Everyday Glory

My name is Mark, I'm one of the pastors and I'm so glad that you're part of church here today. Those of you here in this room, those of you out in Facebook land, next-door venue, watching this someday on the worldwide Internet. So it is awesome to be part of church here. And let me ask you something. Do you remember way back when, when you were on the schoolyard and it came time to pick teams for some particular game? Remember how that went down, how that works? Some of you are like, yeah, what's the big deal? Because you were the ones picking, okay? The rest of us were the pickies and there was many anxious moments, agony, wondering when your name would be called. And if you happen to be at the very bottom of that kind of list and the captains were arguing over, you know, who had to take you, then that's traumatic. I mean it is. You still have scar tissue too this day. And your desirability had more to do with just your ability. You following me? Because there was, you know, your popularity, your looks, basically how you ranked in the schoolyard pecking order.

And it would be great if we left all that behind when we moved on in life, but the fact of the matter is, is that's pretty much the way of the world, but it is not to be the way of the church. That's what we're gonna see today. As we continue in this series, "Every Day Sacred," it's based in the New Testament letter of James. Today we arrive at chapter 2, which begins like this. Please follow along as I read. James writes, "My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism." Favoritism will be James' theme for the next 12 verses, which is notable because if you've read this letter, you know, James tends to kind of spend like three, four verses on one subject and then he hops over to another one and that's just kind of his style. But here he's going to camp out, which is a clue to us this really matters to God.

In fact, fascinating, in the Old Testament, Deuteronomy 10:17–19, it's a significant chapter because God is reviewing his dealings with Israel with Moses and then God says this to Moses starting at verse 17. He says, "For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing." Now think about this for a moment. Of all the things that God could say about himself, he felt it was very important on that short list of characteristics is he does not show partiality or favoritism. Of course, he wants the same to be true of his people.

One time, someone of a celebrity pastor named Francis Chan, you've probably heard of him, on one particular weekend he set up a secret camera, hidden camera in the lobby of the church and in the frame of the lens there's Francis in this eight-foot table and he's sitting on one end and there's this about this 15, 16 year old kid sitting on the other end, kids closest to the entrance and they have a little numerical counter underneath each of them that's going to keep track of how many times each one of them are greeted as people enter into the church. So sure enough, right as it begins, first person just blows right by the kid and goes to Francis Chan, so that's one zero and then two zero, three zero, four zero. It's as if this teenage boy is invisible to people as they walk in.

Right around six zero, one couple stops and engages this young man, but it's to have him take a picture of them with Francis Chan. So now it keeps creeping up. One person does greet the young man, one of the ushers, so we got to you know give it up for the ushers, they did their job that day. We love you guys, gals. It gets to about 11-1 stops right there and the last person is actually one of the other pastors at the church and his wife, they just fly right by this young man and like hey let's go chat up Francis, we never get to see him and that was where it ends. I thought that was such a great idea, I said let's do that here at Twin Lakes Church.

So you want to see the results? No you don't. Because I didn't really do that, but what if I had? What if we would have parked René out there, some kid from our youth group? I wonder if the outcome would be a whole lot different than it was in Francis Chan's church. Who knows? But why do we do this? Why are we prone to favoring some people over others? Three things came to mind as I thought about this this week, you might want to write these down. First of all, no surprise, appearance. Appearance. In fact, the word for favoritism that James uses literally means to accept a face. To accept a face. In other words, the moment we see someone we make snap judgments based on beauty, ethnicity, age, gender, what we perceive about their economic status.

In fact, according to an article I read in Business Insider this week and these types of articles, even this type of research, not hard to find, in this article they say that attractive people are perceived by others to be healthier and more intelligent. They're more persuasive, they're paid more, they're more likely to win an election. In fact, attractive people are even considered more likable and trustworthy and it has just only to do with their face. A scripture says man looks on the outward appearance right but the Lord looks on the heart. So there's appearance and then there's ability right. People who excel in music or art or business or athletics. You know we prize these people.

In fact, Kevin Duran next year some team and the Warriors are hoping that it will be them. They will pay him close to 40 million dollars next year and he is not likely to play a single game. He's just gonna be rehabbing that Achilles tendon but that's how much we value ability in our culture. Third reason I think we favor others over some over others is affluence right wealth and I want you to see how James illustrates this in the next couple verses. It says starting at verse 2, "Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say here's a good seat for you but you say to the poor man you stand there or sit on the floor by my feet have you not discriminated among yourselves and have become judges with evil thoughts?"

Now let me give you a little bit of context there. In Roman society you did not just wear whatever you felt like wearing. That was not allowed. Your clothing was like a uniform that signified your rank in their society where you landed on the rung so to speak. In fact, even the gold ring that James mentions there is significant because on the Roman org chart at the very top was the Emperor and only the Emperor could wear a purple toga and then there were the Senators and they had their special outfit as well and then right beneath the Senators was a group called the equestrians. This was the wealthy merchant class and traditionally only these three groups could wear a gold ring in public. If you were beneath that you wore an iron ring or some kind of lesser metal and so James says you know this guy he not only has a gold ring signifying his power but his clothes are fine and he uses a word in the original that means radiant.

You know we get our word lamp from it it's it's like they're bright and shiny so you know he's he's rich and he's powerful and he comes in it's like hey wow you're sit here we this is the best seat in the house. Other guy? Dirty? Disheveled? Yeah hey buddy you know you can sit on the floor whatever let's get back to worship guys here we go and James like time out wait a minute. Jesus didn't have a gold ring or shiny clothes you gonna make him sit on the floor? Listen here's why favoritism is such a big deal and it has to do with really the root cause which is that when we show favoritism it's because we glorify the wrong things. At the heart of this issue is really misdirected glory in fact it's no accident I don't think that James refers to Jesus as our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

He only refers to Jesus by name two times in this entire letter so I think it's very intentional that he mentions his glory because on one hand you know we believe in this glorious God's magnificent being who's radiant and and who dwells in unimaginable glory and then James is like suddenly you're fawning over some human being in church no less I mean isn't that akin to idolatry? You remember what the serpent said to Eve when he said you know you could eat that fruit no big deal and when you do you will become like who? God in other words you can get in on the glory we crave that in fact we're drawn to you know the beautiful the rich the talented because we're hoping some of that glory will rub off on us right and then at the same time our gospel tells us that we are all equally in need of God's grace that the ground at the cross is absolutely level.

So doesn't favoritism actually betray the gospel itself and not only that but is it just possible that the rich person or the poor person when they come into church that they are longing that someone will treat them differently than they get treated out in the world rich or poor is it possible that they actually need to be treated differently than they are in the world now are you getting a sense of why this is such a big deal in this letter? True confession when I was preparing for this this message earlier in the week if you would have asked me on like Monday morning you know Mark do you think that you struggle with this issue that James is talking about that you're kind of prone to getting starstruck or or easily impressed I would have said no I said nah I don't think so I'm not that kind of person.

And I was thinking this week I thought back to a couple years ago when I along with fellow pastor Dave Hicks here at Twin Lakes we had the opportunity to go to Super Bowl 50 member was right over at Levi Stadium and not just as ordinary spectators no no no we got to go as members of the crew for NFL films which you know made us very special in fact I'll show you how special they they reinforce this for you in case you're in doubt you'll see in this next photograph this is Dave and myself we're about to go into the Super Bowl begin our job there that day notice in the picture I'm wearing this is called a credential it's got my picture on it shiny gold name tag that says mark on it and this pretty much means you get to go anywhere you want in fact I took this picture of the field as I was about to walk out on it because I could you know oh and I I forgot to the you also get you know this hat gold emblem on it and get to wear a t-shirt that tells everybody else you're an important person right here NFL films crew you know how much I enjoyed standing there on the sideline looking at people that paid like fifteen twenty thousand dollars to be right there yeah I got a better seat than you pal and I'm getting paid minimum wage but hey look where I am.

So we're getting ready and Dave starts snapping pictures he takes a picture of boomer a science and who's doing some pregame thing and usher like right there he's in front of them and Peyton Manning when he starts to warm up and it's it's actually kind of a no-no for the crew to be taking pictures of celebrities but if you know anything about Dave Hicks telling him he cannot do something is a sure indicator that he will so he's just like like this and one of our tasks was to film Cam Newton when he came out to to warm up I mean look at this guy I mean even his his warm-up outfit is so impressive it's this Superman gold shoes he's like 10 feet tall he's he's handsome he's rich it's like wow man that's that's a man.

At one point the newly crowned Miss Universe is standing two feet in front of me facing me looking at me like will will you just stand there and be a buffer for me so the fans behind you on the rail can't get too close and I look at her and I go yes your highness I will do that for you seconds into that like three four seconds into that Kevin Durant walks up right behind her looks me right in the eyes in that moment I looked into his soul I did in fact I used my best Jedi mind trick and I went you will sign with the Warriors and you will stay there the rest of your career so if he does just remember where that came from so no I have a point but first I have to say you know poor Dave and he just got so caught up in all this it was it was so sad so pray for him that's that's all I could say okay it wasn't just him.

Here's what I'm trying to say you know one hand it's just entertainment it's fun it was an amazing opportunity kind of a celebrity fest but here's the thing our celebrity culture can and in fact does in fact the church and it happens whenever we end up glorifying the wrong things seeing people the way that the world sees them and you know how this goes it's like you know skinny or fat you know tall or short older young married single divorced dark-skinned light-skinned Republican Democrat independent minivan BMW the list just goes on and on and on. I mean think about it what if God thought this way what if God created all these kooky categories? Aren't you glad that with Jesus Christ everybody matters period? Aren't you glad? I sure am man praise the Lord.

And to keep us on the same page as Jesus, James gives us three things in the following verses that will help anchor our hearts and our perspectives. Three things that really matter to God and the first one is this it's faith. Faith. In view of the way that the poor are being treated in the churches that James was writing to he says starting at verse 5, "Listen my dear brothers and sisters has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?" Now he's not saying every single poor person has this amazing faith but the first Christians many if not most were indeed poor they were slaves they were women there are people marginalized in Roman society and they're the same people not always but often are more open to God because they have nowhere else to turn.

I mean our high schoolers will be going down to Mexico on Wednesday of this week and when they're down there as always they'll be surrounded by people who are not afraid to talk about faith those conversations flow very easily there'll be lots of joy lots of laughter our kids will come back so blessed but you know what we can sometimes we can romanticize this because the reality is you know it isn't easy to have faith in a good God when life is always hard you know you're always struggling to survive so much easier to say oh God is good when life is too and it's some of the the most beautiful Christians you will ever encounter are found in the poorest settings.

I remember years ago went to Honduras on a short-term missions trip with some of you here at Twin Lakes Church and Honduras has a smaller economy than Guatemala than El Salvador very poor country and one evening each of us on team we just got to go individually to the home of our Honduran brothers and sisters where we would join them for a meal that they prepared for us and it was amazing because this little town is out in the middle of nowhere Honduras and not only was it remote but about nine months prior to that a category five hurricane hurricane Mitch had just come through and obliterated Honduras their banana plantations which is their major crop were just flattened and no one had bothered yet to even replant them most of the people that we were with worked for these companies and so their economies in the tank they have no work and I'm sitting at the dinner table and I realized that they have sacrificed butchered one of their precious chickens their protein source to make dinner for me.

And when I sit at the table they put this whole platter of chicken and rice in front of me and they will not touch it they will not serve themselves until they are convinced that I'm full. I have to I have to I have to put on an act like I can't eat anymore because across the table it's not just the adults it's it's children with empty stomachs patiently waiting until they know their guest has been satisfied. Now you talk about sacrificial love self-giving love I will never forget that nor will I forget the passion of their worship. I mean this little church just have anything and yet when they would sing there was such joy such gratitude it was embarrassing because one of my jobs was to lead our group we were gonna sing a song for them at the beginning of their worship service and I pull out my guitar and and we're singing a song it's that song Lord I lift your name on high remember that was a popular song years ago and here we are you know Lord I lift your name on high Lord I love this thing your glory your hammer goes and that we finished like oh that was pretty good you know they start singing oh my goodness I mean they just blew the roof off the place that the walls are shaking they've got it was so beautiful and yet they had the worst sound system I've ever seen in my life it had four whole channels which means like if someone's got to do like a guitar solo something like that they're like pull out one of the mic cables and plug in that and so that's how they mix like physically plugging in cables and disconnecting them and yet it was amazing.

And James is saying you're gonna tell people like that to sit on the floor really? I mean it's no wonder he says but you have dishonored the poor and by the way is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? He's saying guys you're sucking up to the very people who are oppressing you. Now of course he's painting with a broad brush here but generally speaking it is the rich that are able to lawyer up right it's the rich that are in the position to withhold wages it is the elites who sometimes look down their noses on so-called simple folks and not just them but at times even their God the God who said in Luke 6:20 Jesus turns to his followers and says blessed are the poor for yours is the kingdom of God compared to them let's be very clear we're all rich.

We are unimaginably wealthy compared to the people Jesus said that too which which means we got to be really you know aware that what matters to God you know isn't how many followers you have on social media or your LinkedIn profile or how white your teeth are what matters to God is what's going on in here your faith how you respond to God and how that's reflected and how you treat others. This is why James keeps saying in various ways throughout this letter it's like you know what you actually believe will be revealed in how you actually live that brings us to this next thing that really matters love. Love. Picking up at verse 8 if you really keep the royal law found in Scripture love your neighbor as yourself you are doing right but if you show favoritism you you what church you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.

Now of course you know he's not saying you're not gonna connect with some people more than others you have things in common he's not saying everyone has to be equally your best friend you don't have to like everyone the same but you and I we are called to love everyone the same references what he calls the royal law of Scripture and what did what does he do he quotes his quotes Jesus he quotes the Old Testament that says love your neighbor as yourself so it's not rocket science love others the way that you want to be loved forgive others the way you want and need to be forgiven and in context here treat people it's the way you want to be treated how do I want to be treated well that's how I treat others that's the goal.

And as I reflected on this I thought so easy to compartmentalize our lives or excuse ourselves you know in this instance you know favoritism I mean come on is that really such a big deal why does he keep going on and on about this and the interesting thing is that James anticipates this exact line of thinking he says in verses 10 and 11 for whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it for he who said you shall not commit adultery also said you should not commit murder if you do not commit adultery but do commit murder you have become a lawbreaker. In other words you're still a murderer you may not be other things but you're a murderer and so we can tell ourselves all day long well hey at least I don't do that or I'm not in with that group I'm not like that guy and meanwhile James is reminding us that every time it amounts to a violation of the law of love when we sin we violate love.

That's why Jesus was able to boil down over 600 commandments in the Old Testament to two when he said love the Lord your God with all your heart soul mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself and then remarkably right before he's gonna be arrested in his like last words before his crucifixion to his disciples he boils it down to even one command in John 13:34 when he says a new command I give you love one another as I have loved you so you must love one another he's like that's it guys I'm giving you a one commandment and favoritism breaks it every single time every time.

And so let me ask you do you want to be rich in the things that matter to God? What a heart that beats and sank with Jesus let's ask him ask him to fill your heart with faith with love and also with mercy you know who the most merciful people are in life they are people who are keenly aware of how much mercy they have received that's it and along these lines verses 12 and 13 it says speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful mercy triumphs over judgment.

Let's unpack this a little bit speak and act well that pretty much involves everything we do right and do that as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom now what in the world is that James doesn't define it for us he assumes that his original audience understood what he was talking about but here we are you know we're 2,000 years removed from that and so my best guess is that James is referring to something that Paul would also talk about in Galatians 5:1 where he says it is for freedom that Christ has set us free notice a similar emphasis on freedom stand firm then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery and in context Paul's talking about being justified by grace and no longer resisting the impulse or the coercion to submit oneself underneath the law as if that would justify me because it never will it will condemn you.

Now let's go back to James verses 12 and 13 what I think he's saying here is you know judging people solely on externals well that's pretty much what the religious hypocrites did the ones that Jesus calls out who it's all just about a show it's all about it an act what people can just see from the outside but when we come under the grace and mercy what he calls the law that gives freedom I mean we live in that reality and in doing so how dare we deny anyone else the same and so live your life before the one true judge the one who saves us who justifies us and yes as James reminds us the one to whom we will someday give an account and that's not going to be where he's like you're in or out if you're a Christian that's what settled on the cross but it will be a review of what did you do with the new life that I gave you and one of the things Jesus talks about in the gospels that he commends that he rewards acts of mercy so many want to be rich in anything be rich in mercy because as James tells us mercy triumphs over judgment that's probably the shortest definition of the gospel right there mercy triumphs over judgment so be rich in it.

In fact, as I wrap up I will share I was kind of daydreaming this week and it's a daydream I've had before it goes like this wouldn't it be awesome if every single one of us in church was in a recovery group like every single one of us because hey after all we're all synaholics so why do we say well you got to go to recovery but no not me man I mean think about how that would just be so radical for the church and the reason I say this is because my friends in recovery I'm just so often impressed by their warmth their love their grace and their mercy that they share so freely.

Friday night I was at the graduation celebration for the Freedom Women's Center it was right next door in Munskey Hall Freedom's Women Women's Center is this awesome ministries a recovery ministry a resident recovery ministry here in town and I tell you that you can see the women that participate there with the pink shirts in front and talk about experiencing the kingdom of God these dear sisters in Christ they are so grateful for what Jesus is doing in their life and the mercy that they are receiving and man when they started worshiping I was like being in Honduras again there was something in the atmosphere that was it was just dripping the room was drenched in mercy.

I think you know if there is such a thing as a 100% favoritism free zone like on this planet it was in that room on Friday night just thick with mercy you know tell you why it's because these dear sisters are living in the reality of what Scripture says in places like Titus 3:4–5 where it says but when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared he saved us not because of righteous things we had done but because of his mercy.

So as we prepare our hearts to go to prayer let me ask you this who do you need to extend mercy to? Is there someone in your life maybe they've offended you or hurt you in some way and the temptation is just to hold on to that you know I'm just gonna kind of let you squirm for a while. Wow aren't you glad God doesn't do that to you? Who do you need to extend mercy to? Who do you need to show love to to notice to show them that they are welcome because I'm convinced for all of us myself included I'm convinced that there's someone in our lives who needs to know that they matter to God and it just might that little light switch might begin to come on when they realize how much they matter to us.

What I'm saying well let's pray towards that end. Heavenly Father, we place ourselves before you and we ask that Lord you would do what you do in our in our lives that you would make us more and more like Jesus Christ and Lord I'm reminded of scripture in Jeremiah 9:23–24 that says let not the wise man boast in his wisdom or the strong man in his strength or the rich man let him not boast in his riches but let those who boast boast in the Lord that they know and understand his ways. God we want to just boast in you today we're gonna boast in your mercy your love the fact that we can trust you and and that's hard at times thinking of families in this church this week who have experienced great griefs Lord would you smother them with your mercy and your love comfort them as only you can may we radiate that same heart for those in this room for those in our neighborhoods for those in this community.

Lord may this church be so full of your spirit and your love and your heart for people that are surrounding community they just can't ignore it it starts with each one of us and so have your way in our hearts in our lives today Lord whether we need forgiveness whether we need encouragement whether we need strength whatever it might be Lord meet us in that place of need I pray I asked us the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and all God's people said amen amen.