Church tradition holds that 16th-century reformer Martin Luther despised the epistle of James, going so far as to say that it contained little to none of “the nature of the Gospel.” 

One of Luther’s biggest complaints was that this early Christian letter contains only the slightest mention of Jesus, which is why he thought it had so little to offer. 

But part of why we think the book of James deserves our attention is because, if you look close enough, it says some profound things about what it means to be like Jesus. And it doesn’t sugarcoat them in saccharine, theological language either. 

James speaks to the grit of our lives: yo what it means to be an everyday human, the struggle to have faith, the challenge of putting faith to work. 

Which, curiously enough, sounds a lot like Jesus.