James 2:1-17
I have a friend who
moved up north a few years ago. I’ll call her Tina. Tina is far away from her
family and friends and has struggled to find a way to get to know other people.
Specifically people she might like to date.
Tina’s a good southern
girl who’s always dreamed of the husband, kids, and whole thing, although in
her vision he might be a stay at home dad. In her 30’s Tina is struggling to
meet people who have similar plans and thoughts about the future that she is
actually finds interesting enough for a second date.
Tina turned to the
world of online dating at the advice of a friend, or family member and began a
series of less than stellar dates. Each man quickly showed at least one or two
if not 20 undesirable traits and were dismissed from the list of possible
suitors. Fed up with the whole thing, but too practical to waste the money she’d
spent, she sent out her information to a group of guys that she thought where “out
of her league.” She called them “pretty boys” who would never look twice at her
profile.
Tina had judged
herself, and the males in this group too harshly. Less than a week later one of
these “too good for her guys” had contacted her. They went out on a couple of
dates and are really enjoying one another’s company.
Sometimes when we judge
others instantly we miss out on great opportunities. Some times when we judge
ourselves too quickly we keep opportunities at bay.
Our scripture lesson
this morning talks about a group of Christians in worship. This may seem an odd
thing to compare to online dating, but bear with me here.
The writer of James has
taught about pure religion; that is a religion that cares for widows and
orphans. The point of this is a religion that cares for those who are less
fortunate. Jesus himself said that we must become servants to the least of
these. What the writer saw happening in this particular congregation was
behavior of blatant favoritism.
When a new person entered
the assembly, or church, they were sized up immediately. Are they wealthy?
Could they be upstanding citizens? Will they improve our standing in society or
our bottom line?
With these questions in
their hearts the people would offer seats of privilege to those who seemed well
off. However, if someone came in who looked poor, someone who looked somehow
less than the reception they received was completely different.
These individuals were
seated wherever they could be closely watched. It is almost as if they see this
poor person as nothing more than a transient who might dare to hit up church members
for money after service concludes.
These two receptions
show that this congregation has its heart in the wrong place. Because everybody
is equal in God’s eyes!
Favoritism is something
that the scriptures are against from the get go. Throughout the good word we
are told to care for widows and orphans, for the alien, the strangers in our
midst. Jesus time and again preached and showed love to and for the poor.
And yet. And yet the
followers of Christ have far too often ignored or worse, denigrated the poor,
as if being poor was the worst sin one could commit.
There has long been a sense
of disrespect for the poor, which is odd considering the elevated status Jesus
often gave the poor. God who gives to all, and gives generously, raises the lowly.
God promises the poor the very kingdom of God if they are rich in faith and
love.
Often our faith is
played out in acts of mercy for the poor, which is wonderful, but at times it
is easier to do so for the distant poor and not those who we might actually
have to smell or touch.
While at one point in
the history of the church the poorest of the poor, beggars were seen as
reflections of Christ, that changed during the middle Ages. As more and more
people found themselves in desperate straits the church began seeking to teach
skills and trades to lead to self-reliance. Those that did not, or could not
learn new skills and continued to beg were seen as to lazy or unworthy to receive
charity. The distinction between the poor and the working poor was drawn
clearly in the church. The working poor were worthy of help, but others were
just too lazy to pull themselves up by their boot straps.
The writer of James
calls the church to a higher standard. James reminds the people, and us that
Jesus calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves. To find worth in the fellow
creations of God. To once again see God’s image in even the poorest of faces.
Everyone is equal in God’s eyes.
When we show partiality
we show that in our hearts, gold weights more than faith or love. Favoritism
based on wealth or status does not show God’s love. In fact the polar opposite
of favoritism is mercy.
There was a church in
downtown small town USA. It was the big Steeple church in town, where everyone
wore suits and ties, where the ladies still wore hats Easter morning. Services
were beginning and the elders had started to shut the doors. A young man
slipped in. His smell hit the sanctuary before he did. He hadn’t bathed in a
while and his reeked of cigarettes and body odor. His hair was long and
unkempt. He had holes in his shoes and dirt on his face. As he walked up the
center isle of the church people began getting nervous. They spread out so that
pews that would have sat 2 or three more suddenly looked too full. They did not
make eye contact but you could hear a slight buzzing as he passed each row.
Finally he reached the
front and sat down on the floor in front of the front pew. The minister was
taken aback and had no idea what to do. The service was at a standstill.
In the fourth row, Gospel
side, an elderly man stood up, grabbed his cane and began making his way to the
front. You could feel the tension release. This man was an elder of the church.
He had been there forever. He was third generation Cumberland Presbyterian. He
would know how to handle this vagabond.
The pastor nodded his
head in approval and waved to the organist to signal that she could begin
playing the opening hymn. When the old man reached the front of the room he put
his hand on the young man’s shoulder. He leaned forward, and lowered himself
onto the ground next to the young man. They sat together the rest of the
service, praying together, singing together, and joining in communion with one
another. They sat there as children of God, as equals in God’s eyes. And in
their actions the gospel was preached and received.
As the writer of James
points out, faith without works is dead. What good is it to see someone in need
and say go on your way, be blessed without offering some help? Or as Jesus put
it in Mark 8:36 “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
Everyone is equal in
the eyes of God. The poor, the rich, the elevated, the downtrodden. All are
equal, all are loved. And as children of God, heirs to the kingdom, members of
the body of Christ we are called to view people with the eyes of Christ our
Lord.
When we exhibit favoritism,
when we leave out words of justice and hope for the poor, we are leaving out
huge parts of the word of God. Did you know that in the first three Gospels,
Matt Mark and Luke, there are one out of 10 verses that deal with the poor, in
Luke its closer to one in seven. If we were to remove those words from the
scriptures we would indeed have a “wholly” Bible, one missing the psalms,
prophets, and many of those precious words in red.
How can we live lovingly and justly? By reaching out.
By offering love and support. We do this in numerous ways here at Christ
Church. In fact I want to share one with you right now. For the past month we
have been collecting underwear and other hygiene items for downtown rescue
mission. This has not been a huge sacrifice for most of us. A few dollars here
and there. But this week those items were delivered and this is the thank you
note we received.
“Thank You so much for
gracious donation. God’s timing is always impeccable.
We had just put the
undergarments on our need list when you came thru the door with the Blessing.
Thank you so much for being sensitive to the drawing of the Spirit and being
His hands and feet.
May God Bless you as
much as you have been a blessing to us!!
Thru Him,
Cara”
A simple thing like new
underwear can and will make a difference for someone in need. Generosity is
giving and sharing what you have with others. When we are generous with fellow
human begins we are sharing love with those created in God’s image. We honor
God with this love and generosity.
Jesus said to love our
neighbors as ourselves. We must learn to value the Jesus in us and the Jesus in
others. We cannot sell ourselves short, but at the same time must not put
others in their place.
Today we celebrate Holy
Communion, one of the sacraments of our church, and perhaps the most leveling
of all of the things we do.
Each of us is invited
to the table, no matter our net worth, no matter our cleanliness, no matter our
condition. We are all invited to come, share, taste and see that the Lord is
good. One bread, one body. Because everyone is equal in God’s eyes.
No comments:
Post a Comment