Like many epistles, this one has an unstructured, miscellaneous feel: several themes appear, disappear, and reappear again throughout the letter. Does this affect the way we read it?, How does this ‘structure’ affect the way we interpret it?
How do you understand the relationship between faith and works? How does the framing of “faith without works” (James 2:14-26) in the larger context of the epistle affect how you understand it?
Applying the Text:
Does it change our faith in any way that, after 2000 years, we are still waiting for the coming of the Lord? Think about how this letter would have been received when it was originally written versus how we are reading it today.
This epistle focuses on the temptations of the devil. How do you think about sin, the devil, and temptation in your own life having read James?