“The Sin of Showing Favoritism”
(James 2:1-7)
Series: Living the Faith (James)
Rev. Todd A. Linn, PhD
Henderson’s First Baptist Church, Henderson
•I invite you to take your Bibles and open to James, chapter 2 (page 812; YouVersion).
While you are finding that, let me share a quick word about what we are doing in our evening services. We are meeting for several weeks now at 5 o’clock for worship and training to be evangelistic everyday. It’s called “Everyday Evangelism” and it’s an hour of encouraging training and worship every Sunday evening at 5 o’clock. We meet at 5 so that we have some time freed up in the evening in order to make a visit, a visit to our neighbor or meeting an unchurched person for dinner, maybe visiting an recurring absent Sunday school member or someone else on our Sunday school—not Sunday school roll, but “Responsibility List.
So tonight I will be talking about “The Gospel in Your Daily Life.” You don’t have to be a specially trained evangelist in order to share the Gospel in your daily life. Frequently God gives us opportunities to speak a good word about the Lord in all kinds of ways throughout the day. And any person can talk to a clerk, pray for a waiter, and chat with a neighbor.
One evening last week as I was eating at one of my favorite restaurants I had opportunity to talk with the young lady server who waited on us. We chatted a bit about different things and she told us that she was a student at USI and told us what she was studying and so on. I shared about my being a minister and asked whether she attended worship anywhere in Evansville. She said no, that she didn’t really go to church. I said, “Well, what do you believe spiritually?” She responded, “I’m not really spiritual.” Then she added, “I try to live according to the morals in the Bible and hopefully, if there is a God He will let me in.” I said, “Well, if the standard is perfection, none of us is getting in.” Then I said, “That’s the whole point of Jesus’ coming to us. He was and is perfect for us.” And that’s about all I could share at that moment, but that was a start. I left a tip over 20% and a church card. And I’ve added her name to my prospect list, to pray for her, and to pick up the conversation where we left off. Any person can talk to clerk, pray for a waiter, and chat with a neighbor. And that’s what we’re talking about every Sunday evening at 5 PM. Everyday Evangelism.
Have you found the book of James, chapter 2? James would certainly like our focus on Everyday Evangelism because he is interested in not merely “hearing” the Word, but what?—“doing” what it says. He has taught in Chapter 1 that true Christians endure trials and hardships and true Christians do what the Bible says, they live out their faith. They show compassion, the bridle their tongues. We saw last week that true Christians speak to others in ways that build up and not tear down. How did you do when you left the sanctuary last Sunday? How did you speak to others, about others? Did you ever speak in a negative way about your church? About another member? And if you were on the receiving end of such talk, did you respond in a biblical way to that gossip, telling the person to go and talk directly to the one about whom they were gossiping? James taught us last week in verse 26 that if we do not bridle our tongues we deceive ourselves and our faith is useless. We must, says James, keep ourselves from being spotted and stained by the world.
Our series is entitled, “Living the Faith” because James has written this letter not as instruction on how to become a Christian, but how to behave as Christians. He’s interested in how we talk to others and how we focus upon others and that is especially the case in Chapter 2.
•Please stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word.
1 My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.
2 For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes,
3 and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit here at my footstool,”
4 have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?
5 Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?
6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts?
7 Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called?
•Pray.
Introduction:
I want to talk to you this morning about “The Sin of Showing Favoritism.” Now why do I want to talk to you about that? Well, because that’s what James talks to us about here in Chapter 2. Biblical preaching and teaching merely tells the same thing that the Bible tells. We look for the main theme in a passage and we merely expose it. Expository teaching and preaching exposes the clear meaning of a passage. James writes here about the sin of showing favoritism and so we will do the same.
Now favoritism is a sin. We know it is because of what James goes on to say later in the passage. He states emphatically and unequivocally in verse 9, “if you show partiality (or favoritism), you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.” So make no mistake: playing favorites is a sin. It is wrong.
So let’s talk about this matter of partiality, or favoritism, favoring some people over others, behaving in a way that looks like what the Phillips paraphrase calls “snobbery.” How is favoritism wrong? Number one:
Favoritism is Incompatible with Faith (1)
James says in verse 1, “My brethren (Christians in general; both male and female), do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ (really should be translated, ‘faith in the Lord Jesus Christ’), the Lord of glory, with partiality.”
Brothers and sisters, you can’t have faith in Christ and show partiality or favoritism towards others. Playing favorites is incompatible with faith in Christ. Favoritism is incompatible with faith.
The word “partiality” there is in a plural form so it could be translated as “favoritisms.” In other words, there is more than one way to show favoritism. James addresses primarily the matter of showing favoritism to those who appear especially wealthy, but there is more than one way to show favoritism. We may play favorites with respect to those who are more attractive than others, more powerful than others, more influential than others.
We may discriminate against others on the basis of education, gender, race or ethnicity. There is more than one way to show partiality, to show favoritism.
Now one of the reasons favoritism is incompatible with faith in Christ is because when we draw attention to a special status of others we are, in a sense, ascribing a kind of glory to them. The word “glory” carries the notion of weight and worth.
So when we show favoritism to certain people we are saying, “This person carries a lot of weight,” or, “This person has clout, this person is really influential, is really glorious.”
James identifies our Lord Jesus in a stunning way there in verse 1. He writes, “My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.” It’s easy to just read right over, but James identifies Jesus in verse 1 as “the Lord of glory,” and literally the original Greek reads, “Jesus Christ, the glory.” Favoritism is incompatible with your faith in Jesus Christ, the glory.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:15 that Christ, “is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”
Hebrews 1:3, Christ is, “the brightness of [God’s] glory and the express image of His person,”
Jesus Christ is the glory of God. He is the glory. Man is not the glory. Christ is and God will not trade His glory with another (Isaiah 42:8).
Favoritism is incompatible with faith.
Next, James seeks to illustrate this truth in verses 2 and following. So Favoritism is incompatible with faith. Secondly:
Favoritism can Infect the Fellowship (2-4)
Favoritism can creep into the church. This is James’ concern. Now James gives this great illustration. Let’s read it again, beginning in verse 2:
2 For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes,
3 and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit here at my footstool,”
4 have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?
Favoritism is a wrong focus on merely the externals. 1 Samuel 16:7, “Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.”
See, James is not saying that it is wrong to honor others. We may give up a seat to honor another person, an elderly person, or a serviceman, or in some cultures even a minister.
I always feel a bit awkward in other countries where this is the custom. I first noted it in Brazil when we were there the first time and worshiping in churches there. I was perfectly happy to sit comfortably in the back or midway, but the host church insisted that we sit right up front and would move women and children out of the way to make room for us. I just cringed, you know, as I watched these ladies and families move from the front to take some terrible seat in the back, but that was the custom and that was a way of honoring others.
That’s different from what James is talking about. James is talking about regarding others as more important because of outward appearances. No one deserves special treatment merely on the basis of wealth.
So here’s this guy, says James, who comes into the assembly, that is into the church worship service, and he is wearing, verse 2, “gold rings.” Literally the original describes the man as, “gold fingered,” not like the James Bond movie, “Goldfinger,” but gold fingered. He is wearing a golden ring on every finger.
William Barclay writes, “The more ostentatious of the ancients wore rings on every finger except the middle one, and wore far more than one on each finger. They even [rented] rings to wear when they wished to give an impression of special wealth. “We adorn our fingers with rings,” said Seneca, “and we distribute gems over every joint.”
So here’s this guy, we’ll call him, “Mr. Bling” and he’s probably married to “Mrs. Bedazzle.” So Mr. Bling comes into the sanctuary and the ushers are tripping over themselves to get to him. And they’re like, “Hey, I’ll seat you right up front in the special seating.”
Actually, in our day the special seating may be in the back or up in the balcony. I was telling someone recently, and some of you know this if you know our early American Christian history, but in the earlier days of our country, many churches had these “boxed pews” which were special pews in which a family all sat together and there was a little gate with door that swung open and a family would sit together in the boxed pew. And families could rent the pew. They more or less owned the pew. It was a way for the church to collect tithes and offerings.
And those boxed pews closer to the front cost more money than the ones in the back. So I was telling this person that today you can get the seats up front for free, yet few people sit in them! And I suspect were we to start renting pews again my guess would be that the higher priced pews would be the ones in the back.
Unless of course, we were gathering together to watch children and grandchildren perform, or we were gathering for a special production of music. Then all the seats up front are taken, and taken quickly.
I remember the first time I came to our Christmas Eve service. At that time it was at 10 PM, I think. And I was not late; our family arrived several minutes before the hour, but we came in the sanctuary door over here and walked up the ramp and I couldn’t see a seat anywhere. Normally, you know, the front pews are wide open. Nobody sits there, you know! So I naturally assumed I and my family would just sit where we usually sit and I would be in a good position to lead in prayer or say a few words at the end, but that wasn’t going to happen. And I looked around and I remember the folks who were up front looking back and seeing me and then turning back around, you know, as if to say, “Brother Todd wanted a good seat he should have come earlier!” And I just remember thinking, you know, “What a contrast to our regular Sunday services.”
So James illustrates here that Mr. Bling comes into the worship service and everyone is tripping over one another to see that this future tither is treated well. Hey, come sit right over here. But to the poor guy, “You, sit over there. Or, you know what why don’t you just sit right here next to my feet. I need a footstool and if my feet fall off the stool, you can put them back up for me.”
When the rich young ruler came to Jesus, Jesus was not impressed with the man’s externals, right? I imagine when Jesus turned the fellow away that the disciples were beside themselves. Jesus! That man has all kinds of money!
Favoritism. We must guard against favoritism infecting the fellowship. James says in verse 4 that when we show favoritism we have, “become judges with evil thoughts,” evil motives.
Who is welcome here at Henderson’s First Baptist? I’m always encouraged when I hear people say, “You know, I was a little hesitant to visit First Baptist because, you know, “First Baptist!” I just figured it was a typical First Baptist with highfalutin doctors, and lawyers, and such. And then you discovered that all persons are welcome here regardless of social status, education, economic condition, race, ethnicity, influence, or lack thereof. The church is a hospital where sinners go.
Now this illustration also helps us think about how we treat visitors. Many of you sit in the same spot every time you attend worship. I’ve noted the same on Wednesdays as we have our fellowship meal. I understand. I’m a creature of habit, myself. But sometimes I think, “Wouldn’t it be nice if we mixed it up a bit?” Why not go sit with someone else and get to know another person, another family?
We have to force ourselves to do different things. There are certain places I like to sit when I’m visiting a church. So what happens if someone is sitting in your seat? Do you forget you’re a Christian?! I remember a fellow parole officer with whom I worked years ago. He was telling me how when he was growing up his family attended church together and sat in the same place every single Sunday. And he said one morning they went to church and some visitor was sitting in their pew. And my friend said, “I’ll never forget; my dad just turned around and we all followed him back out the church door and we went home. We didn’t go to church that day!
How do you treat visitors? Are you willing to give up your seat? Do you welcome others and make them feel special?
What James addresses is a mere focus upon the externals, a snobby sort of behavior that discriminates upon the basis of outward appearances. And in James’ day the main concern was showing favoritism to the rich and ignoring the poor. So he asks in verse 5:
5 Listen, my beloved brethren (this is his family): Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?
6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts?
7 Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called?
So here is our third point. Favoritism is incompatible with faith, favoritism can infect the fellowship and:
Favoritism is an Insult to the Family (5-7)
The majority of Christians in James’ day were poor. So he is talking to his brothers and sisters and saying, “You guys are dishonoring your own family.” It is the rich who oppress you and drag you into the courts—and he’s talking about the rich non-Christians of that day. It is the rich unbelievers who take you to court in order to pay the debts your unable to pay. It is the rich unbelievers who blaspheme Christ.
Favoritism is an insult to the family. You are dishonoring one another.
You know the deeper reason why favoritism is such an insult? The deeper reason why favoritism is such an insult is because it not only is an insult to the family, but it is an insult to God.
Verse 5 reminds Christians that they have been “called” or “chosen” to follow Christ. James writes in verse 5, “Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” Based upon no merit of our own, based upon no special status or worth in and of ourselves, God—verse 5 says—God has chosen, chosen some to be rich in faith.”
And it is similar to Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 (NIV)
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are,
29 so that no one may boast before him.
So that no one may boast before Him, before God. We have nothing of which to boast before God. And that’s so important because, think of it:
What if God chose us on the merits of our special status or our worth? What if God chose us upon merely external appearances, or special ability, or skin color—and you didn’t have the right skin color?
Conclusion:
Favoritism is incompatible with faith. Favoritism can infect the fellowship. Favoritism is an insult to the family.
How did Jesus treat others? Did He ever show favoritism?
No. And yet, He could have. He is, after all, He is Jesus the glory.
Yet the Bible teaches that Jesus lay aside His glory when He condescended and came down to us. He set aside His glory. He took off His crown and came in humility to us.
2 Corinthians 8:9, “though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
•Stand for prayer.
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