Click the Banner back to Index
JAMES
(Study on the Twelve Apostles)
(MBC - Wednesday PM, February 15, 2023
Read 10:2-4 and then answer some several questions:
What is third name mentioned in the list of the 12 disciples? ___________________ (v.2)
Give the name of the father of this disciple? __________________ (v.2)
Give the name of the brother of this disciple? _________________ (v,2)
When the name of the two brothers James and John mentioned, the name of James was usually comes first, so probably James was probably older than John. (v.2; Matthew 17:1)
I – IDENTIFICATION: TO AVOID CONFUSION In the time of the New Testament, the name James was a common name. There are also two other men who bear this name James that was mentioned in the Bible. We must be careful not to get confused with the man named James in this study.
A. The man James, brother of the Lord Jesus – Galatians 1:19
Galatians 1:19 “But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother.”
1. James is the half-brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55)
Matthew 13:55 “Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?”
2. James saw the resurrected Christ, because the Lord Jesus made a special appearance to James (I Corinthians 15:7) and with all the apostles. The name James is mentioned often on the pages of the New Testament.
I Corinthians 15:7 “After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.”
3. James became the leader of the Church in Jerusalem. If some things needed advice, James stands and speaks.
Acts 15:13 “And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:”
Acts 12:17 “But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go shew these things unto James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went into another place.”
4. James is human writer of the Epistles of James
James 1:1 “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.”
B. The Apostle James, son of Alphaeus – Matthew 10:3
Matthew 10:3 “Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;”
The Apostle James, son of Alphaeus was among the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:2).
Among these small band of twelve, there are two men with the name James. The two men were the James who is the son of Zebedee which we are given more information and whom we study in this chapter and the James the son of Alphaeus whom we will study in a later chapter.
We should not get into confusion, since God is not the author of confusion. Whenever the Bible mentioned James, it clearly identified him as the son of Zebedee or the brother of John the Apostle.
To avoid confusion, identification is needed to distinguish the three James:
1. James, the half-brother of Jesus Christ
2. James, the son of Alphaeus
3. James, the son of Zebedee and brother of John the Apostle (the man in our study)
II – INSPIRATION: TO LEAVE ALL AND GAIN IN THIS LIFE AND IN THE LIFE TO COME Read Matthew 4:21, 18 and know is the occupation of James? ____________________
Matthew 4:21 “And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.”
Matthew 4:18 “And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.”
Find out in Matthew 4:21 what were the sons of Zebedee were doing when Jesus called them? _______________
The decision of these two brothers named James and John is to follow Jesus. If these two brothers are decided and determine to follow Jesus, they had to leave certain things in their lives. Leaving something to follow Jesus.
Please give at least three things that these brother James and John had left?
1. _________________________ (Matthew 4:20)
2. _________________________ (Matthew 4:22)
3. _________________________ (Matthew 4:22)
Read Mark 10:28-31, analyze then answer several questions:
Mark 10:28-31 “Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. 29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, 30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. 31 But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.”
1. Fill up the missing word about what Peter said in Mark 10:28 “Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left _________ and have followed thee.”
2. Could James have said what Peter have said? ____________________
3. When people leave things because of Christ, do they gain certain things? _________________
4. When people leave things because of Christ, do they end up with their hands empty or with their hands full? ____
5. Will a follower of Christ gain now in this life, or will the follower gain only in the life to come? __________
6. When a person got saved, are there certain things a person should leave or let go? _____
7. When a person becomes Christian what would the things he should leave or let things go? ______
8. When a person becomes a Christian, are there some things might lose out on? _____________
9. Do you believe that there are some things a believer gains in the life to come? What are those things? _________
10. Do you believe that there are some things unsaved people will lose in the life to come? What are those? _______
When Jesus called James, he left all for Christ, the same what Peter did and said, but leaving means gaining. James was not a loser; he was a winner. At the end of James life, we will see in the Bible that James lost his head for the sake of Christ. In spite of that, James was not a loser; James was a real winner. When you leave something, or lose something for Christ, you gain now in this life and in the life to come. Are you willing to give up or leave all things and follow the Lord?
- - - - - - TO BE CONTINUED ON PART 2 - - - - - -
III – INDICATION: TO KNOW WHAT IS MEAN BY THE NICKNAME SONS OF THUNDER
There is a nickname given by Jesus to James and John. Jesus called James and John Boanerges (Bo-a-nur-jez). What is the meaning of Boanerges? ______________ (Mark 3:17). The idea why the Lord Jesus called these brothers James and John this nickname is because of their stormy personality.
Often, when we say thunder, we always think of a typhoon or storm, we described it as a destructive storm with lightning bolts coming down from the sky. James and John, the son of Zebedee were fervent men and sometimes fanatical men. There are moments that these two brothers became quite as we shall them as “hot-headed” person.
Read Luke 9:51-56 to learn more about the nickname “sons of thunder” then answer several questions. According to the said passages, Jesus and his disciples were traveling going to Jerusalem, but they experienced the very poor reception from the Samaritan people who were in that village. (v.51-53).
1. Who were the two disciples got angry the way the Samaritans mistreated Jesus? (v.54) _________________
2. Did these two disciples think for a nice and peaceful solution toward this mistreatment? ________________
3. Since, these two brothers called “suns of thunder” were angered against the Samaritans, they wanted to command ____________ to come down from ________ and ______________ them. (v.54).
Did you see that indication of the nickname “sons of thunder”, they wanted God send down some lightning bolts to destroy the Samaritans who mistreated Jesus.
Read verse 55 then circle the right answer on what Jesus did regarding the anger attitude of James and John:
a. Jesus agreed what James and John said.
b. Jesus rebuked James and John for what they said.
c. Jesus thanked James and John for what they said.
d. Jesus encouraged James and John to do what they said.
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, nickname “sons of thunder” had an angry, condemning, judging kind of a spirit, that they wanted God send fire to kill the enemies of the Lord, specifically mentioned here the Samaritans.
These sons of thunder failed to understand the very purpose why Christ came into the world. Read and find the missing words in Luke 9:56 “For the Son of man is ________ come to __________ men's lives, but to ________ them. And they went to another village.”
We notice that Jesus' solution to the mistreatment problem from Samaritans was much more peaceful and merciful than the solution of these two sons of thunder. Jesus' solution is in verse 56 “they went to another village.”
Look the verses and give the reason why Jesus come into the world? (John 3:37; Luke 19:10; I Timothy 1:15) ___________
John 3:17 “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”
Luke 19:10 “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
I Timothy 1:15 “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”
Because of our sins we deserved to be destroyed. God should give us exactly what we deserved; the Lord should send lightning bolts from heaven but the Lord God is a very merciful unto us.
Did you got angry with someone and so you do not want to see that person that is why you wish that certain person must die and should not exist in this earth? Possibly, that person has been mistreated and has done wrong, painful and damaging things toward you. Don’t you know that the Lord wants you to have a merciful heart toward that person, and some peaceful solution on that situation? Not only God wants you to be merciful to that person who wrong you, God also is merciful to that person, that is why God is very good, gracious and kind to that person even this very moment. (Matthew 5:43-48). May be this person who wronged you, speak against you, is your enemy but what Jesus wants us to do with our enemies? Jesus said in Matthew 5:44 “____________ your enemies.”
IV – INTENTION: TO BE THE GREATEST It is interesting to know, and find out who is the greatest?
As we just previously studied James and John were the sons of thunder, but they were also considered the “sons of ambitions.” These two sons of Zebedee, James and John wanted to be great in the kingdom of God. James and John wanted to have the best and higher position that anyone had. They wanted to be in a high-ranking position above others. When all the very important position in the Kingdom were seated, James and John the sons of ambition desired and requested to have the two seats that were closest where the King seated. James and John who ambitioned to be the greatest really needed to be humbled.
Read Mark 10:35 then learn and answer several questions:
Mark 10:35 “And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire.”
Here we see James and John by their ambition wanted Jesus to do for them whatever things they want. What a lofty spirit these two brothers possessed; they wanted God to do for them whatever they want instead of being interested in what God wants. James and John wanted Jesus do all what they desired, so it seems that they wanted God to be their slave, they are commanding God to do all they wanted in their lives.
Did Jesus promised James and John, He would do whatever they wanted? (Mark 10:36) _______________________
Mark 10:36 “And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you?” The Lord Jesus just asking them what they wanted the Lord should do for them and Jesus did not promise He would do whatsoever they requested. If what they wanted is according to God’s will that will be the reason God would grant their request in His time.
What was the request of these two ambitious brothers James and John? (Mark 10:37). ________________________
Mark 10:37 “They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.”
Read in Matthew 20:20-21, to find out that James and John had a mother had had something to do in connection of their request. The mother of James and John asked the Lord Jesus a special request for special honors for her two ambitious sons. What is that special honors the mother wants Jesus to give to her two sons? __________________
Matthew 20:20-21 “Then came to him the mother of Zebedees children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. 21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.”
Did the other disciples agree and accepted the request of James and John? (Mark 10:41) _____________________
Mark 10:41 “And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John.”
Probably, other disciples of the Lord wanted also special honors be given to them.
Read Mark 10:42-45 and answer several questions.
Mark 10:42-45 “But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”
What is the secret of greatness according to Jesus? ___________________________________________________ .
What must a person do, in order to be really great in the sight of God? ___________________________________
Jesus gives us the criteria for someone to be great. How Jesus measure greatness? ______________________________
No person, greater than the King. But there was something that the King willing to do? (Mark 10:45) ________________
Mark 10:42-45 “But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”
- - - - - - TO BE CONTINUED ON PART 3 - - - - - - V – INNER CIRCLE: JAMES IS ONE OF THREE DISCIPLES SELECTED FROM SEVENTY The Lord Jesus had many disciples and the Bible mentioned about the seventy disciples (Luke 10:1 “After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.”. Some disciples were closer to Jesus than others disciples. There are also times when the Lord Jesus would call aside certain disciple to do certain task that the other disciples could not do. Jesus chose twelve men among these many disciples in order to be with the Lord in a special way (Luke 6:13). Then among these chosen twelve disciples, there were times that the Lord Jesus would select three to be with Him to go to certain places. These selected three men were allowed by God to do certain things that the other nine disciples wee not allowed to do.
Here are the circles of the disciples. The Big circle composed of seventy disciples (Luke 10:2 “Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.”), the medium circle inside the big circle composed of twelve disciples from seventy (Luke 6:13), then the smallest inner circle inside the medium circle that is inside the big circle is composed of three disciples from the twelve (Luke 9:28).
Read Luke 9:28 and know if James was one of the disciples in the inner circle? (Luke 9:28) ___________________
Luke 9:28 “And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.”
There are three things that Jesus did with these three disciples of the inner circle: (Notice, the other nine disciples were not included).
1. Read Matthew 17:1-5, about the mount of transfiguration, name the three disciples who saw Moses and Elijah who were with Jesus? _______________________ . Matthew 17:1-5 “And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. 3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. 4 Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.”
Were these three disciples allowed to tell the other nine disciples what they had seen? (Matthew 17:9) ____________.
Matthew 17:9 “And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.”
2. When Jesus raised up the daughter of Jairus from the dead, what are the names of the three disciples who were with Jesus? (Mark 5:37-43) _________________
Beside Peter, James and John, did Jesus allowed any others disciple to follow Him? (Mark 5:37).
Mark 5:37 “And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.”
3. When the time that Judas was not with these group of disciples, we notice that Jesus instructed the eight disciples to sit down and Jesus take three disciples to be with Him. Who are the three disciples? (Matthew 26:37) _______
Matthew 26:37 “And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.”
These three men had a privileged opportunity to share in the very difficult experience that Jesus was going through.
Read Matthew 26:40, 43, 45 these three men had experience the difficult situation that Jesus had experienced, did these three men do well? _________________
Matthew 26:40, 43, 45 “And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? 43 And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy. 45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.”
Jesus gave them a great opportunity to share time with Jesus as Jesus was going on difficult situation but these three men were unable to take advantage of the great opportunity, instead of praying with Jesus they slept. May we lost not the opportunity of the blessing in spending time with the Lord Jesus.
Now, let us talk about the sheep and Shepherd. Although the Shepherd truly loves all the sheep in the flock, there are many sheep stay far away from the shepherd but there are also other sheep stay closely to the shepherd and walk right beside of the shepherd. Sometimes we the Shepherd pick up and carry young lambs in his arms.
We need to stay close to the Shepherd of our soul. We must be close to Jesus as we should be. We need to do all we can to get closer and closer to our good and great Shepherd the Lord Jesus Christ. If we notice we are in the outer circles, don’t waste your time, we need to do find way to be in the inner circles. How can we get farther away from our Shepherd Jesus? How can we get closer to our Shepherd Jesus. Read James 4:8; Hebrews 10:22, and know if God want each of the believer in Christ need to draw near? ____________________
James 4:8 “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”
Hebrews 10:22 “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”
This James, was one of the four disciples with his brother John, and Peter with his brother Andrew who asked Jesus what would happen in the future.
Mark 13:3 “And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,”
This James was also present when the Lord Jesus resurrected and then appeared to His disciples three times.
John 20:19 “Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. 26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.”; John 21:2 “There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples.”
When we learned about this man James, he is always in the group of the disciples in the inner circle not in the group of the outer circle. James is always closer with the Lord, he is always present, always walk right beside of the Lord Jesus. Let us get closer and closer with Jesus. Don’t get far away from Jesus.
VI – INFLICTION: THE MARTYRDOM AND DEATH OF JAMES We should be careful enough not to rely on tradition or historical records that have been passed down to us that come from unreliable source contrary to the Bible. Regarding the death of James, the Bible is the only reliable and true trusted records.
When we talk about Martyrs, this James the son of Zebedee was the first of the twelve disciples as a martyr but was not the first Christian martyr who give up his life for the sake of Christ and the gospel. The honor being the first Christian martyr belonged to Stephen. Among the twelve disciples, the first of the disciples to be killed was this, James. The death of this James happened about 14 years after Christ’s resurrection.
Read Acts 12:1 and give the name of the ruler persecuting the church at that time? ______________________
Acts 12:1 “Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.”
What did Herod do to James and how did Herod execute it? (Acts 12:2). ____________________________________ .
Acts 12:2 “And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.”
After Herod the king killed James, did God put a terrible end to the life of Herod? (Acts 12:23). ___________________ .
Acts 12:23 “And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.”
This man James drink of the cup of suffering exactly as Jesus promised to his disciples in Mark 10:39.
Mark 10:39 “And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized:”
As Herod killed James with the sword, the life of James did not bring to an end; the death of James only resulted to the end of his physical existence in this earth. The sword only brought physical death but complete the verse that Paul said in II Corinthians 5:8 “We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the ____________, and to be present with the ____________.” The Bible is saying as a Christian James was absent from the physical body but he is alive in the present of the Lord in heaven. Was James in better condition or worse condition after his death? (Philippians 1:21, 23)
Philippians 1:21, 23 “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:”
VII – IDENTICALITY: THE GOOD AND BAD POINTS THAT YOU AND JAMES SHARE James was a man like all of us who had his good points and bad points in life.
There are times that James is hot-headed, easily angered like a thunder and need to calm down and needed to have a merciful spirit. James was an ambitious man with pride who needed to become humble and must learn the secret of greatness. James left all and become a devoted follower of Christ. James stayed closer to the Lord was in a group of the inner circle. James served the Lord God faithfully until His death as the first disciples who become martyr and enter into the presence of Christ with you.
As you remembered all about James’s life, can you say that you find yourself in James? In reverse, as you remembered your life today, can you say that you find James in you? Can you relate yourself to James’s life? James has good points and weak points that you share. What are those good point and bad points of James that you can relate in your life?
|