James 2:6-7—Dishonored
But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called? James 2:6-7
James noticed huge distinctions in the way some church members responded to the rich compared to the poor. He called this behavior “personal favoritism” and asserted that it was inconsistent with faith in Jesus Christ. Often this differentiation in treatment was demonstrated in preferential seating in meetings for wealthy, well-connected individuals, while underprivileged members were directed to sit in less desirable locations. Because of this observation, James asked these believers, “Have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?” (James 2:4.)
After that, James wrote concerning the real status of poorer members. God Himself chose them to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him (see James 2:5). Christians who viewed their less fortunate brethren as beneath them were making a critical misjudgment absolutely inconsistent with their profession of faith.
But you have dishonored the poor man.
This was a searing evaluation. Whether the believers were aware of the effect of their favoritism or not, they had definitely dishonored the poor and those they deemed less appealing. James knew that for things to change in the church, the truth must be spoken despite its ugly reality.
You, likewise, are called to honor those around you and not to dishonor them. Despite how foreign it may feel to interact with those who are not your “type of people”, the love of God has been poured out within your heart through the Holy Spirit (see Romans 5:5). True community and fellowship among believers is only accomplished as each of us 1.) walk freely in the fruit of the Spirit toward one another; 2.) let go of the distinctions among ourselves; and 3.) refuse to judge with evil motives.
Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?
It is my opinion that James was not referring to rich believers here but to the wealthy in society at large. However, he used this observation about the ruthless, privileged few to draw a stark contrast between the things God valued as opposed to what men value. James said in effect, the people whose lifestyles you longingly crave are the same ones who oppress you and drag you into lawsuits!
Remember, persecution was afoot in James’ time, and believers were targeted as dangerous radicals whose faith was said to pose a threat to civilization. Therefore, James unmasked the true nature of the lifestyle that some Christians naively emulated. He reminded his fellow believers: It’s not the poor and meek but the rich and powerful who blaspheme the beautiful name of Jesus.
James’ rebuke, although painful, was not insensitive. He saw discrepancies in the attitudes of his brethren toward fellow Christians, and for the health of the early church and the generations of believers to come, he addressed it. Dishonor among believers will always be a direct violation of the will of God and is something worth addressing and remedying.
May the living God, the God of liberty, move within all of us to eradicate personal favoritism and the tendency to make distinctions among ourselves. And may no one in our midst be dishonored again.
Dorothy
Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Romans 12:16
Read MoreJames 2:5—Poor but rich
Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? James 2:5
The King of the universe, the God of all things, and the One who owns the cattle on a thousand hills has never conducted His business according to human standards. One of God’s business principles that flies in the face of human thinking is displayed in James’ letter. The Lord has chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom.
But, you may think, doesn’t God want to bless us and meet all our needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus? (See Philippians 4:19.) Of course He does. He says so in His Word. And He has chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith. Both concepts are rock-solid.
God is not impressed by man’s ability or power. Nor does He marvel at human wealth. He’s seen it all and none of it fazes Him. But something does move Him—your faith in Him and His Word. Hebrews 11:6 declares, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him.” When you do place your faith in the Lord and His Word, you please Him and He will move on your behalf.
This is why the Bible says He has chosen the poor of the world to be rich in faith. The poor are painfully aware of their need, whereas the financially secure are often blinded to their own personal deficiency, distracted by comfort. In order to turn to Christ, you must acknowledge your need of Him. If you feel no lack, you are less likely to recognize just how needy you really are.
God longs for all to be saved, regardless of their financial situation. However, Jesus said, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (see Matthew 19:24). Why? Again, it has to do with recognition of need. If you are poor, life has done its best to humiliate you and beat you down, and therefore it’s easier to humble yourself before God—you’re already about as low as you can go. But if you are secure and comfortable, it probably seems ludicrous for you to turn to an unseen Power known for demanding total surrender—in exchange for what? Eternal life? A new heart? Blessings? I’m already living the good life, you think. Why wreck it all with religion?
Through outside prayer and often great difficulty, a secure man comes to realize that he is wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked (see Revelation 3:17). Once any person recognizes his great need—whether it is material, spiritual, or both—he becomes “poor in spirit” (see Matthew 5:3), and if he turns by faith to the Lord for His saving grace, he is blessed and inherits the kingdom of heaven.
God has chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom. Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” It is not merely the penniless who are poor; the poor in spirit includes anyone who recognizes his deep need for a Savior. And when someone who is poor in spirit reaches out in faith to Christ—regardless of financial status—that person becomes an heir of the kingdom.
Blessings are yours as you recognize your need and turn to God in faith to meet it.
Dorothy
…but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. 1 Corinthians 1:27-31
Read MoreJames 2:2-4—Judging with evil motives
For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine 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,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives? James 2:2-4
James warned against holding your faith in Jesus with an attitude of personal favoritism. He then illustrated his point with a familiar scenario.
Two people walk into your meeting. One is well-dressed—he demonstrates impeccable taste, class, and obvious wealth. The other is unkempt, outdated, and dirty. How do you treat the two?
James asserts that if you make distinctions between them—upgrading the seating for one and leading the other to a less desirable spot—you are guilty of becoming a judge with evil motives.
Most of us are not in charge of directing the seating arrangements in church, but James’ admonishment surely extends beyond orchestrating preferential seating selections. Do you seek out the attention of the sharper, more presentable members while avoiding others who are less appealing? Do you have a secret checklist outlining qualifications for the individuals you allow into your circle—this type of person or better, but not that? Does your behavior say to certain people, “I’ll “minister” to you, but don’t expect friendship”?
You aren’t called to judge anyone else’s motives, but you are responsible to discern your own. When James warns against becoming a judge with evil motives, he is instructing you to honestly evaluate your own standards for assessing the worth of others. If you become aware of discrepancies in the way you treat people based on externals and self-promoting values, then ask God for mercy and grace to cleanse and reboot your thinking and motives.
James wrote this message to the early church; his bold words are every bit as piercing in our time as the church draws from a highly stratified, diverse, and fractured culture. The faces, styles, and mannerisms may have changed, but the basic Christian need to accept and be accepted in the household of faith remains the same. This torch, carried in his time by James, has been passed down through the centuries. It’s our torch now; may it burn brightly without being quenched, lighting the path, warming hearts, and bringing sweet Christian fellowship to all of us called by His name.
May God help each of us to be more effective in communicating and demonstrating the value of one another.
Dorothy
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves. Philippians 2:3
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. John 13:35
Read MoreJames 2:1—Favoritism
My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. James 2:1
Ecclesiastes 7:18 declares, “It is good that you grasp one thing and also not let go of the other; for the one who fears God comes forth with both of them.” When standing in faith for more than one desired outcome, God gives you the go ahead: Hold onto every bit of it by faith in the fear of God and you will come forth with it all.
However, when it comes to holding onto faith while at the same time carrying an attitude of personal favoritism, don’t expect a similar God-endorsed outcome. The two are diametrically opposed to one another; an attitude of personal favoritism will always undermine your faith and expose it as deficient.
The Amplified Bible says it this way, “My brethren, pay no servile regard to people [show no prejudice, no partiality]. Do not [attempt to] hold and practice the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ [the Lord] of glory [together with snobbery]!”
“Servile”, according to Encarta Dictionary, means being “too willing to agree with somebody or to do anything, however demeaning, that somebody wants”. My eighth graders called this kind of person a “suck-up” (a term I wouldn’t let them use in class)—someone who leeches self-esteem from their interactions with “the man” or the “diva” of the day.
How does this attitude manifest? It comes on the scene in a number of ways, and unfortunately, each manifestation produces winners and losers, a pecking order, or a type of caste system that pigeon-holes individuals, causing them to feel restricted in the full expression of who they are.
As awkward as it is to discuss, in church life this kind of partiality is one of the prime sources of discomfort, pain, and a nagging sense of isolation that emerges within a body of believers. Whenever someone makes it his mission to identify with the “right people” within the body, to rub shoulders with perceived VIPs, or to name drop to prove his importance, there’s a good chance that this person is operating with an attitude of personal favoritism.
Unfortunately, this drive does not serve the intended purpose—to make the person more loved, respected, and integrated into a healthy body; instead it tends to create invisible barriers between members—barriers that broadcast who is desirable, who is acceptable, who is OK, who is so-so, and who is probably better left avoided. Think middle school and high school.
Again, the Amplified takes no prisoners when it uses the word “snobbery” as a synonym for “personal favoritism”. Walking in faith and glorifying the precious name of the Lord must not dwell together within the same person alongside snobbery. Nothing will hinder the witness of a believer nearly as brazenly as snobbish partiality.
The Greek term koinōnia is used often in the New Testament for our words “fellowship”, “community”, “communion” and “communication”. As my pastor once said, this word for fellowship means “two fellows in the same ship”—a sense of community and the free flow of communication one among the other. In such a body, no member feels “too good” or “too insignificant”—so-called “standing” in the body does not even cross anyone’s mind. Why not? Because healthy Christian life and community has no room for personal favoritism. Snobbery—as the Amplified Bible calls it—has been laid aside along with the rest of the works of the flesh.
My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism.
If you notice that you have operated in an attitude of personal favoritism in any way, talk openly to God about it. Receive cleansing and forgiveness and allow Him to readjust you from within so that wherever you go, that sweet sense of community and fellowship can flow unhindered.
Dorothy
Read MoreJames 1:27—Pure and undefiled religion
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 by the world. James 1:27
James wrote in verse 25 that if you think you’re religious but don’t bridle your tongue, your religion is worthless.
On the other hand, he wrote that your relationship with God is pure and undefiled if two qualities are present in your life: 1.) You visit orphans and widows in their distress; 2.) You keep yourself unstained by the world.
- …visit orphans and widows in their distress…
The most helpless souls of James’ time were those who had lost the breadwinner of the household—orphans and widows. They are among the most helpless of our day, as well. James declares that your motives before God are demonstrated as pure and undefiled when you visit such as these in their time of distress, making yourself available to them when they are most devastated.
Jesus extends the list in Matthew 25. He said, “For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.” The righteous asked, “When did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?” His response was, “To the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me” (see Matthew 25:35-40).
Your active kindness is to extend to widows and orphans, the hungry and thirsty, strangers, the homeless and those without adequate clothing, the sick and those in prison, your pastors (see 1 Timothy 5:17), those who share your faith (see Galatians 6:10), the wicked and those who hate you (see Matthew 5:44 and Romans 12:20), and everyone else.
You are called to walk in love with all people and are to make particular effort to be available to others when they are distressed and suffering loss. As you seek God about how to follow through, know that you are engaged in the pure and undefiled demonstration of your religion.
- …keep oneself unstained by the world.
Stains happen when an object comes in contact with something that soils or discolors it. You are cleansed by the blood of Jesus and are righteous in His sight, but you come into contact with the outside world and the ups and downs of normal life every day. As a result, you run the risk of your soul being impacted and soiled by whatever you encounter.
A situation that occurred in the life of Jesus illustrates this. When Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, Peter tried to stop Him, alarmed that the Lord would stoop to such a lowly endeavor. Jesus responded, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me,” indicating the necessity of submitting to the Lord’s washing.
Then Peter, always full of passion, demanded that Jesus wash not only his feet, but his head and hands, as well.
Jesus replied, “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet [representing that which is in regular contact with the world], but is completely clean; and you are clean” (see John 13:5-10). You, also, are clean due to your faith in Christ; but to assume that you won’t be affected by the world you touch every day is naive.
The way you keep yourself unstained by the world is to recognize that daily life brings you into contact with the various staining elements of the world, and therefore you need to take regular “baths”. You keep yourself clean by confessing sin to the Lord when you become aware of it, by receiving the forgiveness already purchased for you by His blood, by the washing of the water of the Word (see Ephesians 5:26), and by letting the rivers of God within you flow out in worship and praise.
A pure and undefiled walk with the Lord is relatively basic. It involves visiting orphans and widows in their distress and keeping yourself unstained by the world. As you integrate the love walk and humble consecration into your life, you’ll become an effectual doer of the Word and will be blessed in what you do.
Dorothy
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