Who's Your Favorite?

Introduction

Throughout the first chapter James has dealt with number of issues: Facing trials, facing temptations, controlling anger, doing what God’s Word says to do, purity in expression, purity in conduct, and purity in character.

Our passage last week ended with James giving us two key points about religion that God considers “pure” and “faultless.”

He describes “true” religion as containing two characteristics:

Carrying for those who cannot care for themselves,

And keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

James 1:27 NIV

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

This morning, we come to chapter 2. Here, James continues to help us understand that we must live differently than the world lives.

If you have your Bibles I want to encourage you to turn with me to James chapter 2, and we’ll begin our study this morning with verse 1.

Favoritism

James 2:1 NIV

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

Now he is going to address the issue of playing favorites!

Believers should not show favoritism (v. 1) (Gk. partiality, treating on person better than another, respect of persons)

James’ Example

James gives us an example of how this works.

James 2:2–4 NIV

Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If 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,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

Two men enter our meeting:

— The first man is well dressed, wearing a big gold ring.

— The second man is wearing old worn out clothes that are shabby and maybe even dirty.

Our response tells all:

— If we show special attention to the man wearing the fine clothes and give him the best seat in the house. . .

— While we tell the “poor man” to stand over there, or to sit on the floor at my feet. . .

Doing that, haven’t you discriminated and become judges with evil thoughts? The answer to the rhetorical question would be a resounding, “Yes!”

God’s Economy

By asking a rhetorical question, James demonstrates God’s “upside down” economy. Look at verse 5.

James 2:5 NIV

Listen, 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?

God has chosen the poor in the eyes for a couple of things:

— To be rich in faith.

— To inherit the kingdom promised to those who love Him.

The Problem with Favoritism

James 2:6 NIV

But 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

To show favoritism, we are dishonoring the poor!

After all, it is the rich people who are exploiting Christians.

It is the rich people who were dragging Christians into court.

James 2:7 NIV

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

It is these same rich people who blaspheme the “noble” (Gk: good, beautiful, desirable, beloved), the name of Jesus, to whom we belong.

God’s Way or the World’s Way

James 2:8 NIV

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

James begins talking about “the royal law” that is found in God’s Word (v. 8a).

The royal law is to love your neighbor as yourself (cf. Mk 12:28-31) (v. 8b).

James 2:9 NIV

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

So, loving our neighbor as our-self is fulfilling the law (v. 9).

James realizes that some people will down play playing favorites, so he is going to build the argument that breaking one of God’s laws makes us guilty before God. Look at verse 10.

James 2:10 NIV

For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.

Whoever keeps all of the law (specifically the Mosaic law) yet stumbles in this one point is guilty of breaking the entire law—one broken rule is enough to make you guilty (v. 10).

James 2:11 NIV

For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

Here’s why—The same God who made a law against adultery also made a law against committing murder (v. 11a).

Therefore, if you commit adultery, but not murder you have still broken God’s law and are a “lawbreaker” (v. 11b).

God’s Economy

James 2:12 NIV

Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom,

God’s economy turns everything upside down. So we are to speak and act (there is a since of this being habitual) like those who are going to be judged by the law (v. 12a).

Keeping God’s law gives freedom (v. 12b). There are so many ways that God’s law helps us avoid some very bad consequences! Thus, it gives freedom.

James 2:13 NIV

because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Failing to love is exercising judgment—and it is judgment without mercy (v. 13a).

Anyone who doesn’t show mercy will be judge without mercy (v. 13b).

KEY mercy triumphs (Gk: boast against, is more powerful than, exulted above, assume superiority over) over judgment (v. 13c).

So What?

Our culture says that should build relationships based on what we can “get” rather than what we can “give!”

God says NOTHING could be farther from the truth. God wants us to build relationships because we love people, like God loves people.

In Mark 12, one of the teachers of the law came to Jesus asking about which commandment was the greatest. Jesus gave the man much more than he bargained for. Jesus gave this teacher the top two commandments.

In our study in the book of James, we have seen these two commandments at work. Jesus presented the greatest commandment by quoting the Shama found in Deuteronomy 6.

Jesus said, “The most important one. . .is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’” (Mark 12:29-30).

Then Jesus continued with the second greatest commandment in verse 31.

Mark 12:31 NIV

The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

I shared a couple of weeks ago that my resolution for this year was to:

Love God with the total of my being.

To love people!

Now, here’s what I know! Fulfilling these two commandments is not easy.

To love God and live obedient to Him can be a full-time job. It means conforming my desires to His desires.

To love people, especially the way God loves people, is hard. It takes time, energy, and often happens at the most inopportune times.

But here’s the key! It doesn’t matter if I agree with God’s commands, or are comfortable with His desires—He is God, and that means that He gets to call the shots!

Likewise, it doesn’t matter how hard people are to love, or whether or not they can do anything for us, we are to love them. That is actually the meaning behind the Greek word, agape—that unconditional love!