James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / 581

Transcription

1 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / 581 James 2:5 [ Imperative Mood #15 ] Listen, my beloved brethren: did God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? (NASB) NOTE: Here James begins his Argument: Presentation of rationales to convince a listener by establishing the truth or falsity of a proposition. Once we complete our review of James: Chapter Two, we will present a summary of the rhetorical structure of the chapter: James 2 is constituted by two related examples of argumentation: 2:1 13 on the specific topic of partiality and 2:14 26 on the broader, related issue of faith and works. This claim is substantiated by a close scrutiny of the rhetoric of these passages according to the methodology for the rhetorical criticism proposed by George A. Kennedy, New Testament Interpretation through Rhetorical Criticism Three doctrinal viewpoints are going to be presented by James in verses 5 through 7. In verse 5, he will argue the doctrinal viewpoint. In verse 6, he will argue the common-sense viewpoint. In verse 7, he will argue the logical viewpoint. These are viewpoints that oppose the views of the person in advanced reversionism. 2. What have we learned so far from the first four verses of chapter two? We have three men. One is an usher, or in Jewish terminology, a chazzan [ /Z^k* (chazzan) ]. In the Talmudic period, a synagogue official, superintendent, or officer We have been referring to this chazzan as the usher. He is a believer but whose spiritual life in the in the tank, so he functions in the advanced stages of reversionism. 4. Coming into the congregation is a rich man, who is a believer, all decked out in his sartorial and jeweled ostentation. He is an official of some sort to whom the chazzan is indebted to in some way. He kowtows to him by leading him to a seat on the front row. 5. Then, there is the beggar man also a believer in Jesus as the Messiah. He is also a friend of the chazzan. He has come to James s church to acquire some divine guidance from the Word. He is oriented to grace, but in his personal life he is penniless. 1 Duane F. Watson, James 2 in Light of Greco-Roman Schemes of Argumentation (Cambridge, Eng.: Cambridge University Press, 1993). 2 Webster s New Collegiate Dictionary, 2d ed. (1953), s.v. hazzan.

2 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / Circumstances about how Golden Fingers got filthy rich and the beggar became penniless are not indicated. Yet the usher s mentality has shifted away from cordiality toward his old friend the beggar over to feigned partiality for a man to whom he is indebted in some way. 7. The usher shows great partiality to someone he does not personally know while dishonoring a man he knows well. 8. To address this situation, James begins his analysis by presenting a doctrinal viewpoint beginning with Imperative Mood # 15, the aorist active imperative of the verb koúw (akoúō). 9. In this context the verb does not mean, to listen. It s much stronger than that, especially with the imperative mood. It is a command and is best translated Begin to concentrate! 10. The best place to start a dissertation, especially when dealing with advanced reversionism, is to go to doctrine first. So, James decides to start off with the phrase, Did not God choose? 11. James begins his response with the verb to choose, the aorist middle indicative of klšgw (eklégō): to elect. 12. The aorist tense is constative which makes things difficult unless we analyze the aorist tense. The aorist refers to a point in time. 13. However, this tense s action may be adjusted dependent upon when that point in time occurs. The ingressive form occurs at the beginning. The constative form occurs during the action. The culminative form is at the conclusion of the action. 14. But the verb that is used here is eklégō which, in this context, does not occur anywhere among the above definitions because the action indicated does not occur in time, but in eternity past. 15. The verb eklégō means, to elect. It refers to those individuals who express personal faith in Jesus Christ for salvation during the Church Age which occurs in time. 16. The seeming incongruity emerging from this is that God made a decision pertaining to believers in time but did so before time existed. This conundrum is resolved by the divine attribute of omniscience. 17. This apparent conundrum is resolved by summarizing three biblical doctrines: The decree of God is His eternal and immutable will regarding the future existence of events which will happen in time and regarding the precise order and manner of their occurrence. (p. 297)

3 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / 583 The divine decree is the eternal plan by which God has rendered certain all of the events of the universe, including both angelic and human history. God s decree renders all things certain to occur; He decided they would exist. In doing so he did not interfere with angelic and human free will. In fact, He decreed that we would have free will! (p. 298) Omniscience: God knows perfectly, eternally, and simultaneously all that is knowable, both the actual and the possible. God is eternal; His knowledge is eternal. (p. 301) Omniscience knows every thought, decision, and action in human history, how they all relate to each other, and how they relate to all the possible alternatives. (p. 302) Election. The plan of God for believers only. Election means chosen, selected. God elected or chose believers in the sense, first that He knew [omniscience] ahead of time that, if given free will, they would freely choose to believe in Christ; second, that He decreed such an act of faith would actually occur, and third, He agreed that their positive volition to the Gospel would occur at a certain point in time (Ephesians 1:3 4). 3 (p. 307) 18. It is interesting that in eternity past, God imputed escrow blessing to those who would believe in time before He elected them. This is due to the grammatical term applicable in Ephesians 1:3 4: The action of the aorist active participle [of the verb, eùlogšw (eulogéō): has blessed, ] in verse 3 precedes the action of the main verb [ klšgw (eklégō): has elected ] in verse 4: Ephesians 1:3 Worthy of praise is God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who [ as First Party or Grantor ] has blessed [ aorist active participle of the verb eùlogšw (eulogéō): creation of the escrow ] us [ believers, the Second Party or Grantees ] with every spiritual blessing [ the contents of the escrow ] in heavenly places [ the Depository ] in Christ [ the Third Party, Escrow Officer, or Depositary ], v. 4 since He Himself has elected [ main verb: aorist middle indicative of klšgw (eklégō) ] us in Him before the beginning of the world [ creation, Gen 1:1 ] that we should be holy and blameless in His presence. (EXT) 3 R. B. Thieme, Jr., The Integrity of God, 4th ed. (Houston: R. B. Thieme, Jr., Bible Ministries, 2005), , , 307.

4 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / Summary points on the doctrine of election: 1. Jesus Christ was elected in eternity past (Isaiah 42:1). The salvific plan for the human race must provide divine deliverance for the human race without violating God s integrity. 2. Such a plan to be efficacious must be based on the divine provision of one human being entering into human history but without the imputation of Adam s original sin and the subsequent ability to conduct His life without committing one personal sin. 3. Through the virgin birth, the person of Jesus Christ fulfilled these requirements. The absence of a human father in the pregnancy of Mary avoided His body s possession of a genetically formed sin nature and, subsequently, His avoidance of personal sin all the way to the cross. (2 Corinthians 5:21). 4. The election of the believer in the Church Age is made possible by the election of Jesus Christ in eternity past. The Lord s election is a part of the divine decree. 5. Likewise, the election of believers was decreed in eternity past by the omniscience of God. This election becomes operational in time when a person responds positively to the gospel message of faith alone in Christ alone. (2 Thessalonians 2:13) 6. Election is a judicial imputation by God and therefore is permanent, continuing after physical death in the presence of our Lord in interim body (2 Corinthians 5:8), and in the resurrection body at the Rapture (1 Corinthians 15:51 54). 1. In verse 5, we have established that James begins with imperative mood #15 of the verb koúw (akoúō), translated, Begin to concentrate. He addresses those who gather in the church as, my beloved brethren. 2. The imperative mood of the opening mandate, Begin to concentrate, is followed not by a bland recognition of the audience, such as our politicians habitually use before regaling us with, My fellow Americans. This is James asserting the importance of all these believers coming together on the same page where presently they are not. 3. The phrase, Begin to concentrate, my fellow believers who are loved by God: is his exordium, the introductory part of an oration. After this he begins his opening statement: the presentation of facts or opinions he proclaims he will address in the course of his oration.

5 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / His statement is introduced with this Greek phrase, oùc Ð qeõj xelšxato (ouch ho Theós exeléxato): Did not God choose. This is his rational appeal, or the Ãqoj (ḗthos) method of persuasion. It includes the character of the individual speaking or, in this case, of the one referenced. 5. Here we again visit our word for election, the aorist middle indicative of klšgw (eklégō): to elect. The negative conjunction, ouch with the imperative mood of eklégō indicates a rhetorical question. 6. James confirms rhetorically that all who are gathered together are elected to privilege and fellow members of the royal family of God. 7. Next he drives home his point with the phrase, the poor of this world to be rich in faith? 8. The phrase the poor of this world does not refer to the beggar in the previous verses, but to all the poor throughout the world, the accusative plural of the noun ptwcòj (ptōchós): those who are in abject poverty plus the locative of sphere of the noun kòsmoj (kósmos): of the world. 9. Regardless of economic standing, whenever any person places his personal faith in Jesus for salvation he is delivered from the lake of fire and imputed eternal life. 10. Such individuals have all the assets imputed to them among the 40 things that any other person receives at salvation. They are not poor in terms of their souls but in terms of human possessions and sustenance. 11. Poor people, poverty stricken, are loved by God. He saved them when they were poor. They remain poor now that they are saved. You do not have to be rich to be saved. You do not have to be poor to be saved. You just have to believe in Christ to be saved. 12. At this point we stopped to study the Doctrine of Poverty which included 10 points and references to 31 verses on the subject. 13. Those who are poor, but are believers, have the same spiritual privileges and assets as do rich believers. Both are among the elect. Both have the privileges associated with the spiritual life. Divine operating assets may be enjoyed by every member of the royal family of God. 14. These principles take us back to our passage in James 2:5 where we have noted that the verse begins with our fifteenth imperative mood, the aorist active imperative of koúw (akoúō): to listen. Begin to concentrate would be much better. 15. It is here that James s oration advances into his Argument supported by the mode of persuasion called: lòjoj (lógos): rational appeal based on evidence presented. This appeals to the intellect.

6 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / James s lógos approach is presented in three phases: (1) election which occurs in Phase 1, eternity past, (2) the circumstance of poverty which occurs in the world, i.e., time, Phase 2, and (3) heirs referring to the kingdom in the Millennium, yet future, Phase 3. James 2:5 [IM #15] Begin to concentrate, fellow members of the royal family of God; did God not elect to privilege [ Phase 1: eternity past ] the poor of this world [ Phase 2, time ]{EXT} to be rich in faith {NASB} 1. The verse continues with the word rich, the adjective ploúsioj (ploúsios) referring to the imputation of the forty things at salvation, the spiritual assets associated with life in the divine power system, and the accumulation of Bible doctrine in the advance to spiritual maturity. 2. This advance is indicated by the locative of sphere of the preposition n (en): in, plus the noun p stij (pístis): in the sphere of faith, better translated in the systematic accumulation of doctrine inside the divine dynasphere. 3. The term dynasphere is coined from two Greek words, the noun, dúnamij (dúnamis), power, and sfa pa (sphaíra), sphere : the (divine) dynasphere, or literally, the (divine) power system. 5. I have described the believer s presence in the divine power system with the term, inside the bubble, in order to emphasize its highly fragile status. Because we are constantly challenged by the external environment of the devil s world and the internal presence of the sin nature, I describe life inside the bubble with the adjective: Evanescent: soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing: an evanescent bubble. Origin early 18th century: from Latin evanescent- disappearing The phrase in faith refers to these poor people s doctrinal inventory being in the sphere of faith which indicates they are believers who are advanced in their spiritual growth: 2. p stij: state of believing on the basis of the reliability of the one trusted, trust, confidence, faith in the active sense= believing, in reference to deity. d. Expresses in a rhetorical way that p stij is the beginning and the end Simultaneously, these believers are the poor regarding physical possessions in this world, but rich in their knowledge of the Word of God in their souls. 4 The New Oxford American Dictionary (New York: Oxford University Press, 2001), s.v. evanescent. 5 Walter Bauer, p stij, in A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3d ed., rev. and ed. Frederick William Danker (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), 818, 819.

7 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / With this inventory of doctrine in their souls, they are confident they are future residents of the Lord s future dominion. The key phrase is, heirs of the kingdom. 9. The plural noun heirs is klhronomšw (klēronoméō) and refers to recipients of an inheritance associated with something that will happen in the future indicated by the noun basile a (basileía): kingdom. 10. Those deprived of material possessions in the devil s world are said to be prosperous in their inventory of doctrinal principles in their souls and are among those who will inherit the kingdom. 11. The question that arises is, What exactly is this kingdom? There are three categories that are to be considered: (1) the kingdom here on earth speaks of those who are members of the royal family of God enjoying the benefits associated with that status, (2) the kingdom of the Lord s earthly reign following the Second Advent in His Messianic kingdom, and (3) the Lord s rulership of the new heavens and new earth following human history. 12. In the progression of events in our context, the poor are already in the earthly kingdom of the royal family, the next future event in which they will prosper will be the Millennium. We indicate this with the translation, heirs of the millennial kingdom. PRINCIPLE: For those who are destitute of spiritual assets, there is something for them in the plan of God. 13. The Greek text that is translated kingdom is the noun, basile a (basileía). It denotes the everlasting kingdom which God the Father gives to Jesus Christ. It is a realm governed by the King of kings. 14. The kingdom of God is eternal in existence and exists for believers in three categories: (1) in time from the moment of salvation until physical death or the Rapture, or their spiritual life on earth, (2) in the third heaven following one of the previous events, and (3) life in the new heavens and new earth in the eternal state. 15. Therefore, the poor are wealthy by means of faith salvation plus the accumulation of biblical truths in their souls. In addition, they are heirs of the kingdom of God in three categories noted above. 16. Heirs to the kingdom of God is said to be a promise indicated by the aorist middle indicative of the verb paggšllw (epangéllō): to decree which is a promise that cannot be revoked. The aorist tense refers back to the phrase rich in faith, better stated wealthy by the accumulation of doctrine in the soul.

8 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / With this inventory of ideas, poor people, even if they never make the advance out of poverty, are declared heirs of the kingdom. They are recipients because they are those who love Him. 18. There is a combination of events that results in the status of these poor believers who are described as wealthy by means of faith : (1) faith alone in Christ alone and (2) accumulation of Bible doctrine in their souls. 19. These two attributes result in the development of love for Him. First by the positive response to the gospel and second by positive response to the teaching of doctrine. 20. To achieve either of the two categories requires personal acceptance of the veracity of each. The gospel must be accepted as a principle of absolute truth while doctrine must also be regarded as sacrosanct due to its possession of absolute truth. 21. The English word truth translates the Hebrew noun tm#a$ ( emeth) and its Greek cognate, l»qeia (alḗtheia) and refers to a statement of absolute truth, i.e., the innate possession of standards absent error or falsehood. Truth therefore refers to the thinking of God as opposed to human rationales that vary among cultures. 22. Jesus identified Himself with absolute truth in one of His encounters with Pontius Pilate: John 18:37c I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice. v. 38 Pilate said to Him, What is truth? 23. Previously in the Gospel of John, Jesus made this comment to a group of Jews in: John 8:31b If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; v. 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. 24. In front of the Lord, Pilate asked a rhetorical question, What is truth? He was confused by the Lord s responses. He was faced with an intractable decision caught between the establishment standards pertinent to Roman law and culture and Jewish religious law and culture. 25. Before the Jews in John 8, Jesus cited Himself as the source of absolute truth and, if accepted, would result in spiritual freedom in both time and eternity.

9 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / It is important to realize how often the words translated truth are used in Scripture: (1) emeth is used 92 times in the Tanakh and (2) alḗtheia is used 107 times in the New Testament for a total of 199 references. 27. Jesus stated categorically in John 8:31 32 that study of His word results in knowing the truth which will make you free. This fact is confirmed by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 2:13 where the adverb truly is used instead of the noun: 1 Thessalonians 2:13 And so we too constantly thank God that when you received God s message that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human message, but as it truly [ lhqîj (alēthṓs) 6 ] is, God s message [ lògoj (lógos): Word : the working object ], which is at work [ nergšw (energéō): divine good production ] among you who believe. (NET) 28. The decline and fall of empires, nation states, republics, et al., occur when an overwhelming majority of its citizens and noncitizens reject the absolute truth contained in Scripture and instead buy the lie. 29. Truth is defined in Scripture as the absolute integrity of the Word of God. Those who know it will be blessed because God honors His Word wherever it is found. Loss of that thought among a client nation s majority population results in living the lie. 30. The angelic conflict rages relentlessly and is only withstood when the majority of a population subscribes to the truth of Bible doctrine. Failure to do so eventuates in the advancing popularity of the cosmic lie orchestrated by Lucifer himself. 31. This strategy is clearly attributed to him, described by Paul as the lawless one who: 2 Thessalonians 2:10 with all the deception of the wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth [ l»qeia (alḗtheia) ] so as to be saved. (NET) 32. Failure to believe the truth of the gospel causes the deceived, who use their law of freedom to believe the lie, to fall into wickedness. They perish because the did not have love for the truth. 6 lhqîj, adverb corresponding to what is really so, truly, in truth, really, actually. (a) as it really is. 1 Thessalonians 2:13 (Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3d ed., rev. and ed. Frederick William Danker [Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000], 44).

10 James: Chapter Two JAS2-59 / The verb love is the present active participle of gap w (agapáō): the love expressed by those who believe in Christ and pursue truth by the study of the Word. 34. It is interesting to consider the confluence of ideas that occurred in the souls of some Jews who placed their faith in Christ for salvation. 35. They had learned about the ritual plan of God instituted by Moses and currently continued by the Levitical priesthood over at the temple. 36. They had gone to synagogue on Saturdays and studied from the Pentateuch about the sacrifices carried out in the Tabernacle and presently at the temple. 37. They had either seen and heard Jesus during His three-year public ministry or were aware of his teaching by word of mouth. 38. His miracles that He performed for the sick, lame, and indigent were well known in the city of Jerusalem and some may have witnessed one. 39. They surely had heard of the trials of Jesus by the Sanhedrin and Roman authorities. Some may have even witnessed the crucifixion of Jesus, heard about his burial, and also of His resurrection. 40. Some Jews had seen Him in His resurrection body while others had been told by some that they had done so. Jesus crucifixion occurred on April 3, A.D. 33 and, post resurrection, He remained in the general area for another forty days. 41. This means that those who were alive during this time were availed the opportunity to consider what they had been taught by the ritual plan of God in the Pentateuch plus the prophecies and writings in the Nevi im and Kethuvim. 42. These people had a doctrinal inventory from teachings from throughout the Tanakh from which they had learned about the future coming of the Jewish Messiah. 43. When all this metabolized information was then compared to the details of the public ministry of Jesus and its aftermath, you d think these people were primed for the ministry of the Apostles who all began their ministries in Jerusalem. 44. What the prophets had forecast had come to pass in their very community from which emerged men, prepared by God, to spread the Word of the Messiah/Christ and begin teaching the doctrines of the new dispensation called, Church. (End JAS2-59. See JAS2-60 for continuation of study at p. 591.)