If you search the Internet for an outline of the epistle of
James you will find a wide variety of interpretations. In my searches I have found some who suggest
the outline of James consists of two or three main points. At the other end of the spectrum, I found outlines
with up to 13 main points.
Why is there such a discrepancy in creating an outline for a
short letter with only five chapters?
There are several reasons why James is a difficult book to
describe. First, James had a unique writing
style. His style was very different from
Paul. Since Paul wrote many of the
letters included in the New Testament many people try to impose Paul’s style on
the letter from James. Second, in our
Western society we are trained from an early age to use a topic outline starting
with Roman numerals. In this outline
form you have the main topic, then the sub-topic, followed by
sub-sub-topics. The letter from James
simply does not follow this pattern.
Depending on which outline you follow, there are either many main topics,
or many sub-topics. In either case, the
writing style of James does not follow a traditional Western outline style.
The main reason the letter from James is difficult to
outline is that his writing does not flow from left to right. When Paul wrote a letter he began with
foundational truth and then he progressed to instruction based on those
truths. The letter from James is filled
with instruction, but the teaching is not based on some previously explained
doctrine. Instead, James gives
instruction combined with foundational truth.
Simply put, James does not follow a Left-to-Right writing
style. The way I describe James’ writing
is Center-Out. You can picture this
outline as a wheel with a hub and many spokes.
The center, or hub, of James letter is found in the second
verse: “Consider it all joy, my
brethren, when you encounter various trials.” From that starting point James writes about
many potential obstacles which the readers may face. These various trials become the spokes in the
wheel. As you read this letter, at the
beginning of each new topic remember the main theme, various trials.
To help you visualize this hub and spoke type of writing
style, I have created a diagram which shows six major topics found in the book
of James. You can find that diagram here:
http://www.wisdomcriesout.com/James_Spoke_Outline.pdf
A second diagram which shows the main topics and the
specific verses related to each topic can be found here: http://www.wisdomcriesout.com/James_Spoke_Outline_Verses.pdf
Once you understand James’ writing style the entire letter
makes much more sense. This is the
approach we took to our new study guide, “Every Lap A Victory Lap.” This guide covers every verse in the letter
from James, but it takes a Center-Out format, rather than a Left-to-Right
approach. You can order this new study
guide at http://www.amazon.com/Every-Lap-Victory-Bible-Letter/dp/1479197130
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