10—Forty Days with James: Oppressors & Oppressed

<p>For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ <a href="https://www.douglasjacoby.com/10-forty-days-with-james-oppressors-oppressed/" target="_blank"><strong>website.</strong></a></p><p><strong>Intro</strong></p><ul><li>Was Jesus a "carpenter" (Mark 6:3, Matt 13:55)? <i>Tekton</i> = builder. "Carpenter,” esp. in our culture, has a certain prestige. But not so much when someone tells you, “I’m in construction. I’m a manual laborer.”</li><li>Jesus was more likely a stonemason. Wood is not the usual building material in Palestine – stone is much more common. As a builder he would have worked with others. He also may not have been as well-off as we might think. (After all, consider how few possessions he had at the end of his life.)</li><li>He was not born into privilege; he had to work for a living. James wasn't wealthy, either. If anything, he stood on the side of the underprivileged.</li></ul><p><strong>James 2:5-7</strong></p><ul><li>James urges us not to privilege the rich. Often they are rich only because they are underpaying, entrapping, or otherwise exploiting the poor.</li><li>Of course not all poor people will be saved, and not all rich people will be condemned.</li><li>But the Scriptures heavily favor the needy, pity the plight of the poor, and call us all to take responsibility.</li><li>Irony: cozying up to the very people who are exploiting you!</li><li>The rich typically use the law to gain wealth, keep it, and make it grow—and keep it away from others.</li></ul><p><strong>Further:</strong></p><ul><li><a href="https://www.douglasjacoby.com/qa-1616-santiago-de-compostela/">Q&A 1616:</a> “Are James's remains in the church of Santiago de Compostela in Spain?”</li><li><a href="https://www.douglasjacoby.com/n-t-character-podcast-67-james-the-brother-of-jesus/">N.T. Character Study on James</a>, the brother of the Lord.</li><li>A book on the ossuary of James, by Hershel Shanks and Ben Witherington III, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Brother-Jesus-Dramatic-Meaning-Archaeological/dp/0060581174"><i>Th