Thank you, Lord, for this day. May it be used for your glory!
Good morning everyone and welcome to this week’s Biblit on James chapter 2!
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If you summed up every classic icebreaker what would you say is the root of all those questions?
They usually follow a pattern if you watch closely.
Here are a few common icebreaker questions, read them over and see if you spot the pattern:
What was your least favorite food as a child? Do you still hate it or do you love it now?
If you had to eat one meal every day for the rest of your life what would it be?
If you were left on a deserted island with either your worst enemy or no one, which would you choose? Why?
If aliens landed on earth tomorrow and offered to take you home with them, would you go?
The 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s: Which decade do you love the most and why?
What’s your favorite sandwich and why?
Did you get it?
If you boil all these questions down, we’re left with one word: favorite.
Let me reword them and you’ll see:
What is your least favorite food as a child?
What is your favorite meal?
Which is your least favorite: worst enemy or loneliness?
Which is your favorite: comfort or adventure?
What is your favorite decade?
What is your favorite sandwich?
Now, there are definitely some outliers when it comes to icebreaker questions. But this idea of favorites is a common pattern.
It’s almost as if something in our broken human nature loves the idea of collecting favorites; choosing one thing over another.
And it is this brokenness that James is pointing out today in James chapter 2.
Let’s jump in!
Context
I know in my intro I hyperfocused on favoritism, but James chapter 2 actually covers two big topics. But they go together well.
If you recall in last week’s Biblit, both of these topics should be familiar since chapter 1 was a big overview of all the wisdom James would delve into throughout the book.
This week we get to focus on 2 of those wise topics.
In today’s Biblit, I will go over a summary of everything James talks about in chapter 2. I will also include a few comments that may help with the context of what he’s saying.
Tomorrow, we will dive deeper into what James means and where he has gotten this wisdom from throughout Jesus’s teachings. Finally, Thursday, we’ll jump into some application points.
Show No Favoritism
So the first big topic James talks about is the idea of favoritism.
Although, he’s not talking about whether you prefer turkey or ham. I know I made fun of those questions earlier, but they really don’t have any harm.
The harm, James says, is when we show favoritism amongst people.
Let’s set the scene with the famous example he uses:
You are hosting a dinner party and two guests came in.
One guest is wealthy and powerful, capable of making all your dreams come true. The other guest is a poor man, struggling to make ends meet.
If you only have one chair left, James says it would be sinful to show favoritism to the rich man solely based on the fact that he is rich.
James goes on from here with a slew of warnings about favoritism. He says that showing favoritism in this way is sinful and that you are breaking the greatest commandment: love your neighbor.
In this way, James warns that even if you keep all commandments, but show favoritism, you are guilty of breaking God’s law.
He goes on to warn that favoritism is the same as judgment. And that those who judge will receive no mercy from God.
Finally, James’s final words in this section are a one-liner call to action:
“Mercy triumphs over judgment.” (James 2:13 CSB).
Faith vs Works
The next topic James jumps into is a huge one. What is true faith?
Paul talks so much in his epistles about how works cannot produce salvation. There is no amount of work you can do to earn your way into Heaven. ONLY through Jesus Christ’s grace and faith in His work can you be saved.
So what, is James contradicting Paul? By no means!
But we’ll get into that tomorrow 🙂
What does James actually say in this section, though?
James is really highlighting a huge point that true faith produces good works. He uses 3 different points to highlight this truth.
A Hypothetical Example
If someone were cold and hungry and came to you in need. Think of a homeless person on the street in the middle of winter. If you simply say to them, “go, be warm and well-fed,” yet don’t give them the blanket in your car, what good is that going to do?
See, James is highlighting the difference between words alone and faithful action.
A Harsh Reality
He goes on to deliver one major gut punch.
James essentially says, hey, you say you believe there is one God?
That’s good faith, right?
Like, you don’t believe in the pantheon or something like that. You believe in the one true God. Good work, right?
Well…the truth is, even the demons believe there is one God.
So what differentiates you from the demons? Ouch!
A Historical Example
The last example James uses to highlight this point is actually 2-fold.
He chooses 2 people found in scripture, both recognized for their great faith: Abraham and Rahab.
James highlights 2 specific points in time to make his point.
Abraham Willing to Sacrifice
Abraham, in Genesis 22, is asked by God to go and sacrifice his one and only son, Isaac.
For those that don’t remember, Abraham is like 100 by the time God gives him and Sarah a son. They waited decades for a child.
They trusted God to make good on His promise that multitudes of nations would come from Abraham. And finally, after all that time, God delivers.
And then God asks Abraham to sacrifice his only son! And Abraham, in faith, obeys.
Now, I won’t stop the recap there. Those that know the story know that Isaac does not die. That God was just testing Abraham’s faith. And we’ll get into that more tomorrow too.
For now, I wanted to briefly summarize what James is referencing.
James says that Abraham’s faith produced works.
It was one thing for him to believe God existed, but to physically take his son and be willing to sacrifice him was action. And it was accredited to him as righteousness!
Rahab Faithfully Protects the Enemy
Rahab was a prostitute living in Canaan. She was not one of God’s chosen people. She was a sinner beyond sinners.
Yet when 2 spies entered her home, she told them she had faith in God. She had heard of the marvelous things He did like parting the Red Sea.
And she knew that God was giving Israel the land of Jericho.
As such, she promised to protect the spies and gave them safe passage out of the city.
In response to her great faithful actions, she was the only family protected when God gave Jericho over to Israel. And she lived in Israel until the end of her days.
Conclusion
James once again leaves us with another gut-punchy, make-you-think, one-liner:
“For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.” (James 2:26 CSB).
And that’s it for the day!
Again, tune in tomorrow and we’ll dive into this a little deeper. We’ll take a look at some of these examples James uses in further context and meaning. We’ll also delve into some of Jesus’s teachings that James is referencing throughout this passage!