James 1: Group Study Handout

How to use: read James 1 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

James greets the twelve tribes in the Dispersion and encourages them to count it all joy when facing various temptations, as testing produces endurance (vv. 1-4). He urges those lacking wisdom to ask God in faith, warning that doubt leads to instability (vv.

Key verse

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.”
James 1:2-3 (WEB)

Outline

James 1:1–4 Greeting and Joy in Trials
James 1:5–8 Asking for Wisdom
James 1:9–11 Humility in Wealth and Poverty
James 1:12–16 Endurance and Temptation
James 1:17–21 Good Gifts and Receiving the Word
James 1:22–25 Hearing and Doing the Word
James 1:26–27 True Religion Defined

Discussion questions

In v2, what does James encourage believers to feel when they face trials?
What does James say about the rich in vv. 10-11 regarding their fate?
In v14, what does James mean by being 'drawn away by his own lust'?
In v22, why does James emphasize the difference between 'hearers' and 'doers' of the word?
How does the call to be 'slow to anger' in v19 connect to your daily interactions?

Go deeper

Passages that echo James 1: Romans 8, 1 Peter 1, Matthew 5.

Before next time: read James 2.