a sponge full of the

Reading James is like getting the Constitution printed onto a grain of rice, especially if you're reading it in a sitting (there's probably some issues with the metaphor but I don't care). You could literally spend a year dissecting the book and preaching each Sunday on single sentences. It becomes a book that you want new believers to read if they only had one book to read, and a book that you want to shield new believers from ever reading.

Reasons for inclusion:
* Begins with an encouragement to persevere through trial
* Heads straight to importance of wisdom
* Discusses sin and temptation and God's role in it
* A whole paragraph follows containing famous one-liners later adapted into hymns
* Heads into doing vs mere believing -- and this and all of the above is just Ch 1!
* Attacks churches who don't love the poor.
* Faith v works
* Great paragraph on tongues
* Attacks the wealthy
* There's more, but frankly, I should just post the whole book.

Reasons for shielding:
* Faith v works, lotta trouble here
* Loss of salvation
* Whole Christian Scientist angle at the end

Again, lots here.