1 Corinthians 15:7. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.
Did you know that Jesus had brothers and sisters? The Bible names four of Jesus’ younger half-brothers: James, Simon, Jude, and Joseph. The James that Jesus appeared to in our verse is his half-brother. Here James is called an Apostle. That means that he was one of the leaders of the church. James would become the pastor of the church in Jerusalem (the very first church ever).
But James wasn’t always a Christian. In fact, until Jesus appeared to James after he rose from the dead, James didn’t believe in Jesus at all. Here’s a verse that tells us that Jesus’ family all thought he was crazy:
Mark 3:20-21. 20Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”
And here’s a passage that shows us how Jesus’ brothers tried to get him to go to Judea even though it was dangerous for Jesus. Why? Read verse 5.
John 7:1-5. 1After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. 2Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand. 3So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. 4For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” 5For not even his brothers believed in him.
The story of James is one of the greatest “before and after” stories in history. Do you know what a “before and after” story is?
Before exercising, I was slow and tired. After exercising, I was fast and energetic.
James: Before seeing the resurrected Jesus, I did not like him and I thought he was nuts. After seeing the resurrected Jesus, I believed in him and started serving him.
Do you have a “before and after” story about Jesus? You do (even if you don’t think you do).
Before Jesus I was ___. But after Jesus I was ___. What would you put in the blanks?
What would convince James to change his mind about Jesus like this? Well, obviously his resurrection. But just because someone rises from the dead doesn’t mean you think they are the Lord God. If your brother rose from the dead would you think he was God? Probably not. Why not? Because you’ve seen him do lots of bad things. Your brother is far from sinless and perfect, just like you.
But James’ brother, Jesus, was perfect. He never sinned. He was never mean, never cheated in school, never told a lie, never skipped his chores or got a bad grade in school. This probably made James hate him while growing up. But now James can see that because Jesus was sinless, he can be saved.
And so can we!
With Jesus, we have not only seen him resurrected by faith, but we can also be sure that his sinless life has been given to us by that same faith. Now what? Now we can obey God like Jesus, not to become perfect, but because Jesus is already perfect and he lives in us.
You: What is your “before and after” story? Before knowing Jesus ___. After knowing Jesus ___.
You with Jesus: How does knowing that Jesus was perfect for us and has already made us perfect by his grace allow us to obey him without being nervous or afraid?
Prayer: Father, I believe that Jesus was sinless and that he rose from the dead too. Help me to trust his perfection instead of my own. Amen.
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