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?
8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,”[a] you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,”[b] also said, “You shall not murder.”[c] If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
Hope that so far this summer has been relaxing and fun for you all! This week's verses shout "love one another!" to me...let's take a look...
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?
Man I am glad that our Lord does not have favorites! In Acts 10:34 Peter further solidifies this notion, "34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism." As we seek to be Christlike, we must strive to do the same.
When was the last time you judged someone based on how they look? What car they drove? How they dressed their kids? It is so easy to fall into judgment isn't it? It takes much more self control to keep our minds pure from judgment or as it says in verse 4, straight up "evil thoughts." In Luke 6:37 it says 37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven." This truth really puts these verses quickly into perspective. What if we operated on the assumption that whatever we said in our minds or out loud about someone else- we said about ourselves. How would it feel? Let alone, what consequence would that judgment have for our souls eternally?
8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,”[a] you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,”[b] also said, “You shall not murder.”[c] If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
It is all or nothing. Just because we do not commit the sins that may be large in our eyes mentioned in verse 11, does not mean that we are not guilty of sin. Showing favoritism is a sin. In what areas of your life do you think you show favoritism to others? We need to continue to re-direct our thoughts to verse 8 in which it says "love your neighbor as yourself." We need to meditate on Matthew 7:12, "12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." And teach our kids to love others like Christ does- as valuable, unique, designed perfectly little people for His purpose.
12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
"Mercy triumphs over judgment"- That should be printed on a banner or a t-shirt, shouldn't it? In Matthew 5:7 it says, "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy". These would be great verses to memorize, to tuck in our hearts- to guard them from judgment. James 2: 12-13: "12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment."
What an incredible reminder that judging others is serious business. I would guess that most of us judge in our minds way more often than out loud. The next time judgment of another person crosses your mind I challenge you and myself, to take that thought captive and replace it with James 2:12 and 13. Taking ownership of your thoughts is easier said than done, but I know from personal experience that it is possible.
Shortly after we moved to Texas I went through a season sprinkled with significant anxiety. I sought wise counsel. Through that counseling process I learned how to take my unhealthy thoughts captive. When my mind drifted to something that would cause me to worry (my husband's family cancer history, taking a long trip by myself with the kids, being outgoing in a room of people I had never met before, etc.), I quickly captured the offending thought and replaced it with truth. Often, I repeated Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." By taking thoughts about judgment captive and replacing them with scripture we can apply God's Word to our everyday lives. I think this really works- you be the judge :-)
Looking forward to studying James 2:14-26 with you next week!
Shortly after we moved to Texas I went through a season sprinkled with significant anxiety. I sought wise counsel. Through that counseling process I learned how to take my unhealthy thoughts captive. When my mind drifted to something that would cause me to worry (my husband's family cancer history, taking a long trip by myself with the kids, being outgoing in a room of people I had never met before, etc.), I quickly captured the offending thought and replaced it with truth. Often, I repeated Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." By taking thoughts about judgment captive and replacing them with scripture we can apply God's Word to our everyday lives. I think this really works- you be the judge :-)
Looking forward to studying James 2:14-26 with you next week!
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