James 2 – Favoritism and Faith in Action

Lectionary Readings for June 26, 2022                    3rd Sunday after Pentecost, Year C
2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14    Elijah Ascends to Heaven
Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20    v11 I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord; I will remember Your wonders of old.
Galatians 5:1, 13-25   v22-23 By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.
Luke 9:51-62  v57 As they were going along the road, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 

But this week we’ll dig into James chapter 2 as we continue our series in James.

Peace through Leadership Quotes

“You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”  ~ Buddha
“Let us always meet each other with smile, for the smile is the beginning of love.”  ~ Mother Teresa
“I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.”  ~ Vincent Van Gogh

Peace really begins with ourselves. If we don’t have it, we can’t share it. One way to share peace is with a smile; it’s that easy. And maybe the smile leads to a peace-filled conversation. The great news is that there are countless ways to creatively share God’s love and peace with others. So figure out what works for you or what works in the moment and do it. The people you know and the people you meet will appreciate your effort.

Any time I preach or lead a group, regardless of age, I start the same way. I’m going to say three short sentences. Please repeat each sentence, with enthusiasm.
God made me. God loves me. God has plans for me.

Preface to Today’s Scripture Reading

Last week, our Scripture reading ended with James telling us that “pure religion” is “caring for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.” Today’s reading continues that thought.

The first part of Chapter 2 deals with favoritism (bad) and the second part addresses the importance of putting our faith into practical action (good). As you hear today’s verses, imagine times people have treated you better or worse based on your appearance or location. Being treated like royalty today is only one country club membership away! Who can afford that?

Let’s open our ears, minds, and hearts as James continues teaching us.

Read James 2:1-4, 8-9, 14-19, 26 and the rest of Chapter 2 later this week.

When I started 9th grade, my public high school was about 4 miles from our house. Thankfully, I carpooled with another kid in my neighborhood rather than take the school bus; that let us sleep in an extra hour each morning which was an absolute Godsend for everyone. Each mom traded weeks hauling us to school.

My friend’s mom drove a brown Honda Accord – not too fancy but not shabby by any means, nobody really noticed. When she pulled up to the school, we got out and said hi to a few folks as we dashed to homeroom before the bell rang.

But when it was our turn to drive, we took my mom’s daily driver – a 1977 Mercedes-Benz 300D in Maple Yellow. If the car’s shape or badge didn’t catch your eye, the grumbling of its five-cylinder diesel engine certainly would. There was nothing subtle about it.

After a few months, I started to notice a pattern. The days we rolled up in the Benz, more people than average said hi to me. The kids from upper-income families who didn’t usually talk to me otherwise suddenly made conversation. Hmmm… I had a hunch and decided to run a little experiment without telling anyone.

When mom couldn’t drive, my dad would – which I think was his excuse to drive the Benz he’d saved so many years to buy. You can imagine his confusion when I would ask, “Tomorrow morning, could we take the pickup?” The pickup was a 1984 white El Camino, and there was nothing glamorous about that car at all. Every time he asked me why, and every time I deflected the question.

But I was collecting data with each delivery. Numbers don’t lie. The Benz produced solid returns on the number and “quality” of people who would talk with me. Mind you, I was not a terribly popular kid (for a variety of reasons), and this could be my ticket into a more exclusive social club. But that would mean cutting ties with the motley crew of friends I had assembled during Junior High.

Call me crazy, but I chose to stick with the people I knew, the most diverse group of people I’d ever known; friends who didn’t particularly care what I drove or wore. I didn’t have to purchase those relationships. And I’ve never regretted that decision.

That pattern has continued throughout my life – I tend to downplay what many people would… highlight. Sincere, altruistic relationships mean everything to me.

In today’s reading, James addresses what it means to reflect the personal, caring relationship God wants with every person. To offer extra grace or mercy to someone because of their higher socio-economic status implies that God’s grace and mercy are limited and only available to the highest bidders. But that’s not how the Kingdom of God is supposed to operate. Our doors should be open to ALL people, equally.

The problem is… we’re human. We have both trained as well as instinctive likes and dislikes. Boys young and old like to sit next to the pretty girl who smells good – we’re terribly superficial. But our Christian faith proclaims that the Good News of God’s Love is for everyone so we shouldn’t get distracted by the superficial. I would love nothing more than for our town to describe us as “the church that will take anyone, it doesn’t matter who you are; if you want to love God, love yourself and love others… that’s all they seem to care about.” Let’s make that dream a reality.
Amen? Amen!