"Our Responsibility to be Impartial"

English Standard Version Chapter 2

If

“Our Responsibility to be Impartial”

Text: James 2:8-10

Introduction: Our Claims of faith and our Christian witness is very important in order that we be effective witnesses for Christ. The Bible has much to say to us as we interact with our fellow man. Many struggle with the sin of partiality because we allow things like, appearance, influence, money, friendship, or kinship to dictate our responses to given situations. In our text today, the Apostle James gives us some insight and stern warning to help us understand the perils and blessings of not being partial. Partiality is a dangerous spirit, classism does not belong in the household of faith and partiality exposes corrosion in our faith.

Partiality is a dangerous spirit that tarnishes meaningful relationships (James 2:8)

Everything about partiality goes against the character or personality of God.

a. Proper View of Christ Leads to a Proper View of Others

Once we truly see how "glorious" Christ is, there will be no room for distinctions on the human plane because we all pale in comparison to the glory of Christ. Look at how our Lord (in all of His Majesty) treated others and we will see that there is no room for "personal favoritism" on our part. Surely the disciples are not above the Master when it comes to showing compassion to all men without distinction.

Atkins: "Partiality is treating a person better or worse than he deserves for selfish reasons."

b. Those of us who are representatives of the King and His Kingdom carry the responsibility to be obedient to His commands and His royal law! Barclay: "in the society which James inhabited the rich oppressed the poor. They dragged them to the law courts. No doubt this was for debt. At the bottom end of the social scale men were so poor that they could hardly live, and moneylenders were plentiful and extortionate. In the ancient world there was a custom of summary arrest. If a creditor met a debtor on the street, he could seize him by the neck of his robe, nearly throttling him and literally drag him to the law courts. That is what the rich did to the poor. They had no sympathy; all they wanted was the uttermost farthing. It is not riches that James is condemning. It is the conduct of riches without sympathy."

c. Warped thinking causes us to discriminate without a just cause. A person's relationship to God (not their social or economic status) should be the measuring stick. Since we are in Christ and all belong to Christ warped thinking should never serve as a method treat others unfairly. The real test of faith is demonstrated in how one measures up to the standard written in the “royal law”. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”

Classism does not belong in the household of faith. (James 2:9)

Showing partiality reveals the flaw of classism. Classism is prejudice against or in favor of people belonging to a particular social class. James say in verse 3 “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 and become a judge with evil thoughts? Discrimination is a poisonous practice that tarnishes the flow of love and causes us to deflect from the intended principle or meaning of the royal law. Our God is no respecter of persons. He treats the common man the same as the rich and He desires you and I to operate in the same vein and spirit of love. We should not allow personal successes or failures to determine whether we respond to our brother or sister the way that God wants us too.

Partiality exposes corrosion in our Faith (James 2:9b)

Engaging in the practice of sin is the main reason our Faith corrodes. It is because sin eats away at the elements of a loving relationship. Godly relationships can only stand or be profitable when sinful practices are eliminated. This means that we as individuals cannot or should not practice being partial because it will destroy fellowships. Partiality is as an infusion of dynamite that will explode when lit. If our methods for relating with one another is not based on the love of God according to the “royal law” it cannot enhance kingdom principles. James asks the question that all of us be mindful of, Have you not discriminated among yourselves? I don’t have to answer that for you as an individual but you must answer that question as you relate to your fellowman. If you are harboring judgmental and evil thoughts of partiality, you my brother or sister stand guilty in the site of God and man. We do not have the right to force our power of persuasion on others because God has elevated us to positions of authority. That position was granted by the grace of God for you to demonstrate the love of God in the way that you respond to your fellow brother or sister. It is not a license to impose your will on any given situation. Our congregations would fare a whole lot better if classisms, control, and contempt were eliminated from our responses created a spirit of unity in our home, church, and social gatherings.

Closure: As Africans Americans and the general American public, we are familiar with prejudice, classism, and discrimination. We are experiencing a movement in our present society that the talk of the end goal is good, but the actions of some are still infused by classism, racism, and outright hatred. Until there is a conscious effort to act on the basis of the “royal law” humanity will never reach the fulfillment of the goal of the law. Injustices, senseless killings, murders, spirits of domination, intimidation, deceit, greed, covetousness, and a down right disrespect for God is the by product of partiality. You cannot mask it, we cannot mask it, it shows up in our relating with one another. We have made some progress , however, an old player from long ago still lingers in our society and every relationship. His name is spiritual wickedness in high places and his job is to keep us at odds with one another. God has not changed, He is still our only hope. We must embrace the teaching in His word and practice His teaching in our deployments and engaging of humanity at every level, if our quest for righteousness is to prevail. Finally, if our Christ demonstrated this kind of behavior while living down here, He did it because He wants you and me to demonstrate and duplicate the same kind of love.