Daily Writing

Tuesday, 2 July 2019

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? James 2:5

James now appears to make a sudden departure from his previous words. It is not a departure in thought though. Rather, it is a departure in style. He has been speaking about not demonstrating partiality. He then gave the example of showing favoritism by showing preference to a rich, well-dressed man over a poor, raggedly-dressed man. His words, however, are not a departure.

Instead, they are given to expand upon that thought as he speaks of the customary attributes of the rich and the poor. From there he will talk about precepts from the Law of Moses, and how those precepts pointed to the need for a merciful attitude, which will then triumph over judgment – the exact thing he just spoke of in the previous verse, which was of a person who “judges with evil thoughts.” Therefore, James’ coming words follow naturally to complete the very thought he has just conveyed.

Understanding this, he begins with, “Listen, my beloved brethren.” It is a call to attention, asking his audience to pay careful heed. Again, as he has already done, he used the term “brethren.” It is to believers in Christ that he is speaking. He next begins his statement to which he has called them to attention, by saying, “Has God not chosen the poor of this world…?” The same idea is presented by Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:27-29. There Paul explains why God has done this –

“For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. ²⁷ But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; ²⁸ and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, ²⁹ that no flesh should glory in His presence.”

Going on, James says that God has “chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith.” Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Rich people will often not take the time to hear something which detracts from their ability to get richer. Or, they may feel so comfortable in their wealth that they don’t even need to waste their time with something that won’t profit them further in this world which has handed them so much. They are so busy thinking about their life of ease that there is no need to think about things so trivial as an uncertain “hope” of something coming after death.

On the other hand, the poor are tired of the world – of being beaten up by the world, of fighting for every morsel of food, of being trivialized, and so on. They have no hope in this world, and so they are willing to consider that a better life ahead is their only hope of joy. And so they seek after that possibility. Some think they find it in one religion or another, but those who find it in the truth of God’s word which speaks of Christ are truly blessed. They have come to the true Source of hope and joy. In this they become rich in faith, having obtained the eternal promise. They have, as James says it, become “heirs of the kingdom.”

That which was promised at the very moments after the fall of man is realized in Christ. Adam was to reign over the world, having dominion over all the works of God’s hands which he sees. But he fell and lost that right. Christ Jesus retrieved it through His perfect obedience to the Father. Now, that kingdom is assured for all who have put their faith and trust in Him. Paul speaks of this kingdom often, such as –

“He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:13, 14

It is this kingdom, as James says, “which He promised to those who love Him?” We have an explanation of the words, “those who love Him,” from the hand of John –

“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” 1 John 5:3

What John is speaking of here is not the commandments of the Law of Moses. Paul explicitly negates that premise in 1 Corinthians 7:19 when he says, “ Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of God is what matters.” Paul says that “Circumcision is nothing.” As circumcision was a command found within the Law of Moses, he cannot be speaking of the Law of Moses. Rather, to keep the commandments of Christ the Lord is to be obedient to the words of Christ. It is He who fulfilled the law, and it is He who established a New Covenant, setting aside the Old.

To those who love God, who are willing to put aside self, and who trust in the Lord Jesus alone for their salvation, God has promised His kingdom. And for those who have done so, the promise is obtained. It may be yet future, but it is surer than the wealth of the rich. Their riches will disappear with them, but the eternal riches which lie ahead in Christ will never fail.

As a point of doctrine, one could spend all day asking if God’s election of the “poor of this world” is active or passive, but there is no need. It is – as revealed throughout Scripture – passive. The rich people of the world are usually too caught up in the world to stop and consider their state before God. The intelligent are too often “too smart to need God.” And so on. However, the poor don’t have such things, and their hope is placed in God for wisdom, intelligence, an inheritance, etc. In their coming to God through faith, they are then “chosen” by God.

James’ words do not negate the concept of free will. Rather, they establish it. How can we know this is true? Because there are some wealthy believers. There are some wise believers. There are some noble believers. And so on. If the words of James and Paul were true across the board, then one might argue that God has purposefully picked only those in the categories mentioned. But such is not the case.

Life application: The words here contain one of the wonders of God’s workings in humanity. All people are separated from God because of their sins. This is just the way it is. But God sent His Son to reconcile us to Him. In order to receive this, we need to acknowledge that we can’t save ourselves and that we are totally dependent on His mercy through Jesus Christ.

The problem is that those who are rich naturally feel secure and also competent to handle all of life’s problems, including reconciliation with God. This leads to smugness about God and a careless attitude towards salvation – “I’ve got it all under control.”

In a similar fashion, people tend to feel that God will look on them differently than the next guy who has such obvious faults. But God doesn’t grade on a curve and salvation is not human origin. The poor will understand this.

And so it is that the poor, the weak, the lowly, and the broken are those who come to Jesus in faith, completely empty-handed. “O God, is there room for me?” It is when one comes to God through Jesus in this manner that God is exalted.

When someone arrives with a list of their great accomplishments, wealth, or fame then God receives no glory – and they receive neither mercy nor salvation. God longs to look on the lost sinner and lavish His grace upon him, if he will only drop every pretense that blocks the way.

“Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you;
And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
Blessed are all those who wait for Him.” Isaiah 30:18

Thank You Lord Jesus, for looking down on us, even us. We are sinful souls and beggars with empty hands, and yet you have granted us Your salvation through the work You accomplished. May we never boast in anything but the cross You bore. This we ask that You alone will be exalted for Your great and mighty deliverance, wrought on our behalf. Amen.

Monday, 1 July 2019

…have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? James 2:4

James now completes his thoughts concerning “partiality” which began in verse 2:1. The NKJV says, “have you not shown partiality among yourselves.” This makes it sound like he is confirming his idea in 2:1 concerning partiality. However, he gives an entirely different word here than there. In 2:1, he mentioned partiality with the word prosópolémpsia. He now speaks not of partiality, but of division by using the word, diakrinó.

The thought is correctly reflected in the Aramaic Bible with, “are you not divided in your souls.” As Vincent’s Word Studies states, “The meaning here is, therefore, that, in making a distinction between the rich and the poor, they expressed a doubt concerning the faith which they professed, and which abolished such distinctions.”

He is referring not to the partiality of verse 2:1, but of the faith itself. The faith of the people is to say, “We are all one in Christ” (see Galatians 3:28), but by making decisions based on partiality, the faith itself is divided in the mind of the people. How can there be no distinction in Christ if we are making such distinctions? It shows a people who have two minds which are not in agreement.

Understanding this, he then says that this reflects that they have “become judges with evil thoughts.” Christ is one, and those in Christ are one. But in dividing believers as they have, they reflect a mind with evil thoughts concerning dividing the parts of a united whole.

A suitable example of what this is referring to might be displaying this attitude towards one of the fifty states within the United States of America. Each is to have equal representation in the Senate based on statehood – two senators. And each is to have equal representation in the House based on population – 1 representative for a set amount of people within each state.

However, because one state has lots of representatives (equate this to the rich guy with the gold ring and the fancy duds), the president says to a senator representing that state, “You come sit here at my table.” However, another state has only a few representatives (equate this to the guy in dirty clothes), the president says, “You wait over there in the chair by the door.” In so doing, he has shown partiality which is not supposed to exist in dealing with the states, and he has become divided in his mind concerning the intent and purpose of the constitution which frames the government. In this, he has become a judge with evil thoughts.

Life application: Be careful how you look on others and accept them as God’s image-bearers regardless of their status according to the world. Instead of degrading others, let us ever exalt the Lord. We all belong at the same level as we live in His presence and as we worship His glory –

“Let us go into His tabernacle;
Let us worship at His footstool.” Psalm 132:7

Lord Jesus, may we feel the conviction of having shown preference to others based on their position, dress, wealth, and so on over those who are less fortunate in this world. Give us the ability to see others as you see them – looking on the heart and beauty of the inner-man rather than the externals, which are so fading. May You be pleased with how we treat our fellow men. Amen.

Sunday, 30 June 2019

…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,” James 2:3

The Greek word translated as “pay attention” gives the sense of a favorable viewing and showing preference. In comes this guy with a gold ring and shining clothes, and he is immediately regarded in a favorable light, even without knowing a thing about him. He could be an arrogant, controlling, manipulating person, but he is given high regard simply because of his fancy duds. And so you say to him, “You sit here in a good place.”

The Greek more closely reads, “You sit here, honorably.” He is so seated simply because of his external appearance. This spot is what Jesus spoke of in Matthew 23 –

“But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. ⁶ They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues.” Matthew 23:5,6

The person is given high regard based only on the fact that he looks good. On the other hand, in walks the poor guy in the stinky, filthy clothes. Without knowing a thing about him, you make a value judgment. He might be the nicest guy in town. He might be humble, caring, selfless, and honorable in all he does. But, because of his disgusting external appearance, you say to him, “You stand there.”

He isn’t even given a seat to sit on. But maybe he has been working all night, and that is why his clothes are filthy. Without even knowing his circumstances, he is made to stand through the meeting. This, while the other guy slept all night and had time to put on his nice clothes, eat a big breakfast, and then take a donkey-cab to the synagogue without being overworked in the slightest.

Or, you might – fortunately – have a wee little room left for the poor guy to sit, and so you say, “Sit here at my footstool.” The Greek reads more closely, “You sit here under my footstool.” How nice of you. You are elevated and have a footstool, and this poor guy sits not on your footstool, but in a position which is directly on the floor at a lower level than where your filthy feet are. He gets to look at your dirty feet, despite his beautiful nature, simply because he is wearing dirty clothes. However, the other guy, a real “jerk” by every sense of the word, sits honorably.

Life application: Once we find out who a person is, if we are caring of such things as good morals and an honorable character, the externals don’t matter to us. But our first impressions often guide us to want to be closer to those who are more presentable externally.

Without knowing anything else about people, we will naturally incline towards those who present themselves in a clean and orderly way. This is because we can make value judgments based on externals. However, taking these value judgments and acting on them alone can lead us to showing inappropriate favoritism. Let each of us be careful in how we evaluate others. Instead of jumping to snappy decisions based on externals alone, let us look deeper and try to determine the true quality and character of the inner man.

Lord God, help us to be people of character by being people who do not show favoritism towards others simply because of their external appearances. Fine clothes and gold jewelry don’t make a person more respectable or honest. And dirty clothes doesn’t mean a person has bad character. Help us, Lord, to look deeper than externals when we meet people along life’s highway. Amen.

Saturday, 29 June 2019

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, James 2:2

James now makes an interesting statement saying, “For if there should come into your assembly.” The word translated as “assembly,” is sunagógé, a synagogue. The word is seen fifty-six times in the New Testament, but this is its only use when speaking specifically of a gathering of believers in Christ Jesus.

It is used in the gospels and in Acts many times, but it speaks of a meeting of Jews in the ordinary sense. It is used twice in Revelation when speaking of the “synagogue of Satan,” meaning the Jewish assembly which rejects Christ throughout the church age. However, James writes now of the synagogue when referring to believers in Christ. Hence, it is a taste of what is seen in blooming in the world today, that of the “Messianic Synagogue.”

It is another good indication that James, though writing to believers in his own day, is an epistle which prophetically looks to the state of the world in the end times, just prior to the return of Christ.

Of that type of gathering, James notes that there may come in “a man with gold rings, in fine apparel.” The word “rings” is actually singular in the Greek – “a gold ring.” The word for “fine” is lampra, and it signifies “shining,” or “splendid.” It is an adjective which describes our modern day “lamp.” This guy is really something. He is obviously wealthy.

However, along with him someone else arrives. He is “a poor man in filthy clothes.” The word translated as “poor” signifies “bent over.” He is destitute and beggarly. His outward appearance may seem objectionable to those around him, especially because of the word translated as “filthy.” It is a word found only here and in Revelation 22:11. It gives the sense of being foul or squalid. When used in regards to morals, it would be a wicked person. The appearance of these two is completely the opposite. James is comparing the external appearance of them to help us make right judgments. This will continue for the next few verses.

Life application: What would you do if you faced this situation? Let’s add to it and ask, “What if the man in fine clothes smelled heavenly because of some great aromatic oil like patchouli, but the poor man in shabby clothes smelled worse than a cow stall in summer?” How would you react if they both came to a Bible study in your living room? Pastors have to face this from time to time and they have been known to fail… money is a great enticement.

People in the congregation are no different, we gravitate toward those whom we can benefit from or whom we don’t find repulsive. However, the biblical model is that we should treat all equally and not respect one over another based on wealth.

It is the wealthy who look down on others, as if they are less worthy; it is the wealthy who look down on those who drive cheaper cars; and it is the wealthy who look down on those who live in a different and less affluent neighborhood. And yet, we gravitate towards them because we feel we can somehow improve our status by being around them.

The same is true of any movie star or radio personality. Despite having glamour and wealth, they are often the most mixed up and insecure people around – having drug, alcohol, and family problems in abundance.

Instead of judging by appearance, we need to evaluate others based on who they are as individuals. In particular, we should look at their potential in Jesus Christ. If we do this, then the externals of those we encounter will fade away and the true beauty or ugliness of that person will be evident.

Lord Jesus, give us hearts to deal fairly with others despite their external appearance or social status. May we not show preference to anyone because we can benefit from them, but let us deal with all men according to the wise principles we learn from Your word. This we ask so that You will be pleased with our hearts as we interact in all of our relationships. Amen.

Friday, 28 June 2019

My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. James 2:1

With the words, “My brethren,” James is seen to be addressing believers, specifically Jewish believers though (see verse 1:1). That he is not merely addressing Jews in general is confirmed by the next words of the verse, “do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ…” It is with certainty that he is speaking to those who are saved through faith in Christ Jesus, whom he then calls “the Lord of glory.”

The words, “the Lord,” have been inserted by the translators, but they are rightly inserted for clarity. Simply stated though, it says, “of glory.” The Greek has an article before “glory,” and so it more accurately reads, “the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of the glory.” This then expresses the state which Christ possesses which is above all things, and of which He spoke in John 17 –

“I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. ⁵ And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”

Paul refers to Christ in the same manner, using the same descriptor, in 1 Corinthians 2 –

“which no one of the rulers of this age did know, for if they had known, the Lord of the glory they would not have crucified” (YLT).

James identifies Christ in this way, saying that we are not to hold to the faith of Him “with partiality.” This now helps to explain why He has focused on Christ as “the glory.” The scholar Bengel explains –

“Christ is Glory; and therefore faith in Him is glorious, and the faithful are glorious. This glory of the faithful is far above all worldly honour; no respecter of persons acknowledges it.”

In other words, if we show favoritism to one person over another when they are in the same type of human body as we are, then we are holding an earthly position of one over another despite the glory they possess because of being in Christ. If one were to exalt a handful of unrefined ore over a cup of gold, it would make more sense than showing favoritism of one over another. A better example might be holding a bucket of the dust of the earth up and saying it has more value than that of a man. Though man was brought forth from the dust, the sum of his parts combined with the breath of life in him, makes him of far greater value than simply the materials of which he is comprised.

As this is so, then the separation of the believer because of the Spirit which dwells in him as a result of faith in Christ brings him to a state of glory which is not to be diminished by earthly comparisons.

Life application: Anytime we show favoritism, we are failing to live as Christ did. The Bible says that “all have sinned and all fall short of the glory of God.” It goes on to say “but while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” There was no favoritism at all in this. Instead, Christ died for all. He made the example for us to follow. We are not to worry about those who reject Him because it is His right to avenge; they will receive their due penalty from His hand.

We, however, should attempt to never show favoritism when evangelizing, in church settings, or at any other time. Regardless of race, color, level of wealth, etc., we need to be about the same business with all. Pastors need to be careful of favoritism which leads to exalting the wealthy above those who have less. Parents need to be careful of showing favoritism or they will have one spoiled child and one angry child.

This list goes on – work partners, choosing friends, etc. The less favoritism we show, the better off we will be among others and the less bad words and strife will be directed toward us.

Lord, help us to not show favoritism. Instead, give us a willing heart to accept all people as You do. You gave Your life on the cross for them despite their situation. We were all sinners, and yet You came for all. Level of wealth, looks, race, and so on are things we look at, but You do not. Help us to love all equally as we work towards leading them to You. How glorious you are, and may Your glory rest upon all of Your people! Amen.