(James 5:7-9) 7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. 8 You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. 9 Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.
Two times James tell his 1st century audience to be patient as they wait for the coming of the Lord. How much stronger and clearer could the words of scripture be? Christ said he would return in that first century generation, and now, just a handful of years before the destruction of Jerusalem, and the fulfillment of the promises that accompany it, and James uses phrases like "be patient UNTIL THE COMING of the Lord" and "for the coming of the lord is NEAR" and stronger still, "the Judge is standing RIGHT AT THE DOOR". James is telling these Christians nothing more than what Christ himself prophesied, and what Paul had been telling his churches. Unless you strip away audience relevance, you must concede that James believed in a first century second coming and that is why he taught it to his churches.
