2019-05-05 James 2:8-13 SHOW NO PARTIALITY (3): GOD JUDGES IT

SHOW NO PARTIALITY (3): GOD JUDGES IT (James 2:8-13) May 5, 2019 Read James 2:8-13 – Ted Turner once said, “I don’t need anybody to die for me. I’ve had a few drinks and a few girlfriends, and if that’s gonna put me in hell, then so be it.” Obviously he sees his flaws as minimal -- exactly the same way most of us view partiality. “Okay, so I play favorites once in awhile. But so what? It’s no big thing. Nobody died. Nobody got hurt. But, God doesn’t see sin like we do. What is no big deal to us is a very big deal to God. Spurgeon said, suppose you take a small insect and puncture it with a hole so small you can scarcely see it with the naked eye. But when you look thru a microscope, you see an enormous tear out of which flows a purple stream. That’s how our sin looks to God – including the sin of partiality. So God Commands against partiality (1-4); God Exemplifies impartiality (57); Jas is now shows us just how bad it is; God Judges impartiality. If the positive motivation of acting like God doesn’t get our attention, perhaps this will. It is a devastating indictment where we would not necessarily expect one. I. The Substance of Partiality What’s so bad about partiality? A little background: Lu 10: 25: “And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26) He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27) And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” “Love God” is a quote from various OT texts, beginning with Deut 6:5. “Love your neighbor” is Lev. 19:18. Neither Jesus nor the man think that’s the whole of the Law. They’d be a few scrolls short! But it does encapsulate the Law: “Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength [1st half of 10] and love your neighbor as yourself [2nd half].” Keep those and you’d keep the whole. Jesus’ point is, “To be saved by keeping the law, that’s all you have to do. Good luck with that! You’d be the first!” But there it is: Love God and love your neighbor. So Jas picks up on that. 8) If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.” 1 Why royal law? Bc it’s fit for a king; given by King Jesus – Yes. But in this context Jas’ point is, “Listen – Love your neighbor as yourself summarizes the whole law as it relates to others. In that sense, it’s the king of laws, the royal law! Get that one right and the details are covered automatically.” So God’s Law as it relates to relationship with other people – love them like you love yourself. Got it? Good. You’re doing well – if you’re doing that. But when we favor someone bc they are stronger, richer, prettier, or higher on the totem pole, we are violating someone else – not treating them as we would want -- not loving that neighbor as we would love ourselves. When we show partiality, we are violating the royal law to love others as we love ourselves. He’s putting our actions under the microscope to show us the rupture that’s so small to us isn’t so small to someone else – and it’s certainly not small to God. We’ve sinned; we are not doing well; and we are in a lot more danger than we thought. The core of partiality is – lack of love! And since “God is love” (I Jn 4:8, 16), partiality misrepresents the core of His being. Thus, Rom 13:8: Owe no one anything, except to love each other.” Playing favorites denies that command. Playing favorites tramples that command in the dust. Playing favorites shows we’re not serious about loving each other. There’s an parable about a Jewish rabbi who took in a weary traveler. After they ate, the rabbi asked, “How old are you?” The man replied, “Nearly a century.” The rabbi asked, “Are you a religious man?” The traveler replied, “No, I do not believe in God.” Infuriated the rabbi shouted, “I will not keep an atheist in my home. You must leave.” After the man left, the Lord asked “Why did you turn out that man I sent to you?” He, “He was an atheist. I could not endure him overnight.” To which God replied, “I’ve endured him for almost 100 years. Don’t you think you could endure him for one night?” We play favs for a lot of reasons – they offend us, can’t be of any help to us, would tarnish our reputation, act weird – our lists are long – but they all ignore the law of love by which God is saying, “I’ve endured this person their whole life. My son died for them as for you. Won’t you rethink your position?” Will we? Our partiality is showing – it is showing a lack of love. II. The Severity of Partiality Now, Jas has a stunning comment. Jas 2:9: But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.” So – first, partiality is a sin. The baggage of guilt you carry just got bigger. It’s not innocent; it’s sin. You’ve violated the law of love. Fair enough. But now 2 watch. 10) For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.” So not only is partiality sin; you just broke the whole law. Think it’s a small thing, sin of little consequence? Guess again. Why? Because the law of God stands as a whole. Break any part and you’re guilty of all. The Jews of Jas’ time were like us. To them the law as a series of individual, detached commandments. To obey one gave credit; to break one was to incur guilt. But if you kept more than you broke, you had a net credit, so you were okay. And, there were greater and lesser laws. The law of the sabbath high on the totem pole. But the law against swearing – not so much. You can see how under such a system, the sin of showing partiality would hardly register. But Jas clarifies: you mess up any part of the law, you’re guilty of all. Bc the Law is not a series of individual commandments; it’s a reflection of God’s character in total. Violate one part; you’ve messed up the whole. Like the boy who tattled on his brother: “Daddy, Billy broke the window!” Just then Billy arrives: “Don’t worry Dad. It’s only a little piece in the corner; the rest of the window if okay.” Doesn’t matter, does it? The window is a single whole; if one part is broken, it’s all broken. Breaking a corner makes you guilty of breaking the whole. It hangs or falls as a unit, and so does God’s Law. You can’t break just part of it! It’s not a list of do’s and don’t’s. It’s a reflection of who God is; you can’t violate part of Him without violating all of Him. Really? Really. Jas gives an example to drive the point home. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.” So, in v. 9, if you show partiality, you are a transgressor. In v. 11, if you commit adultery or murder, you are a transgressor. Partiality breaks the whole just as surely as murder! Doesn’t mean the human consequences are the same; they’re not. But in breaking the corner, you’ve broken the whole glass; in showing partiality, you’ve violated God as surely as a murderer. That brings perspective. Things look a lot different thru the microscope of God’s eyes than thru fallen human eyes. So when we play favorites based on some outward advantage, we’ve “become guilty of all of it” – broken the whole window. 11) Suppose I spill some indelible ink on a rug you got from the local discount store. Little spot; whole rug ruined, right? Bad enough. But what if I spill that same ink on your priceless Persian rug. Same ink; same size spot. But so much worse! Why? Bc the Persian rug is so much more valuable. That’s the problem with playing favorites. We offend an finite human being, but we also offend that infinitely, holy God. We ruined the whole rug, and it’s value is infinite. 3 Small sin to us, but infinite guilt to Him. So what’s the answer? Plead the offense was minor, no big deal when compared to others? No. The only answer is I Jn 1:9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” To confess – 2 things – to agree with God that we were wrong, and to turn away from the sin to Him. Don’t cover the guilt; acknowledge the guilt. The sin may not be big, but it is as severe as murder. That’s Jas point. Only a fool would refuse to deal with it. III. The Sentence of Partiality Prejudice will be judged. 12) So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. Speak and act. Practice what you preach. You will be judged “under the law of liberty.” The law (God’s command – “Show no partiality”) will free you, or judge you. Society may teach us wrongly, but the Bible sets us straight. So we are to speak and act in accordance with it. Chuck Swindoll says, “I was raised in the South. I inhaled the prejudice propaganda from the moment I took my first breath. I was taught it in school. I saw it among my friends. I even heard it in pulpits.” Many of us could relate. But he goes on: “But I have to call it what the Bible calls it – sin. We often hide behind excuses like, ‘That’s just how I was raised,’ but Jas says, prejudice and faith in Christ do not mix.” Scripture will either set us free to speak and act like our Father – or it will be our judge. Heb 4:13: “And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” Payday is coming. God knows. Ever see “Person of Interest.” That show had a world with a camera in every nook and corner and a microphone in every flower pot. No action went unnoticed. We’re not quite there yet, but if man can conceive it, do you really think God can’t do it? All will give account. Rom 14:12: “So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.” Mt 12:36, “36) I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37) for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” There is no escape. Perhaps you’re saying, “Wait a minute. I thought believers were not subject to judgment.” True. Rev 20:11-15, speaks of the Great White Throne judgment when all unbelievers will be tried. When their name is not found in the Book of Life, the books of their own thoughts, words and deed will be opened. Their guilt will be clear. No believer will be tried in that judgment. 4 Rom 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Jesus promises: Jn 5:24b: He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” All who have taken Jesus as Lord and Savior must rest easy on this point. No condemnation. No threat of hell at GWT. BUT – believers will be judged elsewhere – at the Bema, or judgment seat of Christ. II Cor 5:10, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” This is a judgment to determine reward or lack thereof for true believers. Paul gives more detail in I Cor 3:11: “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12) Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13) each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14) If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15) If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” Thoughts, words and deeds that align with Scripture and are prompted by the HS will survive and be rewarded. Failures will be burned as lost opportunities. So James is saying, God has given us the instruction of the Word and the power of the HS to enable Godly lives. So be prepared. You’ve been freed to do the right thing when it comes to playing favorites. “Show no partiality” for your words and actions in this regard will be judged. That’s ominous, right? But v. 13 is infinitely more challenging: “For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Jas is urging us to look deep, because God will. And if He finds a lifestyle of partiality, prejudice, favoritism with no mercy, neither will He show mercy. A lifestyle that shows no mercy reflects unbelief. If this person professes faith in Christ, but toward others he or she lives a lifestyle of partiality, then the chances are that person is not a believer at all and will be subject to the ultimate judgment of God. This is a dire warning, Beloved. Jesus issued a similar warning in a parable in Mt 18. A master had a servant who owed 10,000 talents (millions in today’s economy). He could not pay so the master had him, his wife and children sold into slavery. But the man begged for mercy and the master granted it. But Mt 18:28) But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii (4 mos wages), and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’” He could not, so the servant threw him into 5 prison. But -- 32) Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33) And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34) And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. His lack of mercy revealed an unrepentant heart. It’s all a warning – same from Jas and Jesus. If we habitually show partiality, it may well demonstrate that we are not a true believer at all. But there’s hope! “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” If you find you are guilty, seek mercy. Don’t wait. Seek it immediately and God will grant it. Why? Bc Jesus has paid the debt for all who will believe. He showed no partiality so that we could be forgiven of ours. And the fruit of our forgiveness; the proof that we’ve received mercy is that we will extend it to others as well. Conc – So, showing partiality. No big deal. No – a very big deal bc it gives a wrong picture of God and steals His glory. The solution? Confess the sin and sin no more. Josh Harris tells of a powerful dream he had one night. He found himself in a room filled with index card sized files – files filled with all the words and actions of his life – all the good and all the bad filed under Lies, Lust, Betrayals and Prejudice. Every card was in his handwriting and signed by him. Way more bad than good as it turned out. He tried to destroy a bad card, but the past could not be changed and he could only weep at his failure. Then Jesus entered the room. He took the cards one by one and began signing them – his name over Josh’s, signed in blood. That’s why He died, Beloved, so He could cover the failures of all who believe, wipe the slate clean and give us a whole new one. As believers, let us examine ourselves and confess our sins of prejudice and move forward with a new resolve. If we find that we’ve never come to faith in Christ, today is the accepted day. Let’s pray. 6