The Revival of Love(James 2:1-9)

INTRODUCTION

As I’ve reflected on the Asbury revival that is going on, there is one thing that I notice about it that also, seems to be true in revivals of the past. It’s that revivals have no respectors of persons and favortism.

It doesn’t matter what your age is,

what the color of your skin is,

what denomination you are a part of.

We are all seen equal in the eyes of God. That is embraced in all the movements of God, the revivals of the past, and the revival presently at Asbury in Kentucky.

I’ve also watched the Chapel service that started it all. The Chapel service that began the revival in Asbury.

The last words of the Pastor before the arrival erupted was “Revive us by your Love” and then they went on to worship for 100 plus hours straight!

People love for different reasons:

some love for money;

others love for fame.

Still others love for prestige and position.

The true child of God loves God for what they can give—not what they can get.

What i’ve noticed in declining churches is that a respector of person’s and favortism is present.

Tom Rainer describes how every church will say they are friendly but what they fail to realize is that the may be friendly to each other in their Holy Huddles but, they aren’t friendly to guests and outsiders.

I believe God’s Word speaks to this…Let’s read James 2:1-9

SCRIPTURE READING

James 2:1–9 (NIV)

1My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.

2Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in.

3If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,”

4have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

5Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?

6But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court?

7Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?

8If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right.

9But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.

I. The Partiality—v. 1

“Dear brothers, how can you claim that you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, if you show favoritism to rich people and look down on poor people?”—

A. It is wrong to judge people by their riches.“… God is no respector of persons

There was a Pastor who wanted to know the level of compassion people at his church had for the poor and powerless.

So he took a couple days to disguise himself and got a shopping card, wore some dirty and just filthy clothing, rubbed mud and dirt all over his body, wore a wig with a big long gray beard.

He made himself look as nasty as he could so he can see how people would respond.

Some just walked right pass him, others avoided him, some told him he had to leave church property, and there were some that would bring him food and something to drink, others would pray with him.

On that Sunday morning the pastor came up the aisle in the sanctuary with his shopping cart and then started taking off his disguise piece by piece to the congregations shock.

He reported to them what he did and why he did what he did and the experience he had.

This reminds me of what Jesus said in Matthew 25:42-45...

42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,

43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’

44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’

45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’

II. The Pleasing—vv. 2–4

A. The motives—v. 4. “Judging a man by his wealth shows that you are guided by wrong motives”—Loving a person because of riches shows a love for money.

B. The Misquoted—1 Timothy 6:10

One of the most misquoted verses in the bible is 1 Timothy 6:10.

You hear a lot of people say that money is evil. What it actually says though is that the “LOVE” for money is the root to all kinds of evil.

Now it’s okay to have money as long as money doesn’t have you.

The love of money can destroy marriages, friendships and even churches.

C. The money Testimony at Asbury

One of the most beautiful things I seen at the Asbury revival was the testimony of a young man who was an international student and he mentioned his difficulties of being in the United States.

Before you know it, people were coming to the altar throwing dollar bills up on the platform for this Student.

The Student and the leaders starting weeping in joy.

Now let’s not discount that testimony and the Generosity of God.

Yes, he could of got a job and worked for it but God decided to bless him that way. He didn’t even ask for it. It was a spontanious love offering!

Young people tend to get a bad rap saying “the young people just dont want to work”. That’s just not true and that will just alienate young people from coming to the church.

III. The Pleasure—v. 5

A. People—“… Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith …”

Those who know Christ are rich in spiritual ways.

Jesus gives sight to the blind,

helps the crippled walk,

cleanses the lepers,

makes the deaf hear,

raises the dead,

and

preaches the gospel to the poor!

God examines both rich and poor, not according to their lands and houses, but according to the riches of their hearts.

In the book of Isaiah it gave a prophecy about Jesus when it says...

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound”

B. Promise—“And heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him?”

Those who are poor in Spirit will inherit the kingdom of God. When we are children of God, He is our Father and what He has is ours—John 1:12.

IV. The Problem—vv. 6–7

A. Problem of the rich—v. 6. The rich oppress the poor; they make trouble; they sue. To treat them better than the poor who are Christians is wrong!

There are four reasons why it’s foolish for a believer to honor the rich and look down at the poor...

First of all, it means that we are showing dis-honor to someone that God has honored. We need to love everyone because they all been created in the image of God. They are all his masterpiece.

Second of all, James says it’s foolish to treat the rich better than the poor because they bully the Christian and drag them into courts. Why honor your executioners?

There are many Christians today even in the church who are rich in their power, prestige, and position but they are poor when it comes to their Spirit in Christ and become bullies.

iii. Thirdly, it’s foolish to treat the rich better than the poor because These rich people often use God’s name in vain; they mock Christianity; they mock Christ, whom we serve.

They are not interested in serving Christ. Just their own agenda’s.

iiii. The Fourth reason it’s foolish to treat the rich better than the poor is because it violates the law of “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

It’s called the Royal law here because it’s the king of all laws from the King of kings himself, Jesus Christ!

We learned from the good samaritan not to long ago that our neighbor is any and all people we come in contact with.

B. The Participation of the Rich—v. 9. If you show partiality you are breaking God’s law.

i. Partiality is sin. To break one part of the law is to be guilty of it all.

Giving special attention to the rich is not a minor transgression or an unfortunate oversight; according to James it is sin, and those engaged in this action are guilty of breaking that law.

ii. Discrimination against anyone on the basis of dress, race, social class, wealth, sex, etc., is a clear violation of the royal law of love.

We must treat all people as we would want to be treated. Our attitudes and actions toward others should be guided by love

iii. Our Church needs a revival of Love. Not only those who may be in our circle but also to those that may not look like us, talk like us, dress like us and act like us.

IIV. APPLICATION

Why do you love God?—for what He gives, or what you can give?

Do you displease God by loving some people while ignoring others? Are you willing to love when you know it will cost you something?

Are you looking for those who will give something to you in return for your love? How deep is your love toward God? Real love is more than words.