Read with Me
James 2:8-13 (HCSB)
Indeed, if you keep the royal law prescribed in the Scripture, Love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well. But if you show favoritism, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the entire law, yet fails in one point, is guilty of breaking it all. For He who said, Do not commit adultery, also said, Do not murder. So if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you are a lawbreaker.
Speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of freedom. For judgment is without mercy to the one who hasn’t shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
Listen with Me
James has been led to see the showing of favoritism to be not only illogical, but also a violation of what he calls “the royal law”, Leviticus 19:18: love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus himself identified this command as the second-greatest commandment, right behind loving God with every part of ourselves.
And that makes sense. Because if we treat people differently based simply on their outward appearance, we cannot be said to be loving them as we love ourselves. Instead, you become “judges with evil thoughts” (James 2:4).
James’ next logical step is to point out that if we break that one commandment, we are law breakers, and as guilty as if we had broken all of them. Some people might see their harsh judgment of people as no big deal, but James points out that to God it’s a very big deal, as serious as adultery, or even murder.
So, James urges his readers to take that into consideration in their dealings with others, because they will have to stand before God at the final judgment and will be held to account for how they dealt with “the least of these brothers of Mine” (Matthew 25:40). It is not just a matter of politeness; it is a matter of mercy and love.
Pray with Me
Father, it is easy to forget how much You truly love people, even those outside our own circle, even those outside the Church. But it is an absolute fact. You sent Jesus to die in a desperate move to rescue the eternal souls of every human being from an eternity in hell. And when we treat another person with scorn, contempt, or lack of consideration, we are judging them to be unworthy, or at least less worthy, of that love and those efforts. And if we really just pause for a couple of moments, we can easily see how that not only dishonors them, but how it dishonors You as well. Forgive us, Lord, for not valuing other people like You do. Give us all fresh eyes to see everyone through the lens that you use, so that we can see their value to You, and treat them accordingly. Amen.