James 2:1-7

Favoritism Forbidden
2 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 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. 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,” 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
     5 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? 6 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? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?  (NIV)

James urges his congregation not to show favoritism. The first half of this chapter is about discrimination and its opposite, favoritism. Before James says anything else, he reminds us of the motivation for the behavior he describes: we are "believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ." He follows this with an obvious example of what he means to discourage, and then tells us what's wrong with this behavior: it is inconsistent with God's own choice of the poor versus the hostile actions of the rich. Of course, we know that James is using the words "rich" and "poor" to make a point. Simply because someone has financial trouble on earth does not mean that this person will automatically enter into heaven. And financial security today does not necessarily exclude one from heaven tomorrow. But we always need to remember the context of what we are reading. James was writing to specific people who were behaving in a specific way.

If James had been living in America a hundred and fifty years ago, he probably would have been talking about the exploitation of slaves and the racial problems our country faced. If he were living next door to you today, what would he be talking about? There is a tendency today, even among Christians, to discriminate against other Christians. In an age when all "faiths" are said to be tolerated and respected, have you noticed that a Christian who stands up for what he believes in is often called a crackpot? Not that we should find that shocking or out of the ordinary. But when we fail to stand up for God's word, we can be giving the impression that God's word doesn't matter. Showing favoritism really does the same thing. Favoritism says "I don't care what God thinks of this person, I only care about what I think, how I feel, or how well-liked I'll be if I am friendly or unfriendly toward this person." When we set aside God, we rebel against him.

Thankfully, Jesus paid for this sin, too. The forgiveness we have in Jesus is our motive for treating others as brothers; for telling them about him. That is God's will. That is our mission.

James 1:22-27

22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. 26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 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. (NIV)

When you were little and got a gift, what did your parents usually have to remind you to do? Wasn't it to say "thank you"? James has just reminded his readers that God's word is able to save our souls. What can we do in response to this? We can say "thank you" with our lips, with our hearts, and with our lives.  "Do what it says," James urges. What a great illustration he gives us: the forgetful man and the mirror! James tells his readers that when they read God's law they should do what it says... does he contradict Paul, who told us we no longer need to obey God's law?

Now we need to remember the contexts of Galatians and of James. Paul is writing to people who were new converts, and were being forced into submitting to circumcision. They had been told that they had to obey the Old Testament laws in order to be saved. That was a lie.

James is writing to people who are mature believers for whom obedience to the law wasn't the main issue. He is not saying they need to obey the law to be saved. On the contrary, he is saying-- and this is vital--that since they have been saved, they can obey the law and be blessed in doing so. The law tells us about God's will for his people before Christ came. The law tells us how we can love God (by having no other gods, and so forth) and how we can love other people (by honoring our parents, not murdering, and so forth). The law also tells us a variety of ways in which to make sacrifices, how to react to mildew and various skin diseases, and more. But we may even find that we have kept an Old Testament law by accident, without trying (many people circumcise their male children even today for reasons apart from obedience to the law).

But before you start checking for mold on your doorposts or go checking out your pantry for kosher food, remember that none of these things are required for eternal life. If we insist on them, we reject Christ. If we joyfully abide by them in thanks for what Jesus has done for us, then we will be blessed. We will also be blessed if we give thanks to God in other ways. James evven names a few: Look after widows and orphans, and keep yourself from being polluted by the world.

There's a lot here to take to heart. Be faithful to Jesus, and know that in him, your sins are forgiven.