Last Sunday was recognized on the SBC calendar as Racial Reconciliation Sunday, and so I want to share something applicable today. I’ve entitled our message, “Do You Show Partiality?” and this is actually a question for each of us here today. According to Noah Webster, in the 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, partiality is the “inclination to favor one party or one side . . . more than the other,” and it is “an undue bias of mind toward one party or side, which is apt to warp the judgement.” Webster continues to say, “Partiality springs from the will and affections, rather than from a love of truth and justice.”(1) The definition of partiality sounds like that of discrimination; and, this morning we are going to view four different kinds of discrimination.
Class Discrimination (James 2:1-4)
My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. 2 For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, 3 and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit here at my footstool,” 4 have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?
James sets us up for an understanding of partiality, as he uses the word “partiality” two times here. The first kind discrimination that we will examine this morning is class discrimination, as in social and economic classes. This passage tells us that two individuals attended a Christian assembly or church. One man was rich and the other was poor. The rich man had on gold rings and fine apparel, and the poor man was dressed in filthy clothes. So, we see here two different classes of people – the rich and the poor.
The Holman New Testament Commentary says that “the word describing the ring of the rich man indicated that he was ‘gold-fingered’ . . . The word ‘fine’ was used to describe the rich man’s clothing, and means ‘sparkling’ or ‘glittering’ . . . The word ‘filthy’ was used to describe the poor man’s clothing, and pictured clothing which was dirty or shabby. The man may have come from work, his clothing stained with the evidence of his labor. The handsome apparel on the rich man earned special treatment for him. The greeter gave him a place of special honor. The soiled clothing of the poor man earned indifference to his comfort or feelings. He received the options of standing in some undesirable place or sitting on the floor near the greeter.”(2)
It’s easy for us to see something wrong with this picture – that the treatment of this poorly dressed man is unfair. James said in verse 1, “Do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.” James called Jesus Christ “the Lord of glory.” I think that James was saying that Jesus is too glorious to keep away from others. His glory is so awesome that it is to be shared with everyone, not just one particular class of people. And then, down in verse 4, James stated, “Have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?” He basically said, “Who made you the judge of other people?”
In Matthew 7:1, Jesus said, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” In John 7:24, He stated, “Do not judge according to appearance,” and in John 8:15, Jesus said, “You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.” In John 12:47, He stated, “I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.” So I want to ask, “If Jesus did not come to judge, then why do we feel that we have the right to judge people?” We don’t have that right; and as James said, whenever we discriminate against someone our mind is full of evil thoughts.
So, let me ask you: How do we usually react when someone comes into the church that looks like he hasn’t shaved or cut his hair in two years? What would we do if a rough and tough looking biker walked into this sanctuary at this very moment? I want to read a short story for you from a newsletter entitled Our America:
Dodie Gadient, a schoolteacher for thirteen years, decided to travel across America and see the sights she had taught about. Traveling alone in a truck with camper in tow, she launched out. One afternoon rounding a curve on I-5 near Sacramento in rush-hour traffic, a water pump blew on her truck. She was tired, exasperated, scared, and alone. In spite of the traffic jam she caused, no one seemed interested in helping. Leaning up against the trailer, she prayed, “Please God, send me an angel . . . preferably one with mechanical experience.”
Within four minutes, a huge Harley drove up, ridden by an enormous man sporting long, black hair, a beard and tattooed arms. With an incredible air of confidence, he jumped off and, without even glancing at Dodie, went to work on the truck. Within another few minutes, he flagged down a larger truck, attached a tow chain to the frame of the disabled Chevy, and whisked the whole 56-foot rig off the freeway onto a side street, where he calmly continued to work on the water pump.
The intimidated schoolteacher was too dumbfounded to talk. Especially when she read the paralyzing words on the back of his leather jacket: “Hell’s Angels – California.” As he finished the task, she finally got up the courage to say, “Thanks so much,” and carry on a brief conversation. Noticing her surprise at the whole ordeal, he looked her straight in the eye and mumbled, “Don’t judge a book by its cover. You may not know who you’re talking to.” With that, he smiled, closed the hood of the truck, and straddled his Harley. With a wave, he was gone as fast as he had appeared.(3) [So, her prayer for an “angel” was answered].
I have another short story to read before we move on to our next passage of Scripture, and this one relates really well to the example that James just gave us:
In his autobiography, Mahatma Gandhi wrote that during his student days he read the Gospels seriously and considered converting to Christianity. He believed that in the teachings of Jesus he could find the solution to the [class] system that was dividing the people of India.
So, one Sunday he decided to attend services at a nearby church and talk to the minister about becoming a Christian. When he entered the sanctuary, however, the usher refused to give him a seat and suggested that he go worship with his own people. Gandhi left the church and never returned. “If Christians have [class] differences also,” he said, “I might as well remain a Hindu.” That usher’s prejudice not only betrayed Jesus but also turned a person away from trusting Him as Savior.(4)
Geographic Discrimination (John 4:5-9)
5 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.
So, the Samaritan woman said to Jesus that “Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.” In figuring out what type of discrimination we are dealing with here, we need to find out who the Samaritans were? During the Assyrian Captivity of 721 B.C. many of the Jewish people who were living in the geographic region called Samaria were deported. The Assyrians repopulated this region with slaves that they had taken from other places, and therefore Samaria became a melting pot of cultures and religions.
The Jewish people were never supposed to mingle with those who worshipped other gods. They had to keep both their culture and religion pure; therefore, they stayed away from the Samaritans.(5) Now, we see here a number of forms of partiality, for we see religious and even racial discrimination; however, these things led to established geographic boundaries that were not supposed to be crossed. So, what we have here is geographic discrimination.
The ancient Jewish historian Josephus tells us that when Samaria was repopulated with these many other cultures that they built a temple on Mount Gerizim, and that this temple was seen as competition to the Jews of Jerusalem. Some ancient sources have shown that around A.D. 6 some Samaritans, out of spite, scattered bones in the Jerusalem Temple during a certain Passover.(6) There was constant rivalry between the Samaritans and the Jews, just like there is between some towns today – like how the Danville people dislike the county people and vice versa.
There had been tension between the Jews and Samaritans for hundreds of years, but Jesus looked past this discrimination in order to talk to this Samaritan woman. So, “Jesus and His disciples headed north to Galilee through Samaria. Why? [I mean] the common way would be to head northwest to Jericho, cross over the river Jordan and not set foot on Samaritan soil at all. But Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit precisely for the purpose that unfolds in this chapter.”(7)
The very purpose that Jesus had in mind was to show that what He has to offer is to be available to everyone. If we look on down in verse 14, we see that what Jesus has to offer is “living water,” the water of salvation in Christ Jesus that gives us eternal life. The message of Christ and eternal life is supposed to be available to everyone, and we cannot share that message if we are refusing to associate with people based on where they live, or what part of town they are from.
Racial Discrimination (Acts 10:28, 34-35)
28 Then he said to them, “You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean” . . . 34 Then Peter opened his mouth and said: “In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. 35 But in every nation, whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.
During the years of Archie Bunker running the world from his recliner, he once engaged in a debate with his neighbor about the color of Jesus’ skin. Bunker’s neighbor was the equally opinionated but racially different George Jefferson. As they debated the issue of Jesus’ color, Bunker referred to Warner Sallman’s picture of Christ. He told Jefferson, “Jesus is white.” Jefferson countered, “How do you know?” Bunker declared, “I saw the picture.” Jefferson then diffused Archie’s logic with a little twisted rationale of his own. He told his neighbor, “Well, maybe you saw the negative.” We all know, of course, that Jesus was a Jew.(8)
Right here we see the mention of racial discrimination, because Peter said, “You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation.” I just stated some of the reasons for this course of action, and it was because they wanted to keep their culture and religion undefiled and pure. Even so, they would judge whether or not a person was Jewish by the way they looked or by the country they were from. It is silly to assume that just because someone is from a different country or has a different skin color that they don’t worship the God of Israel, or that they don’t have a desire to do so.
Peter said God told him that we should not call any man common or unclean, and he said that God shows no partiality. He also said the Lord accepts whoever fears God and works righteousness. It doesn’t matter what our skin color may be if we worship Jesus. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ.
“General Robert E. Lee was a devout follower of Jesus. It is said that soon after the end of the American Civil War, he visited a church in Washington, D.C. During the communion service he knelt beside a black man. An onlooker said to him later, “How could you do that?” Lee replied, “My friend, all ground is level beneath the cross.”(9) The apostle Paul said, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Denominational Discrimination (Galatians 2:11-12)
11 Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; 12 for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.
The very last form of partiality that we will look at is denominational discrimination. This is another one of those examples that could show more than one kind of discrimination. It appears as though this is a Jewish/Gentile segregation that is happening, but it is more than that. These are no ordinary Jews or Gentiles mentioned here, but they are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. We see two groups mentioned; the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians. Both groups believe in the Lord Jesus, but their doctrinal beliefs are different; therefore, we can compare this to two denominations.
Paul was commissioned to preach to the Gentiles, while Peter was sent to the Jews. We see here that Paul became angry with Peter. He said that Peter used to eat with the Gentiles, but after some representatives from James and the circumcision showed up he started segregating from the Gentiles.
Allow me to interject an illustration: Paul Stripling served as the director of missions in the Waco Association of Texas. On one occasion a woman asked him if he was a minister. He affirmed he was, then she asked to what denomination he belonged. When he told her Baptist, she railed, “Oh, so you’re one of that narrow-minded bunch who thinks they are the only group that’s going to make it to heaven!” Stripling replied, “Lady, I am more narrow-minded than that. I’m not sure all of our group will make it.”(10)
Like Paul Stripling, instead of focusing on the denomination that someone belongs to, we need to focus on the individual. A person’s denominational affiliation does not determine their spiritual state; but, their individual relationship with Jesus does. I think that sometimes we feel someone cannot become active in our denomination’s churches unless they are members of the denomination themselves. But a person’s denomination does not determine whether or not they know Jesus Christ, or whether or not they have a relationship with Him.
Paul was very angry with Peter for segregating himself from those of the Gentile denomination of Christians. It was not right, because they were serving the same Lord and working toward the same goal – that all people would come to know the grace and forgiveness found in the Lord Jesus Christ. You have heard it said that we can agree to disagree, but I don’t see that happening. I see people saying, “My way is the only way to believe.” If we can agree that Jesus is the only way to heaven, then denominations have common ground.
We see that Paul became angry with this discrimination, and there are many people today who are upset with it too, so much so that they are dropping out of our churches. If we fail to show love and compassion toward those who are not like us – such as those from a different denomination – then we are going to lose our witness to this world. We have to come together for the common goal of winning this lost world for Jesus Christ.
Time of Reflection
So, we have just looked at four types of discrimination and partiality that happen all the time in our churches, and we have also seen that it is unjust. God said in 1 Samuel 16:7, “The Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” If we can learn to look at the heart of people instead of looking only at the surface, then we will move past segregation into genuine love and compassion.
You see, Jesus doesn’t care about our socioeconomic, geographical, or racial background. He doesn’t care about how many sins we have committed, or how pretty or how no-so-pretty we might be. Jesus comes to us just as we are, knocking on the door to our heart, asking us to receive Him just as we are.
NOTES
(1) Noah Webster, “Partiality,” 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language (Foundation for American Christian Education, 2002).
(2) Thomas Lea, “Hebrews and James,” Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville: Holman Reference, 1999), pp. 280-281.
(3) Larry D. Right, Our America.
(4) Our Daily Bread, March 6, 1994.
(5) Kenneth O. Gangel, “John,” Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville: Holman Reference, 2000), pp. 74-75.
(6) “Samaritans,” The New Bible Dictionary (Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1962), taken from Logos on CD-ROM.
(7) Gangel, p. 74.
(8) “Yea God . . . For Being An Equal Opportunity Employer,” John Ortberg, Seeds Tape Ministry, February 5, 1995.
(9) Source Unknown, Stories for Preachers and Teachers, on CD-ROM.
(10) Baptist Standard, November 23, 1994, p. 4.
