If he was disqualified from being one of the twelve, he was not debarred
from liberty to serve. In fact, he was a practical apostle in Jerusalem
along with the rest. The twelve kept no secrets from James. He gradually
won his way to the love and confidence of all the great church in
Jerusalem. His importance in Jerusalem is recognized by Paul on the
occasion of his visit to Jerusalem on his return from Damascus, for he
says: “Other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother”
(Gal. 1:19). Here Paul treats him as an apostle and practically calls
him so.
James had probably seen Paul before, when he was the leader of the
persecution against the Christians. He doubtless was glad to see this
powerful addition to the forces of Christianity, but James is probably
included in Luke’s statement of the reception of Paul on this occasion.
“And they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple”
(Acts 9:26). Barnabas alone had faith in Paul and the courage to stand
by him. If James was suspicious of the new convert, so were all the
rest, and not without reason. It is clear from Paul’s reference in
Galatians 1:18 that Peter responded heartily to Paul’s advances after
once opening his heart to him. They had a delightful fifteen days
together. It is not likely, as Farrar[24] argues, that James, being a
legalist, held aloof from Paul throughout. This is wholly gratuitous.
James is not mentioned again in Acts till 12:17, and in a most
significant manner. James, the brother of John, has been killed by Herod
Agrippa I. Peter has been thrown into prison but has been released by
the angel of the Lord in response to the prayers of the church assembled
in the home of Mary, mother of John Mark (12:12). Peter goes to the
house and tells the astonished group: “Tell these things unto James, and
to the brethren.” This is somewhere about A.D. 44. James now clearly
occupies a position of leadership in the church. Peter himself
apparently leaves the city for the time being (12:17). There are already
“elders” (11:30) in the church at Jerusalem. We do not know what the
position of James is, but certainly it is one of great honor and
leadership. The apostles, since James could not be one of the twelve who
were charged with the general work of evangelization, may have been glad
for James to be in charge at Jerusalem. Certainly he proved himself
fully equal to the task.
James maintains the position of leadership in Jerusalem throughout the
narrative in Acts. He is evidently the president of the Jerusalem
Conference (Acts 15:14-21). He is in charge of the church when Paul
visits Jerusalem the last time (Acts 21:18): “Paul went in with us unto
James; and all the elders were present.” He possessed the confidence of
this great Jewish church, the mother church at Jerusalem, and had the
ear of the non-Christian Jewish world in a way hardly true of any other
disciple of Jesus. Jews would listen to James who would not heed Simon
Peter.