You're Either Walking The Walk Or Just Running Your Mouth!

Praise for You’re Either Walking

This is a wonderful verse-by-verse study of the Book of James! It will serve as a valuable resource for the pastor who preaches through James or the teacher leading a small group Bible study.  Dr. Linn outlines the passages and provides very helpful exegetical insights. I will certainly use this excellent work in my own preaching and teaching!

—Daniel L. Akin

President, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

Practical, insightful, exegetically sound, and delightfully written, Todd Linn’s exposition of James is a joy to read and makes me want to preach through this book all over again! I know of no other book that combines the clear and careful analysis of a scholar with the deft insights of a seasoned pastor like this one.

—Hershael H. York

Dean, The School of Theology; Professor of Preaching at Southern Seminary

Copyright

Copyright © 2020 Todd A. Linn

You’re Either Walking The Walk Or Just Running Your Mouth! Verse-By-Verse Study Of The Book Of James by Todd A. Linn

Published by Preaching Truth Publishing

www.preachingtruth.org

© 2020 Todd A. Linn

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of very brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permissions contact:

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Cover design: Vanessa Mendozzi

ISBN: 978-1-7350844-2-8

Dedication

To my wonderful wife Michele who, second only to Jesus, makes sure that I walk the walk.

Epigraph

If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing.

― Benjamin Franklin, 1738; Poor Richard's Almanack

Preface

––––––––

Welcome to the first edition of the Preaching Truth eBook series!  It is my hope that this series will be an affordable help to pastors, lay leaders, and any person interested in a straightforward verse-by-verse study of books of the Bible.

These chapters are largely the product of my weekly studies as I prepared each exposition for Sunday preaching.  They have been modified to suit the present format, but largely retain their original form including the placing of the biblical text at the beginning of each exposition (New King James Version unless otherwise noted). 

Prominent placement of the biblical text is a personal conviction. The life-changing power of Bible-study comes directly from the Word itself.  This format also aids the reader by providing an easy way to refer back to the biblical text while reading through the chapters.

As something of a disclaimer I freely admit that, to quote the popular song lyric, I get by with a little help from my friends.  As I studied the Book of James during sermon preparation I frequently listened to or read sermons from some of my favorite expositors—Alistair Begg, Ligon Duncan, and Tim Keller, to name a few.  Nearly every preacher is blessed by the studies of others. 

As a matter of integrity, however, preachers must produce their own expositions.  It has always been my practice to milk a lot of cows, but churn my own butter.  Not only is plagiarism wrong, but it robs the preacher of the joy of discovering truth for himself and sharing that truth in his own way as God guides. 

Nevertheless we invariably make mistakes, sometimes forgetting where a particular statement or phrase originated.  While I have taken care to credit sources, I have likely erred here and there and will speedily correct future editions where necessary.

Finally, like James himself, I am writing this book with Christians in mind.  Most often the pronouns we or us refer to professing Christians.  At the same time it is my hope that non-Christians reading this book will be helped and also persuaded to receive Christ as Lord and Savior. 

For this reason, I have addressed that hope periodically throughout the book and have included a simple gospel presentation in the appendix (Becoming a Christian).

Enjoy!

Todd Linn, PhD

June 30, 2020

Introduction

(James 1:1)

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

James is a wonderfully practical book that challenges us to live out the Christian faith.  It’s a short book (a short letter really), just five chapters and one hundred and eight verses.  It’s also quite possibly the earliest book of the New Testament, written around AD 44-49.  But big things come in small packages!  James is action-packed, full of wisdom and challenge.  It is also straightforward, honest, and often painful.

But before we go any further, just who is this guy named James?  There are four men with the name James mentioned in the New Testament.  There are James, the son of Alphaeus, James, the brother of John, James the father of Jude, and then James the brother of Jesus, often referred to as James the Just.

It is this last James who is the writer of this letter; James the Just, or James the brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55). Indeed it almost has to be this James for a number of reasons, among them the fact that this James was also leader of the Jerusalem church (Acts 15). 

James is described as one of the pillars of the church in Jerusalem (Galatians 2:9), a leader of higher ranking than the Apostles Peter and John.  That’s a pretty big deal when you are in a leadership position over Peter and John!

So when we read this opening verse and it simply says, James, without any other identifier, then it almost has to be the James, so to speak, because any other James would have had to distinguish himself, identifying himself as James the son of Alphaeus, or James the brother of John and son of Zebedee. 

So the writer of the Book of James is the James.  This is the leader of the council of Jerusalem in Acts 15, the very brother of Christ Himself, the one Paul wrote about his going up to see in Jerusalem, the one to whom he refers explicitly as James, the Lord’s brother (Galatians 1:19).

Now that’s remarkable, isn’t it?  The brother of Jesus; His little brother!  Technically speaking, James is Christ’s half-brother, of course.  But James grew up in the same house as Jesus, sat at the same dinner table as Jesus, and played in the same yard as Jesus.

Of course James was not a believer in Jesus as Messiah in the earlier years of Jesus’ ministry.  John 7:5 says, even His brothers did not believe in Him.  Not surprising, really.  I mean, how would you react if your brother—the very one you grew up with in the house—began to distinguish himself as Lord and Messiah?!  James did, however, become a believer later, probably at the very moment Jesus singled him out for a special resurrection appearance (1 Corinthians 15:7).

That James believed Jesus to be Lord and God is evidenced in this opening verse where James refers to himself as both bondservant of God, and bondservant of the Lord Jesus Christ.  This latter descriptor is especially significant.  The word James uses for Lord is the Greek word kurios, a title of deity.  It’s the same word used throughout the Greek translation of the Old Testament with reference to the One True and Living God, the title used for Elohim and Yahweh.  Using the title here in James’ letter, then, is tantamount to saying, Jesus Christ is God.

So to whom is James writing?  Well, verse 1 says he is writing to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad.  The Greek literally reads the twelve tribes, which are in the dispersion.  The Jewish people, originally the 12 tribes of Israel, had been dispersed or scattered all over the world centuries earlier by the Assyrians and Babylonians.  Now, in James’ day, Jewish believers find themselves scattered again, this time scattered all over the Mediterranean world, largely as a result of opposition to their faith.  So these are Jewish Christians gathering together in a number of house churches outside of Palestine. 

Incidentally, the Book of James is considered one of the more Jewish letters of the New Testament, containing direct references or allusions to 22 books of the Old Testament (that’s more than half of the Old Testament books), in addition to more than twenty allusions to Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).

And while James has first century Jewish believers largely in view, the Bible is applicable to all persons in any age.  All Scripture is God’s Word.  It is timeless, powerful and profitable to all who will read it and receive it’s teachings (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12).

But be forewarned: James is not a book for the weak and timid!  If you get squeamish when someone tells it like it is, then James is probably not for you.  If you want someone to sugarcoat difficult truths, then you will wince when you read James.  James is continually in our faces, calling for authentic, Christian living.  James presents us with a no-holds barred, straightforward teaching of Christianity 101.

James addresses issues like spiritual snobbery in the church, worldliness among Christians, and unconcern for the poor and destitute.  He rebukes us for our favoritism and addresses our use of the tongue; how we speak to others, how we speak about others.  He is commanding!

In fact one of the more interesting characteristics of this letter is that it contains over fifty imperatives in its one hundred eight verses.  Fifty uses of the imperative mood!  The imperative is the mood of command.  Statements such as, Do this, or Don’t do that, are not suggestions, but commands.

For example, James says, Be doers of the word, and not hearers only (James 1:22).  Other imperatives include: Don’t show favoritism (James 2:1-4), submit to God, resist the devil (James 4:7), don’t speak evil of another brother (James 4:11), and don’t grumble against one another (James 5:9).

So the Book of James is about living the faith.  When James uses the word faith in this letter (some sixteen times), he is stressing the practical living-out of Christian doctrine.  His focus, then, is not so much upon our becoming a Christian as it is upon our behaving as a Christian.  It is principles put into practice, or doctrine on display.

Like the title of this book, James wants us to walk the walk. And if we don’t walk the walk, James might say we’re all talk, but no action. We’re either walking the walk or just running our mouths!

As we begin our study let’s see what James teaches about how we are to live when facing the reality of trials and hardships. 

Chapter 1: When Facing Trials

(James 1:2-4)

2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,

3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

Every one of us is familiar with trials of one sort or other.  And James is talking about all of them. He describes what he has in mind as various trials and by this he means to include any and all kinds of real or imagined trials.  Trials are the storms we go through in life.  It’s often noted that every one of us has either gone through a storm, is presently in a storm, or getting ready to go through another storm.

Storms and trials are part of living in a sin-cursed and fallen world.  Ever since our first parents (Adam and Eve) sinned in Genesis 3 we have experienced trials of one kind or another.  We see evidence of the fall all around us.  So while we are often shocked and saddened by tragic events, at the same time we are not surprised when they happen.  We understand that this world is not as it was meant to be.

But trials hit home when we become personally involved in them.  How helpful that we have passages such as this to encourage us as we go through them.  Let’s consider some practical truths that surfaces from these verses.  First, note this:

Trials are Inevitable

That may sound rather obvious and perhaps even unhelpful, at first.  But it is so important for us to remember this fact so we do not immediately fall into doubt or despair when trials come our way.

Too often when trials and hardships come we find ourselves immediately reacting by crying out, God, why are You doing this to me?  And the implication is: "Surely, I don’t deserve this misfortune!"

Rarely do we ever think to ask the same question when something favorable comes our way, or we are on the receiving end of some unforeseen good fortune: God, why are You doing this to me?  I don’t deserve this success—give it to someone else!

Truth is, we sinful human beings deserve nothing.  The very air we breathe at this moment is an undeserved gift that comes graciously from our Creator.  He can withhold the air if He wishes.  He is God and we are not.  But He is a good God and He always does what is right.  So we trust Him, believing that He knows what He is doing and we take Him at His word when He teaches that trials and hardships actually serve not to harm us, but to help us.  More about that in a moment. 

For now let us consider that trials can come to anyone.  Being a Christian does not keep one from trials.  If you are a human being, you will go through trials.  James does not say, "Count it all joy if you fall into various trials, but when you fall into various trials."

In fact, the Bible teaches that Christians can expect to face suffering and hardships when others oppose their faith.  For example, Jesus said, In the world you will have tribulation (John 16:33).  The Apostle Paul warned: All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:12).  And Peter wrote: Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you (1 Peter 4:12).

Trials are inevitable.  And while the previous verses suggest more the idea of trials of persecution for one’s faith, James has in view trials of any kind.

James was not himself immune from trials and suffering.  Church history records that he died as a Christian martyr in the year AD 62.  Josephus, the first-century Jewish historian, tells us that James was accused by the high priest and condemned to death by stoning.[1]

Eusebius, a fourth-century church historian, adds a few details about James’ death. He says that the scribes and Pharisees took James to the top the temple, and demanded that he should renounce the faith of Christ before all the people, but rather than deny Jesus, James declared himself fully before the whole multitude, and confessed that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, our Savior and Lord.[2]

Another historian, Hegesippus, adds:

They went up and threw down the just man [from the temple], and said to each other, Let us stone James the Just. And they began to stone him, for he was not killed by the fall, but [James] knelt down and said, I entreat thee, Lord God our Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.  One of them... took a club with which he beat [James] And thus he suffered martyrdom.[3]

So when we read James’ describing the inevitability of trials, know that he himself is prepared to face them. 

Again, trials can come to anyone.  Being a Christian does not preclude one from facing danger, enduring suffering, or encountering hardships.  If you are a human being, you will go through trials.  And they may come suddenly and unexpectedly.

In fact the word fall in verse 2 is the same word used in Luke 10 where Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan.  Jesus says, "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves (Luke 10:30)."  This man was minding his own business and suddenly and unexpectedly he encountered thieves. 

That is often just how suddenly trials arrive.  We’re minding our own business, the day starts off uneventfully and then we encounter one of a variety of trials, hardships, or difficulties.

Now James says that when this happens, we’re to count it all joy (verse 2), or, consider it joy.  What exactly does this mean?

It does not mean that we are to consider the trial itself to be joyous.  James does not say that.  He is not calling for us to think, Oh trials, how wonderful!  I love trials and I am so joyful when they come!  That’s a silly notion at best and a psychological disorder at worst.

He doesn’t say, "count the trials joy, but rather, count it all joy when you fall into various trials.  This may sound at first like a distinction without a difference, but it is very different indeed.  Reading on to verse 3, James continues: knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience (or perseverance)."

Put another way: Consider the fact that you are undergoing trials—painful as they may be—as an opportunity to grow in faith and become strong and, for that reason, you may have joy in the midst of your trials.

Here, then, James is arguing for another important and helpful truth:

Trials are Beneficial

Trials—painful as they may be—provide an opportunity to grow in Christian faith and become strong.  In this way, trials are beneficial.  They bring the benefit of strength and endurance to Christians.  For this reason, we may have joy when facing them.

In fact, we rarely consider escaping a trial as a benefit lost.  What do I mean?  Well, let’s be honest: If we pray without thinking, how do we usually pray about trials and hardships?  Do we not usually fall into a sort of default mode of prayer, asking to escape the trial, or praying that we or the ones we love would never face any sort of trial at all?

A friend is sick and we pray that God heals her.  A persecuted Christian is imprisoned so we pray for his release.  And one of the reasons we do so is because we normally think only of the joy that comes in the absence of trials.  To be sure, there is joy in sound health and religious freedom.  No one disputes this.  At the same time, however, James is calling for our rejoicing in the ability to benefit from the presence of trials and hardships.

James’ stress is not on the joy we have when escaping trials, but on the joy we may have when enduring them.  Indeed, one reason a Christian can be joyful when facing trials is because—as James puts it in verse 3—the testing of our faith produces patience (or endurance).

Trials strengthen us

Usually when I go to the gym I feel a bit inferior because I find myself in the presence of guys who have been working on their muscles for years and it shows.  As I heard a friend once remark: They have muscles in places I don’t have places! 

But how do you get muscles?  How do