The Book of James

James is an amazing book of scripture. I first really gained an appreciation for it about three years ago, but as it was the gospel study lesson in Come, Follow Me this past week, I enjoyed going back through it again. James is kind of underrated in my opinion.

Among Latter-day Saints, James is famed for giving us the fifth verse of the first chapter: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. And with good reason: that single verse unlocked a flood of revelation in the latter days.

But what about some of the other gems?

For instance, verses 22 through 28 of chapter 1, which teach of us the importance of living our religion daily. I especially like 23 and 24: For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass. For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. Our practice of religion has to be more than an occasional glance in the mirror. We need to be monitoring our progress on a regular basis - daily is ideal.

Chapter 2, verse 10 seems a little harsh: For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. But what about being imperfect, and occasionally stumbling? Does this mean our weaknesses wipe away the good things that we do? I had to think about it a little, and I don't think that's what it means. Think of it in terms of qualifying for a temple recommend. There's no allowance for being out of line on one or two questions in the interview. You're either compliant with all of the Lord's standards, or you don't get the recommend. I think it's a matter of being "all in" as we've heard in some recent conference talks, and avoiding the pitfalls of selective obedience.

Chapter 3 provides us great caution regarding our communications, in verses 5 through 8: Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

We don't have to lay a finger on another person in order to hurt them. Just as physical injuries may have a lifelong affect, emotional and spiritual wounds may stay with us for years. And in modern times, it's even easier to hurt people with words - and we don't even need to open our mouths. We just need a keyboard and an internet connection. Spend a few minutes on social media or message boards and see what I mean. Try reading those verses again and replace "tongue" with "fingers" and see how well the counsel still applies.

Chapter 4, verse 14. Our life here on this earth is only temporary: For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. 

I was reading chapter 5 a couple of years ago and verses 14 and 15 really stood out to me. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

It was a passage that stopped me in my tracks. Did that just say what I think it said? That if we receive a priesthood blessing with faith to be healed physically, that our sins are forgiven? It does indeed give that promise. The same faith in Christ that allows for our bodies to be healed is the same faith in Christ that allows us to become clean spiritually.

Anyways, those are some of my favorite passages from James. I didn't even include them all! I have maybe a half-dozen others that I have marked but didn't comment on above. 

To finish off the post, here's one last verse, which is also the last verse in the book of James. Another great promise of forgiveness: Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.