James 1:22 NASB
22 But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not just hearers who deceive themselves.
James 1:27 NASB
27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained [aa]by the world.
The verses above are very familiar to most Christians. What is under-appreciated is the fact that these verses in chapter one set the context for what follows in chapter two. First, as Christian, we should be about our heavenly Father’s business. We are His ambassadors in the earth. The only Christ many will see is Christ in you.
Additionally, God has a heart for the poor. Throughout scripture, we are continually reminded that we must not ignore the poorest among us. In fact, reaching out to the poor is to be regarded as an opportunity, a blessing, rather than a burden or a bother. This is the principle tenet of the Abrahamic Covenant: Blessed to be a blessing. It is in this vein that James presents his argument in chapter two against partiality. So, let us begin.
James2:1 KJV
My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
James 2:1 NASB
1 My brothers and sisters, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism.
James 2:1 The Message
1 My dear friends, don’t let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith.
prosōpolēmpsia is the Greek word used for partiality. It literally means ‘respect of persons’. It comes from the root word, prosōpolēmptēs which means ‘acceptor of persons’ or ‘one who discriminates’. The only place the root word is used in scripture is Acts 10:24 in which Peter proclaimed that “God was no respecter of persons.
Act 10:34 KJV
34 Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:
Beloved, before we proceed we must recognize that God is impartial and that His impartiality is a function of His nature. After all, all of mankind is made in His image and His likeness. If there was any doubt in that truth, we have only to look to Jesus, who God sent to earth to rescue all of us…..as a man. This is worth repeating: God’s impartiality is a function of His nature. Selah.
James 2:2-4 NASB
2 For if a man comes into your [a]assembly with a gold ring and is dressed in bright clothes, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and you [b]pay special attention to the one who is wearing the bright clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil [c]motives?
And so, it stands to reason that to show partiality is an entirely human condition. That’s right. It’s human nature. And because of sin, our human nature is fatally flawed. Subsequently, we discriminate. Discrimination is typically a learned behavior. We oftentimes make judgments about our present circumstance based on the conglomeration of our lived experiences from birth. While this is normal for everyone, it can be, and in fact, is stained by and subject to our mere humanity. Let me be clear, it’s not necessarily intentioned, but intuitive. Over our lifetimes we come to know what we like and what we don’t. Only God can, by nature or strength of character alone be impartial. We see that strength of character personified in the life of Jesus Christ.
So when the rich and famous show up at our church, it is natural for us to show them the utmost respect. After all, based on our past experiences, most of us understand that those who have means have the means to bless….us. Our innate selfishness informs us that it normal to desire, to covet wealth and the benefits thereof. Thus it becomes okay to discriminate.
James 2:5-6a NASB
5 Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters: did God not choose the poor [d]of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? 6a But you have dishonored the poor man.
Beloved, God cares for the poor because no one else will. Not normally. Because God is impartial by nature, He sees. He sees Hagar, desperate and alone, rejected by her master's wife, pushed out of home in her most vulnerable moment, the moment she became a mother. He sees Ruth, a young widow, who leaves her people for His. He sees Lazarus, a beggar so poor that he has only dogs to lick his wounds, to show him any mercy at all. He sees a thief hanging on a cross beside Him, with whom He immediately forms an eternal bond. God sees the least among us. and He smiles upon them. He helps them.
Psalms 113:7 KNJV
7
He raises the poor from the dust,
He lifts the needy from the garbage heap,
____________
James 2:6b-7 NASB
Is it not the rich who oppress you and [e]personally drag you into [f]court? 7 Do they not blaspheme the good name [g]by which you have been called?
James then reminds his readers that their partiality is so often misplaced in that it yields little or no real reward. The rich, the very people to whom they have been showing partiality are the very people, who outside of the church, are their persecutors and accusers. The wealthy victimize the poor at a whim, even Christians are not excluded from their gluttony. Their excess often drives their morality. In America, in the year 2020, our present-day society is rife with examples of excesses of the wealthy.
James 2:8
8 If, however, you are fulfilling the [h]royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.
James continues his epistle by now directing his readers to a portion of scripture, Leviticus 19:18b, which is stated, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Combined with verses from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 which implore the reader to Love the Lord God with all of being, this amalgamation of Scripture was known as ‘The Royal Law’. Jesus proclaimed that this royal l was greater than the entire law of Moses and all of the writings of the prophets combined. In James’ mind, care for the poor was the fulfillment of the ‘royal’ law. The royal law required complete impartiality, in that you were commanded to love your neighbor as yourself. Think about that for a moment. In order to accomplish said commandment, one must be willing to share with a neighbor that which they would reserve solely for themselves with no thought for recompense. Who does that? Who can do that, besides Christ? Beloved, this can only be accomplished by the Spirit of God. In that we don’t have the natural compunction to love unconditionally, we must rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us through the work of unconditional love. Our motivation then is to please God.
James 2:9-10
9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the Law as violators. 10 For whoever keeps the whole Law, yet stumbles in one point, has become guilty of all. 11 For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but do murder, you have become a violator of the Law.
But, according to James, if we show partiality, we are revealed to be sinners. James points to the law of Moses as the instrument of our condemnation. This same truth is confirmed by the Apostle Paul, who wrote that, “the letter (of the Law) brought death. The thought is further confirmed by Jesus, who said, ”Unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the Pharisees”, you would not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.
What is revealed then, is the condition of the unregenerate human heart. A heart without Christ. A heart not indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Since that is not the condition of the believer, we must interpret James’ intent as rhetorical. At least as far as the eternal fate of the believer is concerned. For at the moment we believed, we were saved. We are not working ‘for’ salvation. Otherwise, it would not be a gift. It would not be of grace.
James 2:12-13
12 So speak, and so act, as those who are to be judged by the law of freedom. 13 For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy [i]triumphs over judgment.
Therefore, Beloved, James admonishes us to speak and act according to our new nature, given us at the moment of the ‘new birth’. As stated before, the moment we believed in and on Christ (there is a distinction) and embraced Him as Lord and Savior of our lives, we were saved. That can’t be undone. Beloved, we must always walk in the knowledge of the immutable truth of God’s love shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost. Only then can our confidence and trust in God flourish. Let go of partiality. Let go of selfishness. Let go of covetousness. Let go of lust, which can never be quenched. Let go and let God. Let God take to places in the Spirit unimaginable in the human mind, inconceivable in the human heart. Let go and let God.
Selah
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Jeremiah 31:33 NASB
33 “For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord: “I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Romans 8:1-2 NASB
1 Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life [a]in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
Romans 8:14 NASB
14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons and daughters of God.
Galatians 2:20 NASB
20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and [t]the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
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