James 2:1-13
School politics was always an interesting and risky game to play. No, we didn’t play games where we got to take turns playing president (though the I’m in charge game was always fun); I’m talking about social politics in school – we all had it in some way. This is about how people get known as cool, or how most people become leaders in their school years – like not maybe trying the dumb choice of aligning myself as a new kid with Phillips 66 gas stations as the way to help kids remember my name.
To judge someone/befriend someone over another based on how they look or how many friends they have is pure and simple favoritism. While it is certainly an easy way to handle the social politics situation, it is only harmful. James calls favoritism what it really is – sin. It’s the opposite way Christ did it and isn’t acceptable in His church – righteousness doesn’t play favorites.
Favoritism is Sin
While it might seem like It’s quite a leap to jump from standard playground practice to sin, consider this: why do you like the people you like? It starts in school – you meet a new kid on the first day of school and find out they like the same cartoons as you; you have something in common and you are now friends. What you are doing, at the sub-conscious level is determining what that person can do for you, or add to your life. These are purely selfish motives. If this new kid comes to school and looks cool, is dressed well, makes good jokes, and plays the games you like, it’s easy to befriend them. But what if, instead, they come to school with thick glasses, their clothes don’t fit right, maybe they are a little dirty, and are obsessed with Star Trek? This, friends, is favoritism judgment: determining the value of other people based on what you like and how that improves your life or situation. James calls this straight up evil in v4.
Now, we do need to make judgments – that’s a different situation. If you try to befriend a person and all they do is put you down, lie to you, betray you, etc… then good judgment calls for stepping out of that situation. Who a person is is important – consider James’ warning in v6-7. This is what I always like about networking – it was the school social politics game, but it was always based (for me, at least) on the content of someone’s character, not superficial stuff like attractiveness or popularity.
God is the One who loves all without question and gave Himself for us—while we were at our worst (Rom 5:8)! Judging people based on the idea of what they can do for us is wrong and harmful – both to them and to us. This is the key problem for Neal Page during his fateful trip to get home to his family in Chicago for Thanksgiving. He was so concerned about keeping up with the Joneses that made the huge mistake of taking the early to Chicago despite warning to go later. This is the base premise for Planes, Trains and Automobiles and how he met Del, who was his polar opposite – overweight, curly hair, bad moustache and annoying habits all added up to Neal blaming Del for everything bad that happened on that journey. By the end of the movie, Neal had finally learned that he was wrong to judge Del because of his failure to live up to Neal’s standards. Instead, mercy would have been a much better choice. Too bad for Neal the trip was over by then. Too late.
Mercy is Righteousness
That’s a very scary thing about the law/about sin – once it’s broken, it’s broken. Look at v10 –favoritism disqualifies us from God’s presence! Sin is sin is sin – whether you are a murderer or a gossip, ungratefully selfish, or even just tell a little white lie. Sin disqualifies us from God’s presence and from heaven. It ruins us; it destroys us; it makes us pitiful – no matter who you are or what you’ve done – all sin is dirty and we are covered in it. But that’s what makes mercy so beautiful. According to the original Greek, eleos (mercy) is compassionate treatment of those in distress. Instead of condemnation, mercy offers compassion. This is righteousness because this is God’s action – His choice. Instead of looking at a person for what they can give you, you look at the person with what you can give them; exactly how Jesus looks at you. Christ saw us in our sin and evil and muck and still looked on us with compassion – so much so that it drove Him to come and die on our behalf. This is love. This is compassion. This is mercy. He took the punsihment that we couldn’t handle.
Next Steps
Favoritism is sin because it’s the opposite of Christ. We must practice the way of mercy. Mercy is righteousness because it chooses love. Today, you can do the same:
- Don’t leave today before talking to someone you don’t normally talk to. Break out of your circle and show love to everyone equally
- Show God’s love to someone this week that isn’t very “loveable”
Has anyone ever taken a look at you and said no thanks? Picked last for kickball? Don’t play favorites; love others with unending mercy because that’s what Jesus does for you.
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