Faith & Favoritism

Well, good morning, church.

Wherever you may be, we invite you to turn in the Bible to James chapter 2.

James 2 · chapter mention

James chapter 2, verses 1 through 13.

James 2:1–13

Let me read these verses for us this morning.

My brothers and sisters, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly,

and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in,

and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say,

you sit here in a good place,

while you say to the poor man, you stand over there, or sit down at my feet.

Have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

Listen, my beloved brothers.

Has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom,

which he has promised to those who love him?

But you have dishonored the poor man.

Are not the rich the ones who oppress you and the ones who drag you into court?

Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?

If you really fulfill the royal law, according to the scripture,

you shall love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well.

But if you show partiality, you are committing sin

and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

For he who said do not commit adultery also said do not murder.

If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.

So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty.

For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy.

Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Let's pray.

Father, we pray that you would speak to us through these words that you inspired James to write so long ago through your spirit.

Help me as I proclaim your word.

Help each of us in our different locations as we listen and take to heart what you have to say for us today.

May you be glorified.

May your spirit do his work.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, one of the things my family and I have enjoyed doing together recently is cooking.

We've tried some new recipes over the last several weeks and the results have generally been quite satisfying.

On Mother's Day, which happened to be our wedding anniversary, our older children, Nathan and Grace, wanted to make breakfast for us on their own.

Without us present in the kitchen at all.

We were a bit nervous at first, but they did a great job.

Now, when we're all cooking together, our two-year-old, Hannah, likes to mix the pancake batter or the scrambled eggs or whatever is in the bowl on the counter.

She can be quite engaged, but like any other two-year-old, she also needs to be carefully watched.

So that she doesn't take some chili powder and add it to the pancake batter or dump the coffee grounds into the scrambled eggs.

Right?

In order to be successful in cooking, you need to have good ingredients in good proportions and you need to carefully avoid and resist anything that would spoil or contaminate the batter.

Now, in the same way, to be healthy and growing as Christians, we need to mix together healthy proportions of God's word and prayer, of solitude and fellowship, of humble confession and thankful praise.

Those kinds of things will make for good spiritual nourishment.

But in the passage we just read, James is concerned that his people have added something bad to the mix.

Added something that will spoil their spiritual nourishment.

Don't combine faith with favoritism, he says.

The ESV translates it partiality.

So this morning, I want us to look at our passage in three parts.

First, what is favoritism?

Or partiality in verses 1 to 4.

Second, why favoritism can't be combined with faith in Jesus Christ, verses 5 to 11.

And third, the Christian alternative to favoritism.

So first, what exactly is favoritism?

Literally, verse 1 can be translated,

Do not in favoritisms.

The word is actually plural, indicating that there are many different expressions or ways of showing,

favoritism, do not in favoritisms hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

But then James goes on to give one very specific and colorful illustration of favoritism in verses 2 and 3.

A man wearing a gold ring, literally gold fingers, with bright, clean, fine clothing,

walks into church, and a poor person in shabby, smelly, filthy clothing also comes in.

And the usher at the door, or whoever might be greeting them,

immediately pays special attention to the well-dressed, wealthy man,

and makes sure that he has a good, comfortable, honorable seat,

but rudely tells the second guy to stand in the corner or sit on the floor.

Now, we don't know whether this exact scenario had actually happened in a first-century Christian meeting,

and James had heard about it, and he was addressing it.

But it is evident that James was not just giving a hypothetical example here.

He was concerned about a real and serious pattern of favoritism

that was manifesting itself in one way or another within the Christian community.

Verse 6, he says,

You have dishonored the poor man.

And for James, this was a very serious concern.

In verse 4, he says,

You've made distinctions among yourselves.

Now, that could also be translated,

You have wavered within yourselves,

or you have become inconsistent within yourselves.

It's the same verb that appeared in chapter 1, verse 6,

and is translated there, doubt.

And as we talked about back then,

that it has this idea of being double-minded,

being driven and tossed by the winds.

And as we said earlier,

a double-minded person is not just somebody who has unanswered questions or troubled emotions.

A double-minded person has divided loyalties.

A double-minded person is not steadfast in their love for God.

James is calling us in his epistle here

to steadfast love for the Lord who steadfastly loves his people.

And so James says,

I mean, if we think about it,

what would motivate people,

what would motivate us

to pay special attention to the rich

and overlook or dishonor the poor?

Well, I mean, think about it.

If you know or if you see somebody who seems wealthy,

powerful, popular, athletic, beautiful, smart, suave,

you might think,

I want to connect with that person.

I want to become part of that person's social network.

They could benefit me.

Or you might be intimidated by them.

You might think,

well, I better make sure to stay on their good side

because I don't want to get on their bad side.

On the other hand,

if you see somebody

and in your assessment,

they seem poor, powerless,

unpopular, ugly, smelly, awkward,

you might tend to avoid them

and look the other way.

You might think,

maybe that person doesn't have much to offer me

except for their problems.

I'd rather avoid them.

And you know, often this happens very often

and often it happens almost subconsciously

we don't even realize what's going on.

We don't even sort of express those thoughts in our own head.

We just instinctively turn away

or instinctively fix our attention.

Of course, this can happen in person.

This can happen on social media.

This can happen in all kinds of contexts.

And James says this is a very serious issue.

He says you've become judges with evil thoughts.

In other words,

you've been thinking and reasoning

and coming to conclusions

that are inconsistent with your faith

in the Lord Jesus Christ.

You're not seeing people the way God sees them.

You're not treating people the way God treats them.

You're making judgments according to worldly

or selfish standards

that don't match up with God's.

Now, according to the Bible,

there are appropriate and godly reasons

to honor certain people in distinctive ways.

For example,

husbands and wives are commanded

to show special honor to one another

and to give special priority

to pursuing and maintaining

and growing in their marriage covenant.

And sometimes that might mean

drawing back for a time

or saying no to some other opportunities

or limiting some other relationships.

Children are commanded,

honor and obey your parents.

Right?

It's appropriate for children

to pay more attention to their parents

than to anyone else in the world.

And it's right for adult children

to continue honoring their parents

by, among other things,

seeing that they're cared for

in their old age,

according to their needs,

even if in some cases

that calls for sacrifices.

God's people,

as God's people were instructed

to honor the governmental authorities

as they carry out

their God-ordained role in the world,

as well as honor church elders

who lead and teach God's people faithfully.

We should also honor elderly members

of the church in particular ways.

1 Timothy 5, 1 and 2 says,

don't rebuke an older man,

but encourage him as you would a father.

Treat younger men as brothers,

older women as mothers,

younger women as sisters,

in all purity.

Right?

In the family of God,

we honor one another

in distinctive ways.

Paul indicates that we rightly

honor men and women in the church

not by pretending

that we are all identical

in every way,

but by appropriately recognizing

and honoring one another's

distinctive gifts and contributions.

So the Bible isn't saying

that we should never honor anyone

in any distinctive ways.

I mean, for one example,

if an elderly person with a cane

walks into the room,

you better make sure

they have the best seat

and ask somebody else to move

or you move if you need to.

Right?

What the Bible is,

what James is warning us against

is favoritism.

And we might define that

as honoring some people

and dishonoring others

for ungodly

and self-serving reasons.

And in this passage,

James is particularly concerned

about favoritism

that dishonors

the poor and vulnerable.

Now, of course,

it is possible to do the opposite,

to dishonor the rich

and unjustly favor the poor.

Leviticus 19.15,

which we had read out earlier for us,

says,

You shall not be partial to the poor

or defer to the great,

but in righteousness

you shall judge your neighbor.

Right?

There's equal justice before the law

back in Leviticus.

And so it's possible

to express resentment

toward everyone

who is wealthy

or more privileged

than we in some way or other.

That's not a godly thing.

It's possible to dismiss

the perspective

of anyone

who hasn't had

the same troubles

as we might have.

And those are attitudes

to resist.

But James' primary concern

was not that people

would unjustly

favor the poor

and dishonor the rich.

Right?

In most times

and most places,

the far more prevalent

temptation

is

to favor the rich

and dishonor the poor.

To favor those

who are privileged

or have all kinds of

benefits in many ways

and to dishonor people

who are poor

or more vulnerable.

And that's why

over and over

the Bible

specifically commands

God's people

along with

specifically saying

that

husbands and wives

should honor each other,

children should honor

their parents,

we should honor

governmental authorities

and church leaders.

The Bible specifically

commands us

to honor

the poor

and vulnerable

and show particular care

and concern

for their well-being.

Just a few examples.

Deuteronomy 10,

17-19

For the Lord your God

is God of gods

and Lord of lords,

the great,

the mighty,

and the awesome God

who is not partial

and takes no bribe.

God executes justice

for the fatherless

and the widow

and loves the sojourner

giving him food

and clothing.

Love the sojourner

therefore

for you are sojourners

in the land of Egypt.

Or Proverbs 14, 31

Whoever oppresses the poor

shows contempt

for their maker

but whoever is kind

to the needy

honors God.

Or consider Jesus' own words.

When you give a banquet

Jesus says

invite the poor,

the crippled,

the lame,

the blind

and you will be blessed.

There's not a corresponding

verse where Jesus says

when you give a party

make sure to invite

people who are healthy

and wealthy

and wise.

Right?

He knows we'll do that already.

No, he says

make sure

to include

and invite

and celebrate.

Right?

Not just sort of

give aid

but to celebrate

with people

who are poor

and vulnerable.

Now why does God

specifically remind us

to do this

because these are

the people

who are most

in danger

of being dishonored

and mistreated

and overlooked

in this world.

And God wants us

his people

to express

his particular care

for the poor

and vulnerable

so that

they know

that God

has not

forgotten

them.

Now in our church

I can think of

several examples

of people

who are actively

showing care

and concern

and honor

for one another

and looking out

for each other

in the ways

that we might

be vulnerable.

Just this past week

someone who was

homeless not too long

ago said to me

I'm thankful

that our church

really cares

and reaches out.

Brothers and sisters

let's continue

doing that.

Let's not become

weary

in doing good.

Now before we go

on to the next

point

I also want

to say that

in this passage

about favoritism

we see that

James is speaking

to the same

issues

in the first

century

on perhaps

a smaller scale

that our nation

has been dealing

with

and that have

erupted

this week

on a large scale.

Many people

feel that they

have been

dishonored

overlooked

mistreated

and far

worse

for a long

time.

George Floyd

was only

the most

recent

example.

Favoritism

has a long

history

in the United

States

and many

twisted effects

and it's not

just a black

and white

issue

even though

that's perhaps

the relationship

that goes

back

farthest

in history.

It's right

to lament

and to listen

and to pray

and to seek

justice.

How can we

as the church

be a redemptive

presence

in these

troubled

times?

As we've

said earlier

we should

certainly

pray for

peace

and lament

the destruction

and violence

that has erupted

in many cities.

We should pray

for those

in authority

and honor

the authorities

God has

established.

Pray for the

law enforcement

officers

who face

a hard

task

on a daily

basis.

But you know

if

speaking to

some of us

like me

some of us

might just

want to

duck

put our heads

down

and sort of

wish this never

happened

and avoid

talking about it

because it's

uncomfortable

to talk about

race

and it raises

all kinds

of

difficult emotions

and tough

questions.

But the

question James

raises here

is how do

we honor

one another?

And how do

we look out

how do we

listen to

one another?

Listen to

those who

might particularly

be mourning

or lamenting.

James calls

us here to

examine our

own hearts.

And to

take active

steps by

the power

of the

Holy Spirit

to love

our neighbors

as ourselves

and to

seek to

be a

redemptive

and justice

seeking and

healing presence

in this world

by the power

of the Holy

Spirit.

Let's pray

that we

might be

able to

move in

that direction

by God's

grace.

So that's

what favoritism

is.

Honoring

some people

and dishonoring

others for

ungodly and

selfish reasons.

And James

is concerned

about that.

Right?

Not just

when it

erupts into

a national

crisis but

just when it

happens on

a day-to-day

basis and

when it

manifests the

self-serving

attitudes of

our own

hearts.

So first,

that's what

favoritism is.

Second,

James shows us

why faith

in Christ

and favoritism

can't be

combined.

Verses 5

through 11,

James gives

us three

reasons why

we as

believers in

the Lord

Jesus Christ

must resist

and avoid

favoritism.

Verse 5,

he says,

favoritism is

contrary to

the character

of God.

Has not

God chosen

those who

are poor

in the

world to

be rich

in faith

and heirs

of the

kingdom

which he

has promised

to those

who love

him?

Now,

just to be

clear,

James does

not say

here that

God has

chosen all

poor people

or only

poor people

to be part

of his

kingdom.

At the

end of

chapter 2,

James refers

to Abraham

who was

quite wealthy

and powerful

as well as

Rahab who

seems to

have been

poor and

relatively

poor and

powerless

and both

of them

are examples

of genuine

faith.

But James

was acknowledging

the fact,

the undisputed

fact,

that the

vast majority

of the early

Christians were

relatively poor.

I mean,

the vast

majority

of people

in society

back then

were poor

and that

was true

in the

church as

well.

Some

well-educated

pagans

mocked the

early Christians

for this

very reason.

They said,

how could

Christianity

be the

true religion

if it

appeals to

so many

people who

lack formal

education like

slaves and

women and

children?

But James

wasn't ashamed

of that fact.

James says,

God himself

has delighted

to bestow

spiritual riches

and everlasting

honor upon

people who

the world

despises and

dishonors upon

everyone who

loves the

Lord.

And the

apostle Paul

said the same

sort of thing

in 1 Corinthians

1.

He says,

not many of

you,

remember he

says,

not many of

you are

wise according

to worldly

standards.

Not many

were powerful.

Not many

were of noble

birth.

But God

chose what

is foolish

in the world

to shame

the wise.

God chose

what is weak

in the world

to shame

the strong.

God chose

what is low

and despised

in the world

even things

that are not

to bring to

nothing things

that are.

So that no

human being

might boast

in the presence

of God.

You see,

all the qualities

that might

attract us,

that we might

be tempted

to pay

attention to

people for

the wrong

reasons,

being wealthy,

being powerful,

being popular,

being athletic,

being beautiful,

being smart,

being suave,

none of those

qualities will

get anybody

any closer

to entering

the kingdom

of God.

The only

way to get

in is to

humble ourselves

and to

recognize our

spiritual poverty,

our desperate

need for God

and his mercy.

That's why

Jesus'

Beatitudes

begin with

the word,

blessed are

the poor

in spirit,

for theirs

is the kingdom

of heaven.

James says,

if God delights

to honor the

poor,

so should we.

So,

favoritism is

contrary to

the character

of God.

That's the

first reason

why faith

and favoritism

can't be

mixed together

or combined.

In verses

6 to 7,

he gives us

a second

reason.

He says,

favoritism is

practically foolish.

James is

speaking to his

people.

He says,

think about

the people

who are

causing you

trouble,

dragging you

into court,

persecuting you

for being

Christians.

It's not the

poor who are

causing you

trouble.

By and large,

it's the

rich.

Now,

once again,

James is not

saying that

all rich

people are

evil,

he's painting

with broad

brush strokes.

But he's

saying,

think,

why are you

paying special

attention and

giving special

honors to

people who are

treating you so

badly?

They are not on

your side.

You won't be able

to satisfy them

no matter how

nice of a seat

you give them.

God.

Now,

we should not

mistreat our

enemies.

Jesus taught

us to love

our enemies,

to do good

to those who

hate us,

to pray for

those who

persecute us,

and to

persevere in

doing those

things.

You know,

it's possible

to become

excessively

focused on

trying to

please hostile

or unreasonably

demanding people

who may never

like us,

respect us,

or appreciate

us in the

end.

And the

problem with

that is in

the process of

trying to

please other

people who

we're really

being intimidated

by, we're

not actually

doing it out

of love,

we're doing it

primarily out

of intimidation,

we neglect

other people

who won't

demand our

attention,

but who

would greatly

benefit from

it.

So James

warns us that

favoritism is

practically foolish.

It's contrary

to the character

of God,

it's practically

foolish,

and third,

it's a violation

of God's

law.

Verses 8 to

11,

Jesus taught

us that at

the heart

of God's

law is

his command

to love.

First,

to love

God with

all our

heart and

soul and

mind and

strength.

James referred

to that command

already in

verse 5 and

in chapter 1

verse 12,

but here he

quotes the

second part

of that

command,

love your

neighbor as

yourself.

love.

And he

says favoritism

transgresses

that very

command to

love that

is at the

heart of

God's law.

And it's

not just a

minor issue

that can be

simply overlooked.

Verse 10,

James says,

God's moral

law is not

just a bunch

of separate

and disconnected

commands that

we can pick

and choose

which ones

we like.

God's moral

law is a

unified whole

because it's

an expression

of God's

own steadfast

and undivided

character.

It's like a

pane of glass.

If you break

one part of

it,

you've broken

it.

You've broken

the whole thing.

One commentator

said,

we cannot

excuse the

sin of

favoritism

by pointing

to the

rest of

the good

that we

do

because sin

is not

simply

balanced

against

good.

It must

be confessed

and forgiven.

So favoritism

is contrary

to God's

character.

It's

practically

foolish

and it

violates

God's

law.

That's

why James

says it

must not

be combined

with faith

in the

Lord Jesus

Christ.

So we've

seen what

favoritism

is,

why it

can't

and must

not be

combined

with faith

in the

Lord Jesus,

but what

is the

alternative?

Verses 12

James

concludes

by pointing

us to

the

Christian

alternative.

Now I

think

that many

of us

might expect

James to

say

something

like

instead

of showing

favoritism

show

fairness

by treating

everyone

equally.

Now

fairness

and equality

are good

ideals

to pursue.

The

Apostle

Paul

2 Corinthians

8,

13,

and 14

appealed

to this

very

principle

of

fairness.

He says

as a

matter

of

fairness

your

abundance

at the

present

time

should

supply

their

need

so that

their

abundance

may in

turn

supply

your

need

that

there

may

be

fairness.

So

fairness

and equality

is a

good ideal

to pursue

but it

actually

doesn't

go deep

enough

all by

itself.

The

principle

of fairness

is right

and helpful

but in

this fallen

and complicated

world

it's not

always

clear

how to

apply

that.

And so

James appeals

to an

even

more deeply

Christian

principle

that's at

the heart

of the

gospel.

Mercy.

Instead of

simply calling

us to show

fairness

instead of

showing

partiality

James calls

us to

show

mercy

as God

has shown

mercy

to us.

Now

verses 12

and 13

are a bit

cryptic

they're

short

and pithy

but there

are a couple

of key

phrases

that can

help us

understand

his point

especially

the phrase

the law

of liberty

in verse

12.

So speak

and so act

as those

who are to

be judged

under the

law of

liberty.

What law

is James

referring to

there you

might ask?

Now notice

in verses

9 through

11

James referred

to the

law.

Plain and

simple.

And in

that context

he's quoting

from the

Old Testament

referring to

the moral

law of

God

recorded

in the

Old Testament.

And he

says there

if we

transgress

even one

command

we've

violated

the whole

thing.

And so

the Old

Testament

law by

itself

convicts

us of

sin

but all

by itself

it does

not

liberate

us

from

sin.

But then

in verse

12

he says

so speak

and so

act

as those

who are

to be

judged

under

the

law

of

liberty.

It could

even be

translated

the

liberating

law.

You see

the law

of liberty

seems to

be something

different

or at least

something

additional

to the

Old Testament

law.

It's not

just the

Old Testament

law.

And if we

look back

at chapter

1 verse

25 where

James already

used this

phrase

he uses

the phrase

the perfect

or completed

or fulfilled

law

the law

of liberty.

What is

this

perfect

completed

law

the

liberating

law?

Well it's

what James

has already

talked about

as the

word

of truth.

The

implanted

word

of God

that is

able to

save

our

souls.

The

law

of God

that has

been

fulfilled

by

and in

the

person

of

Jesus

Christ

the

glorious

Lord.

the

law

of God

that's

now

written

on our

hearts

under

the

new

covenant

under

which

God

has

promised

to

forgive

our

sins

and

remember

our

wickedness

no

more.

You see

when James

talks about

the law

of liberty

the

liberating

law

he's

talking

about

what

Christ

has

accomplished

to

liberate

us

and to

write

and

not to

liberate

us

so we

can

do

whatever

we

want

by being

selfish

but no

to

liberate

us

so that

God's

law

would be

written

on our

hearts

and

by the

power

of the

Holy

Spirit

we'd be

empowered

to carry

to love

and to

show mercy

as God

has shown

mercy

to us

you see

in Jesus

Christ

we receive

mercy

that

triumphs

over

judgment

what

does

the

cross

mean

why

did

Jesus

die

on

the

cross

so

that

he

would

take

the

judgment

that

we

deserve

for

our

sins

and pour

out

upon

us

mercy

peace

and

forgiveness

and James

calls us

to delight

in extending

that same

triumphant

mercy

to others

even in

sacrificial

ways

but to

extend

that same

mercy

that we

ourselves

have

received

from God

in

Christ

now

there is

a strong

warning

in verse

13

verse

the first

half

of the

verse

if we're

merciless

toward

others

if we

show no

mercy

toward

others

we can't

expect to

receive

mercy

from God

in the

end

because

that's

a sign

that we

haven't

truly

received

mercy

from

God

but

James

points

us

here

to the

liberating

work

of Jesus

Christ

he has

liberated

us

from sin

from bondage

to sin

our

judge

is now

our

savior

we've

been

brought

into

the

kingdom

of the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

that's

what he

says

in

verse

one

of this

chapter

as

believers

in the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

the

Lord

of

glory

so

instead

of looking

at others

and thinking

what can

I hope

to get

from them

or what

do I

have to

fear

from

them

we can

look at

them

and think

how does

God

see this

person

how can

I

extend

the

mercy

of

God

that

God

has

shown

to

me

to

my

brother

or

sister

in

Christ

to

my

neighbor

brothers

and sisters

instead

of showing

favoritism

let us

show

mercy

because

God

has

shown

us

mercy

in

his

son

Jesus

Christ

let

us

pray

father

God

we

thank

you

for

the

mercy

that

you

have

shown

us

in

Jesus

Christ

that

triumphed

over

judgment

that

saved

us

from

the

rightful

judgment

we

deserve

oh

God

would

you

cleanse

our

hearts

from

favoritism

from

partiality

that

infects

our

hearts

and

manifests

in

our

lives

would

you

most

of

all

fix

our

eyes

on

you

you

Lord

would

you

be

our

vision

the

Lord

of

our

heart

as

we

fix

our

eyes

on

you

as

we

grow

in

our

love

for

you

may

we

be

empowered

to

love

our

neighbors

as

ourselves

to

love

one

another

as

you

have

loved

us

Lord

as

we

do

this

may

we

be

an

aroma

of

Christ

in

this

world

Lord

the

fragrance

of

mercy

righteousness

and

peace

that

come

from

you

pray

these

things

in

Jesus

name

amen