Impartial Love

November 29, 2020 Background Scripture: James 2 Lesson Passage: James 2:1 – 13 I am guilty of calling people out for being religious but not exhibiting any signs of Christianity. James, on the other hand, called people out for being Christians but exhibiting no signs of being religious. Admittedly, it is much easier to identify and prove James’ point. Religion is the outward actions of the person. Oftentimes, there is no mistaking the actions one observes of someone. I believe the Apostle James and I both desire Christian character in ourselves and others. Likewise, we both desire actions that are commensurate with the person’s profession of faith. Perfection is not assumed in either case for that is beyond the human capacity. It is enough for a person to move in the direction of perfection while knowing it is not attainable in this life. How we express benevolent love to others should be without favoritism, or partiality. In the political environment in which we live, being impartial is a tall order for many. We have grown up with heroes, heroines, and charismatic leaders we wish to emulate and follow; some we even attempt to emulate. A problem can arise in how we relate to people we see in one of these categories. Will we show them preferential treatment as opposed to those we don’t see this way? Sadly, we probably will. This is where James sounded the alarm. James declared that that type of behavior does not go well with being a Christian. To show preferential treatment is an indication of evil thoughts and judgment between one person and the other. James pointed out the hypocrisy in looking down at the poor and looking up at the rich. God has made choice of the poor to be heirs of the kingdom. With that being the case, how dare we look down on the heirs of God’s kingdom as being unworthy of our respect. On the other hand, it is the rich in this world—who we tend to respect and even want to emulate—who often abuse people and take advantage of them. We are not ignorant of this; we observe it, or hear about it, on a regular basis. Yet, we continue to extend preferential treatment towards the rich over and above that extended to the poor. So, what causes a person to show partiality based on a person’s financial status in life or worldly position? It could be because we seek to establish our values based on external quantities rather than internal qualities. When we are externally focused, we look for standards we can use as a gauge. When a Christian is internally focused, the Spirit of Christ in us is the standard. That makes it easier to respond to others by simply asking (pardon the cliché): What would Jesus do? If we rely on the examples Jesus demonstrated in his earthly ministry, we will always show impartial love. Jesus dined and fellowshipped with the elite of his society as well as with the rejects of his society. Ironically, the elite were often critical of Jesus for receiving and eating with sinners and tax collectors. Jesus handled their criticism well: The well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. Likewise, when Jesus was with the elite, he did not hesitate to reprimand them for their acts of favoritism and hypocrisy. He criticized their clamoring for position among themselves. He even criticized them for the partiality they showed based on who they would invite to their banquets. Jesus is our example and he demonstrated how we can show impartial love. Robert C. Hudson