the Canon of Scripture? Why wouldn't it be thrown in the pile of other books whose authors are spurious and doubtful?
Anyway, not to take credit (or blame) for it myself, here it is; which was taken from:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Who_wrote_the_book_of_James_in_the_Bible
Answer/
James the son of Zebedee wrote the General Epistle of James, the book in the Holy Bible.
Primary sources profess that the General Epistle of James is ascribed to James the son of Zebedee, borne out by his subscription and superscription being on early editions, according to the Law and custom - Jeremiah 32:10.11.12.
Primary Sources for James the son of Zebedee being the writer of The General Epistle of James:
Beza - preface to the Syriac version subscribed to James son of Zebedee who witnessed the transfiguration.
Codex Corbeiensis - subscribed to James son of Zebedee.
Widmanstadt - subscribed to James son of Zebedee who witnessed the transfiguration.
Tremellius - subscribed to James son of Zebedee who witnessed the transfiguration.
Erpenius - subscribed to James son of Zebedee bearing the moniker brother of the Lord - James' Apocalypse; Acts of Philip.
The early church at Antioch - subscribed to James son of Zebedee as the writer of the Epistle of James - for the extant Syriac versions are copies of the General Epistle of James within their original first century New Testament.
I guess I should add that I did not figure this out as according to any attestations given for I did not know of them. All I ever read before was that others said that it was James, the brother of Jesus (half-brother). All I did was figure it out from the doctrine that it taught and I knew it had to be around Acts 11 - while the Church in Jerusalem was still in the Gospel of the Kingdom but after the nation had resisted the Holy Ghost in Jerusalem with Stephen looking like ... well, here's Act 6 ...
Ac 6:15 And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.
But, that's another subject, for another time, perhaps ...
Here is a link to a video that I did a while back. It'll give you a contrasting view of how the Tribulation differs from this present time - The Dispensation of Grace.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36VjOZi2bNU
