James the Less

Depicts his death by stoning and then, after his death, his body was sawed in half.

James the Less, son of Alphaeus, shares his first name with two much more prominent figures of the New Testament. One is James, the brother of John, who was one of the foremost apostles. The other is James, the brother of Jesus, who some claim was the author of the New Testament epistle.

Let’s face it, anyone identified as "the Less" will tend to have a rather minor role in any narrative, and this apostle doesn’t disappoint. His story was so insignificant to the writers of the New Testament that he is merely mentioned in the apostolic lists. Other than the tradition that tells us that he may have served as a missionary to southwest Palestine and Egypt, and how he died for his faith, we don’t know much about him. In fact, I imagine if Reader’s Digest ever decided to make a condensed book out of the Bible, he would be left out entirely.

I think most of us feel a certain kinship with James the Less. We quietly do what is asked of us and live perfectly ordinary lives. We don’t expect to receive accolades for our accomplishments, because we usually don’t. In our achievement oriented society, glory and recognition are only for athletes, civic leaders, and CEOs, not ordinary people like us.

But Jesus thought differently. Although no one was more ordinary than this James, when Jesus came and dwelt among us, he chose him to be a disciple. He was one of the people with whom our Lord chose to share the human experience. Jesus looked at this ordinary man, and instead of telling him he was unworthy, that he wasn’t anything special, that he hadn’t accomplished enough, he chose to teach him and minister to him.

That’s the good news: unlike the temporary glory of this life, the glory of the kingdom of God is not just for athletes, civic leaders, and CEOs. It is for all, from the newly born child in the nursery to the 97 year old woman who sits on the back pew. That’s what we can learn from this ordinary disciple. No matter the standards of this world may tell us about our worth, no matter how ordinary and insignificant we may sometimes feel, in Christ God revealed that we are all good enough to be part of God’s kingdom. What more could we ask for?

Brandon Gilliam