James (12)

Chapter 2 Part 2

James 2:1–9 NKJV

1 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? 5 Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? 7 Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called? 8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well; 9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

Leviticus 19:1–19 NKJV

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. 3 ‘Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and keep My Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God. 4 ‘Do not turn to idols, nor make for yourselves molded gods: I am the Lord your God. 5 ‘And if you offer a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, you shall offer it of your own free will. 6 It shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and on the next day. And if any remains until the third day, it shall be burned in the fire. 7 And if it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination. It shall not be accepted. 8 Therefore everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the hallowed offering of the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from his people. 9 ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 And you shall not glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather every grape of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the stranger: I am the Lord your God. 11 ‘You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another. 12 And you shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. 13 ‘You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning. 14 You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind, but shall fear your God: I am the Lord. 15 ‘You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In righteousness you shall judge your neighbor. 16 You shall not go about as a talebearer among your people; nor shall you take a stand against the life of your neighbor: I am the Lord. 17 ‘You shall not hate your brother in your heart. You shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him. 18 You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. 19 ‘You shall keep My statutes. You shall not let your livestock breed with another kind. You shall not sow your field with mixed seed. Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you.

Most Saints will tell you we are under no obligation to adhere to the 10 commandments. So tell me which is ok to break? Murder? Adultery? Lying? Stealing? Idolatry? Coveting? Using the name of God in Vain? Dis-honoring of your parents? Worship a carved Image? Oh the keeping of the Sabbath- that one is ok?

James 2:10–13 NKJV

10 For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. 11 For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

(Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary) The law of liberty, through God's mercy, frees us from the curse of the law, that henceforth we should be free to love and obey willingly. If we will not in turn practice the law of love to our neighbor, that law of grace condemns us still more heavily than the old law, which spake nothing but wrath to him who offended in the least particular

We face a choice about how we will be judged by God in the future. According to James, the mercy we show to others will be the determining factor for the mercy we will be shown by God. Practically speaking, we determine our own future regarding mercy versus judgment. Those of us who show mercy now will be shown mercy later. Those opting for judgment now will face merciless judgment in the future.

Steven E. Runge, High Definition Commentary: James, High Definition Commentary Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2015), 48.

So what’s the moral of the story for James? That mercy triumphs over judgment. Everyone falls short of fulfilling all aspects of God’s law; this is a given. But James reminds us that we can expect to face judgment as transgressors if we judge others by the same laws we have broken. James challenges us to let the coming judgment influence how we treat others now. His closing thought in verse 13 offers us hope: “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” And based on the magnitude of mercy that God has displayed to us through new life in Christ Jesus, the least we can do is extend this same mercy to others. What we do today, James reminds us, will influence our treatment tomorrow. We should live in such a way that this is not a scary thought.

Steven E. Runge, High Definition Commentary: James, High Definition Commentary Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2015), 49.