This past weekend my husband and I were supposed to close on our new home. We had been waiting for so long and I had everything planned to the T. We were going to spend the weekend having a giant slumber party in our new home. The pillows and blankets were packed. Mimosa supplies had been prepared for our first breakfast in our home. We had already picked out paint colors and had planned a “painting party” with my family to repaint the entirety of our home before we moved in our belongings. I was so excited to close on our home and make these carefully planned “parties” happen that I had even dug out our wedding countdown and turned it into a “closing on our home” countdown.
It’s only natural that when a hitch got thrown into all of my plans that I responded with frustration, aggravation and sadness. The HOA lady, who had to submit a questionnaire for the underwriter to clear us for closing, was causing delays. First she didn’t do the questionnaire, then she did...but she filled it out wrong. We had our real estate agent going above and beyond to contact her, the title company trying to submit paperwork she had failed to and, even our loan officers were constantly calling her. Everyone was working as a team to help get this one simple form completed so we could close. We had such big plans and one individual person was the roadblock to them all.
It seemed like no matter what we did to try and get this form, closing just wasn’t going to happen and our dreams were crushed. Our beautifully planned weekend that had been keeping me going for the past month was suddenly gone. It evaporated before my eyes and I could feel the hardness in my heart towards this woman I didn’t even know.
Who did she think she was? Who gave her the authority to decide she was too busy or didn’t care enough to take 5 minutes to fill out a form? Why was she so determined to keep us from closing and moving into our home?
And then. My thoughts switched.
If I was her, I would never want to do this to another person. If I was her, I wouldn’t want this to be the foot I started out on with new residents. If I was her, I wouldn’t have this hard of a time filling out such a simple form.
My thoughts were no longer simply based in my frustration of our home closing being pushed back. Instead they were now based on me placing myself above her. Somewhere amongst my frustration and sadness of lost plans, I had unconsciously decided I was better than this woman.
This is the spot I found myself in when I finally tore myself away from my phone, waiting for the “we’re cleared to close” text and looked at this week's text. And man friends...it hit home hard.
James 2:1-13
Favoritism Forbidden
My brothers, as believers, in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby 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?
Listen my dear brothers: 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. 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 slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong?
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 whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery.” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a law breaker.
Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!
In understanding James 2, it is important to understand the historical context at play with how James chooses to portray favoritism. James wrote his letters during a time where society was structured on the defining differences between people. You were a Jew or a Gentile. You were rich, or you were poor. You were your own man, or you belonged to another man. The standings of class, religion and ethnicity ruled how society worked. James knew he was writing to a people who routinely did judge each other because it was a part of how their culture functioned. However, James also knew that Christ didn’t choose between us and that we shouldn’t choose between each other either.
And so James chose to tackle culture head on by presenting a scenario in which a rich man and a poor man walked into the Sunday church service at the same time. To put it into present terms, it would be like Bill Gates and an infamous Boulder Homeless Man walking into your church at the exact same moment.
In the culture James was living in, it was a no brainer that the rich man should be given a good seat while the poor man should be given whatever was left over. James used this example to show them that in Christ’s home, both men deserve the best seat.
More so than ever, we live in a culture that is focused on ensuring every person is an equal. It’s hard to imagine a homeless man walking into a church service and him being offered anything less than what every other person present had.
In our social climate, it’s hard to imagine these large prejudices against one another. But what about the small ones? What about the small moments every single day where we choose ourselves over someone else? What about those moments where we let an inconvenience to us fester and ruin our entire day?
We all know the moments I’m talking about. I’m talking about being in a rush at the grocery store and, even though you see someone who obviously needs to move on more so than you do, you choose to not let them go in front because you are prioritizing your timeline. I’m talking about awkwardly looking away from the homeless man panhandling on the street, because it makes you feel uncomfortable, rather than offering a smile. I’m talking about the days where someone cuts you off in traffic and it festers irritation in your heart for the rest of the day.
We might live in a world now where it’s “easier” and more socially appropriate to not prioritize one person over another but we routinely prioritize ourselves over others.
James’ example is financially rich or poor but at the heart, it is choosing one person as more worthy than another person. It is putting ourselves in the seat of judgement rather than allowing God to remain where He belongs. We know the laws and truths that the Gospel calls us to and if we truly accept the laws of Christ, we can’t condemn one person and forgive another. We can’t share the Gospel with a friend but then ignore a stranger who also needs His loving messages.
Friends, we were never given the right to judge others. That has always been God’s job; not ours. We don’t get to decide who is good enough or who is failing. We don’t get to decide that we are better than the person next to us. And, we can’t expect God to show us mercy, if we have walked around condemning others and only offering forgiveness and grace to ourselves.
James 2:5
Listen my dear brothers: 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?
Christ welcomed in those who were poor in spirit and invited those who boasted in themselves to die and come to Him all the same. Christ set the example of equal mercy and an equal extension of His grace for us to join Him. Christ died for everyone, not just a handful of people, and because of this we are called to reflect His character and love everyone as equals.
James 2:8
If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right.
This doesn’t mean that there isn’t a time and a place for correcting an action that conflicts with the Gospel. But it does mean that regardless of wrongs, appearances, personal feelings, etc. we are ultimately called to love one another. We are called to extend the message of Christ as savior to all.
Friends, we need to love the people around us and fight for their eternity with the same commitment, patience and love that we extend to ourselves while fighting for our own eternity.
James 2:12-13
Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!
We are fighting for the law of God. The law that will hold above all other laws. We are fighting for our eternity, our families eternity, our friends' eternity and even, the eternity of those who have wronged us.
After an incredibly frustrating round of events, we closed the weekend without ever coming close to closing on our home. My heart stung for the plans that were lost but as I slowly allowed reality to collide with my visions for the weekend, I found I was able to slowly release the hardness of my heart.
I was still sad, frustrated and discouraged but for the first time since we signed the papers to reschedule when we would get the keys, I was feeling those emotions without feeling a hardness towards the HOA woman.
When I took the time to slow down and evaluate what was happening, I was able to see where I had chosen myself over another because of how I was inconvenienced. This allowed me to calm my heart and pray. To pray that I would release my hard feelings and forgive this woman.
When it came right down to it, I was able to extend mercy to this woman because I knew that God had first extended mercy to me. My feelings may have been hurt, but I knew that He loved her just as much as He loved me. She may have wronged me from my point of view, but ultimately, it’s about God’s plan and God’s time, not mine.
It’s about mercy conquering wrong.
Thoughts for the Week:
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Re-read James 2:8-11.
In this passage James speaks on how all wrongs are equal. Murder, adultry, favortism and self favoritism are all equally wrong.
Slowly read through the passage and spend time in it’s presence. Let God speak through the silence.
Investigate the weight of all wrong’s being equal to God regardless of the scale society has created for how bad an action might be.
(Clarification: In our current society/government we see murder as worse than adultry and adultry worse than favoritism. In God’s government all of these are equally harmful and warrant similar punishment.)
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In James 2:13, we are given this line: “Mercy triumphs over judgment.”
What does this line mean to you?
What does it show you about God’s character and what does it tell you about your attitude towards others?
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When it comes to favoritism where do you find yourself falling short?
Be honest with yourself if you struggle with the large prejudices or if you struggle more so with the small ones that come throughout the day. After you have addressed the area of favoritism you struggle with, pray for yourself.
We often find it easy to pray for others but hard to pray for course correction or help for ourselves. Open your heart to your Lord and share where you struggle. Ask for help to let the hardness of your heart go and the wisdom to see it in the moment. Ask God and remember, “mercy triumphs”.
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Prayer
Lord,
We live in such a busy world. We are constantly being surrounded by different messages of who we should be and how we should live our lives. We are fed messages of what makes us a good person and what makes us a bad person.
In a life where chaos fills our ears, help us to hear Your voice and Your Laws as predominant. May we choose to follow the path Your son modeled for us rather than the path the world has modeled.
Lord, we desire You and Your saving mercy. Give us the heart to desire that mercy for others as much as we desire it for ourselves. May we have hearts that are kind and generous; that we may forgive others when they wrong us and not fall into the tricks of favoritism. Help us to forgive even when the world tells us we would be right not too. And Lord, help us to forgive ourselves when we do play into favoritism. You don’t pick favorites when You extend grace and that includes us.
You are a good God. May our eyes be set on you. May our hope be found in you.
We love you Lord.
In your name we pray,
Amen
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