04. The Epistle of James 2:1-13

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1 04. The Epistle of James 2:1-13 (11/9/16) As we said when we started this study James is calling his readers (primarily Jewish Christians but all Christians) to maturity and commitment. That s why the first thing he tackles is the issue of accepting trials with joy because he knows that trials can grow our faith and produce within us the character of Christ. He follows that by immediately encouraging us to resist temptation which he knows the devil will use against the children of God every chance he gets to destroy within us the character of Jesus and extinguish our light. But starting with v.21 of chapter one James seems to shift his focus from carnal Christians to counterfeit Christians James 1:21-22 (NKJV) 21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. So, it seems that James is trying to get his readers to understand that a person can be religious, go to church and believe all the right things and still not be saved. And that this might be the very reason why so many were not mature and walking closely with Jesus in their faith it was because they didn t really have saving faith! What they had was religion (a relationship with Jesus rooted in the law) but not a relationship with Jesus in truth based on God s grace. 1

2 So, James begins to camp on this idea as he now tries to teach his readers that religion gives the appearance of knowing God but it is only an illusion rooted in deception (v.22). He wants to remind his Jewish readers that Jesus came to abolish the law of Moses and replace it with another law the perfect law of liberty (v.25). The perfect law of liberty is simply James way of referring to the New Covenant which a person enters into thru faith in Jesus and which sets them free (gives them liberty) from the law of Moses which couldn t give them freedom from the power of sin. Romans 3:20-22, 27 (NLT) 20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. 21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are 27 Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law [of Moses]. It is based on [the law of] faith. Or as James puts it the perfect law of liberty. Look, we all know that nobody did religion like the Jewish people and yet, like the Pharisees, Judaism only turned the Jews into whitewashed tombs. (Explain) Religion only surface cleanses a person but leaves their heart unchanged. But when a person is born-again they receive a new heart a heart that God pours His agape love into thru His indwelling Holy Spirit (Rom.5:5). And when God s love is planted in a person s heart thru the new birth what will inevitably start to grow out of that heart are acts of kindness towards those God especially has a soft spot in His hearts towards orphans, widows, strangers, and the poor. 2

3 Without these acts of kindness and concern for the lowliest and the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in society no one has the right to say they really know God. This was the thought that James expressed at the end chapter one James 1:26-27 (NKJV) 26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. And as we said last week James is taking a very practical approach when it comes to verifying if a person who says they re a Christian really is a Christian. If their so-called faith (religion) doesn t manifest itself in acts of kindness; if it doesn t lead to helping those who are poor and disadvantaged, and in personal holiness (staying away the world s defilement) it is meaningless in the eyes of God. Which simply means that, that person s so-called faith isn t genuine they have religion but not a true relationship with the Lord. Now James continues this thought into chapter two which he starts out by telling us that true Christians can and do sometimes act in an un-christian and even a worldly way towards the poor. Sometimes true Christians can be carnal and become respecters of persons showing favoritism to the rich while not loving and respecting the poor as God would have them to. 3

4 Chapter 2 James 2:1-4 (NKJV) 1 My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality [favoritism]. 2 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, 3 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," 4 have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? I wonder how many times this scene or something similar has been played out in Christian churches across the centuries and throughout the world? The reason this is so abhorrent to God is because He is no respecter of persons Deuteronomy 10:17 (NKJV) 17 For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. Matthew 22:16 (NLT) 16 They sent some of their disciples, along with the supporters of Herod, to meet with him. Teacher, they said, we know how honest you are. You teach the way of God truthfully. You are impartial and don t play favorites. This was the hallmark of Jesus ministry He sought out and spent time with the poor and others who were social outcasts (tax-collectors, prostitutes and assorted sinners ) for which the religious establishment condemned Him constantly. During the Jesus Movement in the 1960 s when God was moving in the hearts of the hippies and many showed up at churches dressed in tie-dyed tee-shirts, bell-bottom jeans, sandals and with long hair they were often told to go home and cut their hair, change their clothes before they would be allowed into these churches. 4

5 This was one of the main reasons why God used Calvary Chapel and Pastor Chuck Smith to minister to these kids he welcomed them into his church and did not judge them for their appearance. Let s not forget the words of God to Samuel For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1Samuel 16:7) James 2:5 (NKJV) 5 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? By saying this James isn t saying that there are no rich people who really love God only that those who are poor will dominate the Kingdom of God why? Matthew 19:24 (NKJV) 24 And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Comment) When a person is poor they have to depend upon God to provide their daily necessities this builds their faith, or as James puts it, they become rich in faith. But also, this absolute daily dependency on God produces a close and intimate bond of love with the Lord. There is nothing in this life that they are clinging to in the way of material prosperity (since they have none) and so they are those who are anxiously waiting for the Lord s return and the Kingdom of heaven. (Mention the story of Pastor Mike MacIntosh in Poland many years ago) 5

6 James 2:6-7 (NKJV) 6 But [when you show favoritism to the rich] you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? 7 Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called? James reminded his readers that much of the persecution they were experiencing in their lives was at the hands of the rich and why was that? It was because the rich are often motivated by the love of money which, as Paul said in 1Tim.6:10), is the root of all kinds of evil. The wealthy have the money to hire lawyers to sue the poor and take things from them like their land to build luxury homes or hotels on as we see going on today. (Eminent Domain laws) And if the rich that James is referring to here were professing Christians then by oppressing the poor and then coming to church to praise the Lord they were in effect blaspheming the noble name of the Lord Jesus Christ in the process. But once again these people that James has in mind could be counterfeit Christians religious phonies like the scribes and Pharisees those that Jesus condemned for the very same thing: Matthew 23:14 (NKJV) 14 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. James 2:8 (NKJV) 8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you do well; 6

7 The royal law is basically the law of the King and His Kingdom a law that governs how the King s kids are to live our lives under the New Covenant. For example, in the Decalogue, also known as the Ten Commandments, the eighth commandment that God gave was You shalt not steal. So, the law could force me not to steal what belongs to you, but it couldn t force me to share with you what belongs to me the royal law does both. (Explain) As Christians, we are not under the law of Moses we are under an even greater law, the law of love which James called the royal law. This royal law was first expressed in Leviticus 19:18 you shall love your neighbor as yourself. Remember how Jesus took all 613 commandments in the law and reduced them down to two Matthew 22:34-40 (NKJV) 34 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" 37 Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." Paul the apostle did the same thing in Romans 13 Romans 13:8-10 (NKJV) 8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. 7

8 The royal law forbids me from mistreating or taking advantage of another since I am to love them as I love myself, and treat them as I would want them to treat me (Matt.7:12). James 2:9-11 (NKJV) 9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors [ Yes but I keep most of the rest of the law ]. 10 For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. 11 For He who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. In the O.T. God s law contained 613 commandments to break anyone of them was to be a lawbreaker and therefore guilty before God and condemned. But let s not deal with all 613, let s just limit ourselves to the ones we are most familiar with The Ten Commandments. These commandments are like the wooden boards that make up the hull of a ship it doesn t matter if most of them are there if only one is missing or broken that ship is going down. The same is true for the person who tries to get to heaven by keeping the Ten Commandments. It doesn t matter if they keep most of them, if any commandment is broken even once that person is sunk (condemned) as James said For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. (v.10) This is why Paul calls the law a curse it s because it makes salvation dependent upon a person keeping all of it without fail. In other words, the law demands moral perfection from a person to gain access into heaven. 8

9 And yet when I ask people, If you were to die tonight would God let you into heaven? they almost always tell me, yes. And when I ask them to explain why they respond, Because I m a good person. I know I m not perfect, morally speaking, but I still think I m good enough to get into heaven. Listen to what God s Word is saying If you re not morally perfect you re not good enough to get into heaven! And that s why Jesus said to the rich young ruler (a very moral person) no one is good but God because God defines good as moral perfection. Fallen man defines goodness as simply being better than others and since we can always find someone worse than we are to compare ourselves to we think we re good! But they aren t the standard Jesus is the standard and He s perfect! Which means there is no I think I m good enough or I m better than most argument that will get a person into heaven It s either sinless perfection or eternal rejection (hell). For all have sinned (missed the mark) and fall short of the glory of God (sinless perfection) Rom.3:23; and the wages of sin is death (eternal death in hell) Rom.6:23a. I can hear people shout back, No one can live a life of sinless perfection! That s not true One Man did His name is Jesus, and if we put our faith in Him He will put His righteousness to our account so that we can go to heaven through Him 9

10 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV) 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Romans 4:5 (NKJV) 5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, James 2:12-13 (NKJV) 12 So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. In other words, mercy is an attribute of God s character (Ex.34:6) and can only be consistently demonstrated by those who have God s Spirit living inside them. These of course would be true Christians who are born of the Spirit and as such have God s mercy produced thru them as a fruit of the Spirit. Therefore, I believe that when James says, For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy it is a reference to those who claim to be Christians but who show favoritism to the rich and disrespect the poor. Those who are religious and believe they know God but have no compassion for widows and orphans and partake in the world s defilement. These are those who think that keeping the law of Moses will get them into heaven even if they only keep most of them but not all of them. And finally, these are those who drag people into court and hold them accountable for everything they owe them or did to them without showing them any mercy (the character of God) whatsoever. 10

11 In other words, James has got unbelievers in mind who profess to know God but in works they deny Him to these God will show no mercy on the Day of Judgment because they did not know God. And that is why James ends v.13 with the statement, Mercy triumphs over judgment. It is his way of saying that someone who shows consistent mercy to others demonstrates that the Spirit of God lives in their heart (born-again) and therefore have passed from death to life and will never come into condemnation i.e. be sent to hell (John 5:24). Matthew 5:7 (NKJV) 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. And then later in Matthew s gospel Jesus gave a parable to drive this truth home in a very powerful way Matthew 18:21-35 (NLT) 21 Then Peter came to him and asked, Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times? 22 No, not seven times, Jesus replied, but seventy times seven! 23 Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars [ ten-thousand talents or roughly twenty-one billion dollars]. 25 He couldn t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned to pay the debt. 26 But the man fell down before his master and begged him, Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all. 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. 28 But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars [about $9000]. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. 29 His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. Be patient with me, and I will pay it, he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. 31 When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you? 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. 35 That s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart. (Comment) 11