Treat Everyone Equally

February 9, 2014 Background Scripture: James 2:1 – 13 Lesson Passage: James 2:1 – 13 Today’s lesson can be summed up in one statement: Treat everybody fair. Please note that this is different from treating everybody the same. If we treat everybody the same, we will likely be unfair to most people because of our individuality. When we treat everybody fairly, we cater to individuals based on their needs, likes and dislikes. It is clear that we will like some folk’s personality and actions and absolutely hate the actions of others. Yet we must be careful to distinguish between hating actions and despising people. We must tread lightly when it comes to attempting to assess someone’s personality. As individuals, we all have unique personalities but how a person’s personality is perceived does not necessarily translate into expected behavior. We think some people are nice but their actions indicate that they are mean and hateful. Others may appear to be aloof or unconcerned and yet display the fruit of the Spirit in their living. So James is clear in warning Christians; don’t judge people by appearance. As it was with human nature then, so it is today. We still tend to judge the book by its cover. This lesson is a reminder that there are some things that time does not diminish in society. Too often, we still believe that people who are rich in the things of this world are better than those who are materially poor. We are not always careful to delineate between people being better off and people being better. James admonishes us to observe the actions of God so that we may benefit from His example. God’s choices are opposite our natural choices. God chooses the materially poor who have faith in Him and make them heir of all things that are spiritual. It means much more for us to do this for the sake of living righteously rather than mimicking God for the sake of appearing religious or spiritual. The bottom line is that we sin when we disrespect people because of perceived financial status. This sin is not a small matter although we may act as though it is. We cannot violate part of the Law without offending God in all of it. We have no right to look down on others or their plight in life. We must be careful what we think about a person’s sin as though it is more wretched than our own. We are indebted to the whole Law of God whenever we attempt to justify ourselves with part of it. Christians have a liberty from the Law of sin and death. Because of the atoning death of Jesus on the cross, we have been freed from the cycle of sin and death that is the very operation of the Law. However, we must be careful how we walk in this liberty because our deeds will be judged according to how we use this freedom. The greatest warnings revolve around how we treat others. We receive in proportion to what we give. We are forgiven even as we forgive. Likewise, even mercy is received in proportion to how we extend mercy to others. If for no other reason, for mercy’s sake, treat everyone equally. Robert C. Hudson January 31, 2013