Contrary to what many people believe (and contrary to what may appear on the surface), the book of James is a remarkably consistent letter. What first seems like a scattered group of unrelated sayings actually weaves multiple themes throughout the entire letter, from beginning to end, in one cohesive message. One of the very clear themes of James is the very theme of consistency itself—God himself is a consistent God, and James calls God’s people to emulate his nature by being a single-minded, devoted, and consistent people in the midst of a scattered, chaotic, and inconsistent world.
Indeed, the world around us today is fraught with inconsistency and incoherence. Many people, without realizing it, live their lives holding to a variety of differing (and sometimes even contradictory) beliefs, values, and attitudes, and in many cases, people are not particularly bothered by this reality. Inconsistency has become a regular and accepted part of our culture, but God calls his people to a different (and better) way.
James calls his hearers to be ‘steadfast’ in the face of suffering and persecution—a call to consistent belief and practice in the face of life’s many great challenges (James 1:1–12). He points to the God who doesn’t shift like shadows, but remains the same yesterday, today, and forever (James 1:17). He calls his people to hear the consistent message of God’s word and to live consistent lives of obedience as an outflow of the free gift of the gospel of salvation in their lives (James 1:19–27), to not show a favouritism that inconsistently applies the truths of God’s revelation in relationship with other people (James 2:1–13), and to give their effort and attention only to teachers who consistently live according to God’s word (James 3:1–12).
Without question, James is concerned that his listeners embrace the consistent character and message of God and live consistently in light of His goodness and in light of his revelation to his people. We all can be so easily self-deceived, and so often we can live a life of inconsistency toward God and his word without even realizing it. However, in spite of our weaknesses and failures, we seek to pursue this consistency with the very power provided to us by the Spirit as we are united to Jesus and share in his saving work and his resurrection power. In this life, we may never succeed in loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5), but we strive in faith in our perfectly consistent Saviour to be doers of the word, and not hearers only. We strive to love God wholeheartedly and to love our neighbour as ourselves in accordance to all that he has revealed to us in his word, and we do so believing that he is accomplishing a great work in us that will be brought to final completion when Jesus returns to take us home. May that day come soon!
All the best,
Luke Burrow
