Discussion starters:

1. Read some background information and watch this video on the Book of James from the Bible Project.  What stands out to you?  https://bibleproject.com/guides/book-of-james/

2. Why is answering ‘Who am I?’ so hard to do?  How would you answer question this for yourself at the moment? 

3. What forms our sense of identity?  How should we approach our understanding of ‘identity’, and why is identity important for how we live daily life? 

4. Consider Jacob/James who introduces himself as the author of this letter in James 1:1 without any qualification to indicate who he is, but whom we believe is the half-brother of Jesus.  Think about what it was like for him to change from scepticism and hostility towards Jesus (John 7:5; Mark 3:2-21), to giving allegiance to Jesus and becoming a ‘pillar’ of the church (Gal 1;19; 2:9; 1 Cor 15:7), leading the messianic community in Jerusalem.  How does he model ‘Christian identity formation’ to us?  What can we learn from his example in our own challenges to ‘become who we are’? 

5. Jacob/James describes himself as a ‘slave/servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ’.  What did ‘choosing’ this as his identity and daily vocation mean for him?  How does appreciating why he wants his readers to understand him in this way direct our reading of his words?  How do you think his paradoxical self-understanding as a ‘slave/servant’ shaped how he exercised leadership and authority within the church?  (Perhaps as a case study, examine how he does it even when Peter and Paul are present, in Acts 15).  

6. Why do you think Jacob/James wants his readers to understand themselves as ‘the twelve tribes of the diaspora/dispersion’?  How would connecting them to the history of Israel, which has now taken a decisive turn through the coming of Jesus (compare Acts 15:12-18; Mark 3:13-21; Matt 19:28-29), equip them to understand their present lives?  How should it do this for us?  How might we actively nurture our identity as this ‘community of relationships connecting’ in continuation of the story God is enacting in history?

DISCUSSION STARTERS

1. Read James 1:2-4.  Why do you think James is writing this, and what questions might it raise for his readers?

2. Why do trials have the potential to threaten our faith and steadfastness as disciples?

3. How can trials paradoxically benefit us?  Describe the mechanics of this process. 

4. How should we understand ‘count it all joy’ in verse 2, and what misunderstandings should we avoid?

5. What do you find helpful in finding joy in hard times?  What have you learnt about yourself in this spiritual experience? 

6. In verse 4 James describes someone who is mature, fulfilling the potential and purpose for which God has made us.  Describe the daily life of a person and community who are like this. 

7. What reflections do you have on your own pathway toward this maturity?

8. What things are helpful and unhelpful in supporting others in their times of trail?

Discussion starters:

1. Read James 1:2-8. Name any questions you have that come out of this passage.

2. What role do you understand wisdom to have in trials we face?

3. In reciprocation of relationship James tells us to ask God for wisdom in trust without doubting him, just as God gives freely to us without reproach. Are there things that keep you from asking God for wisdom in trials?

4. Is there a trial you are currently facing that you are able to share with the group (without any compulsion to share any more than you feel willing to share)?

   a. Without offering fixes for the trials this person in facing, listen to one another’s difficulties, helping the person feel heard.

   b. After you have shared about your trial, share what you understand it means for you to ask God for wisdom in that place.

5. Spend time praying for each other.

Discussion starters:

Read James 1:2-11.

1. What do you currently have that contributes most to your sense of security / significance / worth? What would be hardest to lose?

2. If you lost that thing tonight, at no fault of your own, what would that loss seem to say about you?

3. James says the lowly Christian should boast in their exaltation and the rich in their humiliation. What might those kinds of boasting look like in your current circumstances?

4. In which area/s of your life do you most find yourself comparing yourself with others as either better or worse?

5. James says our riches are like wildflowers - beautiful but temporary. What might it look like for you to enjoy the beauty that God has provided in your current circumstances, without making them the thing you boast in?

Discussion starters

• Read James 1:12-18

• James makes a distinction here between a trial and a temptation (even though they are the same Greek word used different ways). What is the difference? How can the same difficult circumstance be both a test of our faith and an occasion for temptation?

• James says we are tempted when we are “dragged away and enticed by our own evil desire” (v.14). Why do you think temptation is often more about what is happening inside us than about what is happening around us?

• Think of a relatively ordinary temptation you experience. What desire is underneath it? What is that desire promising to give you?

• James says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above” (v.17). How might remembering God's generosity change the way we respond when we are tempted to grasp something for ourselves?

• James contrasts two kinds of “birth”: desire gives birth to sin and death (vv.15), while God gives us birth through the word of truth (v.18). What difference might it make to our lives that God has already begun his new-creation work in us?

Discussion starters:

1. Read James 1:19-27

2. What do you think God’s word has been showing you about yourself recently? And how could you act in response

3. How can we become familiar with biblical teaching, without becoming indifferent to living it out? How do we balance listening with doing?

4. How does the tense of God’s word; “he has perfected”, “I am the true vine and you are the branches”, change our approach to obedience, failure, and spiritual growth

5. What would it look like in your life to move from just agreeing with certain beliefs about yourself and God, and actually practicing them?

Read James 2:1-13

1. All systems of stored wealth (money) are human systems based on trust. Our money is only worth what everyone else believes it is worth. If there was no money in the garden of Eden, why do you think there are so many passages in the Bible about what we do with our money? (If you need examples see Luke 3:14 , Luke 7:41-42 , Matt 6:22 , Matt 25: 24-26 , Mark 12: 41-44 )

2. If Jesus loves poor people, does that mean he doesn’t love us because we’re not poor people?

3. James wrote, “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom.”

   The New Testament word most often translated as freedom is

   ἐλευθερία  -  eleutheria

   In the way people thought in New Testament times this word was more communal than individual.

   What are the dangers of thinking about communal freedom?

   How do we manage those risks?

4. How do you feel when you read that merciless judgement will be shown to anyone who has not been compassionate (James 2:13)?

5. What are the possible interpretations of the short sentence, “Mercy triumphs over judgement”?

Read James 2:14-26

1. James says, “faith without works is dead.” What is the difference between simply believing something about God and actually trusting God in a way that changes how we live?

2. Abraham’s faith is “counted as righteousness” in Genesis 15, but James says his faith was “completed” by what he did in Genesis 22. What might it mean for faith to become complete through action?

3. James’ examples of “works” are often relational: showing mercy, refusing favouritism, caring for the poor, Abraham acting in trust, and Rahab protecting the spies. What does this suggest about how we should understand “righteousness”?

4. James says that even the demons “believe, and shudder”. What kinds of Christian belief can remain purely intellectual, and what would make that belief genuinely alive?

5. Rahab’s faith is shown through a risky act of loyalty, despite the moral complexity of her life and actions. What does her example teach us about the kind of “works” James has in mind and about how God might recognise genuine faith in imperfect people?

Read James 3:1–12

1. James says that mature people can be recognised by the way they speak. What do you think your speech reveals about what is going on beneath the surface of your life?

2. James compares the tongue to a bit, a rudder, and a fire: something small that can have disproportionate effects. Can you think of a time when a few words (yours or someone else’s) had an impact far beyond the moment?

3. James says, “no human being can tame the tongue.” Why do you think he says this? How is that different from simply telling Christians to exercise more self-control or “watch what you say”?

4. James is especially troubled that the same mouth can bless God and curse people made in God’s likeness. Where are we most tempted to treat people differently with our words than the way we speak about God?

5. James finishes with springs and fruit trees: what comes out reveals its source and nature. What might need to change for us at the “source” of our speech, and how might this happen?

DISCUSSION STARTERS:

1. Read James 3:13-18. Describe in your own words what these two types of wisdom look like in our day.  What reflections on the maturity of the church does this prompt? How would you rate yourself at present? 

2. By asking the rhetorical question in verse 13, James isn’t seeking information to identify who the teachers are in the church communities to whom he writes but inviting reflection on what a wise teacher looks like, alerting all his readers to evaluate their own behaviours by these measures, for all of us impact others in our practice of the faith – whether we are formal teachers (3:1-2) or not.

   • Reflect upon who has influenced/taught you, thinking of positive and negative examples, particularly as your experienced their attitudes and behaviours in relationship.

   • Consider how you influence/teach others.  How do you think others would estimate your ‘wisdom and understanding’ shown in your attitudes and behaviours, and what actions might you take in light of this ‘feedback’?

3. Why would someone ‘think themself wise’? What traps are here for all of us? When might we delude ourselves and so be ‘false to the truth’ (verse 14)?

4. Describe what ‘bitter jealousy’ or ‘religious zealotry’ and ‘selfish ambition’ or ‘party spirit’ (verses 14 & 16) look like in church communities today. 

5. What drives such behaviours; what ‘heart’ is revealed by them? 

6. How can we identify ‘wolves in sheep’s clothing’ (Matt 7:15-16) in the pseudo-wise teachers? 

   • How can we identify when we ourselves are becoming like wolves?

7. What ‘disorders and vile practices’ might we see emerging from false wisdom, altering us to its presence?

8. What does ‘the meekness of wisdom’ look like (verses 13 & 17)?  What is it not?  What will help us grow in this meekness?

9. The proverb in verse 18 encourages us to practice ongoing peacemaking.  What are the practical behaviours and skills needed to do that: in our personal relationships; our church family; our local community and world? What potential actions are in front of you this week to sow into this harvest? 

Discussion starters

1.       Read James 4:1-10.  What stands out to you?  What questions does this passage raise for you?  How does James move from ‘problem’ to ‘solution’ here?

2.      Where does the war show up? James says conflicts come from "passions at war within you", and the sermon argued the deepest craving James is highlighting is for control and dominance rather than pleasure. Where are you most tempted to use power to get your own way (home, work, church, friendships)? What does that look like in your own life, whether subtle or obvious?

3.      What sits underneath the grasping? The sermon suggested that insecurity often drives our need for control. Where do you see people today, and Christians in particular, grasping for control, using force or violence to do so? When you reach for control, whether through nagging, withdrawing, perfectionism or winning arguments, what are you really afraid of losing or hoping to prove?

4.      How do we pray? James says we "ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions". Think about what you pray for most often. How would those prayers change if you asked "in Jesus' name", meaning on his behalf and for his purposes? How might we still express our personal needs and wants in prayer that look beneath the surface request to our deeper desire?

5.      What does humility really mean? The sermon described humility as "thinking less about yourself" rather than thinking less of yourself and not making life ‘about you’ rather than others.  How do we avoid an annihilating humility that leaves us with nothing to give, yet allows us to acknowledge our shortcomings and failures?  What promotes humility in a positive way, moving beyond self-importance by embracing the goodness and beauty of God and others? Where do you find the balance hardest? Do you tend to take up too much space, or to shrink back and never receive from others?

6.      Where could you give way this week? The sermon asked when you last let someone else lead, shine or decide, and let them be wrong, or stayed silent so another could speak. Where is one place you have influence where you could practice this? What might it cost you, and what might it free you from?

7.      Security or shame? The sermon argued that real humility grows from knowing we are loved, not from being humiliated, and that God "sees the worst in us and does not reject us". Does repentance feel more like "woe is me" or "wow, here is hope" to you? What would help you bring your failures to God without hiding or defending yourself?

8.     Fiercely gentle? James's ten commands (submit, resist, draw near, cleanse, purify, lament and so on) call for change.  The sermon insisted that humility is active, not passive, and that we must not try to avoid responsibility for changing by ‘blaming the devil’ or other forces. Which of these four transforming practices (listen before leading, interrogate yourself and not just the system, lead with open hands, let grief shape your resolve) do you most need right now? Is there something you could do this week, and who in the group could check in with you about it?

If it helps your group, an opening icebreaker could be: "When did someone's humility or gentleness last disarm you?" The group could also close by praying for each other using James 4:10, asking for the security that makes humility possible.

Choose from the following questions:

1. Read James 4:10-12. In your own words, summarise the flow of James’ argument.

2. What does it mean to ‘speak evil against one another’?  Give examples from society and church today of this type of zealous speech. 

3. What motivates people to engage in such speech-acts?  How do we justify it to ourselves? 

4. What does this prohibition not mean? What situations are not included, and why are these exemptions important? How does the teaching in these verses fit alongside what James says in 5:19-20.

5. Why does James re-cement his connection to his readers before giving them instructions, and what does he emphasise? What does this teach us when attempting to help others change?  Imagine giving a friend advice in how to go about this with another person. What would you say?

6. Alan Redpath came up with the following acrostic. Before you speak, THINK by asking yourself is it T: True; H: Helpful; I: Inspiring; N: Necessary; K: Kind. Road-test this with some examples to see how helpful it might be in ‘taking every though captive’.  How and why does James go beyond behaviour modification to transformation of our inner thoughts and attitudes? 

7. How and why does James connect ‘judging others’ and ‘judging the law’?  Describe our internal processing when we do this, and the consequences for us in our relationship to God, others, and self.

8. Can you think of an occasion when you spoke inappropriately against others, or others did so to you?  What was the impact? 

DISCUSSION STARTERS:

1. Read James 4:13-17.  What feelings, thoughts, and questions does this passage raise for you?

2. What attitude to life is James opposing in verse 13?  Describe what this looks like in today’s world?  How does it compare with your own approach?

3. What folly does James expose in verse 14?  To what extent does his description grip you?  How do you think we should approach daily living if it is so ephemeral? 

4. How would you summarise the ways of wisdom James proposes in verses 15-17?  What do you think this does and doesn’t mean in practice?  What would someone need to do to actually live in this different way? 

5. What negative impacts would boasting in arrogant beliefs about an ability to control life have on these rich merchants as individuals, and the church community comprised of many with such capacities?  How might we see similar dynamics in our own church life today?

6. What response is James calling for in verse 17, and what actions does this prompt in you at present?  Consider personal, corporate (church), and societal aspects.