“IMPARTIAL LOVE.” JAMES 2: 1-13.
JAMES 2: 1, 2-4, 5-7. 8-9, 10-11, 12-13.
PLEASE OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO JAMES 2.
Almost everyone is affected by selfish motives. We tend to show partiality toward people whom we feel can help us in some way. At the same time we tend to ignore people who might need our help. Most people are impressed by rich and successful people. They seem to have it made. Others honor and praise them in hopes of their approval and help. By the same token, many people ignore those who seem poor and unsuccessful. This attitude sometimes appears even in churches.
James wrote of just such an incident in a first-century congregation. James wanted Christians to recognize that true faith expresses itself in impartial love and mercy.
What if God chose His children based on what they could do for Him? What if Jesus died only for people who could sing or preach? What if He saved only those who were rich, smart, or beautiful? Most of us would be left out----and there are probably many who don’t realize they would be excluded! Praise God that He loved us in spite of the way we look or what we possess.
Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 1: 26-29 “Consider your calling: not many are wise from a human perspective, not many powerful, not many of noble birth. Instead, God has chosen the world’s foolish things to shame the wise, and God has chosen the world’s weak things to shame the strong, God has chosen the world’s insignificant and despised things---the things viewed a nothing---so He might bring to nothing the things that are viewed as something, so that no one can boast in His presence.”
If God doesn’t love us or show mercy to us based on what we can do for Him, how much more should we who are objects of His mercy treat others with grace and mercy---regardless of who they are?
If you have ever been on the wrong end of favoritism by parents, grand-parents, or other family members, you know the emptiness and hurt it brings. Likewise, parents are wounded in their hearts when they see their children discriminated against by a teacher or coach.
Other parents inflict permanent damage on their own children when they show favoritism for one over the others. How it must grieve our Heavenly Father to see us practice favoritism. In this lesson we see how seriously wrong it is for us to show partiality, especially if we do it for potential personal gain.
As we move through this lesson you may remember instances in your own life when you experienced hurtful favoritism. Remember also times you experienced the opposite: unselfish and unconditional love. That’s how Jesus loves us. His love is unselfish and unconditional even though undeserved. It is also the kind of love we are to have for one another; and we are to demonstrate it by treating others with impartial love and mercy, especially in the church.
TEACHER READ JAMES 2: 1.
The main point of today’s Bible passage in James 2: 1-13 is that believers in Christ must not allow social distinctions and differences to find a place in their lives. The key is the word favoritism, a single Greek word that may mean “partiality,” snobbery,” or “personal favoritism.”
The N.T. uses the word “favoritism” to refer to showing favor to people because of external advantages such as power, wealth, or position. The three occurrences of the particular Greek word in Rom. 2:11 and Col. 3:25 assert that showing favoritism of persons among God’s people is wrong.
People who have real, saving faith in God through Christ should not continue showing favoritism. Real faith engenders impartial love and mercy for other people-----even those who seemingly have little or nothing to offer us. Favoritism and lack of mercy lead to disastrous results not only because they violate God’s law of love but also because these actions will be judged by God.
The key word in vs. 1 is the Greek word translated respect of persons. On the surface, to respect persons seems to be a good thing, not a sin. Isn’t it a good thing to show respect to people? It is, but that is not the meaning of this Greek Word. In the Greek translation of the
O.T., the Septuagint, it refers to lifting up one’s face to make judgments about the person based on outward appearances.
God had taught Samuel in 1 Sam. 16: 7 “Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart” Judges were told in Deut 1: 17 “Ye shall not respect persons in judgment: but ye shall hear the small as well as the great.”
God told His people in Lev. 19:15: “Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor.”
The basis for this command is that God shows no partiality. A form of the word in James 2:1 is found in Peter’s discovery of this truth in Acts 10: 34 when he was told to go to the home of the Roman centurion, Cornelius. “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons.” Or, “In truth, I understand that God doesn’t show favoritism.”
As the Book of James points out, affection for the brothers (meaning Christian brothers)----all the brothers, not just the more prosperous—demonstrates impartial love and shows real faith.
Favoritism doesn’t fit with genuine love for the brethren. One who has genuine love doesn’t see people of greatly different financial means as the world sees.
Bible student Randolph O. Yeager put it this way, “The glory of the Lord dazzles the eyes of the true worshiper so much that he is not impressed, for he does not even see the tawdry display of wealth on parade on the one hand or the abject poverty on the other.” We are not to have love for some Christians and contempt for others.
James began with the basic belief that God is impartial in how He deals with all kinds of people. The reasoning of vs. 1 is that since God shows no favoritism, neither should His people. This same quality of God the Father was also true of Jesus the Son. He showed no tendency to honor the rich and powerful people of His day above others, but He went out of His way to help outcast groups and individuals. No wonder favoritism is totally inconsistent for a follower of Jesus. Let’s look at James extreme example in vs. 2-4.
PLEASE READ JAMES 2: 2-4.
In these verses James gave an example of what he meant by favoritism. We aren’t told whether he was writing of an actual incident in a church. He used the word if. The situation James depicts appears to be hypothetical and may even be exaggerated for effect, but that this kind of behavior was by no means unknown is clear from James concern. Certainly in vs. 6-7 it is clear that he is dealing with existing circumstances. It is certainly true that something like this has happened in many churches since then.
James described the appearance of two men who came to a meeting of the church. They probably were visitors, perhaps even unbelievers. They were completely different in appearance. The first man gave every appearance of being wealthy and successful. He had a gold ring, a sign of belonging to the upper class of that day. He was dressed in goodly apparel or fine clothes. He wore the kind of clothes worn only by rich people.
The other man was a poor man in shabby, dirty raiment. These were probably his best clothes, perhaps his only clothes.
The contrasting ways the two men were treated is even more striking. Who ever greeted these men treated the rich man with great respect, almost reverence. They seated him in a good place. No doubt it was one of the best seats, probably where everyone would see him. They were thrilled to have such a man in their church.
On the other hand, the poor man was told, “Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool.” They honored the rich man but snubbed the poor man. They told the poor man to stand in an inconspicuous place or if he had to sit, to sit on the floor. Put yourself in the place of the poor man. What would such actions say to you?
In vs. 4 James asked the church to realize their sins; “Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?” or “Haven’t you discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” They had become guilty of sins of discrimination and prejudice. In Matt. 7: 1 Jesus warned against judging others. If judging is wrong, how much more wrong is pre-judging?
Prejudice is the result of passing judgment on someone based on purely external factors. Very possible the church members knew nothing about the two men other than what they could see. They quickly sized them up as a rich man and a poor man. Then they dealt with each according to a prejudiced view of rich men and poor men.
They decided that a rich man could greatly enhance the church’s status and increase their financial resources. They decided that the other man was not one they wanted to become one of them. He was the kind of person who would become a drain on their own time, energy, and money.
Their evil thoughts were their worldly standards of judgment, their self-serving attitudes and their loveless spirit. They acted completely different from the example and teachings of Jesus. As vs. 1 says, their actions were inconsistent with their professed Christian faith.
PLEASE READ JAMES 2: 5-7.
Having stated the basic principle in vs. 1 and given an example in vs. 2-4, James began to present reasons why favoritism is wrong. His first argument against it is that God loves the poor, who in turn are often responsive to His love. Closely related is the fact that the rich often set themselves against God and God’s people.
James stressed God’s gracious action in seeking out the poor of this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom. This does not deny that the Lord reaches out to all people-----rich or poor. However, James was dealing with a situation in which the church showed favoritism toward the rich. Over against this, James stressed God’s love for the poor. The Gospels provide clear support for James’s point. Jesus said in Luke 4: 18, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath appointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor.”
James stressed not only God’s love for the poor but also their responsiveness to Him. He wrote that they were rich in faith. Often the words, “The poor” refer to the pious poor, In the O.T., in Psalm 70:5 “the poor” stood for people of humble, sincere faith.
Jesus said in Luke 6:20, “Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.” James’s words show that many of the early believers were poor. Paul made the same observation about the church at Corinth in 1 Cor. 1:26.
“The Poor” became almost a technical term designating those who were both economically oppressed and spiritually inclined. It is a generalization and, as such, cannot be understood as including every single poor person, nor as excluding all rich people.
James was appalled that the church despised or dishonored or insulted the poor. Although the example in vs. 2-3 was presented as something that might happen, vs. 6 shows that such things actually did happen. In various ways the church insulted the poor, a sin found not only in first-century churches. James wanted believers to see the seriousness of this sin.
Not only had they insulted the poor, whom God loved and who loved God, but they also fawned over the rich who exploited the poor and even blasphemed against God.
James was not commending all poor people: but he was speaking of the two groups in general. The rich man of vs. 2-3 may have come to church humbly seeking God, but the rich as a class acted differently: “Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?”
The rich often exploited the poor. The Bible calls on people of faith to share God’s love for the poor. Exploitation was strongly condemned.
Amos in Amos 4:1 strongly condemned the powerful people of his day who “oppress the poor and crush the needy.” James 5: 1-6 gives an example of such exploitation. Greedy landowners withheld the wages of their workers. The rich men were not worried about the poor taking them to court. They controlled the courts, and bribed the judges. Instead of being worried about being called into court by the poor, the rich took the poor to court---probably to demand payment of debts.
The rich not only exploited the poor but they also blasphemed the name of the Lord: James was writing to rich people who had nothing but contempt for the poor and for their faith when he wrote “Do not blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called.”
These were ungodly, unbelieving people who slandered the name of the Lord. Nothing is so abhorrent to believers as to hear someone blaspheme the Lord.
James’s point in vs. 1-7 was not to say that all the poor are godly and all the rich are ungodly. He was trying to counteract a prejudice that automatically favored the rich and snubbed the poor. At a time when all they knew was based on how they were dressed the church acted in the light of its prejudice for the rich and against the poor. Their prejudice blinded them to the good of one group and to the sins of the other.
Just as James did not imply that poverty is a virtue, neither did he imply that wealth is evil. Many godly people have attained great wealth and used it for the glory of God. The general truth, however, is that wealthy people often feel self-satisfied and comfortable because they trust in their assets. They do not feel their need of God as acutely as those who have to pray for their daily bread. Jesus Himself in Matt. 19: 23 warned that it is hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. God shows no favoritism, and neither should His people.
PLEASE READ JAMES 2: 8-9.
Perhaps children face no grater challenge than learning to cope with the way other children think of them and treat them. Being the last one chosen for a ball team, enduring the laughter of others because they don’t wear name brand clothes, having no one to sit with in the cafeteria—these are common but painful events that most students face at one time or another. We might even expect that kind of behavior and mistreatment from a lost world, but shouldn’t the church be different?
Christians should have a welcoming spirit and a warm embrace for everyone--=-regardless of who they are, the color of their skin, or where they come from. If a person has truly received the grace of God, how can he or she not exhibit a gracious spirit toward others?
Not only is favoritism unreasonable, but it is also unloving. It violates what James called the royal law prescribed in scripture. Love your neighbors as yourself. Scholars have long debated why James called this the royal law.
Why is the law called royal? Perhaps it is because it is the king of laws, or because it is the law of the kingdom given by the King, or both. James identified it as “thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” This commandment is from Leviticus 19:18. Jesus quoted this verse along with Deut. 6:4-5 when He was asked in Mark 12: 28-31 to name the greatest commandment of the law. The God of love commands His people to love Him and others.
James said that if they kept this royal law, they do well. He may have been trying to correct a possible misunderstanding of earlier verses. Someone might ask, “Were we wrong to welcome the rich man if we did it in love?” James made clear that any act motivated by love was commendable. This was not what he meant by his harsh words against rich people. If Christians act in love toward any person, they are doing right. On the other hand, showing favoritism is sinful. Showing favoritism against the poor man was a violation of the royal law to love our neighbors as ourselves. In the same passage with Leviticus 19:18 is a pointed warning against showing favoritism in Lev. 19: 15.
In James’s mind Jesus did not replace the O.T. law but rather claimed ownership to it and demonstrated how the law goes beyond behavior to the depths of the heart. James’s meaning is that we should obey the law of our Great King, especially as summarized in the command to love others as we love ourselves. If Christians actually practiced the royal law, they wouldn’t need all the rest. Laws against adultery, stealing, lying, murder and coveting would all be unnecessary. Jesus said in Matt. 22: 36-40 that all the law is summed up on the command to “love God with all your heart” and to “love your neighbor as yourself.” Paul also wrote in Gal. 5: 14 that “the entire Law is fulfilled in one statement: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Obedience to this law can transform a culture, a church, a home, or any person who lives by it.
Prejudice, partiality, and favoritism are clear violations of God’s desire that people love others as themselves. James’s encouragement to those who keep this royal command is simple: You are doing well. This phrase is not only an exhortation, but it is also a promise. Those who live by this precept will indeed do well. They will have friend who respect them, family members who love them, and employers who are thrilled to have them, and a God who blesses them.
But those who break the spirit of the law by showing partiality commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
James promised judgment for those who break this law. As surely as God executes vengeance on those who murder or steal, so He will deal with those who sin against His creation by judging as worthless a person whom He created.
Why is God so zealous for this particular command? Because the way Christians relate to other people shows how much they really love God. John wrote in 1 John 4: 10 that “the person who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” Disregarding the creation is just a small step from disregarding the Creator.
PLEASE READ JAMES 2: 10-11.
In the context of his discussion about the royal law, James laid down a great principle that transcends the immediate discussion. “Whoever keeps the entire law, yet fails in one point, is guilty of breaking it all.” The law is like a chain. To break one link is to fracture the entire chain. How many laws does a person have to break in order to be a lawbreaker? Just one.
James
offered no comfort to those who would console themselves with a
hierarchy of evil.
”At least I never killed anyone,” or “I
would never steal from someone” are meaningless moral defenses.
Anyone can find some law that he or she has not broken. But James
presented the principle that the law is cut from one cloth and to
tear the fabric of the law at any point is to ruin the entire cloth.
James emphasized the wholeness of the laws of God. God’s laws are not isolated commandments from which people can pick and choose. God’s laws, which can be summed up in the love commandments, are a unity.
Violating one such law makes a person a transgressor of the law. The fact that James chose two of the most important commandments as examples shows that he considered favoritism to be a serious sin.
This is precisely why vs. 11 is desperately needed so much today. Contemporary culture reinforces the false notion that people are basically good (in spite of daily evidence to the contrary) and therefore they are not guilty before God. It they aren’t guilty, then they don’t need a Savior. If they don’t need a Savior they won’t believe the Bible. But James argued against any suggestion that humans are not guilty and in need of salvation.
Some gift shops have signs on their merchandise that says, “if you break it, you bought it!” What if someone accidentally knocks off an expensive plate but it does not shatter completely: only a little piece breaks off? That person might protest, “Hey, I only broke it in one place”—but the store manager won’t really care. A broken dish is worthless to him. The degree to which it is broken really won’t matter.
Such is James’s view of the law. No one can break it just a little, so no one can be just a little guilty. A person can’t commit a little adultery, and Christians can’t be a little prejudiced.
Sin is an awful thing that taints the entire person and is an affront to a holy God.
Some people might think favoritism or prejudice is just a little sin, but God thinks it is a huge sin. His heart is for everyone, and He has commanded everyone to repent. He is going to redeem people from every tribe, language, people, and nation according to Revelation 5: 9.
Looking down on people is like looking down on God because He created them. God loves all kinds of people, regardless of any external factors like color, wealth, nationality, beauty, intelligence, or even morality.
PLEASE. READ JAMES 2: 12-13.
The result of living by the royal law is that obedient Christians will speak and act differently. James chose those two verbs because nothing demonstrates how sinful people are quite like the things they say and do. People are not able to hide their true beliefs and character for very long. If a person gets beyond the prejudice and partiality that God hates, they will treat people with respect and love through the way they act toward them and the way they speak to them.
Christians have a lot of reasons to change their behavior, but knowing that they will be judged one day by God is certainly a great motive. Not only will everyone stand before God in eternity, but we reap the consequences of our actions right here on earth. People who are judgmental toward others often find themselves the object of others’ judgment. Jesus warned about this in the Sermon on the Mount in Matt. 7: 1-2.
Furthermore, everyone is going to be judged by the single standard that James called the law of freedom. He wrote about this in James 1: 25. The law gives freedom because it enables the person who obeys it to enjoy life. A person who hates others or who is always pursuing relationships for selfish reasons is under bondage. They are always conniving and deceiving others, trying to gain an advantage, evaluating what is for their benefit, and what is not.
Those who love as Jesus loved can live simply, graciously, and freely. They do not get stressed over who they are with, who can do them good, or what someone’s net worth may be. They just love people and make them feel welcome in their presence---just as Jesus did.
When James wrote his audience and exhorted them to shun favoritism, he did not intend to replace it with slavish legalism. All people are naturally related to family, close friends, and colleagues differently. James was not forbidding the development of levels of friendship. He was simply explaining that we must see the equal worth and value of people and treat everyone with the opposite of favoritism—which is mercy. Mercy is the essence of the royal law. Instead of showing favor to the rich, believers in Christ should have mercy on the poor. Mercy is the characteristic that should most infuse the minds of those who would rid themselves of favoritism.
James warned the churches to whom he wrote that a fearful fate awaited them if they did not change their evil ways. Whoever has disregarded God’s command and hasn’t shown mercy will face judgment without mercy themselves. But with the warning he also gave a great promise: Mercy triumphs over judgment.
James’s words are rich with meaning. Those who show mercy in this life will not be judged the same way as those who show favoritism and refuse to love others as God does. James’s words also signify that mercy will triumph over judgment in the life of an individual too. A merciful spirit that lifts others up is much more powerful than a judgmental, self-righteous attitude.
I pray that today’s lesson leads us to examine our hearts and opinions and to root out and destroy any attitudes that are contrary to the royal law of Jesus Christ. We must admit that we are wrong when we treat people differently than we want to be treated.
Christians should strive to make everyone feel special because, every human being is created by God in His image. If Jesus Christ died to save people from every nation, tribe, and language, then His followers have no right to reject anyone.
NEXT WEEK FROM JAMES 3 AND 4 WE LEARN THAT PEOPLE WITH REAL FAITH ACCEPT GOD’S HELP TO CONTROL THEIR SPEECH.
A.V. DAUGHERTY
altav@swbell.net http://www.theweeks.org/av/