Lyric discussion by zzzb3b3b3 

Cover art for Fly From Heaven lyrics by Toad the Wet Sprocket

i believe you're right the song is written in the point of view of james. I think james is having problems w/ Jesus's death...he cannot see the big picture and the ultimate sacrifice of what Jesus did. All he can see are the short-term implications of his death "denied his family" and "denied his beauty". It's really a song of mourning and different people go about it in different ways. Great Song!!!