James the Just - His Wisdom Helps To Steady the Church

Welcome to another episode in my series on the Builders of the Early Church. Today’s subject is James the Just – His Wisdom Helps To Steady the Church.

James the Just shows us another aspect of leadership and how everyone can play a role in growing the church.

Barnabas showed us encouragement, Peter showed us restoration…

James shows us something quieter, something that often goes unnoticed but is absolutely essential: He shows us the importance of spiritual stability.

There’s something remarkable about James from the beginning.

He grew up in the same household as Jesus.

And during Jesus’ public ministry, the Gospels tell us something uncomfortable:

His brothers did not believe in Him.

James was not an early disciple.
He did not follow Jesus during the Galilean miracles.
He did not stand among the Twelve.

And yet, after the resurrection, everything changes.

The risen Christ appears to James personally. Paul mentions this in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8

“ For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles “

And from that moment forward, James becomes one of the most respected leaders in the Jerusalem church.

There’s something deeply human about that.

Sometimes the people who struggle the longest… lead the steadiest…..

If you would like a printed copy of this message please contact me and I’ll be happy to send you a link so you can download one.