Sermon Central
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The Brother I Wish I Had Series
Contributed by Robert Gallaty on Aug 6, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: James did not know Jesus as Lord and Savior while he was here, but he accepted him after his death. This introductory sermon explains the kind of attitude that is required to follow Jesus.
THE BROTHER I WISH I HAD
What is the Book About?
1. To Correct a Corrupted faith that was Rapidly Seeping into the Church. Many were professing Christ bugt living immoral and unrighteous lives. Their Lives Didn’t match there their Profession
Do you Know anyone like that?
2. To present the TRUE FAITH of Christ. A FAITH THAT PRODUCES FRUIT.
Who is it Written TO?
DIASPORA or DISPERSION
Greek word to describe the Millions of Believers who were Scattered around the World.
Believers were Scattered Around the World.
Who was it WRITTEN BY?
1) James the Son of Zebedee, brother of John who was one of those closest to Jesus (Peter, James and John);
2) James the son of Alphaus who was also known as James the Lesser;
3) James the father of Judas, (not Isacriot);
4) and James the brother of Jesus who eventually became converted and in charge of the church in Jerusalem. Of the four only two seem probable at being the writers and that is James the son of Zebedee and James the brother of Jesus.
James the son of Zebedee was the first of the apostles to die a martyrs death in 44AD (recorded in Acts 12:1,2 Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword), which was before this letter was written and therefore it is fairly unanimous by scholars that the author is James the brother of Jesus.
This Morning we will Look at James the Brother, The Believer, and the Bondservant.
1) The Brother
What did Jesus’ Family think of Him:
John 7:1-5 Verse 5 says His brothers did not believe in Him.
Mark 3:20-21⇒The Greek definition for “His own people” means His family. They thought Jesus had lost it. They may have misinterpreted His zeal for mental imbalance
2) The Believer
James becomes a believer LATER IN LIFE.
BE ENCOURAGED if you are Older in Life, GOD can USE YOU.
1 Corinthians 15:3-8 Jesus who saw over 500 after He rose took time to see His brother James. James saw his brother risen from the dead (then converted)
Of all the people that Jesus saw He made room to see His younger brother and it is there that we can trace the conversion of James to.
APP. The People who have the hardest Time are those Who Are the Closest to Us. Our Family, our Friends.
We see in James 1:1 that he is closely connected with the “Lord Jesus Christ”
⇒ James makes mention of all the names of the Savior:
(1) He is Lord who will one day return in glory to this world.
(2) He is Jesus God come to earth in human form.
(3) He is Christ the anointed one who fulfilled God’s purposes by dying for us.
APP. I thought I knew God, but I didn’t know Jesus… My mother would naively say “o, he knows…”, but I didn’t.
There is A Subtle difference between Knowing of Jesus and knowing Him.
James knew who Jesus was. It was his brother.
But He didn’t Know him as Lord and Christ.
Do you know Jesus as Lord and Messiah?
After James Trusts Jesus, He becomes a Leader.
i) Acts 12:17, 15:13-17, 21:18-25 eludes to James’ the leadership of the church in Jerusalem.
He was the Spokeperson of the Church: In ACTS 15—He made the Final decision.
This is what is Stagering: James is the Brother of Jesus, He is a Believer of Jesus, He is an Apostle, He is the Leader of the Church, The Spokesperson for the Apostle and of all the Words He could have used in the English Language to Describe himself He Chose—BONDSERVANT.
3) The Bondservant
SERVANT—Slave totally possessed by his master. A bondservant was bound by Law to the Master.
Philipians 2 says that Jesus came to the Earth as a Servant.
He Did not think Equality with God was Something to be Grasped, so he emptied himself Becoming a Servant.
3 Attitudes of a Servant:
1. Identified with the Person of the Master
1st Century Slaves were Identified by a Tattoo or an Earring. Whenever the slaves were in the Marketplace, the town people could tell who Belonged to Who.
APP. IN your life, can others notice you in the workplace as a Believer of Jesus.
Do they say, That one belongs to Jesus.
Can they look at your Dress, Your Attitude, your Actions, Your Language, The People you Hang with?
2. Obedient to the Purpose of the Master
Servant was about the Business of the Master. Whenver the Master said to do something, the Servant obeyed.
Could the Servant say NO to the Master?
What would happen to the Servant if he Said No? Killed or Beaten.
