Well, good evening everyone. Let me echo Graham's welcome to you tonight, whether you're here with us in the building or tuning in online.
As has been said, my name is Stuart and I'm one of the Christians that meets here at Brunsfield.
And it's my privilege to be taking us through the first half of James chapter 2 tonight.
I want to kick us off tonight with just one word. Equality.
I suspect in the last week, for many of us, this will not be the first time that we've heard, read or spoken this word.
For me this week, it was when I was watching Scotland thump England nil-nil at the Euros.
And during the break, there was an advert that was repeated again and again, promoting football as an equal game.
It goes far beyond sport though, doesn't it?
And in terms of issues being raised by our society right now, you may not find another hotter topic.
Is the issue current? Yes.
Is the issue new? No.
In our passage tonight, James directly addresses the issue of equality.
Not in sport, or in workplaces, or in society in general, but in the church.
It's remarkable, isn't it?
To so many people, the Bible is just an outdated and irrelevant book.
And yet, here we are tonight with a passage like this in front of us.
I fully believe that what God has to say through James in these verses is as current and as relevant to us tonight
as it was when it was written to these churches over 2,000 years ago.
Tonight, as we look at the issue of equality in the church, we're going to split our passage into three sections.
And as we go through each one, we're going to see three very different ways of seeing other people.
Seeing from the perspective of the world in verses 1 to 4.
Seeing from the perspective of God in verses 5 to 7.
And then seeing from the perspective of the law in verses 8 to 13.
I trust that as we go through this together, we will all be challenged as we consider the question,
from what perspective do we see other people in the church?
So in our first section, in verses 1 to 4, we see the perspective of the world.
It's clear from these verses that the attitudes of the world and the wisdom of the world,
it hadn't taken long to creep into the early church.
James uses an example to prove this.
So here we have two men walking into the church.
We don't know if they were Christians, but we do know that one is paid attention to and the other is not.
One is given a seat in a good place, the other is not.
He's told to stand or to sit at someone else's feet.
What point is James trying to get across here with this example?
Is it that the church needs to change who's on the rota for making the seating plans?
No.
The seats, they weren't actually the issue here.
The issue is the way that these two men were treated and the attitude behind it.
He's making the point that they both walked into the church,
and yet they've been treated completely differently,
simply because one was rich and well presented and the other was poor with filthy clothes.
James asks him in verse 4,
Have you not shown partiality amongst yourself?
Partiality carries with it a similar thought to favouritism,
or to use another very current word, discrimination.
Let's stop for a minute and just examine why this was going on.
There may have been a number of motives behind why this man was treated so differently.
We aren't told very much about the men.
The rich one, he may have been a prominent figure in the area,
a successful businessman,
or from a family of great influence perhaps.
Whoever he was,
the congregation, they quickly worked out
that it was in their interest to treat this man well.
Maybe they thought if they treated him well,
he would be extra generous with a collection box
when it came round at the end.
Or maybe they thought he would be able to promote them
and use his influence in the local area.
These are pretty logical thoughts, are they not?
Here's someone who can benefit us,
so let's make sure he is well looked after.
Let's roll out the red carpet, so to speak.
The problem is that this is exactly how the world thinks,
and its motive is selfish.
I'm sure in our lives we've all heard sayings like,
you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours.
Or, you owe me one.
The idea of course is that after we do a good thing for someone,
then we expect them to do something good back in return.
This worldly perspective,
it seems to have been the mindset of the churches here
when deciding how to treat people when they walk through their doors.
What can they give us if we treat them well?
Unfortunately for the poor man,
because he had seemingly little to offer,
he was treated as a second-class citizen.
And the mindset was,
why would we waste one of our best seats in the house
on a man like this?
To give the lack of seating situation a wee bit of cultural context,
as we know from our studies so far,
the letter of James,
it was written to Jewish Christians.
Now these early Christians,
they were steeped in Jewish traditions,
and so many of the things that went along with Judaism
had crept in to the early church.
This was a big issue,
and it's addressed in many passages throughout the New Testament,
and even a whole book,
the book of Hebrews,
is dedicated to showing the people
that the new covenant through the blood of Jesus
had superseded the old covenant through Moses and the law.
In this particular case,
the thing that had crept in was preferential treatment.
In synagogues back then,
and I believe in some today,
there were places of honour
given to the people of importance.
These would be benches right at the front and centre of the synagogue.
So to use here as an example,
we'll keep the two benches in front of me here,
and then we'll just strip the rest away.
And then next week,
the welcome team can have the job of deciding
who gets to sit on the benches
and who gets to sit on the floor.
So here we have,
quite literally,
everyone walking into the church,
getting judged at the door.
Were they worthy,
or were they not worthy?
This is what is going on here.
In James,
he doesn't hold back
with what he says
in the second half of verse 4.
He doesn't say,
this isn't a kind of way to treat people.
He tells them,
in unmistakably clear language,
that they become judges
with evil thoughts.
Telling the churches
what they were doing was evil.
Strong words indeed.
But we have to see
that God treats
the subject of equality
in the church
very seriously.
And so for us,
as the children of God,
we ought to do the same.
This world,
it can so easily influence us
with the way that it thinks.
You know,
when you go into
a large enough plane,
when you either turn left
if you have a first class ticket,
or for most of us,
we'll turn right
and go into the economy class.
When you go to a football
or a rugby stadium,
in the main stand,
right at the centre
of the pitch,
you'll see the corporate section.
This will be
where all the family
of the players,
the people high up
at the club,
the gold season ticket holders,
etc.
This will be where they sit.
And then you look up
far high
into the stands,
right up in the corners,
and the seats
where you can hardly see
the players,
you're so far away
from the pitch.
Or,
you maybe go to a concert
or the theatre,
and you have the seats
that are right
at the front row,
or you maybe even have
the boxes,
and you have the seats
then at the back
that are behind the pillars
with the obstructed view.
In so many situations
in life,
we experience people
not being treated equally.
The seemingly most important
are those that have
paid the most
receive the better treatment
than everyone else.
This is the way
that the world operates.
What James is saying here
is that when it comes
to the church,
there is not to be
a first class section
or a VIP area
in sight.
everyone is to be treated
the same way,
as equals.
Friends,
we must always remember
that when we come together
as a people of God,
we need to be so careful
to leave the perspective
of this world
the way that it thinks,
the way that it treats people,
outside the door
where it belongs.
Let's now move on
to see what God
has to say
on the matter.
In our next section
in verses 5 to 7,
if we've just seen
the selfish perspective
of the world,
let's see what the perspective
of God is.
If you read with me
the words of verse 5,
it says,
has God not chosen
the poor of this world
to be rich in faith
and heirs of the kingdom
which he promised
those who love him?
But you have dishonoured
the poor man.
Throughout the Bible,
God very often chooses
the weak and the poor
to do his work.
We'll only have to look
at the story of King David
as an example.
The prophet Samuel,
he asked David's dad,
Jesse,
to bring all his sons
before him
so he could anoint
the one that God
had chosen to be king.
Out the seven sons came,
no doubt all strong
and able men.
But one by one,
God said to Samuel,
nope, it's not him.
Nope, not him either.
Samuel says to Jesse,
is this them all?
And Jesse says,
well no, there is one more,
my youngest son David.
Jesse had left them out
in the field
to look after the sheep,
not thinking for a second
that God would have chosen
the young lad David
to be king.
And yet,
that's exactly
what God had done.
A few chapters later
and we see
this same young lad David
defeating a mighty giant,
Goliath,
in front of both
the armies of Israel
and the Philistines,
proclaiming the name
of God.
This is just one example,
but time and time again,
God does this.
He chooses the seemingly
most insignificant people
and he does great things
through them
for his glory.
So no matter how,
no matter who you are,
listen to this tonight,
how insignificant
you may feel,
God is able
and God is willing
to work through you.
Not only that,
God loves you
more than you can
possibly imagine.
There's no one too poor,
there's no one too weak,
there's no one too bad,
there's no one too unimportant
for the love of God.
The Bible makes it very clear
that the love of God
goes out to all.
A verse in 1 John
says this,
this is love,
not that we love God,
but that he loved us
and he sent his son
as an atoning sacrifice
for our sins.
If you're a Christian,
then I hope that is
an encouragement to you.
This world may beat you down
and tell you
that you're nobody,
but in God's eyes,
you're someone
and you're someone
special to him.
If you're not a Christian,
then I pray that you would come
and experience
the love of God
for yourself.
A love so great
that it caused
the Lord Jesus
to go to the cross
and take the punishment
that we deserved
so that you could have
your sins forgiven
and you could be made
right with God.
Going back to our passage,
why is it that God
is so angry
with what's going on
here in the churches?
It's because
these poor people
who are being treated
like second class citizens,
they are loved dearly
by him.
And God demands
that those that are loved
dearly by him
are treated
as they ought to be.
For us today,
that means that
no matter
who comes into
our church building,
we are to treat them
as Jesus would have done,
with love
and with care.
The service
of the welcome team
is a very valuable one,
but this can't
just be left
for the welcome
or leadership team
to do.
Showing the love
and care of God
to those who he brings
amongst us
is all of our
responsibility.
The Lord Jesus,
when he was here,
he was called
the friend of sinners
because he used to
spend so much time
with people
that society
wanted nothing
to do with.
A tax collector
who was the most
despised profession,
tax collector
was the most despised
profession
in Jewish society.
A tax collector
was chosen
to be a disciple
of Jesus.
He was called
Matthew
and he wrote
the first book
of our New Testament.
Jesus was here
to save the lost
and that meant
everyone,
whether they were rich
or whether they were
poor,
from the rulers
to the beggars
in the street.
The Lord Jesus himself,
he was born
into a poor family.
Mary and Joseph,
they weren't people
of any wealth
or great influence.
As well as being known
as the carpenter's son,
Jesus also grew up
in a place
called Nazareth.
Nazareth was a place
that we're told
it was despised
and it was looked
down upon
by other people
in the region.
Jesus knew then
and he knows now
exactly what it's like
to be treated poorly
because it had been
from humble circumstances.
It's no wonder then
that it brings
such sadness
to God's heart
to see
discrimination
against the poor
going on
in his church.
The poor
and the lowly
undoubtedly
they have a special place
in the heart of God.
But those that are rich
and have power
they are loved by him too.
But the rich
they certainly don't get
a good mention
in verses 6 and 7.
As we know
these Jewish Christians
have been driven
out of their country
because of the ongoing
persecution
from those in power.
James,
he makes the point
in these verses
that they're pandering
to the rich
and the powerful
at the expense
of the poor
and yet
at the same time
it was the rich
and the powerful
that were persecuting them.
I also
it is true
that there are
comparatively few
rich and powerful people
who come to follow God.
However,
we are thankful
that there are some
who are saved
and just like the poor
God loves
and God is able
to work mightily
through them.
I also need to say
at this point
that what we are
looking at tonight
treating people
equally in the church
is not just applicable
to rich
and to poor.
Churches,
they have an amazing
mix of people
so different
in so many ways
and yet brought together
by a shared love
for Jesus.
whether it's
wealth
or appearance,
education,
age,
race,
gender,
political views,
whatever differences
we may have,
we must always remember
that in God's eyes
we are equals
as brothers
and sisters.
our differences
there should never
be a reason
to drive us apart.
In fact,
they should be celebrated
as they give us
an opportunity
to show to the world
what being a church family
really means.
A community
where people
of all ages
with many different
backgrounds and interests
come together
to worship God
united as one
in our love for him.
Jesus said,
a new commandment
I give you
love one another
as I have loved you
so you must love
one another.
By this
everyone will know
that you are my disciples
if you love
one another.
This doesn't mean
that we aren't
without distinction
in the church family.
There are many
other passages
that talk about
the different gifts,
roles and responsibilities
within the church.
I think the image
of the body of Christ
is particularly useful here.
A hand
has a different role
to an eye
and yet
both are equally
important
for the body
to function.
So it is
with the church.
Many different parts
but we're all
equally part
of the body
of Christ.
Before we move on
to our last section,
as we've considered
the perspective
of God,
we have to conclude
that the selfish
perspective
of this world
has no place
in the church.
In fact,
we are to think
the complete
opposite way.
Lord Jesus,
he tells us
in the Gospel of Luke
that if we treat
someone well
hoping for good
to be done back
to us in return,
then that will be
our only reward.
However,
if we do good
to others
hoping for nothing
in return,
then we will be
rewarded by God
for our actions.
So not only
are we to avoid
seeking out those
who will repay
our goodness,
but we are to
cherish the opportunities
to do good
to those
who cannot repay us.
We do find it easier
to show love
and care
to those people
who we get on with
though,
don't we?
It's to those
who we don't
get on with as well
that we can sometimes
struggle
to show God's
love and care to.
Let's be open here.
We're not going
to get on equally
as well with
everyone in the church.
There will be
some people
who we will
naturally
be more friendly
with than others.
However,
if we only show
love and care
and do good
to the people
who we get on with
then,
and not to others,
then we are
showing favouritism
and we're not
treating people
equally
as God
would have us.
The same passage
in Luke,
it says
that even sinners
show love
to those
who love them
in return.
As Christians,
we're to be different
and to love
in an unconditional way
just like
the Lord Jesus did.
Dear friends,
since God
so loved us,
we also
ought to love
one another.
when we think
of fellow Christians
who we may find
it harder to love,
I think
this saying
sums it up well.
If God the Father
chose him,
if God the Son
died for them,
if God the Spirit
lives in them,
then I can love them.
what a contrast
to the thinking
of the world.
This is the challenge
for our heart tonight.
Do we see others
in the way
that God
sees them?
Our final section
from verses
8 through to 13,
we see the perspective
of the law.
So if you read with me
in verses 8 and 9,
it says,
if you really
fulfill the royal law
according to the scripture,
you shall love your neighbour
as yourself,
then you do well.
But if you show
partiality,
then you commit sin
and are convicted
by the law
as transgressors.
So here,
James tells the churches
that if they show
favouritism,
then they're breaking
the command
to love their neighbour
as themselves.
Jesus himself,
he spoke at length
about what it means
to love our neighbour.
When his disciples,
they asked him directly,
he told them the story
of the good Samaritan,
the one who looked
after the Jewish man
who was attacked
by the thieves.
The Samaritan,
he had no reason
to show love
and to show care
to this man
and yet that's
exactly what he did.
He treated him
the same way
that he would wish
to be treated himself.
That's exactly the point
that James is making here.
How can you say
you're loving your neighbour
as yourself?
How can you say
that you're treating people
the way in which
you would wish
to be treated
when you're judging others
based on their wealth
and based on their appearance?
The religious Jews,
they loved going
through the law
and telling God
how righteous they were
because of the laws
that they managed to keep.
You shall not murder.
Well,
no problems there.
You shall not commit adultery.
Yep,
find me that one too.
You shall not steal.
Wow,
three out of three.
God must really be pleased
with me.
Well,
we have to realise
that the law
is not some sort of
school exam
where seven out of ten
gets you an A,
six out of ten
gets you a B.
It doesn't work like that.
The law required
that every single thing
was to be done perfectly
or else the whole law
would be broken,
even something
as seemingly small
as partiality
or favouritism.
We can sometimes
be like that,
like the religious Jews
though,
can't we?
We can put emphasis
on what we see
as more important
teachings to follow.
Surely,
if I'm telling others
about Jesus
and reading my Bible
and praying,
then a small thing
like a bit of favouritism
will be overlooked.
There's a saying,
isn't there,
when someone gets
pulled up for something
that they think
there's been an overreaction for.
They say,
well,
I haven't killed anyone,
have I?
Well,
if that's our attitude,
then,
when it comes to
treating people equally,
then we need to ask ourselves,
why has James put this section
about the law in here?
I believe it's because
he wants his readers then
and he wants us here tonight
to see that in the eyes
of the law,
we were all the same.
Whether you'd broken
only one or two commandments
or whether you'd broken them all,
it all resulted
in the same thing,
that he had broken
the law of God.
As Christians,
it's true
that we are no longer
under the law of Moses.
However,
apart from the fourth commandment
regarding the Sabbath,
all the other ones
are repeated
in similar forms
in the New Testament
as teachings of Jesus.
So for us today,
the law still has
the same effect
that it shows us
just how far short
of God's perfect standard
we are.
In the context
of our passage tonight though,
James is saying that
since we have all
fallen short,
how can we possibly
justify
seeing some people
as better than others
and some people
as worse than others?
In terms of our standing
before God,
it is impossible
for any of us
to have been made
right with God
if it wasn't
for the Lord Jesus
and what he did
for us.
It doesn't matter
how rich
or how powerful
someone might be,
they're a sinner
just like the beggar
in the street.
If we are a Christian,
then the law
reminds us,
no matter who we are,
that we were once
equally lost
and we're now
all equally
saved.
So as we draw
to our close,
let's re-ask ourselves
the question
that we had
right at the start.
From what perspective
do we see
other people
in the church?
The world?
Think on what we can get
in return
for our good actions?
God,
a love that goes out
no matter who they are?
Or the law?
That we are all sinners
and fall short
of God's standard?
We've seen how seriously
God takes the issue
of equality
in the church
and that there's
no justification
for treating people
differently
because of any
distinctions between us.
On a personal note,
it does,
it makes me sad
that so many people
including some of my
friends and colleagues
feel that they would
be judged
the second they walk
through a church door.
Regrettably,
in some cases
they would be correct.
However,
in my wife Amy
and I's experience,
churches,
including this one,
have been some of the
most welcoming places
we've ever been in.
I believe that
if we strive
to see others
as God sees them,
then our churches
will be places
where no matter
who walks through
the door,
they will feel
the love of God
shown towards them
and that amongst
the church family,
there will be
a wonderful unity
as part of the
body of Christ
and as a gathering
of people
saved only
by the grace
of God.
Let's pray.
Our God and Father,
we come before you
tonight
and we just want
to thank you
once again
for the Lord Jesus.
We recognise fully
that there was nothing
we could have done
to ever merit
favour with yourself.
It was only because
of the Lord Jesus
and what he did
that we can sit here
and be called
the family of God.
We thank you
for that privilege
that it is
that we can be
brothers and sisters
and we can address
you as Father.
We thank you
for what we've been
looking at tonight.
We thank you
for what you've brought
before us
and we do pray
for ourselves
that we would not
be influenced
by this world
and that the way
it thinks,
we pray that
our motives
would not be selfish
when we look
to others.
We pray that
we would be filled
with your thinking
and we pray
that we'd have
that desire
to think more
and more
like how you think
God and Father.
We just pray
that we would see
others in the way
that you would
have us see them
as those that are
loved dearly
by you.
And so we just
ask this for ourselves
that you would
leave this on our hearts
that we would all
each and every one
have to examine
where we stand
on this
and that we might
be challenged
by what has
been said.
And we just
thank you
once again
for your goodness
to us
and your Son
and what he has
done for us.
We just thank you
once again
for this time
in Jesus' name.
Amen.