James: A Faith That Works Doesn’t Play Favorites

Have you ever been in a gathering where you didn’t feel welcome? Most of us have had that experience.  Let me ask it another way:  Have you everbeen the new person to a group and found yourself desperately wanting to fit in? I remember the first time I felt that.  It was when I started 7^thgrade at Waldo Junior High.  I remember how desperately I wanted to fit in, to be accepted, to belong.  But I found out pretty quick that in order to fit in I needed to change my look – to change my appearance. After all, it was 1967 and I still had a crew cut. So I had to fight my parents for the right to grow out my hair. Next I needed the right “uniform.”  Now, our school didn’t have uniforms, but I quickly learned that the “uniform” of the day was pretty simple.  All I needed was some 501 Jeans, Adidas tennis shoes, and some white t-shirts.  And I knew if I could look the part, I would soon fit in.  So changing my appearance helped a lot.  But that was only the half of it.  The other half had to do with my status.

Now to have the status I needed to fit in, I needed to play football. After all, all the cool guys were all going out for football.  So I asked my dad if I could go out for the team.  That’s when my dad taught me something that changed everything for me.  He asked me a simple question: “How many guys do you think will play football after High School?”“Not many” was my answer.  Then he asked me another question: “What do you want to be, a good golfer or a football player?”  I knew the answer.  So that was the end of my football career. But I was still left with a dilemma.  How was I going to raise my status so I could fit in?  I needed something that would set me apart as unique, to raise my status. Then it happened. It was the first day of gym class, when our Gym Teacher, Mr, MacMillan, was going through the roll and was trying to learn our names.  When he got to my name, he stopped and spoke to me directly.  He asked, “Are you Paul Sundin’s son?”  And I said, “Yes.”  He then took the next two or three minutes to tell me how great my dad was, and that he was a friend of my dad.  That did it.  I was Paul Sundin’s son, and that was good enough to raise my status and help me fit in.

Now, my experience is pretty common.  All of us remember what it was like to want to fit in– to be treated as an equal among our peers.  But what I find fascinating is that this desire never leaves us.  We long to belong.  But to belong – to be treated as an equal in our world today is not easy.  No matter where you try to fit in, there are still standards  of acceptance that people set for you. They are mostly unspoken standards, but we all feel them and know them.  Some of those standards focus on our appearance. Some focus on our status, or our experience, still others on our behavior, the color of our skin, our intelligence, or even our political affiliation.  In other words, whether you like it or not, the world is constantly judging you to see if you are worthy of acceptance.  And amazingly this kind of thinking can get in the way of how we include others in God’s family.  In fact, playing favorites based on appearance, status, experience, race or any other standard really has no place among God’s people.  That’s what James shows us as we return to God’s Word in the book of James today.  So let me encourage you open God’s Word to James 2:1-13, where James makes it clear how a faith that works doesn’t play favorites.  And he begins with a pretty common example of how the world plays favorites to show us

The Evil of Playing Favorites: My brothersand sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 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? James 2:1-4

James begins this teaching by commanding God’s people to not show favoritism.  So what is “favoritism?”  Favoritism is a descriptive word for showing partiality; it literally means to receive someone according to their face.  It is judging someone on the basis of their external appearance.  We look at their appearance and decide whether we are going to include them or not. This is what the world does.  God says it this way: “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”1 Samuel 16:7

So now look at the example James gives.  He describes two people coming into a meeting.  This is probably some kind of teaching or worship service. One man comes in wearing a gold ring and fine clothes and the other is a “poor “man wearing filthy clothes.  Now someone with gold rings would be showing off both status and wealth, so James presents a person who has both rank and money.  And since he is described as wearing fine clothes, literally, “shining clothing;” he has come to this gathering in such a way as to bring attention to himself.  He comes wanting everyone to know how well off he is.  Now in contrast, we see the other chap.  He is described as “poor;” a word used for the most severe form of poverty, implying that he is “destitute.”  And his clothes are filthy.  This is the only set of clothing he has and his clothes are disgustingly unclean, which also means, he smelled pretty bad.

And immediately we see that the man wearing the fine clothes is directed to a good seat.  By saying “Here’s a good seat for you,” the one speaking is inviting the guest to sit in a privileged chair near the speaker and the front of the room, where all can see this honored visitor.  The other guest, well, he’s not treated much like a guest, but is basically told to stand in the back or sit on the floor.

Now, James has painted a vivid picture of discrimination based on outward appearance. And by asking the question: have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?  He makes the point that to play favorites based on outward appearance is the very thing that the world does; and he calls such preferential treatment “evil.”

Why is playing favorites based on outward appearance evil?  Simple, if you do this, you usurp God’s role as a judge.  It’s never our place to judge who God accepts as worthy.  Remember, “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”1 Samuel 16:7 James is condemning the practice of accepting people on the basis of what they look like, or how well off they are: Just because someone is born with beauty and money doesn’t make them any better than a person born in poverty.

Remember, what we learned last week? 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. James 1:27.  And what we see here is one of the ways the world pollutes our thinking.  In the world’s way of thinking you give honor, respect, and treat well the person who can benefit you the most.  So you favor them; give them preferential treatment. But that’s not God’s way of thinking. He doesn’t value someone by what they can do for Him, but by what He has done for them.  And what has he done for them?  Well, first of all, He has created them.  Every person who has ever lived was created in the image and likeness of God.  Every person you ever lock eyes with is fearfully and wonderfully made.  Therefore every person has inherent value and dignity, simply because they exist.  Secondly, God proved how valuable all people are to him.  He didn’t just create us and leave us to go our own way.  No, He came to us when we were at our worst, and loved us.  How? Scripture tells us: But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8   God values all people.  He proved this by sending Jesus to die for us when we were at our worst. So God sees all people with value simply because we are people.  Our beauty, our wealth, our status in life doesn’t impact how He values us.  And the same should be said of us.  So we must not show favoritism like the world does.  For the way the world plays favorites is evil.

Now, you’d think James has made his point here, but he’s just getting started.  Next he shows us The Absurdity of Playing Favorites: 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? 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? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? James 2:5-7

Now James lays down a stunning indictment on the behavior of this church, by saying that they have dishonored the very poor whom God has honored.  He asks a question that he expects to get a yes answer from: 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? But you have insulted the poor?  How?  They’ve been kowtowing to the rich. They’ve been giving the rich preferential treatment. And James says, this is absurd.  You’d rather honor the rich, who have been persecuting you, then honor the poor who are rich in faith.  You’d rather favor of the rich who are dragging you into court, then favor the poor who love God.  And you’d rather give preferential treatment to those who are blaspheming the name of Jesus, then honor those Jesus died for.  Such behavior is not just insulting to the poor, it’s insulting to God. What is happening here is that the poor, in coming to join the Christian community is now experiencing the same humiliating treatment they’ve been receiving from the world at large.  And James says, to favor the rich this way is absurd.  It’s inconsistent with who we are.  If we are the people of God, if we have an authentic faith, then we will love, honor and respect all the people Jesus died for, not just the one’s who we think might benefit us.

Do you see what James is saying here? If God loves everyone equally, then so should we.  So don’t treat the rich person any different than the poor.  We don’t treat the slow person any different than the brilliant. We don’t treat the homely person any different than the handsome. We are to give honor where honor is due.  God is creating a new community where anyone can belong. Who are we to discriminate between who gets our love and respect, and who does not?  To favor only the rich who are taking advantage of you, who are abusing you and trashing the name of Jesus, is absurd behavior for anyone who’s been redeemed by Jesus.  Are you starting to grasp the gravity of what James is trying to say to us?  God loves everyone equally, and so should we.

By now, you’d think James has made his point. But there’s more.  He gives us one more reason to stop showing favoritism.  How?  By pointing out The Sin of Playing Favorites Look now at verse 8, If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the wholelaw and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 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. James 2:8-11

Now James tells us what we should know by now:  If you show favoritism, you sin. James is quoting from Leviticus 19:18 when God says to love your neighbor as yourself.  This law summed up the two great commandments: love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.  The context of this command in Leviticus 19 gives us a pretty strong sense of what James is getting at: Listen to these verses: “‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.“‘Do not go about spreading slander among your people.“‘Do not do anything thatendangers your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord.“‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt.“‘Do not seek revenge orbear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:15-18  James is bringing home the reality that to show favoritism is sin.  It is a violation of the law of love, the law of Christ (the law of the King, hence the Royal Law) So when you show favoritism, you are guilty of breaking the law on two fronts:

First, playing favorites dishonors man.  We’ve seen that.  Whenever you judge one person as more valuable than another based on their outward appearance, you make yourself out to be their judge.  And as James said earlier, such judgment is evil. It’s of the world.  But now he hammers home his point by saying that playing favorites violates the law of love. And so that we’ll feel the gravity of this sin, he puts this sin on the same level as committing adultery or committing murder.  What happens when you commit murder?  You treat another human being as less than human.  You clearly dishonor the victim.  What happens when you commit adultery?  You show that your personal gratification is more important than your spouse, your children and even God.  So yes, you dishonor your wife and children. You are treating them less than human, so you are breaking the law of love.  Playing favorites dishonors man.

Second,playing favorites disrespects God. Whenever you show favoritism, you are telling God, that His law of love is obsolete.  You make your own laws.  You are saying to Him, that you will love whoever you want to love.  So not only do you break the law of love, but you disregard God as the One who knows what’s best for life. So then, when you choose to play favorites you disrespect God. You tell God that you know who deserves love, not Him.  How arrogant is that?    Are you beginning to see how important it is that we not play favorites among God’s people? Are you beginning to see that showing favoritism is the way of the world, but not God’s way?  Are you beginning to feel the weight of sin that favoritism carries?

I hope you’re beginning to sense the seriousness in which God views the sin of favoritism. God does not want us to pick and choose who is to be our neighbor.  He doesn’t discriminate who can get in on the love of God. And neither should we.  So what do we do with this teaching today?  How do we have a faith that works so that we won’t play favorites from this point forward?

How We Can Keep From Playing Favorites: Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.James 2:12-13

What is he saying here? If you’ve been shown mercy, then you’ll show mercy.  Because that’s what mercy does. If you don’t show mercy, then you are still under judgment.  For Mercy triumphs over judgment.  God has given us mercy through Jesus Christ.  There is now no condemnation in Christ Jesus!

So, now that God no longer judges you, there is no need to judge others.  Now that Gods’ forgiven you, you are free to forgive others. Now that God has accepted you, you are free to accept others. That’s what happens when mercy reigns. We are now able to see with the eyes of God’s mercy, and what do we see?  We see everyone is the same at the foot of the cross.  And when everyone’s the same at the foot of the cross, then everyone can have a place to belong in God’s family.  That’s why a faith that works doesn’t play favorites.  For mercy always triumphs over judgment.