We are a few weeks into the start of school which means plenty of time has passed for the hierarchy to have formed amongst the student body. From kindergarten to senior classrooms from the moment all the kids entered the room, the cliques began to form. On the playground, on the field, in the band room, in the service club, at the lunch table, etc. bias, favorites, and exclusion rear their ugly heads. Even teachers join in the unequal treatment of students and peers. With all this judgment comes hurt and the lack of love leaves many lonely and despairing. Favoritism is not good.
Food offers us a way to overcome favoritism. I do not mean branching out from your favorite meals to try something new. Instead, food offers us a way to connect with people we would otherwise not spend time with. Food helps bring people together because we all have to eat. We can check our bias toward others with food if we put together two lists of people. First, come up with a list of people you would like to have dinner with. Now, I am sure your list included the one student who no one else wants to eat with, the coworker with differing political views, the mom that wears the cheap brands, the neighbor with a different skin color, etc. Now for the second list, come up with a list of people you would not like to have dinner with. We may have had a few people for the first list we would like to eat with, but I bet we all had the people to avoid list ready to go. We have those exclusion lists ready to go because we take pride in ourselves. And it can be the pride of thinking we are better than others like the pride warned against in our Old Testament reading from Proverbs 25, 6 Do not exalt yourself in the king’s presence, and do not claim a place among his great men; 7 it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here,” than for him to humiliate you before his nobles. Or it can be the pride of self-isolation against all those who do not get it or do not get ‘me.’ Food may be impartial, but we all show favoritism.
We pick our favorite people based on what they can do for us. Our favoritism does not manifest itself in a list of people that we feel will drag us down, but a list that will build us up, expand our opportunities, affirm our beliefs and make us happy. Our prideful hearts conjure up these criteria that divide people, but in our New Testament reading, James warns us as believers against being overcome by favoritism. James wrote to believers, followers of Christ who were filled with faith and the Holy Spirit. His audience was not infantile in their faith, but those who ought to be maturing in their faith. James wrote boldly and to the point to those who ought to be fighting and struggling against their fleshy prideful sinful nature. In our verses from James 2, he calls out favoritism or a bias, partial, racist, sexist, etc. views toward others. To illustrate his point, he offered a scenario where a rich man is given special attention at a meeting, while a poor man is treated like dirt. This kind of favoritism does not fit with the truths of Scripture, the Christian faith and the teachings or heart of Jesus. James pointed out too that the rich often put their trust in worldly wealth seeing no profit in faith in Jesus or helping others, while the poor and poor in spirit are those who look forward to the riches of the kingdom of heaven. The simple truth that exposes the hurt and evil of favoritism is then quoted in James 2, 8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. Love for our neighbor characterizes the Christian life, not a lack of love or favoritism.
We have grown accustomed to have a little favoritism flavor our Christian lives though. To excuse our favoritism, which is judgment against our neighbor, we write it off as being less harmful than other sins, but we read in James 2, 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. We cannot excuse our breaking of God’s good, loving law when it comes to favoritism. When we treat people differently, we break God’s law. Now there is a difference between running up to a shadowy figure at 2:00 am in a dark alley to give a hug and an invite to Bible study, and turning away from someone in broad daylight at work, at school, on the field, in the store, etc. We may jump to extremes in attempts to bundle all our favoritism under one big excuse, but in reality, we show favoritism in small, petty ways that reveal our hearts along with pumping a gallon of blood a minute, can pump out a pallet of prejudice a minute. When we break God’s law, there is no jury that can free us from his judgment.
Our only hope to escape judgment for our favoritism is God’s favor toward us. Before the brothers and the sisters, who believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, to whom James wrote were overcome with despair, he gave this encouragement in James 2, 12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment. James put before his fellow believers and us the call to stop favoritism, but it was not based on fear of punishment. Instead, he appealed to our freedom in the Gospel. James encourages us to live according to the law of love because we have been freed from the law of hatred. Jesus freed us from the results of our sins, judgment, death and hell, and gave us freedom from sins control over our lives as we hear in Romans 6, 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. We have been put to death with Christ through baptism and raised to a new life. James points at the new name we were given and live under through baptism in James 2, 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? When we as Christians are persecuted, Christ is also being spoken against. James encourages us with the good news that God has shown his favor to us in Jesus. God favored you so much that he sent Jesus to live, suffer, die, rise and ascend into heaven so that you would not be excluded, not despair, not die, but live and be loved, cherished, chosen and richly cared for in eternity in heaven.
This Labor Day weekend honors workers with a day of rest. Consider the rest you have in Christ from worrying about who you are supposed to be favoring and who you are supposed to be excluding. Instead, embrace your freedom to show love to others by not judging them based on what is seen. Love by seeking to serve and share Jesus with all people. Sit with anyone in the classroom, on the playground, in the cafeteria, etc. introducing yourself and introducing someone to the love of Jesus. Our changed perspective on others as believers is summed up by this phrase in James 2, 13 … Mercy triumphs over judgment. This means we show mercy to others and live out our freedom in Christ so that we have no fear of judgment because we have embraced love for others as we love ourselves. Jesus gave a picture of what this looks like in our Gospel reading from Luke 14, 12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Jesus used the picture of hosting a meal to illustrate our calling to love, serve and seek out those who cannot repay us, who from a worldly perspective would be a waste of our favor, but who need to hear and be shown the mercy of Christ. You can also think of it like this, it might be easy to hold the door open for a handsome gentleman or a lovely lady but who have you not been holding the door open for? Our freedom in Christ makes it easy to know who to sit with, eat with, talk to, hold the door for and share the message of Christ’s love with; it is anyone we meet.
We are a few weeks into the start of school which means plenty of time has passed for the hierarchy to have formed among the student body. Hierarchies form and divide us at every age and every stage of life. With all this judgment comes hurt and the lack of love leaves others lonely and despairing. God did not show us favoritism but loved the world so much that he sent Jesus to save everyone. We are now free from showing favoritism, free to show love to others by not judging them based on what we see and free to share the message of Jesus with all people. So, forget your favorites list for the freedom of mercy. Amen.
Gunnar Ledermann, Pastor Divine Peace Church
Gunnar Ledermann
I’m passionate about Rockwall’s vibrant community and actively engage with local non-profits and community organizations, including the Rockwall Chamber of Commerce, the City of Rockwall, and the Downtown Rockwall Association. My background includes a bachelor’s degree in Classical Languages and a master’s degree in divinity. Currently serving as a pastor at Divine Peace Church in Rockwall, I also enjoy spending time with my wife, Marinda, and our five children.
