In his Epistle James emphasizes the importance of wisdom. In 1:5 he says, “But if anyone of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and does not reproach, and it will be given to him.” James realized that the wisdom of God is needed for practical Christian perfection. In 3:13 James speaks concerning the meekness of wisdom: “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by his good manner of life his works in meekness of wisdom.” According to the context of chapter three, meekness of wisdom refers to restraint in speaking. In 3:17 James goes on to talk of the wisdom from above, saying, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, forbearing, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, unfeigned.” This wisdom includes the meekness in verse 13 and the human virtues mentioned in verse 17, all of which are characteristics of practical Christian perfection according to James’ view.
What James says about wisdom has an Old Testament flavor. According to James’ understanding, the wisdom that is from above may have been much like the wisdom given by God to Solomon. Solomon’s wisdom did not come from below, from the world, from Egypt; his wisdom came from above, from God.
The kind of wisdom James talks about is wisdom for human behavior. This wisdom has an Old Testament flavor, and it has nothing to do with New Testament wisdom. In the New Testament the wisdom of God is a matter of living Christ, of having Christ as everything. In 1 Corinthians 1:30 Paul says that Christ has been made wisdom to us from God. Furthermore, the New Testament wisdom of God is not for the building up of our character or Christian perfection; it is for the building up of the church, the Body of Christ. If you read 1 Corinthians 1 and 2, Ephesians 1 and 3, and Colossians 2, you will see what a great difference there is between these two categories of wisdom—the wisdom of the Old Testament for human behavior and the wisdom of the New Testament for having Christ as everything so that the church may be built up.
Many Christians appreciate the type of wisdom found in the book of James. The reason they appreciate this kind of wisdom is that they do not see the crucial matters of Christ as life and the building up of the church. Among today’s Christians, few messages are given concerning enjoying Christ as everything so that the church, the Body of Christ, may be built up. Instead, believers have a high regard for the Epistle of James. However, we can see that there is a great discrepancy between the wisdom in the Epistle of James and the wisdom of God revealed in the Epistles of Paul.
In 4:4 and 5 James says, “Adulteresses, do you not know that the friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever determines to be a friend of the world is constituted an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain: The Spirit who dwells in us longs to envy?” This is the only time James mentions God’s indwelling Spirit, and this negatively, concerning the abolishing of the friendship of the world, not positively, concerning the living of Christ for the building up of the Body of Christ. Therefore, James does speak of the indwelling Spirit, but he speaks of the Spirit only in relation to dealing with the world.
Concerning the Spirit, there is a great difference between the book of James and the Epistles of Paul. Paul has much to say concerning the indwelling Spirit. For example, in Romans 8 the indwelling Spirit causes us to have life in our spirit, in our mind, and eventually even in our mortal body. In this way the indwelling Spirit causes our tripartite being to be fully saturated with the divine life. Of course, in Galatians 5 Paul also speaks of the striving of the Spirit against the flesh: “The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh” (v. 17). Elsewhere in Galatians Paul speaks of the Spirit of the Son: “Because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba Father!” (4:6). We have received the Spirit of the Son so that Christ may be formed within us (Gal. 4:19). What a great matter it is to have Christ formed in us! Therefore, the Spirit of the Son is not merely for us to overcome the flesh and deal with the world, but is for Christ to be formed within us. Here we see a positive emphasis concerning the Spirit that is not found in the book of James.