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Every generation in the church worries, rightly, about people who just glide along, seeming to enjoy what they hear in church but without it making any real difference. James faced exactly the same problem in the very first generation. So it's not surprising that translating belief into action--making sure faith is the real thing--is near the heart of his message.
That kind of faith, he explains, is the faith that matters, the faith that justifies, the faith that saves. We need that kind of faith today. These nine studies on James's passionate letter will help you live out a faith that makes a difference.
That kind of faith, he explains, is the faith that matters, the faith that justifies, the faith that saves. We need that kind of faith today. These nine studies on James's passionate letter will help you live out a faith that makes a difference.
61 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 16, 2012
108 people are currently reading
195 people want to read
About the author
N.T. Wright
460 books2,863 followersN. T. Wright is the former Bishop of Durham in the Church of England (2003-2010) and one of the world's leading Bible scholars. He is now serving as the chair of New Testament and Early Christianity at the School of Divinity at the University of St. Andrews. He has been featured on ABC News, Dateline NBC, The Colbert Report, and Fresh Air, and he has taught New Testament studies at Cambridge, McGill, and Oxford universities. Wright is the award-winning author of Surprised by Hope, Simply Christian, The Last Word, The Challenge of Jesus, The Meaning of Jesus (coauthored with Marcus Borg), as well as the much heralded series Christian Origins and the Question of God.
He also publishes under Tom Wright.
He also publishes under Tom Wright.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 27, 2022
Yields great group discussion; a little thin on its own.
April 26, 2024
Man, I love NT Wright, I'm pretty disappointed in this study guide. In case you didn't know, he has a single volume commentary on the early Christian letters, one of which is the book of james. This study guide consists of extremely truncated excerpts from that commentary followed by some discussion/study questions. I could imagine a version of this that is pretty helpful and succinct to most lay readers. But I don't think this is it.
First, the excerpts they usually offer from the commentary have very little exegetical parts and mainly consist of the little framing application stories that Wright uses to begin talking about the passage. For example, he will tell the story of how he was offered to sit at a prominent place at a church he was speaking at once, and how this made him feel awkward in light of the admonition of James against giving certain types of seating priority to people within a church service. I understand the point, but it doesn't really illuminate the text at all. But this is representative of a good number of the chapters. The actual exegetical content is light, and in a move very uncharacteristic for Wright, he sort of loses the forest for the trees when walking through this book. He treats each section very discreetly and only very rarely tries to connect the various sections into a cohesive running set of themes or flow of thought.
Now again, there's a version of this that could be okay, but the questions themselves are also very lacking. I understand there is an art i and difficulty to writing discussion questions. I do it all the time, and I know how you have to balance accessibility with some depth. But Wright here seems to really underestimate his readers with a lot of very surface level questions. Occasionally there are bursts of brilliance and really helpful insights, but overall, I really had to pick and choose questions as I used this book to guide a Bible study I was doing on James. I was leaving this with a youth group, and I found many of the questions to be a bit too basic and lacking depth for even middle schoolers. Again, there are helpful things scattered throughout the book, and each chapter probably has two or three questions that are really worth pondering. But overall, I found this book lacking in many ways.
What added to my disappointment was the lingering sense that this book was mainly a publisher's money grab. They took a more robust commentary, took out the most valuable bits, and repackaged it with somewhat simplistic questions and sold it as an entirely different volume. That's pretty irritating to me. At the very least, they could have published the entire James section of the commentary along with these questions, rather than forcing you to buy this book and that other commentary if you want the full content.
But as it is, I wouldn't recommend this book too many people. I could see this being helpful if you are entirely new to the Christian faith (but even then, some of his stories and questions presume some acculturation into Christian faith, so I don't know). This can also be helpful if you are leading a Bible study (as I was) and are okay purchasing an entire volume for the sake of getting a handful of really good questions and ideas for your discussions. But for most people who actually want to better understand the book of James and how it might connect to their life, there are much better volumes out there.
First, the excerpts they usually offer from the commentary have very little exegetical parts and mainly consist of the little framing application stories that Wright uses to begin talking about the passage. For example, he will tell the story of how he was offered to sit at a prominent place at a church he was speaking at once, and how this made him feel awkward in light of the admonition of James against giving certain types of seating priority to people within a church service. I understand the point, but it doesn't really illuminate the text at all. But this is representative of a good number of the chapters. The actual exegetical content is light, and in a move very uncharacteristic for Wright, he sort of loses the forest for the trees when walking through this book. He treats each section very discreetly and only very rarely tries to connect the various sections into a cohesive running set of themes or flow of thought.
Now again, there's a version of this that could be okay, but the questions themselves are also very lacking. I understand there is an art i and difficulty to writing discussion questions. I do it all the time, and I know how you have to balance accessibility with some depth. But Wright here seems to really underestimate his readers with a lot of very surface level questions. Occasionally there are bursts of brilliance and really helpful insights, but overall, I really had to pick and choose questions as I used this book to guide a Bible study I was doing on James. I was leaving this with a youth group, and I found many of the questions to be a bit too basic and lacking depth for even middle schoolers. Again, there are helpful things scattered throughout the book, and each chapter probably has two or three questions that are really worth pondering. But overall, I found this book lacking in many ways.
What added to my disappointment was the lingering sense that this book was mainly a publisher's money grab. They took a more robust commentary, took out the most valuable bits, and repackaged it with somewhat simplistic questions and sold it as an entirely different volume. That's pretty irritating to me. At the very least, they could have published the entire James section of the commentary along with these questions, rather than forcing you to buy this book and that other commentary if you want the full content.
But as it is, I wouldn't recommend this book too many people. I could see this being helpful if you are entirely new to the Christian faith (but even then, some of his stories and questions presume some acculturation into Christian faith, so I don't know). This can also be helpful if you are leading a Bible study (as I was) and are okay purchasing an entire volume for the sake of getting a handful of really good questions and ideas for your discussions. But for most people who actually want to better understand the book of James and how it might connect to their life, there are much better volumes out there.
October 19, 2025
I picked up Wright's "NT for Everyone" series to use with our group as we were starting a new book, specifically the book of James.
Wright breaks down the scriptures into sections, offering an opening commentary for each to stimulate your thinking, along with an initial group discussion question to help everyone get on the same page. After that, you read the scriptures and discuss the provided questions. It's a simple yet profound approach.
Our group found that using this guide allowed us to slow down, which was perfectly fine since we are in no rush. It encouraged us not only to think more deeply about the verses we were studying but also to see various ways they can be applied to our lives. As a result, the discussions and interactions among the members increased significantly, which is a wonderful outcome.
Wright breaks down the scriptures into sections, offering an opening commentary for each to stimulate your thinking, along with an initial group discussion question to help everyone get on the same page. After that, you read the scriptures and discuss the provided questions. It's a simple yet profound approach.
Our group found that using this guide allowed us to slow down, which was perfectly fine since we are in no rush. It encouraged us not only to think more deeply about the verses we were studying but also to see various ways they can be applied to our lives. As a result, the discussions and interactions among the members increased significantly, which is a wonderful outcome.
January 1, 2021
This simple study is a good fit for small groups or an individual exploration of James. As usual, Wright weaves history, theology, and application together to make a thorough reflection of this most “controversial” book of the canon.
Those in the western evangelical tradition may be especially interested in Wright’s use of narrative theology and holistic exegesis to directly challenge notions or works, grace, and perceived tensions.
3.5 stars for the well structured approach, though the group facilitation and study questions are somewhat simplistic.
Those in the western evangelical tradition may be especially interested in Wright’s use of narrative theology and holistic exegesis to directly challenge notions or works, grace, and perceived tensions.
3.5 stars for the well structured approach, though the group facilitation and study questions are somewhat simplistic.
October 21, 2021
"Peter and Paul and the others went off around the world, but James stayed put in Jerusalem, praying and teaching and trusting that the God who had raised his beloved brother from the dead would complete what he had begun. This letter, then, would be part of that work, written to encourage Christians across the world--whom he saw as the new version of the 'twelve dispersed tribes' of Israel--to face up to the challenge of faith."
May 29, 2022
Some of the questions throughout were confusing or contained the answer within the question in a way that prompted no discussion at all. Not my favorite study in the world, but it did start some very meaningful conversations and is a good starting point for a study of the book of James.
July 24, 2023
N.T. Wright has such a way of making Biblical concepts simple and applicable.
I started this study with friends and ended it solo.
James is probably one of the most relatable books for today’s Christian and yet its not the easiest to live.
Can’t wait to do more of Wright’s studies.
I started this study with friends and ended it solo.
James is probably one of the most relatable books for today’s Christian and yet its not the easiest to live.
Can’t wait to do more of Wright’s studies.
November 8, 2018
Great study
Highly recommended for small groups, really gives perspective to ours loved as Christians today compared to those of the early church.
Highly recommended for small groups, really gives perspective to ours loved as Christians today compared to those of the early church.
December 26, 2024
It was good to read this book with a group as we explored James. It gave us questions to ponder and discuss.
February 18, 2025
Refreshing.
March 10, 2025
NT Wright offers great perspectives and thought-provoking questions in this study. Highly recommend!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews