In The Word
Read James 2:1-13
The Sin of Partiality
My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man indirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives? Listen,my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you andpersonally drag you into court? Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?
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 bythe law of liberty. For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
As believers in Jesus Christ, we are called to live holy lives. God has chosen this purpose for us. The call to holiness requires that we put off the things in our lives that are not holy. We are called in Christ to live at a higher standard. There should be no room in a believer’s life for anger, lies, double-mindedness, gossip, or carnal desires.
We have to get rid of these things and secure ourselves to a holy foundation. James identifies the foundation for every believer as Jesus Christ. As James explained, Jesus Christ is not simply the foundation, but more importantly He is the Cornerstone that holds everything together. In ancient construction, the cornerstone was the first stone that was set in the construction of a proper foundation. This stone or large rock was the reference for all other stones in the building. This stone determined the position of the entire structure. God’s Word tells us that Jesus Christ is the large Rock that we should build our lives upon. It is the same illustration that Jesus used when assuring Peter that His Church would be built securely (Matthew 16:18). It is upon Him that we must secure our lives. It is upon Him that our position must be determined. We can live holy lives if we build on the Living Cornerstone of Jesus Christ. Choose to gauge your life position based on Jesus Christ and not the world around you. Choose to build your life on the unchanging Rock of Jesus Christ.