James 2:10

For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is become guilty of all.

As Dummelow put it: "It might be said that even if a man transgressed the Law of Christ in the matter or respect of persons, he was only breaking a small part of that Law. Not so. The Law, like the Lawgiver, is one." [22] This is another instance of James' reiterating a principle laid down by Jesus Christ (Matthew 5:19). "Transgression of one precept of the Christian rule of faith is a breach of the whole, because it breaks fellowship with the object of faith."[23] All of this is part and parcel of the "perfection" theme which dominates the epistle, having the great value of showing that even Christians who earnestly strive to do the will of Christ are nevertheless not able to attain any acceptable degree of perfection in their own right. The proper respect for this truth will have the practical effect of driving every man to Jesus Christ, in whom alone the perfection required by Almighty God (Matthew 5:48; Colossians 1:28) may be received through God's grace.

Regarding this principle that breaking Christ's commandments in one particular is the same as breaking all of them, commentators have given many illustrations. If one strikes a great mirror in only one place, the whole is broken; if one breaks over a fence at only one place, he has violated all of it; if a chain of a thousand links is broken in only one, the chain is broken, etc., etc. The thing in view here, of course, is the law of love; but there are many other commandments of Christ which are today violated by men with impunity; and not the least of these regards baptism and the Lord's supper, the command to assemble in worship, etc.

[22] J. R. Dummelow, op. cit., p. 1035.

[23] Walter W. Wessel, op. cit., p. 952.