How To Avoid Partiality (Part 1)
James 2:1-7
Preached by Pastor Tony Miano
Pico Canyon Community Church
March 18, 2001
Introduction: I know a story of a boy who was about thirteen years old and he loved to play baseball. For the boy, baseball was a place where he could forget about his poverty and forget about his broken home. When he was playing baseball, he didn’t have to spend time blaming himself for his parents’ divorce. He didn’t have to think about the hours he would sit in the backseat of the family car waiting for his dad to come out of the welfare office with this month’s sustenance, hoping that no one he knew drove by.
The boy thought that if he was a good baseball player people would forget about the shabbiness of his clothes with the patches on his knees, the condition of the family car, and the fact that he lived in the only low-income area in town. So the boy practiced relentlessly. He would spend hours throwing baseballs at a small chalk square drawn on a concrete wall until the ball would be soft or even flat on one side. He practiced throwing a curveball until it hurt to set his elbow on the table.
The hard work was paying off. He was getting pretty good and people were starting to notice. So he worked even harder. He determined never to be picked last for the neighborhood games because of how he looked, or where he lived, or the family he came from. Baseball would be the one place where the negative affects of favoritism would not affect him—so he thought.
It was another spring and the Pony League baseball season was about to begin. The boy was determined to make himself known for something other than his circumstances. The boy walked to the mound to pitch the opening game of the season as if he were going to war—him against the rest of the world. By the end of the seventh inning, which was the length of the game for Pony ball, the boy had struck out everyone on the other team at least once and threw a no-hitter.
The boy went on to repeat the feat a few weeks later, throwing a second no-hitter. By the end of the twenty-game season, the youngster had compiled a 10-0 record, with ten complete games, two no-hitters and well over 100 strikeouts. He thought surely it was his turn to be on the receiving end of favoritism.
After the season, it was customary to hand out awards to the best teams and players. The president of the league stood on the mound, microphone in hand, and began to talk about the best pitcher in the league. The boy, who had the season of his young life, started breathing a little heavier as his excitement began to climb. “The league president is going to say my name!” He thought. The boy stood up, anticipating the president’s next words.
The man at the mike announced the name of the best pitcher in the league, but it was someone else—the son of the most respected and popular coach in the league. The other kid was a good pitcher, but the boy who had worked so hard had out-pitched the other kid, striking out eighteen batters, in a game in which the two had faced each other. Once again, the boy found himself on the short end of the favoritism stick.
I would hazard a guess that all of us can relate to how the boy in the story felt. We’ve all been disappointed by the feeling that we’re on the outside looking in—outside at work, outside at home, and, sadly at times, outside of fellowship within the church—because the favoritism we see extended to others isn’t extended to us. We’ve all been there at one time or another. The reasons are many, but the feelings are the same. We’ve all been the boy in the story sometime in our life. I know I have—because I was the boy in the story.
Starting this morning, and for the next two weeks, we are going to talk about the issue of partiality, the problem of favoritism, and how we can avoid it in our personal lives and the life of our church. James speaks at length on this issue in the first half of chapter two of his letter. Follow along as I read the first thirteen verses.
What we see in this passage is a command against favoritism and an illustration to drive home the point (vv. 1-4). This is followed by “three specific reasons why favoritism toward the rich and discrimination against the poor are evil [in God’ eyes]” (Moo, p. 98).
We find the first reason to avoid partiality in verse five and the first part of verse six. Here James explains to his readers how partiality contradicts the heart of God. The second reason is found in the second half of verse six through verse seven. Partiality toward the rich made the believers in the early church seem as though they were over-flattering, even groveling for the attention of the well to do. Partiality trivializes the heart of God. The third reason for avoiding partiality in the church is found in verses eight to thirteen. Here James makes the assertion that to show favoritism brings into question whether or not those involved in such behavior are truly believers. Partiality also violates the Law of God.
There is so much information in this passage that we’re going to focus on only the first seven verses today. We’re going to take a close look at the command and accompanying illustration and the first two reasons for avoiding partiality. We’ll devote next week to an in-depth look at the third reason.
The Command
James speaks of the genuineness of a person’s religion in James 1:26-27. A few weeks ago we looked at these verses for wisdom about how we can avoid playing church as individual believers and as a family. Watching what we say, taking care of those who are most in need, and keeping ourselves unstained by the world are all ways to avoid playing church. Although James is beginning a new topic, it might be helpful if we read verses 26-27 to help set the stage for this mornings study.
James wrote, "If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless. Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world."
Although it seems that James is continuing on with this line of thought in chapter two, he’s actually beginning an entirely new subject. One way we can tell this is the case is by the way James starts the passage. He says, “My brethren.” We can see throughout his letter that he will often begin a new subject with these or similar words. It also means that a command is usually not far behind.
Again, the phrase “my brethren” is a way that James uses to tell his readers that he loves them and cares for them a great deal, but a pill that may be hard for them to swallow is coming. James refers to himself as the readers’ brother, not just as a term of endearment, but to make sure they didn’t show him the kind of partiality he was about to speak against.
The wording of the command tells us that James is going to talk about something that was actually happening in the church; at the time he wrote his letter. He’s going to give a negative command in hopes of stopping an activity that had already begun. He tells them to stop holding their faith with an attitude of personal favoritism. Apparently, what James heard about or actually saw in the church was preferential treatment for those visitors to the church who were known to be wealthy.
In the NASB, we find the phrase “an attitude of personal favoritism” at the end of the sentence. One of the challenges in translating the Scriptures from the original languages to modern day English is staying true to the original text while making it readable for us today. In the original Greek, verse one would read like this. “My brethren, not in partiality hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of the glory.” It’s a bit more difficult to understand the way it was originally written.
Knowing the original word order is helpful in our study for this reason. The fact that the word for “partiality” or “an attitude of favoritism” appears in the Greek, toward the front of the sentence tells us that James wanted to call special and emphatic attention to what he perceived to be a terrible wrong.
The word translated as “favoritism” comes from a compound word that literally means, “lifting up the face.” We can paint a picture of the word this way. Think back to the medieval times of kings and castles. Whenever someone of stature, let’s say a knight or a nobleman, had an audience with the king, they would come before him on bended knee, head bowed, and eyes cast to the ground. If the knight found favor with the king, the king would take his hand or the flat tip of his sword, place it under the man’s chin, and slowly raise the head of the humbled servant, thus showing the court the king’s favor upon the man.
Although in our word picture, the word may seem to have a positive meaning, throughout the Old Testament we see examples of how the lifting of one’s face for reasons of partiality or favoritism is looked at as a negative thing. Let’s look at a few of these Old Testament examples.
In Leviticus 19:15 we read, “You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.”
Deuteronomy 1:17 says, “You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.”
In the Book of Job, God is described as one “who shows no partiality to princes nor regards the rich above the poor, for they all are the works of His hands” (Job. 34:19).
James uses such strong language because he wanted his readers to understand what he was saying to the point of conviction and change in their hearts. He makes his point even stronger by reminding them how incompatible genuine faith and favoritism are in the life of the Christian.
Although God does show His favor to His people in extraordinary ways, He is not a God who plays favorites. What we see in the character of God is justice and mercy, not favoritism or a human understanding of fairness.
Peter began a sermon to a Gentile audience with these words. “I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality” (Acts 10:34b). And Paul wrote these words to the Romans. “There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of man who does evil, of the Jews first and also of the Greek, but glory and honor and peace to everyone who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For there is no partiality with God” (Romans 2:9-11).
In Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he had some scathing words about some of the people he dealt with when he met the leaders of the church in Jerusalem. Although James was one of the leaders, he’s not included with the group of people Paul is about to describe. The two men had a good relationship. But of the others Paul wrote, “But from those who were of high reputation (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—well, those who were of reputation contributed nothing to me” (Galatians 2:6).
James, who was a contemporary of Peter and Paul, knew very well that mixing faith and favoritism was like mixing oil and water. Each repels the other. To bolster his point even further, James, in a very descriptive way, reminds his believing brothers and sisters in Whom they had placed their faith. He writes, “faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.”
One of the many interesting things about James’ letter is how few times he mentions Jesus Christ. In fact, we only find the name of Jesus twice in the entire letter—in 1:1 where James identifies himself as a “bondservant of Christ,” and in the verse we are studying now.
Sometimes we can take a phrase like, “faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ,” and almost brush it aside as an afterthought. After all, every Christian knows that his or her faith is in Christ. Yet, at the time, it didn’t seem to keep the believers James wrote to from showing favoritism to a particular class of people in ways that contradicted their faith in Christ. James’ use of the word “glory” or “glorious” with the common biblical phrase “our Lord Jesus Christ, served as a warning to his readers that they were glorifying man, the creation, instead of the Creator.
Some would look at this phrase and think of the word “glorious” as merely being descriptive of Jesus’ character. Although it certainly could mean that, I think it means more. What we see in this phrase is James telling his readers that their faith was in Jesus Christ who is the very glory of God—His Shekinah glory.
Remember, James, Jesus’ younger half-brother, once denied that Jesus was God in the flesh. He didn’t believe that Jesus was completely man while, at the same time, completely God. James eventually acknowledged the truth and came to faith in Christ.
As we can see in James’ letter, he didn’t throw the name of Jesus around lightly. When Jesus appeared to James after his resurrection, James must have been awe-struck and humbled at the same time. He finally saw his Brother for who He really was—the Lord of the Harvest, the Son of God, the Risen Savior, and pure glory.
James’ readers would have been well aware of the kind of glory James ascribed to Jesus Christ. They would have recalled that, centuries ago, their ancestors witnessed the glory of God. “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle” (Exodus 40:34). They would have remembered the story of King Solomon assembling the elders of Israel to bring the Ark of the Covenant from the City of David into the newly constructed temple. “It happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord” (I Kings 8:10-11).
The apostle John, who ministered alongside James in the church of Jerusalem, and was probably instrumental in James’ early discipleship, knew of Jesus’ glory. John wrote, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
Jesus, who has existed with the Father as God from eternity past, who came to earth as God in the flesh, human in every sense of the word, except for sin, was the epitome of impartiality. He loved all, yet favored none.
Even the Pharisees knew that Jesus was impartial. In Matthew 22:16 we read, “And they [the Pharisees] sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, ‘Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any.’”
Again, favoritism or partiality has no place in the life of the Christian. If our faith is in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is partial to none, how can we, as believers, act in such a way that is contrary to His glory? Before we look at James example of favoritism in the church, think of this. If Jesus Christ were in any way partial to those who are rich, those who have earthly wealth and status, would he have been born in a trough? Would he have lived such a humble life? Would He have willingly died a criminal’s death on the cross? The answers to these questions should have been obvious to James’ readers—but apparently they weren’t.
The Illustration
Let’s look at James’ illustration. Verses two to four say, “For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,’ have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?”
There is a small word missing in the NIV translation of this passage. It’s the word, “for” at the beginning of verse two. This small and often overlooked word is used here to let the reader know that James is about to justify the command he just made to stop favoritism in the church.
Sometimes when we’re told to stop doing something, we can have a tendency to blow it off because we don’t believe we’re doing the thing we’re being told to stop doing. Does that make sense? If you’re married, think about the last time you had a disagreement with your spouse. During the debate, your spouse points out something that they wish you would stop doing. When this happens, how many times have you put up your hand or shaken your head, blowing off the comment as an exaggeration, refusing to believe that you do the things your spouse says you do?
By beginning verse two the way he does, James tries to head off the objections that might come when he illustrates what’s happening in the church. Although James is speaking hypothetically, the illustration he is about to give is based on the sad reality of things that were happening in the church.
In James’ true to life illustration, the first person to arrive on the scene is the rich person. This is obvious by his description. He has gold jewelry and fine clothes. The significance of the gold ring is not just that it identifies the man as wealthy. It is also represents the person’s social status.
The phrase “with a gold ring” is translated from a single word that literally means, “gold-fingered.” It is likely that the man in James’ illustration was wearing several gold rings. The word “fine,” used to describe the rich person’s clothing, is more literally translated as “bright” or “brilliant.” The brilliance referred to the person’s shiny and glittery robe.
James doesn’t tell us enough about the person to determine if he is Jewish or Roman, but he was likely a visitor. The illustration could fit a wealthy person from either culture. For instance, in Roman culture, the wealthy citizens, probably associated with what was known as the “equestrian class,” would wear several rings on each finger, of their left hand, to signify their financial strength.
This particular class in Roman culture would include government officials. The typical garb for this group of people was a brilliant, flowing robe called the “toga candida.” It’s been said that there were stores that specialized in renting jewelry to the wealthy Roman citizens, to wear on special occasions—kind of like the stores that rent jewels and gowns for the Oscars or Grammy Awards.
The next man to enter the church is described as “a poor man wearing dirty clothes.” Unlike the rich who probably had several suits of fine clothing, the poor in James’ society often only had one robe, and certainly didn’t own costly jewels.
They worked, played, and slept in the same suit of clothes. Needless to say, the poor man who entered the church wore clothes that smelled like the hard life he led. They were filthy from the week’s labor. When their clothes began to wear out, they didn’t rush out to Mervyn’s to buy something new. They simply patched the robe they had.
Although James is making a stark contrast between the rich and poor visitor, the poor man probably looked like many of the people who were already members of the church. The early Christian church was dirt poor in a worldly sense. That’s one of the reasons, certainly in James’ mind, why the idea of showing favoritism to the rich was so troubling.
Having described the characters, James moves on to describe the treatment each man received from the church family. Although what James is about to say may sound ridiculous, this kind of favoritism was a real problem in the early church. And as you listen to the attitudes of the church members, try to think if you’ve ever received or have ever seen these kinds of attitude in a church setting.
James says that the members of the church paid “close attention” to the rich man. The Greek word translated as “close attention” literally means, “to look upon with favor.” The same word is used in Luke 9:38. In this passage in Luke we find the memorable scene where Jesus cast the unclean spirit out of the boy who was suffering from convulsions.
In verse 38, we have a man desperately pushing through the crowd to get Jesus’ attention. The panic-stricken father says, “Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my only boy” (emphasis added). James makes the point that the members of the church gave the rich person the same kind of special attention the desperate father sought from Jesus for his ill child. Like the desperate father who came to Jesus, the church members were begging for the rich visitor’s attention.
The scene is pretty ugly. Can you imagine a group of people stopping their conversations in mid-sentence and rushing to the rich person’s side? Well, it gets worse. You see—this special, preferential treatment of the rich man includes giving him the best seat in the house.
James’ readers would have been familiar with how the chief priests and the Pharisees were escorted to the front of the synagogue and took their seats in front of the Ark of the Covenant, facing the congregation. Although they were now Christians, they may have had this tradition in mind as they showed favoritism to the rich visitor.
Jesus had to deal with groups of Jewish leaders who sought after this kind of favoritism. I love the way Jesus exposed the false piety of the religious elite. Oh, that the church would have more courage to do that today! That’s another sermon. In Matthew 26, we see Jesus putting the Pharisees in their place.
In verses 1-7 we read, “Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying: ‘The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.’
‘But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries [small boxes containing Scripture that were worn on the left arm and forehead] and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men’” (emphasis added).
Yet the poor man doesn’t receive such gracious treatment. The poor man is told, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool.” Church’s in James’ day did not have rows of folding chairs, heavy and ornate pews, or custom, movie theater style seating. I’ve read that there were probably only a few benches toward the front of the meeting place. Most people stood along the walls or with their legs crossed, on the floor.
James’ use of the word “footstool” is interesting. The church member greeting the poor man may have suggested that the visitor not only sit on the floor, but sit at his feet as if he were little more than the family dog. What an incredible insult.
Since it wasn’t that unusual for people to sit on the floor or stand along the wall, whether they were members or guests, we need to look a little closer to what is being said and the attitude behind the words to see the grossness of the sin. In James’ illustration, the favoritism is obvious in the tone of voice of the church member.
When the rich, well-dressed person comes into the church, he’s met with a smile and a helping hand, and directed to his or her seat. But when the poor man comes into the church, I can just see the countenance of the church member change.
The church member takes one look at the poor man and says to himself, “Oh, man! What’s he doing here! Oh, great. He’s walking this way. Maybe Paul will talk to him first. Paul’s better at that kind of stuff than I am. Maybe he’ll just walk by if I look like I’m in the middle of something. I gotta find someone else to talk to. Ahhh—it’s too late! He made eye contact with me.”
The visitor, undoubtedly feeling the tension in the air rise as he walked in the room, makes contact with our church member. The church member, seeming annoyed by the interruption, doesn’t even give the visitor a chance to ask a question. He doesn’t even turn around to fully acknowledge the visitor. He just rudely points to one of the far corners in the room and says, “Go stand over there.” The church member then returns to his conversation as if the visitor didn’t even exist.
It’s sad that James would have to address such an ugly problem in the church. Sadder still is the fact that this kind of behavior goes on today in churches. What might that look like today? How might favoritism rear its ugly head in our small church?
I think one of the ugliest aspects of church life is the formation of cliques. Have you ever been in a church where you just didn’t feel like you were part of the “In Crowd?” I know I have. Now certainly, if you’re new to a church, it may take time to get to know people and establish relationships. And we can’t blame others for not warming up to us if we choose to remain anonymous and make no effort to connect with anybody. But the church does a disservice to visitors and members if it ever allows exclusive groups to form within the church.
Let’s say you have three children in your home, like I do. What do you do when two of the children refuse to play with the third? Do you tell the child that’s being left out something like this? “Look, you just don’t fit in. Give it some time. If you’re lucky, one day they might accept you.” No. You march into the other room and you tell the other two kids that they need to play with their brother or sister.
If you grew up in a home with several children, maybe you can recall how hurt you felt when your brothers or sisters tried to leave you out of whatever it was they were doing. If we don’t let this kind of behavior go on in our homes, how can we as Christians let it happen in our church? I’m determined to make sure that no one who calls Pico Canyon their church home ever feels left out.
In verse four we read, “Have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?”
If we cater to one kind of person or hold another kind of person at a distance, with self-centeredness or judgment in our hearts, we are committing the sin of partiality. Whenever we make distinctions between groups of people, distinctions that cause us to treat one group of people differently than another, our motives are wrong and we commit the sin of partiality.
If you are wondering if partiality may be an issue in your life, ask yourself the following questions.
1. Who have I invited to my home in the last six months? Do they look just like me and are they in the same social-economic bracket?
2. When the church suggests doing outreach, would I be more likely to participate in a door-to-door campaign in my own neighborhood, or in a door-to-door campaign in a poor area of town?
3. When I see a homeless person, do I first think about what they did to put themselves in that position, or do I think of ways I can help them out of their position?
4. How uncomfortable would I be if a homeless person came into the church and sat down next to me?
5. Am I selective about who I invite to church? Do I determine whether or not the person would “fit in” before I invite them?
6. Am I sitting here wishing Tony would talk about something else?
Reason #1—Partiality Contradicts the Heart of God
Now that James has issued his command to the church and backed it up with a realistic illustration for what was going on in the church, he moves on to give the first of three reasons why partiality should be avoided by the church, and believers in general.
When James talks about “evil motives” at the end of verse four, he’s cutting the legs out from under the arguments people might make to try to rationalize or justify their behavior. In verses five to seven, James begins a series of rational arguments, the first two of which we will look at this morning. The first reason to avoid partiality is that partiality contradicts the heart of God.
Paul begins verse five with yet another stern, but loving admonishment. “Listen, my beloved brethren.” I like what Pastor John MacArthur wrote about this phrase. He wrote, “Here James is saying, in effect, ‘Think about it for a moment. To be partial to the rich and turn your backs on the poor cannot possibly correspond to God’s character or to His Word and will’” (MacArthur, p. 106).
James is still focused on those who would be classified as economically poor. James is not saying that God only chooses the poor for salvation. He is simply agreeing with what Paul wrote to the Corinthian church.
Paul wrote, “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God” (I Cor. 1:27-29).
Part of God’s redemptive plan is to shame those who think their worldly wealth or good works could ever merit His grace and the gift of eternal life. He accomplishes this by extending His hand to, among others, the poor of the world. Once again, James pulls no punches here. By asking the question, James is holding a mirror in front of the faces of his readers as he describes how God chooses the poor.
It is as if James is saying, “Hello. Have you forgotten that most of you are counted among the poor Jesus came to save? Have you forgotten that you are trusting in the same Lord for the same salvation, for the same reasons, as the poor people you are now shunning?”
As he poses the question to them, James is reminding them that the poor are co-equals with them in the kingdom of God. Just in case his readers are hesitant to answer the question the way they should, James goes ahead and answers it for them in the first part of verse six, when he writes, “But you have dishonored the poor man.”
Not only does this sentence add some sting to what James is saying, it also serves to verify even more the fact that this was a real issue in the church. James, in no uncertain terms, is saying that if you dishonor the poor of this world, you “insult Jesus Christ, the protector and guardian of the poor” (Kistemaker, p. 78). The same applies to us. How can we say that we are followers of Christ while rejecting the poor of this world whom He would call to Himself? When we do this, we tell the unbelievers of the world that we are no different than the world around them.
We would all do well to remember Jesus’ own words, “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters” (Matt. 12:30). If Scripture clearly teaches, and it does, that Jesus loved the poor and gathered them to Himself, and we refuse to extend the love of Christ to the poor, then we are not truly following Him.
Reason #2—Partiality Trivializes the Heart of God
Beginning in the second half of verse six, we see how partiality trivializes the heart of God. James gives a reality check for the believers about how the rich treated the poor. In the process, James paints us a picture of a civil court proceeding. He reminds the Jewish believers about how oppressively the rich treated impoverished Christians. He reminded them that much of the suffering they experienced because of their faith was at the hands of the rich and powerful in their respective communities.
Not only that, it seems that the rich would arbitrarily sue the poor in order to take from them what little they had. Something that probably even magnified the injustice was the fact that those individuals who were taking the poor to court were probably Jewish themselves. The Roman government gave quite a bit of latitude to the leaders of the Jewish people, probably the Sadducees at the time James wrote the letter, regarding “legal control over their own [people]” (Lenski, p. 568).
How insulting to God that His children would show favoritism to those who were responsible for much of their persecution, and who denied the authority and authenticity of God’s only Son, Jesus Christ. James’ strong language should have served to show his readers just how ridiculous and contradictory their behavior toward the rich really was. But he wasn’t finished with them yet. He has one more hard-hitting, rhetorical question to cap off his argument.
In verse seven we read, “Do they [the rich] not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?” The wording here is further proof that James is referring to the Sadducees. “Although they claimed to adhere strictly to the Mosaic Law, [the Sadducees] did not believe in angels or other spirit beings, or in resurrection, the immortality of the soul, or therefore heaven, hell, or future judgment” MacArthur, p. 110).
The Sadducees were some of Jesus’ staunchest opponents. They hated Him and His church. They blasphemed the name of Jesus by refusing to believe He was and is the Son of God. And yet here are James’ readers, followers of Jesus Christ, rolling out the red carpet for people who slandered the very name by which every believer is saved. By showing deference to the rich at the expense of the poor, they were, in a sense, setting aside their relationship with Christ in order to establish a favorable relationship with people who held the name of Christ in contempt.
Wrapping Things Up
This is a pretty heavy subject. We’ve looked at a lot of hard teaching in these seven verses. I hope it has given us reason to pause and take a good look at the relationships we pursue, as well as the ones we avoid.
Remember, James isn’t just pointing fingers at a group of subordinates. He’s lovingly and carefully counseling his brothers and sisters toward a more authentic and enjoyable relationship with Christ. In order to do that, he has to be willing to play big brother and hold them accountable. And we should receive this difficult portion of James’ letter in the same light.
So, what are some things we can do to apply what God’s Word is teaching to our own lives? I want to make sure that we come away from today’s study not just being convicted, but equipped to be better witnesses for Jesus Christ. So what are some things we can do? What can we do in the coming days to avoid showing favoritism with wrong motives? Here are a few action items to consider.
1. Pray as the psalmist did. “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Psalm 139:23-24). Ask God to root out any favoritism or biases you may be harboring that are not honoring to Him.
2. Find a way to serve those in need (i.e. local food pantry, Children’s Hunger Fund, Habitat For Humanity, SCVPC, a retirement home, rescue mission or soup kitchen). And do it!
3. Try to develop relationships with people who aren’t just like you. Don’t do it for a spiritual brownie button or so you can gloat in your newfound humility. Do it to broaden your understanding of people from different walks of life, cultures, and social-economic groups.
4. Make a conscious effort to look at people as being members of one of only two classes—saved and unsaved, not rich or poor.
5. Keep in step with Pico’s style of outreach. Give yourself away whenever you can and show someone the love of Christ.
One of the great privileges I have in spending so much time studying the Word of God is the way it works on my heart before I ever share it with you. As I studied, I was reminded of ways past and present that I have shown undo favoritism to someone because of who they were. I was also reminded of times when I slighted someone because of where they were or from where they came.
My study during the last week hasn’t left me downcast. I didn’t come away feeling picked on, singled out, or pointed at. And I don’t want you to feel that way either. I came away from my study, and I hope you do as well, with a better understanding of God’s Word, who I am in Christ, how he expects me to treat others, and how He expects me to live my life for His glory. I believe that’s what the Holy Spirit intended for James’ readers, and those of us today who turn to the Word of God for help.
With that said, and with that in mind, let each of us go into the world today, with the impartiality of Christ, not playing favorites with anyone, and bring His good news to all who need to hear it.
Let’s pray.
