1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” 4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

James 2:1-4 (ESV)

Persecution unifies the Church and results in a growing love within the body of Christ, or so goes the conventional wisdom. But conventional wisdom can also be wrong. During times of crisis and suffering, even the best of the saints still remain sinners. The early Church provides a case in point.

The Apostle James wrote to Jewish Christians “scattered among the nations” of the Roman Empire (1:1 NIV). These believers likely fled Jerusalem in the wake of the persecution that followed the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7). Because of their faith in Jesus, they faced rejection from their families, scorn from their communities, and even threat to their lives from religious authorities. For this reason, James the brother of Jesus encouraged his ethnic kin that “trials of various kinds” amounted to “a testing of your faith” that “produces steadfastness” and results in “a crown of life” promised by God Himself (1:2-3,12 ESV).

After exhorting the beleaguered Christians to be doers of the Word and not hearers only, the apostle turned to the greatest spiritual challenges confronting these congregations. These temptations were not what one might expect. Hatred of one’s enemies fails to make the list. Sexual transgressions receive scarcely a mention. No, the sins of these believers were far more pedestrian: quarreling, bickering, general worldliness, and, last but not least—favoritism.

The irony cannot be missed. Here is a group of Christians under fire from their opponents, a situation which would seemingly draw them all closer together. Instead, the first specific problem the apostle mentions is their partiality to rich people who visit their church services. Clearly irked by the scenario, James urges them “not to make distinction among yourselves” (v. 4 NASB). If anything, he goes on to say, those who have the most have a track record of doing more harm than good to kingdom work (v. 5). In any case, materialism is a ridiculous vice to characterize a church in the midst of persecution and crisis.

Ideally, the Church should be “money-blind” when it comes to the treatment of her members. Sadly, it is no newsflash to say that the opposite is often true. Partiality is always wrong. Partiality that creates a de facto hierarchy among God’s people is even worse. As persecution increases for the body of Christ worldwide, vigilance will be required for those congregations who are tempted to put worldly designs above brotherly love.

adapted from Kairos Journal by the First Baptist Church of Perryville