Brother James

"He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword." Acts 12:2

This is James, the son of Zebedee, the fisherman also one of the "sons of thunder". He and his brother John were part of the inner circle of apostles. Unlike Peter and John, the other two who were invited to the transfiguration, James did not write part of our Bible. He is mentioned in every gospel many times, but there are not many details like Peter and John. We only know he was close to Jesus, a witness of the resurrection, and a faithful disciple. Herod, on the other hand, who had James put to death, was not a believer. Herod the Great, his grandfather, had the babies in Bethlehem killed, trying to do away with Jesus the Messiah. His uncle, Herod Antipos tried Jesus and had John the Baptist beheaded. This third Herod made a fatal mistake when he was called “god” by the people, and failed to defer to the only God (James knew the only true God). An angel struck Herod with a disease and he died eaten by worms. Whether you are martyred, murdered, mentioned, or not, when it comes down to it, the most important thing is, Do you know Jesus? James did, apparently Herod the Great did not. I hope he figured it out at the very end, dying so painfully and all. We all choose not how we die or when, but whether we truly believe or not. I hope James is your brother too.

In Him,
Pastor Fred

Tweet