Prejudice puts us at odds with the message and teachings of Jesus...

This week we have been looking at a section of letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of James that was written by the half brother of Jesus who turned from being a doubter in Jesus to being a pastor of Jesus church and an author of this letter that is recorded for us in the Bible after seeing Jesus after He was raised from the dead.

And in James 2:1-13, we have discovered that the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice. We have talked about the reality that the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice because prejudice puts us at odds with one another.  You see, prejudice puts at odds with ourselves because at one time we were outsiders when it came to God as a result of our selfishness and rebellion against God. To demonstrate prejudice and treat people as outsiders puts us at odds with ourselves because of how Jesus treated us when we were once outsiders. As followers of Jesus we are to reflect Jesus by treating outsiders as insiders instead of demonstrating prejudice towards those who we may consider outsiders.

We also talked about the reality that the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice because prejudice puts us at odds with God’s activity in the world.  You see, prejudice puts at odds with God’s activity in the world because God chose the poor financially to experience the riches that come from a relationship with Him spiritually. And prejudice puts us at odds with God’s activity in the world because when we demonstrate prejudice, we are depriving others of the respect and honor that they deserve.

We at odds with God’s activity in the world when we demonstrate prejudice because when we demonstrate prejudice we disrespect and demean the name of Jesus. God is actively at work in the world to bring people to the place where they experience the forgiveness and the relationship with God that they were created for. And God’s activity in the world is independent of economic, cultural, or racial and ethnic status. So when we demonstrate prejudice to others, we place ourselves at odds with God’s activity in the world in a way that disrespects and demeans the name of Jesus.

Today, we will see James reveal for us a third reason why the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice in James 2:8-13:

 If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF," you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. For He who said, "DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," also said, "DO NOT COMMIT MURDER." Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.

Here we see James quote from a section of as letter that is recorded for us in the Old Testament of the Bible called the book of Leviticus. In Leviticus 19:18, God commanded the Jewish people to love their neighbor as themselves. What is so interesting is that Jesus took this commandment and connected it with God’s commandment in Deuteronomy 6:5 to love God with all of our heart soul, mind, and strength to make what we refer to today as the Greatest Commandment.

That is why James refers to this as the royal law according to the Scripture. The royal law refers to the law given by Jesus as King that make up the letters contained in the Old Testament of the Bible. And in Matthew 24:34-40, when asked what was the greatest commandment, Jesus as King expressed that the whole Law, in other words the whole Old Testament, could be summarized by these two interconnected commands. James refers back to Jesus words to remind the readers of this letter that by loving God with our total being and loving our neighbor as ourselves, we will live in accordance to what is good and right in God’s sight.

James then contrasts the royal law of loving God with our total being and loving our neighbor as ourselves with prejudice in verse 9. James explains that, for the person who demonstrates prejudice, you are committing sin. Now the word sin here refers acts of commission against God that flow from our selfishness and rebellion against God and depart from God’s standard of what is right. And as a result of our selfishness and rebellion against God through the demonstration of prejudice against others, James states that those who demonstrate prejudice are convicted by the law as transgressors. In other words, a person who demonstrates prejudice against others will be brought to the recognition of their wrongdoing against God and others by the message and teachings of Jesus that are recorded for us in the Law, which are the first five letters that make up our Bible today.

And it is here that we see James reveal for us the reality that the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice because prejudice puts us at odds with the message and teachings of Jesus.  You see, prejudice puts at odds with the message and teachings of Jesus because the message and teachings of Jesus calls us to love one another in a way that is free of prejudice. However, we are at odds with the message and teachings of Jesus when we rebel against Jesus command to love one another in a way that is free of prejudice.

And when we demonstrate prejudice, prejudice puts at odds with the message and teachings of Jesus in a way that results in us being convicted of violating the message and teachings of Jesus. We see James unpack this reality for us in verse 10 and 11. First, in verse 10, James explains that “whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.” When James uses the word keep here, this word literally means to persist in obedience. James point here is that the person who persists in keeping all of the commands that are recorded for us in the Old Testament, yet loses one’s footing so as to rebel against God on one command, is guilty of rebelling against every one of God’s commands.

Now a natural objection that could arise here is “Well Dave, how could I be guilty of breaking all of the commands when I only broke one of the commands. I mean that does not seem at make sense. Dave, that does not seem to add up, literally or figuratively.” If that objection is running through your mind, I just want to let you know that is a fair objection. And we see James anticipate and respond to that objection in verse 11.

Here we see James quote the seventh and the sixth of the Ten Commandments that are recorded for us in a section of a letter in the Old Testament of the Bible called the book of Exodus. James states for He who said, "DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," also said, "DO NOT COMMIT MURDER." Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.” In other words, just because you do not sleep with someone else’s wife or undress her with your eyes, but instead choose to kill someone, you are just as guilty.

To understand James point here, think of it this way. If you commit adultery, are you loving your neighbor as yourself? No you are not? If you commit murder, are you loving your neighbor as yourself? No you are not. So if you break any one of these commands individually you are breaking the command to love your neighbor as yourself. So, if you demonstrate prejudice, are you loving your neighbor as yourself? No you are not.

James point is that to demonstrate prejudice is no different than to sleep with someone else’s wife or to willingly take the life of another. There is no difference because all of those commands break the commandment to love your neighbor as yourself, which ties all of these commands together as the royal law that was proclaimed through the message and teachings of Jesus. You see, we are convicted of violating the message and teachings of Jesus because breaking one of Jesus commands breaks Jesus command to love one another in a way that is free of prejudice.

To love your neighbor as yourself is to be free of prejudice. When we love ourselves over our neighbor we are prejudice towards ourselves over our neighbor. We demonstrate prejudice when we sleep with someone else’s spouse, when we undress someone with our eyes, when we murder someone, or break any of God’s commands. We demonstrate prejudice because we believe someone or something is better than someone or something else. We demonstrate prejudice in adultery because we look at someone else’s spouse as being better than our own. We steal because we look at something that we don’t have as being better than what we do have. And in our prejudice, we externally judge others as being of less value and worth than ourselves.

And because of that reality, James calls followers of Jesus throughout history to speak and act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. But what does that mean? When James refers to the law of liberty, he is referring to the message and teachings of Jesus that reveal the true nature and expectations of the law.

You see, the message and teachings of Jesus reveal the reality that external obedience alone does not produce a right relationship with God because external compliance does not deal with the realities of the condition of our heart. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus repeatedly stated “You have heard it said, but I say to you”. Jesus repeatedly made this statement because Jesus recognized what we often miss, which is that our external actions are driven by our heart attitudes. And it is our heart attitude of prejudice that will drive our external actions towards others.

James point is that we are to express ourselves in words and actions in such a way that is free from prejudice by following the message and teachings of Jesus. And as followers of Jesus, we are to keep the message and teachings of Jesus because those who rebel against Jesus command to love one another in a way that is free of prejudice will receive no mercy from Jesus.

In verse 13, James reminds the readers of this letter that those who reject the message and teachings of Jesus by demonstrating prejudice instead of kindness and concern for those around them will receive no kindness from Jesus. Instead, as followers of Jesus, it is the kindness and concern toward others that is free from prejudice that will triumph over the condemnation that will come to those who reject the message and teachings of Jesus to instead demonstrate prejudice.

So are you struggling with prejudice? Are you struggling with prejudice based on the social appearance of others? Are you struggling with prejudice based on the ethnic or racial appearance of others? Are you struggling with prejudging others based on externals appearance instead of internal character?

 Because the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice. The faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice because prejudice puts us at odds with one another. The faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice because prejudice puts us at odds with God’s activity in the world. And the faith that works does not demonstrate prejudice because prejudice puts us at odds with the message and teachings of Jesus.