Criswell Theological
Review 1.1 (1986) 51-70.
Copyright © 1986 by The
TRUE PIETY IN JAMES:
ETHICAL ADMONITIONS AND
THEOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS
DAVID S. DOCKERY
I. Introduction
In
the most practical book in the NT, we might expect to find a
consistent exposition of ethical principles. But
James does not present
a systematic treatise. In fact, the subjects that
are treated are quite
different from the dominant ethical injunctions in
other parts of the
NT.
Distinctive is the fact that his entire letter is occupied with ethical
admonitions and is not intertwined with doctrinal
passages in the
pattern of Paul's letters. Our purpose in this
essay is to survey briefly
the major ethical admonitions in James and thus
discover his under-
standing of true piety. In doing this, we shall
note exegetical-theological
foundations along the way as they inform the ethical
teachings, but our
primary concern in this article is neither
exegesis nor theology, We
shall attempt to discuss some of the theological and
ethical issues that
are important for the contemporary church and in
conclusion will
consider some of these implications. It is
important also to note that
our treatment will try to avoid overlap and
restatement of the other
articles in this issue. We recognize that the
subjects of “trials and
testing,” “faith and works,” “wisdom” and
“prayer,” not to mention a
broad “theological/christological
survey” have been treated in fine
fashion. Therefore our concentration will focus
on other issues as:
“practicing the word," “problems of partiality and
poverty,” “control
of the tongue,” “vices and virtues,” and
“worldliness.” We shall then
note implications of these themes for such
contemporary concerns as:
“biblical inerrancy,” “church renewal,” “the church growth
move-
ment,” “social responsibility,”
and “liberation theology.”
52
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II. Situation and Context
James is the name of the author of
this epistle, however this does
not identify him specifically. James was an
extremely common name
in the first century; in fact there are six
different men identified as
James
in the NT.l Of these, the two most
probable options are James,
son of Zebedee, who was
one of the twelve apostles and James, the
Lord's
brother. James, son of Zebedee, was martyred in A.D.
44
(cf.
Acts 12:1-12) which would place the correspondence quite
early.
The
better option based upon external and internal evidence, is that the
author is James, the Lord's brother.2 This
was the view of Origin
(ca. 185-253), Eusebius (ca. 265-340) arid
Jerome (ca. 340-420). The
emphasis on practice, conduct and ethical
concerns that are char-
acteristic of the epistle agree
with the other NT pictures of James (Acts
21:11
-25 and Gal 2:12). The description of "James the Just" by
Hegesippus (cf. Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 2.23) is an appro-
priate picture for the author
of this epistle who is concerned with
justice and righteousness similar to the OT
prophet Amos.3 Also
tone of the epistle, which includes forty-six
imperatives, harmonizes
well with the authority exercised by James in Acts
15:13; 21:18 and the
vocabulary in the letter is similar to the speech
of James in Acts
15:13-29.
The date of the letter must have
been written prior to A.D. 62/63
when according to Josephus, James was martyred. Some
argue for a
date near the end of James' life, but a strong case
can be offered for a
1 (1) Son of Zebedee (Mark 1:19; Acts 1:13); (2) Son of Alphaeus (Mark 3:18; Acts
1:13);
(3) James the Less (Mark 15:40); (4) Father of Judas (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13);
(5)
Brother of Jesus (Mark 6:3; Acts 12:11; 15:13; 21:18; Gal 1:19; 2:9, 12; 1 Cor 15:1);
(6)
Brother of Jude (Jude 1). Cf. J. J. Gunther,
"The Family of Jesus," EvQ 46:1 (1974)
25-41.
It should be noted that primarily, the translations used in this article are
from the
NIV.
2 These issues are
discussed in most major NT introductions and commentaries on
James.
Two very helpful works are R. P. Martin, New
Testament Foundations: A Guide
for Christian Students (2 vols.;
Guthrie, New
Testament Introduction (Downers Grove: InterVarsity,
1970) 736-70.
Our
conclusions on these introductory matters are
largely based upon Guthrie's findings.
Others
who have made a case for James, the Lord's brother, as author of this epistle
include R. H. Gundry, A Survey of the New Testament (
1910)
342-44; and E. F. Harrison, Introduction
to the New Testament (
Eerdmans,
1964) 363-66.
F. Spitta posed that the letter was a thoroughly
Jewish
document that had undergone a minor Christian
revision in "Der Brief des Jakobus,"
Zur
Geschichte und Literatur des Urchristentums (2 vols.;
A.
Meyer (1930) and H. Windisch (1930) followed this
argument, but it has now been
almost completely abandoned.
3 This reference is cited
by D. Burdick, "James" The
Expositor's Bible Com-
mentary, ed. F. C. Gaebelein (12 vols.;
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 53
date around or before A.D. 50.4 It is
difficult to make a definite decision
and it is really beyond the scope of our topic to
discuss the issue in
detail.
The epistle's readers are identified
as "twelve tribes scattered
among the nations." There are several
indications that James is writing
to ethnic Jews; the twelve tribes thus designate
the entirety of the
Jewish nation. Evidently James, the
acknowledged leader of the
out of
Stephen. These believers were dispersed over
James,
the elder, would feel responsible for these "former parishoners
and attempt to instruct them somewhat as he would
have done had
they still been under his care in
exhort them.
This series of instructions and
exhortations was analyzed by
M.
Dibelius through form-critical analysis and
determined that it
belonged to a special genre called paranesis.6
Paranesis assembled a
series of ethical admonitions without a definite
context. Dibelius viewed
the letter as a group of loosely-arranged sayings
and brief hortatory
sections. A.
Schlatter advanced this line of thinking by
connecting the
letter of James with the paranesis
of Jesus, emphasizing the Beatitudes.7
Whether
or not we accept these theories completely, it is certain that
the emphasis of James' epistle is its practical
concerns. This does not
mean it lacks theology.8 As we have noted,
he makes no special effort to
ground his ethical injunctions in theological
revelation, yet he presup-
poses the possibility of obedience to the admonitions
because of an
underlying theology.9
III. Ethical Admonitions
The major feature of the ethical
instruction of James is his remi-
niscence of the teachings of Jesus
and the exhortations of the OT
4 Cf. D. E. Hiebert, The Epistle of James:
Tests of a Living Faith (
Moody,
1979) 39-41. Our leanings favor an early date, A.D. 48-49.
5 Burdick,
"James" 163.
6 M. Dibelius,
James, rev. H. Greeven
(Hermeneia: Philadelphia: Fortress, 1975) 3;
cf.
S. Songer, "James" Broadman Bible Commentary, ed. C. J. Allen (12 vols.;
7 Ibid.;
A. Schlatter, Der Brief des Jakobus (Stuttgart: Calwer Verlag, 1932) 9-19.
8 Hiebert,
Epistle of James 45.
9 C. E.
B. Cranfield, "The Message of James" SJT 18 (1965) 182-93; and G. E.
Ladd,
A Theology of the New Testament (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974) 589, who
says that "a theologian can write practical
homilies."
54
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
prophets.
He provides practical advice for a broad range of topics. It
can be postulated that the model for his
instruction is the life of Jesus
(cf.
Jas 3:17). As several commentators have noted, the book is so
exclusively practical it is impossible to address
every specific issue. We
shall therefore limit our concerns to descriptions of
the passages that
focus on the five previously mentioned themes.
Practicing the Word
1:18-25
Responding. The readers are
admonished with a proverb: "Every
one should be quick to listen, slow to speak and
slow to become angry”
(1:19).
This is an interesting and important, almost shocking
word for
modern men and women in this
"express-your-feelings" era.10 The
person who is prepared to respond to the word is not
the one who
always has something to say, but the person who
listens to others and
prayerfully and carefully speaks. The beginning of
wisdom is cautious
listening rather than quick speech and sharp denunciation.
After
getting rid of anger, filthy habits and wicked
conduct (1:20-21), the
believers are prepared to accept the word planted
in them which can
save them (1:21). This is to be done
"humbly" in submission to God
(1:21).
The word had already been implanted in these people
for they
were part of the believing community. The acceptance
of the word
means to "commit oneself to Jesus and his
teaching, and such a
commitment is the changed lifestyle James is
seeking."11
Living in Tension. It is clearly
evident in James that the believing
community lives in tension between the
"already" and the "not yet."12
By
the divine will they became members of God's redeemed people
(1:18) through the means of the implanted word
(1:21).
Yet, believers
are subject to temptations and trials (1:2) that
may cause some of them
to wander from the faith (5:19). Still they
anticipate the parousia of
Christ
when they will inherit the
etemal life.13
Hearing
and Doing. In this interim period, it is imperative that
believers must hear and do the word, so as not to
be deceived (1:22).
The
word for doers (poihtai<) occurs four times in
James and only
twice in the rest of the NT (Acts 17:28 where it is
translated "poets"
and Rom 2:13). This typifies James' continuing
emphasis on living out
the word implanted. The one who "listens to
the word but does not do
10 P. H. Davids, James
(GNC; San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1983) 14.
11 Ibid.,
15; ct. the discussion on "the implanted word" in J. Adamson, The Epistle
of James (NIC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1976) 98-100. "
12 Ladd, Theology of the New Testament 591. This
is denied by R. Bultmann,
Theology of the New
Testament,
ed. K. Grobel (2 vols.;
2.163.
13
Ladd, ibid.
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 55
what it says" (1:23) is compared to someone who
looks into the mirror,
goes away and forgets what he or she looks like
(1:24). The point is that
if this is where it ends with Scripture, one's
learning about the Bible has
only as much value as one's morning glimpse into the
mirror.14 J. B.
Mayor
suggests that the imperfect knowledge gained through reflec-
tion in the mirror contrasts
with the perfect knowledge of reality.15 It is
also possible that a good look in the mirror would
not only make
evident one's superficiality, but also
"one's moral needs as reflected in
the ugly traces of sin on his face."16
Jas 1:25 makes the important
contrasts between the "doer" and the
mere "hearer." The hearers simply listen
and forget which is not so
much a loss of memory but a neglect to put the
teaching into practice.
The
doers "will be blessed of God" because they put into practice
what is heard. James emphasizes the action as an
enduring occupation.
We
need to notice the eschatological aspect of the blessing (cf. the
future tense of the verb e@stai).
The law that the "doers"
follow and study is one of "freedom." It
is within the Jewish world by which we can
understand this phrase.
P.
Davids observes that this does not mean the Stoic
rule of reason or
the Jewish law, but the OT scriptures interpreted
and perfected by the
Messiah.17
The Sermon on the Mount18 (e.g., Matt 5:17)
and other
gospel passages present Christ as the giver of the
renewed law.19 The
liberty then follows from the inner character of
the law (cf. Jer 31:31-
34).20
Christ.
The law brings freedom by submission to Christ. Thus believers
who practice the word are freed from bondage to sin
and death, as
well as legalism, and will be blessed by God.
Piety, Partiality and
Poverty 1:26-2:13; 5:1-6
Piety. Vv 26 and 27 of chap. 1
serve as a transition between the
opening idea on the practice of the word and the
next statement that
confronts the problem of partiality. This
transition section turns the
14 Davids, James 16.
15 J. B. Mayor, The Epistle of
St. James (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1954) 71.
16 T.
B. Maston, Biblical
Ethics (Macon: Mercer, reprint 1982) 259.
17 P. H. Davids, Commentary on
James (NIGTC;
1982) 99.
18 Cf. W. D. Davies, The Setting of the Sermon on the Mount (
Come (Philadelphia:
Fortress, 1952). Also see the very helpful comments in J. R. W.
Stott,
Christian Counter-Culture: The Message of
the Sermon on the Mount (Downers
Grove:
InterVarsity, 1978) 69-81.
19 C. L. Mitton, The Epistle of James (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1966) 72.
20 D. Guthrie, New Testament Theology (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1981)
698-99.
56 CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL REVIEW
focus to true piety. The question before the readers
penetrates their
inner being by asking if they consider themselves
religious (dokei? = to
seem in their own estimation). The readers may want
to answer the
question in a positive way based upon religious
observances and
performance of religious duties. The activity and
service may be fine
but the value may be hindered or even lost because
the religious
person does not tame his or her tongue (1:26).
Such persons may carefully use right
words in religious ceremony
and service, but be careless with speech at other
times. As J. Calvin
notes, "he who seems brilliant with some outward
show of sanctity will
set himself off by defaming others, and this under
the pretense of zeal
but really through the lust of slander."21
James, with echoes of the
Lord's
words in Matt 15:8, 9, declares such religion "worthless" (1:26).
In v 27, the readers learn the
meaning of true piety with words
that again echo the teachings of Jesus (cf. Matt
25:36-43). Piety
involves two aspects: (1) the personal service of
"looking after orphans
and widows in distress" and (2) personal
holiness which is a perpetual
striving "to keep oneself from being
polluted by the world." R. V. G.
Tasker accurately summarizes:
The believer must never be blind to
his duty to express his faith in love,
but at the
same time, in the midst of all the distracting and demoralizing
influences
of the world around him, which lies wholly in the evil one, he
must keep
himself pure by continual remembrance of the demands of the
all-holy
God.22
Partiality and Poverty. The
themes of 1:26-27 are amplified in
2:1-13.
Worldliness, identified as slander in 1:26, is expanded to
include improper favoritism that is shown to
someone's worldly power
and position rather than viewing the person's worth
based upon one’s
spiritual relationship to Christ. The "care
of widows and orphans" is
related to the issues of poverty and generous
caring for those in need.
This
section is certainly applicable to the readers of James' epistle in all
ages. It is especially relevant for the contemporary
churches that are
concerned with status and power and who have
perverted the true
gospel with promises of success and material
prosperity.
The readers are addressed as church
members (a]delfoi<). J. B
Phillips
offers this paraphrase of v 1, "Don't ever attempt, my brothers,
to combine snobbery with faith in our Lord Jesus Christ."
The essence
of the passage is that true piety is incompatible
with partiality. The
21 J. Calvin, Matthew, Mark and Luke, James and Jude,
trans. A. W. Morrison and
ed. D.
22 R. V. G. Tasker, The General Epistle of
James (Tyndale:
Eerdmans,
1956) 55.
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 57
term for partiality (proswpolhmyi<a) "was coined by
the Christian
ethical tradition on the basis of the OT
statements about God and
applied especially to God's judgment (Acts
10:34; Rom 2:11; Eph 6:9;
status is in direct opposition to the very character
of God. James
applies his teaching to one particular concern:
the different treatment
of the rich and poor in the Christian assembly (sunagwgh<n). The rich
man in v 2 is never called "rich" in the
NT Greek text. He is literally
"the gold-fingered one" (xrusodaktu<lioj)
suggesting a finger com-
pletely covered with gold
rings.24 The sign of wealth was demon-
strated by the wearing of many
rings on one hand with great
ostentation.25
The favoritism is demonstrated by
the different ways that the rich
person and the poor person are treated as they enter
the assembly.26
The
text suggests that the rich person enters first and is granted an
important seat. The poor person then enters and is
told to "stand there
or sit on the floor" (2:3). J. H. Ropes
insightfully notes. that both rich
and poor visitors are undoubtedly non-Christians.27
Thus, the stinging
question follows in v 4 where James asks if such
treatment does not
prove that they have discriminated by judging a
person's quality and
worth based upon class distinctions.
God's impartiality is shown through
his choosing the poor of this
world to be rich in faith (2:5). On this basis, God
demands equal
esteem for the poor.28 It is important to
note that poverty is not
implicitly advantageous in God's kingdom, but that
God is no respecter
of persons and therefore his people should not be.29
Not only does the
church lack God's perspective, but it seemingly acts
irresponsibly and
irrationally. The church has shown
partiality to the rich: (1) who are its
23 Davids,
James 44; cf. E. Lohse,
"proswlhmyi<a" TDNT 6 (1968) 779-80.
24 Hiebert, James
151.
25 Cf. J. Scanzoni, "The Man with the Gold-Ringed Finger" Eternity 14:8 (1963)
11-13.
26 The context is limited
and therefore very difficult to reconstruct the life situation.
Dibelius, James
128, in stressing a paranetic concept says that this
setting is hypothetical
and cannot actually be a church meeting. Some such
as R. B. Ward, "Partiality in the
Assembly:
James 2:2-4" HTR 62:1 (1969)
87-97, maintain that the scene is a judicial
assembly for the purpose of judging a case
between a rich and poor member. The most
likely assumption is that the scene represents a
worship service in the early church that
was open to the general public.
27 J. H. Ropes, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the
Epistle of St. James
(ICC; Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1916) 191.
28 H. H. Esser, "Poor" DNTT
2 (1978) 825-26; cf. J. C. Mover, "Poor" ZPEB 4
(1975) 820-21.
29 Cf. Maston, Biblical
Ethics 15-51.
58
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
oppressors; (2) who drag them before judges; and
(3) who speak evil
of the good name given to the believers. Although
oppression of the
poor is strongly condemned in the OT (Exod 22:25-26; Deut 24:14-15;
Jer 1:6; Amos 4:1; 8:4; Mal 3:5), it is the third
charge that is the most
serious. The name of Jesus was given to the
believers at their con-
version and the rich were speaking evil of this
name. Perhaps these
insults were taking place in the courts,
combining the second and third
charges.
Regardless, the church had wrongly
identified with the rich and
set themselves in opposition to God who has chosen
the poor to inherl
the kingdom. It is often the case that an oppressed
group takes on the
characteristics of its oppressors.
"When this happens to the church, it is
not just pathetically ironic but it is a moral
reversal, for the people who
name the name of Christ are now acting like the
people who blas-
pheme the name of Christ."30
James then proceeds to relate the
present problem of favoritism to
the "royal law" (2:9; cf. Lev 19:18), a
law that was applicable to both
rich and poor. The royal law is the law of the
kingdom as given by
Jesus.
The specific statement, "Love your neighbor as yourself" is a
favorite of Jesus (the gospel writers total six
times that these words are
found in the sayings of Jesus) and Paul (Rom 13:8-10;
Gal 5:13-14). It
is the supreme law, the essence of kingdom ethics.
Partiality violates
this law and is sin (2:9) since "it contravenes
the will of God by
discriminating against the poor, whom
he has chosen."31
The readers, as implied in v 10,
were seeking to observe the
revealed law of God, but if one fails at even a
single point, then the law
is broken. The readers were faithful with regard
to the commandment
against adultery (2:11; cf. Exod
20:14), but not with regard to murder.
The
readers do not commit murder in the common meaning of the
term, but James no doubt understands the commandment
against
murder in the deeper sense which Jesus gave to it in
the Sermon on the
Mount
(Matt 5:21-22). The act of partiality, understood in light of the
Sermon
on the Mount, demonstrates how the readers had violated the
law.
James' words that close this section
(2:1-13) indicate again how
his ethical concerns are based upon the words of
Jesus. In all of one's
actions, the final judgment must be kept in
mind. James demands that
the poor be treated honorably with mercy out of the
fear of God's
judgment (cf. Matt 5:4; 6:14-15; 12:1; 18:21-25;
and 25:31-46). Since
30 Davids, James 34.
31 B. Reicke,
The Epistles of James, Peter and Jude (AB;
Garden City: Doubleday
1964) 29.
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 59
believers want to be shown mercy, they must show
mercy. Believers
have been shown mercy on the basis of the cross of
Jesus, but this is not
explicitly stated by James. Demonstration of
partiality based on social
position is a denial of mercy. So the believing
community is reminded
that they are to face a judgment tempered by mercy.
"Since the
advantage of a judgment tempered by mercy is
offered us in Christ,
the Christian must always so speak and act that by
always showing
mercy in this life, or trying to do so, he may have
some color of hope
with which to face that judgment."32
Therefore "mercy triumphs over
judgment!" (2:13). The
choice of the word mercy is significant, for in
this context it does not merely refer to charitable
concern of others, but
has special reference to the care of the poor.33
The mercy produced in
the heart of the believers by the mercy of God is
evidence of genuine
faith and true piety.
Poverty and Wealth. While most of
the emphasis in the passage is
on concern for the poor, a word should be said
about the rich. There
are several hints about the perils of riches. It is
the rich who oppress
(2:6).
They are especially condemned in 5:1-6 and are
reminded that
they have laid up treasures for days to come (5:3;
cf. Matt 6:19-34).
From
these strong admonitions, one might understand that James
regarded the rich and material possessions as
evil in themselves. But his
polemic is not against possessions per se, but against "those who have
gained wealth by fraud and even at the expense of
other people's lives
(5:4-6)."34
The Control of the
Tongue 3:1-12
Teachers. James has spoken of the
control of the tongue (1:19, 26),
but he gives a full discussion of the issue in
3:1-12. The first admonition
is addressed to teachers (3:1). There were
officers (5:14) in the young
developing community, but apparently at this stage
there was no
ordination or training process required to teach in
the assembly. It was
relatively easy for those with ability and
motivation to put themselves
forward as teachers. James warns against too
strong an influx into the
teaching position (an office which the writer
himself appears to hold)
and points out that the failures of teachers will
incur severe penalties in
32 Adamson, Epistle of James 120. Adamson includes a
lengthy discussion on
justice and mercy in Jewish literature, 116-20.
Also cf. S. Laws, A Commentary on the
Epistle of James (London: Black, 1980)
116-18.
33 Davids,
James 37; cf. R. G. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of
the Epistle to the
Hebrews and the Epistle
of James
(Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1966) 575-76.
34 Guthrie, New Testament Theology 930; also cf. D.
K. Adie, "Christian View of
Wealth"
Evangelical Dictionary of Theology,
ed. W. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984)
1159-62
(hereinafter cited as EDT).
60
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
the judgment.35 James recognizes the
potential for social power and
position and warns against the dangers inherent
in the teaching min-
istry. The exhortation is
that one should be reluctant to become a
teacher.
The dangers are reflected in the
strictness of the judgment (3:1)
and the fact that "all stumble in many
ways" (3:2). The teachers were
not only instructors, but models for the community.
If everyone will
be judged for the words spoken (Matt 12:36) and
Jewish teachers were
severely judged (Matt 23:1-13), how much more
strictly will Christian
teachers be judged? As models for the community,
they were respon-
sible for leading or
misleading the people of God in both word and
deed.36
The Difficulty of Controlling the Tongue.
Little things can have
far-reaching effects, and though the
tongue is small, it has potential for
usefulness and destruction. James illustrates this
truth by use of: (1) a
horse's bit (3:3); (2) a ship's rudder (3:4);
and (3) fire (3:5-6). The first
two illustrations portray the usefulness of a small
item in controlling
something many times its size; the third
graphically demonstrates the
potentially destructive power of something that at
its beginning is very
insignificant (Prov
16:27; 26:18-22). The tongue is a “restless evil, full
of deadly poison” (3:8; cf. Prov
18:21) and cannot be tamed by any
human being, although it may be properly concluded
that it can be
tamed by God.37
James points out the moral
incongruity of blessing and cursing
flowing from the same mouth (3:9-11). This is a
demonstration of the
uncontrollable nature of the tongue.
On the one hand, it is used to
"praise our Lord and Father" and simultaneously used to
"curse men,
who have been made in God's likeness" (3:9).
The fact that men and
women are created in God's likeness makes the cursing
of people
equivalent to cursing God. Such instability of
cursing and blessing is a
sign of the evil impulse of the tongue and ought not
be tolerated. The
Christian
is called to root out all such tendencies and to arrive at
singleness and sincerity of heart. James concludes
this section with
three appropriate analogies that describe the moral
incongruity of the
tongue (3:11-12). The section shows that a believer,
and especially a
teacher, must be consistent in the use of the
tongue. One cannot claim
to speak God's wisdom with pious language mixed
with criticism and
slander, even though it may be often well
hidden. A person's control of
his or her tongue is evidence of genuine faith and
true piety.38
35 K. Wegenast,
"Teach" DNTT 3 (1979) 768.
36 V. Doerksen,
James (EBC; Chicago: Moody, 1983) 77.
;
37 Maston, Biblical
Ethics 265. Cf. P. E, Adolph, "Tongue" ZPEB 5 (1975) 774-75.
38 Cf. Hiebert, Epistle of
James 43, for his concept of tests whereby readers;
examine their own faith and piety.
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 61
Vices and Virtues
3:13-18
Virtues. This particular section
offers certain qualities which belong
to wisdom and are reflective of the life of Jesus.
The virtues are
characteristic of true piety; the
vices are representative of those things
that belong to the world and the devil. The virtues
are purity, peace-
ableness, gentleness, submission
and mercy (3:17). Where these virtues
are present without insincerity, James sees
evidence of "wisdom that
comes from heaven." These virtues are virtually
parallel to the virtues
listed by Paul as fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22), although
James does not
mention the role of the Spirit.39
These virtues are part and parcel of the
life of true piety and are character qualities to be
emulated.40 They are
“predominantly non-selfish and non-aggressive."41
Such virtues mani-
fest greater concern for others than for oneself.
James has no place for
self-importance or self-aggrandizement,
for he stresses the "humility
that comes from wisdom" (3:13).42
Vices. The positive virtues are
contrasted by the negative vices of
“bitter envy and selfish ambition" (3:14). James is critical of
these vices
and characterizes them as "earthly,
unspiritual and of the devil" (3:15).
There
is an obvious difference between the heavenly virtues and the
demonic vices. The vices suggest the presence of
"disorder and every
evil practice” (3:16).
Wisdom. These lists of virtues
and vices are often found in other
Jewish
and Greek household lists and could be understood as common
observations of life, even without a
religious sense. But this suggested
interpretation is untenable, for the
heavenly wisdom presupposes
religious faith. James, in line with the wisdom of
the OT, assumes that
“the
fear of the Lord is beginning of wisdom" (Prov
9:10). He offers
admonitions that are more than insightful advice.
The application that
must be made is that true piety, heavenly wisdom,
affects every aspect
of life. The result of this type of life produces
a harvest of peace and
righteousness. James himself is
portrayed as a peacemaker in Acts 15
and 21, but his primary reference is not based upon
personal attributes,
but upon the teaching of Jesus who said,
"Blessed are the peace-
makers” (Matt 5:9).
39 Cf. L. Goppelt, Theology of
the New Testament, trans. J. E. Alsup (2 vols.;
terns the Pauline and Post-Pauline Letters and Their
Development Lists of Vices and
Housetable” Text
and Interpretation, ed. E. Best and R. McL.
40 Cf. Guthrie, New Testament Theology 920-28.
41
Ibid. 928.
42 Mitton,
Epistle of James 135, understands
humility or meekness as that which
true wisdom produces. Humility in Jas 1:21 means a readiness to receive the word.
62
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
Worldliness 4:1-12
Selfishness. This final section
includes admonitions directed toward
practical problems of disunity in the community.
James warns his
readers about "fights and quarrels" in
their midst (4:1). Fighting and
quarrels are not characteristic of true piety,
but instead are evidence of
worldliness. The source of the quarrels, the real
battleground accord-
ing to James, is an
internal problem within the believers themselves
(4:2).
The struggle is between love for God and friendship
with the
world (4:4, 8). The one who is a friend of the world
"becomes an
enemy of God" (4:4). Those involved in
continuous fighting, produced
by selfishness and coveting (4:2) are the
recipients of harsh words from
James.
He calls them "an adulterous people." The only love that a
believer can (and should) have for the world is
that which "stems from
and is similar in kind to God's redemptive love for
the world."43 This
redemptive love is merciful to those in need and
practices heaven-sent
virtues, but the love for the world condemned by
James is a love for
self and the things of the world. Such love is
compromise representing
unfaithfulness to God (4:4-5) and
results in ungodly characteristics of
slander and judging of others (4:11-12).44
Right Priorities. The remedy for
worldliness is a reestablishment
of priorities. Instead of selfishness, there is
submission to God. The
kingdom ethic demands that God receives utmost
priority. For those
who humbly submit to God and his rule, God will
give grace. James
quotes Prov 3:34, "God
opposes the proud but gives grace to the
humble." God provides gracious forgiveness for
the past and enable-
ment and blessing for the
future. The prideful, the selfish are friends of
the world but the humble who recognize personal
insufficiencies and
give absolute allegiance to God are God's friends
and the recipients of
his grace.
Conjoined with the admonition to
submit to God is the exhorta-
tion to "resist the
devil" (4:7). The comforting promise is added “he
will flee from you." There are no rituals or
detailed instructions on how
to respond when believers face demonic agents.
James simply says,
"resist the devil and he will flee from you." It is
difficult to understand
fully how this resistance takes place, but one can
count on the fact that
the devil will have to back off and give ground.45
The command to
resist the devil occurs between two imperatives:
"submit to God" (4:7)
43 Maston, Biblical
Ethics 269.
44
Ibid.
45 R. Lovelace, Renewal as a Way of Life (Downers Grove:
InterVarsity, 1985)
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 63
and "draw near to God" (4:8). It is only
as the believer obeys these
commands that he or she is able to be assured
that Satan will flee.46
Not only are believers to
"submit to God" as servants, but they are
to “draw near to God" as worshipers entering
into communion with
God. The Jewish readers recognized the need of
preparation for
genuine worship. Vv 8-9 symbolically picture
this personal and inner
preparation that must take place because God must be
approached
with a pure heart. The parallel imperatives are
nicely summarized by
D.
Hiebert, "God demands undivided affection as
well as undefiled
conduct.”47
The discussion goes full circle and
concludes with the thought that
brings the reader back to the starting point.
"Humble yourselves
before the Lord and he will lift you up." God
promises to honor those
who do not seek after the pleasures of the world,
but who make the
first priority of life wholehearted love, devotion and
allegiance to God.
Summary
We have seen that James is an altogether
practical letter. In the
five brief chapters, there is a virtual gold-mine of
material about
everyday Christian living. The series of
exhortations to the scattered
Jewish
Christians admonishes and instructs them onward to true piety
and genuine faith. In this section of the paper, we
have not addressed
the entire spectrum of James' ethical thought, but
we have restricted
our discussion around five central themes. At this
stage in our essay, we
shall redirect our focus from the 1st-century
teaching to its 20th-
century significance. We shall amplify upon the
ethical themes by
briefly suggesting implications for important
theological and ethical
issues facing the contemporary church.
IV. Implications for the
The Church and Biblical
Inerrancy
It is obvious that James treats the
words of Jesus and the OT
scriptures as authoritative for the early church.
He does not question
their reliability and expects their dictates to be
obeyed.48 He also
identifies himself as a "servant of God" (1:1)
and assumes a stamp of
authority beyond himself for his writings.
What we learn from James is that we
must approach the scripture
with reverence. But for J
46 Doerksen,
James 102; ct. C. F. H. Henry, Christian Personal Ethics (Grand
Eerdmans,
1957) 177.
47 Hiebert,
Epistle of James 264.
48 Guthrie, New Testament Theology 975.
64
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
in the truthfulness of Scripture, we must live
under its authority. It is
not enough to utter an orthodox confession. It is
not enough to hear the
word. We must obey it and put it into practice. As
the word of God
finds a home in our lives, it becomes the word of God
implanted as our
divine authority for all things that pertain to life
and godliness.49
The Church and Renewal
Certainly, there is no issue in
Christianity today that is more
needed than genuine renewal in the churches. There is
a mass of
literature available on the spiritual life that
likewise brings mass
confusion. What is needed is a healthy
spirituality that produces God-
sent renewal to the churches. Today's unhealthy
divisions between
"the theological and the practical" or the
"spiritual and the secular" are
directly addressed by the everyday practical
nature of the spirituality
of James. He is concerned not just with a high and
lofty spirituality,
but with a genuine piety that evidences mercy to
the poor, widows and
orphans in distress. He is concerned about
issues of power, self-
centeredness, and infighting and
divisions among believers. Genuine
renewal recognizes that believers will be
characterized by heaven-sent
virtues. These virtues are produced by a
God-centered, kingdom-
centered life. It also recognizes that such a
life is in contrast to the
earthly, unspiritual and demonic spirit of the
world. The church
today desperately need to understand the dynamics of
spiritual renewal
at the individual and corporate level.50
James' admonitions speak to
this important need.
The Church-Growth
Movement
The
that James wrote his epistle. From the initial small
group of believers,
the church according to contemporary missiologists now numbers
over one billion people. Today, concern for church
growth, which has
always been important for God's people, has become a
specialized
field of study. The modern church-growth movement
seeks to com-
49 H.
D. McDonald, "Authority of the Bible" EDT (1984) 139-40. Also cf.
D.
Bloesch, Essentials
of Evangelical Theology (2 vols.;
1978-79)2.239-41, 265-75.
50 Cf. Lovelace, Renewal
as a Way of Life; R. Lovelace, Dynamics
of Spiritual
Life: An Evangelical
Theology of Renewal (Downers
Grove: Inter Varsity, 1980); H
Snyder,
The Problem of Wineskins (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1976) and Snyder,
The Community of the
King
(Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1977). A very important
aspect of church renewal is the place of prayer. The
reader is encouraged to
R.
Wells, "The Theology of Prayer in James" in this issue of CTR.
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 65
bine theological convictions
and sociological observations. This move-
ment was begun by D. A. McGavran and his disciples and colleagues
such as
summarized in seven principles.
(1) An evaluation is made of what is
happening in a church. Is a
church stagnant of growing? Why?
(2) The group to be evangelized must
be targeted and understood.
(3) The message of the gospel must
be contextualized for the
targeted people.
(4) The congregation grows best if
it is homogeneous, a place
where people can feel at home.
(5) A strategy of outreach must be
developed.
(6) Goals must be set.
(7) The laity must be enlisted and
mobilized for purposeful out-
reach.
Gifts of evangelism should be discovered and exercised.51
It is beyond our limitations to
evaluate seriously the church-
growth movement. That has been done by several groups
and people.52
Our
purpose is limited to how the ethical admonitions of James might
apply to the principles of the church-growth
movement.
The fourth point listed above, which
is based upon sociological
observations and analysis, is at
least questionable in light of James'
statements on partiality in chap. 2. While James
speaks directly to the
treatment of rich and poor, the principle itself
is general and its
significance can be expanded. If
Christians demonstrate partiality or
favoritism toward those of different classes,
cultures or races, they
seem to fall short of the Lord's standard of
impartiality. One of the
primary reasons why partiality is wrong, in
addition to violating God's
standards, is that in practice partiality destroys
the unity of the commu-
nity of faith. The
church-growth movement is obviously correct that,
for example, some Hispanics will feel more comfortable
in Hispanic,
Spanish-speaking churches. This may be true in principle
for other
racial and cultural groups as well. But insofar as the
principle becomes
a barrier for unity or a reason to further partiality
in our churches, it
must be recognized as a violation of the direct
teachings of the epistle
of James.
51 D.
A. McGavran, "Church Growth Movement" EDT (1984) 241-43; cf.
McGavran,
52 Cf. H. Conn, ed., Theological
Perspectives on Church Growth (
Presbyterian and Reformed, 1977). Note especially the
articles by J. I. Packer,
R.
Greenway and R. Recker.
66 CRISWELL
THEOLOGICAL REVIEW
The Church and Social
Responsibility
A very important avenue of the church's
ministry is its responsi-
bility to show acts of mercy
toward believers and non-believers.53 The
model of the life of Jesus demonstrates care for the
problems of the
poor, the suffering and the downcast. The church, if
it is to follow in the
steps of Jesus must be engaged in the same form of
ministry. James’
epistle heartily stresses this holistic,
practical Christianity.54
American Evangelicalism has a
faithful history of social involvement
prior to its struggles in the "Fundamentalist-Modernist"
controversies
in the early decades of this century.55
During this time, there was a
division between the spiritual gospel proclaimed
by the Fundamen-
talists and the social gospel
advocated by the Modernists. Sadly the
churches in
and social ramifications. The Fundamentalists in an
attempt to safe-
guard the purity of the gospel retreated from social
involvement.56 The
social aspects of the gospel were taken over by the
Modernists,
exemplified in the ministry of W. Rauschenbusch.57
This unhealthy
division had all but eliminated a concern for the
social ramifications of
the gospel among evangelicals for fear of
compromising the gospel.
In 1947, C. F. H. Henry attacked the
social apathy of Fundamen-
talists from within the
movement in his groundbreaking publication,
The Uneasy Conscience of
Modern Fundamentalism,
and in so doing,
set in motion the effort to rediscover an
evangelical theology for
society. Since Henry's appeal in 1947, the
Evangelical world has once
again begun to think and act rightly about the needs
of men and
women in this world as well as in the life to
come." The church is to
53 Cf. S. Wirt, The Social Conscience of the Evangelical (
Row,
1968) 19-26.
54 M. Erickson, Christian Theology (3 vols.;
59.
R. Saucy, The Church in God's Program
(Chicago: Moody, 1972) 156, notes the
diaconal responsibility for this ministry in the
church.
55 This is well
documented in J. D. Woodbridge, M. A. Noll and N. 0. Hatch, The
Gospel in
century, Cotton Mather
discussed the relation of piety to poverty and prosperity. He
commented that piety had begotten prosperity and
the daughter had devoured the
mother in the Magnalia (
56 E.g., J. G. Machen, Christianity
and Liberalism (
1923).
57 E.g., W. Rauschenbush, Christianity
and the Social Crisis (
and Row, reprint 1964; originally published in
1907).
58 R. D. Linder,
"The Resurgence of Evangelical Social Concern (1925-75)" The
Evangelicals: What They
Believe, Who They Are, Where They are Changing, ed. D. F.
Wells
and J. D. Woodbridge (Nashville: Abingdon, 1975) 189-210. A sample of
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 67
show concern and take action wherever it sees need,
hurt or wrong.
Such
was the message of the 1974 Lausanne Covenant to the evan-
gelical world.59
More important than this significant covenant from the
corporate evangelical world is the message of
James written to scat-
tered Jewish Christians over
1900 years ago. The message of James
speaks with authority to our continued responsibility
to understand,
proclaim and apply the entire gospel message, for
this is true piety.
The Church and
Liberation Theology
One of the most recent movements' on
the theological scene is
liberation theology. Liberation theologians have
developed a theology
of action that is centered around the needs of the
poor and the
oppressed. These theologians believe that orthodox
theology has too
long neglected the problems of the oppressed and in
doing so has
tended to manipulate God in favor of the capitalistic
social structure.
They
believe that orthodox theology has not just neglected the
oppressed, but has actually influenced the
oppression of the poor and
downtrodden. This movement has responded with a
complete theo-
logical system that is a theology in the world.
Some of the primary
points of liberation theology can be articulated as
follows. God is not a
timeless, immutable person existing outside of
this world, but instead
is a crucified God who submerges himself in a
world of misery. God is
thus on the side of the poor and the oppressed.
Salvation is liberation
from oppression and injustice. Sin is defined as
inhumanity toward
other humans. In the end, liberation theology equates
loving one's
neighbor with loving God. It equates God's
revelation with the voice
important works devoted to this subject in recent
years includes: J. H. Yoder, The
Politics of Jesus (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1972); J. M. Perkins, Let Justice Roll Down
(Glendale:
Regal, 1976); R. Sider, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger (
InterVarsity, 1977); H. Conn, Evangelism:
Doing Justice and Preaching Grace (Grand
Rapids:
Zondervan, 1982); A. Compolo, A Reasonable Faith (Waco: Word, 1983) and
J.
R. W. Stott, Involvement: Being a
Responsible Christian in a Non-Christian Society
(Old Tappan: Revell,
1985).
Most evangelicals have profited from these challenges and
as a result our ministry is more complete and our
message more balanced. The
leadership of
are some like Sider and Compolo who may have tipped the scales too far, even
echoing
aspects of liberation theology in their message.
59 C. R. Padilla, ed., The New Face of Evangelicalism: An
International Sym-
posium on the
Stott,
The
International
Council of Biblical Inerrancy is hosting Summit III in December, 1986 in
the issues to be discussed is the relation of a
belief in inerrancy and its ramifications for
social involvement. Two important papers on this
matter are J. Perkins, "Wealth and
Poverty”
and R. Nash, "Economics."
68
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
of the oppressed. The gospel is the announcing of
God's participation
in the human struggle for justice.60
Liberation theology is built upon J.
Moltmann's Theology
of Hope
(1965).
This theological foundation is conflated with Marxist
eco-
nomics and some biblical themes
of liberation such as the Exodus
event and the message of Jesus in Luke 4:19 that he
has come “to set
captives free" (understood in physical and
not spiritual terms). The
result is a more Marxist than biblical movement which
advocates that a
theology of the church in the world should be
complemented by a
theology of the world in the church.61
The obvious question concerns the
reference in Jas 2:5 which
indicates that “God has chosen the poor in the
eyes of the world to be
rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised
to those who love
him.” We should recognize that our understanding of
James certainly
affirms God's concern for the poor. What then
can we say about James’
admonition at this point? Is liberation theology a
biblical movement?
Is
James a forerunner of the liberation theology movement?
First, we acknowledge the strength
of liberation theology is its
compassion for the poor and downtrodden and that
believers must not
remain unconcerned about the difficult situation of
the oppressed. We
concur that inhumanitarian
acts of prejudice and partiality are to be
seen as sin and in need of Christian resistance. We
also agree that Jesus
is the model for practical and social acts of
mercy to the poor.
Yet, we differ at several important
points with liberation theology
as well. We do not think that James declares the
rich to be evil
oppressive because they are rich. James declares
that the rich are evil
when they oppress the poor and/or gain their riches
by fraud. We
agree that the poor have a special place in God's
redemptive plan, but
this is much different from declaring that the poor
are the voice of
God. We disagree that the poor are the voice of God
or the embodi-
ment of God in the world.
The result of this approach to revelation
would be opposed to James' word concerning the poor
as God's elect
(2:5)
and would threaten to offer hope to the poor that could be
provided apart from Jesus Christ.62
The ethic of James is centered
60 The standard work on
this subject is G. Gutierrez, A Theology
of Liberation
(Maryknoll: Orbis, 1973). For brief summaries of this movement, cf. D. D.
Webster,
"Liberation
Theology" EDT 635-38; and A. Kee, "Liberation Theology" The West-
minster Dictionary of Christian Theology, ed. A. Richardson and
J. Bowden (Phila-
delphia:
subject as they are applied to the poor,
especially in third world countries. There are
several other approaches to the movement that
focus on other oppressed groups such as
J.
Cone's ,”Black Liberation Theology" and L.
Russell's "Feminist Liberation Theology.”
61 Cf. Guiterrez, ibid.
62 Webster,
"Liberation Theology" 637.
Dockery: TRUE PIETY IN
JAMES 69
around the life and words of Jesus and his kingdom
rule. It is in Jesus
that God has ultimately revealed himself. Thus he
does not reveal
himself through the poor, but to the poor
through Jesus Christ. Thus,
we find that our understanding of James differs at
crucial points from
liberation theology. This is certainly not an
attempt at a complete
evaluation of liberation theology,63 but
it is an attempt to assess the
movement at applicable points as it speaks to
similar concerns of
James’ ethical admonitions. James is opposed to
partiality and mis-
treatment of the poor, but this is not the same as
Marxist economics
and the unbalanced biblical themes of liberation
theology.
V.
Conclusion
In this essay, we have attempted to
survey the ethical admonitions
in the epistle of James. We discovered that James
is an intensely
practical book concerned with the everyday actions
of believers at
both the individual and corporate aspects of the
Christian life. James
pictures true piety as the direct application of
the implanted word in
the life of the believer. The result vertically is
the submission to and
worship of God. The result horizontally is
concern for the poor,
widows and orphans in distress. The result
relationally is living peace-
ably with others in the church. The result inwardly
is the humility,
purity and gentleness of character that comes from
heavenly wisdom.
We
have seen how these ethical admonitions mirror the aT
prophets
and proverbs, but ultimately it was seen that
James' pictures of piety
are based upon and modeled by the words and life of
Jesus.
We observed how the true piety of
James speaks to five important
issues in the life of the contemporary Christian
community. We
learned that even though James is addressed to a
unique situation in
the life of the early church over 1900 years ago,
it still speaks to us and
admonishes us by exhorting us to live out the
gospel in all of its
implications. This means living
responsibly in the church as citizens of
the kingdom in submission to God and evidencing
mercy, righteous-
ness and peace to other men and women created in the
likeness and
image of God.
Finally, it must be acknowledged
that the life of true piety as
pictured by James is much easier for me, the
author, to write about
and for you, the reader, to read about than it is
for us to do. But James
63 Three excellent
evaluations of liberation theology are J. A. Kirk, Theology
Encounters Revolution (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1980); R. Nash, ed., Liberation
(Milford, MI: Mott Media, 1984). The reader will find
the articles by H. O. J.
Brown, C. F. H. Henry and C. Pinnock
to be very useful, and Emilio A. Nunez C.,
Liberation Theology (Chicago: Moody, 1985).
70
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
will not be satisfied with hearing. It must be
accompanied by doing.
May
God help us to humble ourselves before him so that we
receive enabling grace to live with undivided
affection for God
undefiled conduct before others.
This material is cited with gracious
permission from:
The
www.criswell.edu
Please report any errors to Ted
Hildebrandt at: