Scripture:  James 2:1-10

For many pews are a classic symbol of traditional church.    The concept of “old time religion” and the image of simple wooden pews seem to go hand in hand.   However, pews are not quite as ancient as we think, and their history is far more complex.   Pews started to enter churches during the time of the Reformation, so the first 1,400+ years, almost 2/3rds of Christianity’s existence there were no pews.   Pews spread quickly throughout Europe, but they were expensive.  To offset the cost, they were sold.   Many of the first pews were bought by families (and to be clear, they were bought by the richest families), and they even came with deeds, like property, that were transferrable, inheritable, and saleable.   Other churches took a landlord approach and leased their pews.   People would pay pew rent to guarantee they got to sit in “their pew.”  They took this seriously.  The best pews would have gates on them, and these gates would be locked.  Only the family who had paid the rent would be awarded the key.    This took root in England, but it was also widespread in the United States during the colonial era and for a large portion of the 19th century.   If you visit the East Coast and go to a church built in the colonial era, some of them still have these gated pews.  By and large pew rent faded away but believe it or not to this day the practice is still ongoing in one location.  The Anglican Church on the Island of Stark still collects pew rent from a handful of families due to the terms of 19th century contract, so if you were to attend that church you would be unable to sit in the first nine pew because they are reserved.  

For several decades pew rent was a fundraiser that a lot of churches utilized, but as you can imagine it created some problems.   It became established that many churches had “free pews”, and congregations quickly became stratified between those who could afford pew rent and those who were relegated to the cheap seats.   One of the off shoots of the Methodist church in the 19th century were the Free Methodists.   One of the disagreements that the free Methodists had with the Methodists Episcopal Church was the practice of pew rent.   The dissenters broke off and chose the name Free Methodists for a variety of reasons, and one of those reasons was to communicate that the Free Methodist church would be a church where all of the seats were free to everyone.    We probably would like to think that the practice of pew rent died out because by and large everyone came around to this way of thinking, but that probably is not the case.  John Charles Bennett wrote his 316 page doctrinal thesis on pew rent and he concluded that the practice declined because of a lack of profitability not because of a high moral standing.  

It is honestly a bit of a mystery to me that the practice of pew rental ever came to being in the first place.  After all, calling out giving preferential seating to the rich while regulating the poor to the worst seats is literally what this morning’s scripture says not to do!  It feels like it would have been awkward to read this scripture aloud in the 1700s in a church equipped with locked gated pews.  We may not charge pew rent anymore, but this morning’s scripture challenges us to ask do we show favoritism still and what should we be doing to prevent that? 

As the history of pew rent shows, favoritism has long been a problem in the church, but in the first century it needed to be especially called out.  The culture of first century society was extremely stratified.  It is thought that James was writing to a preliminary Jewish audience, and this was very much a honor/shame culture.   Honor was and still is in many parts of the world an invisible social currency.   People seek to accrue more honor and avoid shame which lowers honor.   One of the impacts of this mindset is it creates a natural honor pecking order.  Everyone is aware of roughly where they line up compared to everyone else.   Thus, the person who was most honored always got the best seat, the first pick, the most deference and respect.   While honor was an invisible currency, real world visible currency had a very real impact on honor.   The rich were considered more honorable, while being poor was a mark of shame. 

So, this means the behavior described in this morning’s scripture would have been normal.   For the society of the day, if a person who was clearly wealthier than everyone else came into the church, it would have been natural to give them the best and most honored seat.   Likewise, if someone was present who was clearly poorer than everyone else, then the majority would naturally assume they got the worst position.    This was the common position in the culture of the day, but James write in no uncertain terms: “Believers in our Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.”   Full stop.    There is no contextual wiggle room, there are no corner cases, and there are no special exceptions.   Favoritism does not belong in the body of Christ. Period.    James goes as far as to state, “If you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.”

The reason why James is so strong in this opinion in this scripture is because showing favoritism under cuts the entirety of the gospel.   The gospel of Jesus Christ is God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that all who believe in him will have eternal life.    The revolutionary truth of the gospel is that even though we all fall short of the glory of God, Christ died for all while we were still sinners.   The ground at the foot of the cross is level.   When it comes to our need for grace none are more honored or shamed than anyone else.   The love of God and the forgiveness made available by Christ is for all no matter who they are or what they have done.   The church, the body of Christ, is meant to be the physical embodiment of that love on earth.   We are to love one another with the same sort of unconditional love God has for us.  Picking favorites and not treating everyone with equity absolutely destroys the message of an accepting, all encompassing, and all-consuming love.  

            In some ways we can read this morning’s scripture and feel like we are in the clear.  After all, we no longer charge pew rent.   We do not go out of our way to give the wealthy a seat of honor while intentionally making the poor sit in the worst places.   We do not show favoritism in the way this scripture mentions it, but this scripture causes us to ask, are there still ways that we end up practicing favoritism in the church?  

            It has been my experience that every church in the world believes they are friendly, and every church says that everyone is welcome, but the truth of the matter is our actions do not always back up our words.  We say everyone is welcome, but surveys consistently show that we prefer to worship people who are similar to us.  For instance, a 2018 Lifeway Research poll found that a majority, 57% of Methodists, prefer to attend a church where people share their political views.  How can a church truly be welcoming and not show favoritism, when over half of the people in any given Methodist church prefer it if everyone voted like they do?   We collectively might say everyone is welcome and that might even be officially true, but as individuals do we then back it up?   Does the way that we talk, the social media posts we share, or the way that we act convey that there are some people we consider to be “those people”?  Are there groups of people that we tend to be dismissive of, belittle, or speak poorly about?  Because if there is then we are likely practicing favoritism.  If any of our actions, words, or attitudes ever convey that someone is not welcome in the community of faith then we have shown favoritism in God’s church even if we claim all are welcome.     

Friends in Christ, this is not how it should be, because favoritism in all of its forms does not belong in the church.   We should not try to decide or influence what the church, the body of Christ, looks like because the body of Christ is supposed to look like Jesus and love like Jesus.   If we agree with someone that Jesus is Lord and Savior, then that is more important than what we disagree on.   If we agree with someone that Jesus is Lord and Savior then that means they are our brother or sister in Christ, and we are supposed to love them the way that God loves us.  

For the past several years, our culture has polarized.  I know you have felt it like I have.  We are constantly being asked to pick a side, and once we have we are then asked to vilify the other side, whoever that might be.  This is the constant message we get when we turn on the news, it is the constant message we get when we check in on social media, and it is the constant message we are just bombarded with.  Our culture wants us to pick a side.  It wants us to designate someone an enemy to belittle, to exclude, and to hate.  As followers of Christ, this is our opportunity to be counter cultural.  This is our chance to rebel against the evil of this age and choose love over choosing a side.  This is our chance to show the world that Christians can do better.

This morning’s scripture rejected the cultural message that wealth gives honor, and in the same way we should reject the cultural message to hate those we disagree with.  In a polarized society we can go radically go against the grain and take a stand for grace.  Even if we do not agree with someone, especially a fellow believer, we should still love them.  We should still recognize everyone as someone with an inherent sacred worth.  We should not make those who disagree with us feel like they are on the outside looking in.  Often people outside the church hear a specific message.  The message they get is “God loves you, but.  ...”   At that point it does not matter what the but is, it does not matter how scripturally sound you think your argument is, because in the ears of the person that statement is directed to, the but completely cancels out the idea that God loves you.   Our message should be that God loves you.  If someone has something in their life they need to sort out, we should trust the Holy Spirit to do that.

 Texas based pastor Zach Lambert once wrote, “There are two kinds of ‘everyone is welcome churches.  1.  Everyone is welcome to conform to the church’s image of what a Christian is like.  2.  Everyone is welcome to fully embrace the unique image God created them to be.  Run away from the first and run towards the second.”  Friends, we must strive to be the second.  We must not show favoritism, even to the people that fit the mold we prefer.  Our job should be to love and accept, so that when we say all are welcome and God loves all, we truly mean all.  
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            So, when we say all, may we include everyone.  May we mean all ‘yall.  If we must have a reputation, then may we be known for who we include-not who we exclude.  Our faith is based in the extravagant love of God made known to us by Jesus Christ, so may we be willing to extend that amazing grace to all people.  May we resist the culture of this era that seeks to polarize and divide.  May we not show favoritism along any lines, and may we reach to include all others.   May we keep the royal law found in scripture.  May we love our neighbors.  All of them.  
 

Scripture:  James 2:14-26

Elias Garcia Martinez was a Spanish painter who lived across the latter part of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century.  One of his later works in life was entitled Ecce Homo.  It was a fresco of Jesus painted in 1930 on the wall of a church in the small Spanish town of Borja.  While the painting hung in the church, ownership of the work was maintained by the family of the artist.  The family chose to donate the painting to The Archive of Religious Paintings in Spain.  It was reported that due to moisture in the church, the work had suffered some extensive damage.   When the archivists showed up to collect the painting they were surprised to find that restoration work had already been done.  Unfortunately, the work had been done by an 80-year-old woman in the church who saw the painting needed some touching up.   This woman may have used a paintbrush before, but she clearly was not trained in art restoration and the results kind of show. 
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The woman had good intentions but not the skill set to back up, but that can not be said for other examples.  For some reason, Spain has a real problem with botched restorations.  IN 2019 a restoration of a painting of St. George, done by supposed professionals gave the 16th century work a “plastic” look.   In 2020 another Spanish painting, this one of Mary, was also botched during a professional restoration attempt. In Spain there are no regulations or licensing requirements for art restoration, so anyone can claim the title.  However, art restoration is a highly technical and specialized skill, so there are few who can do it well.  The fact that hundreds of years old paintings keep getting ruined shows there are more people who claim the title of being an art restorationist than there are people who can do it.  This means the only way to know if someone is an art restorationist is they must have proved it by their previous works and actions.   There must be a track record of successfully doing the work.   This morning’s scripture makes a similar point about faith.   Conventional wisdom is that faith is a private thing that is not talked about publicly.  However, we should not have to talk about our faith because what we believe should be evident by the actions we take.  This scripture should spur us to action because it reminds us that a living and vibrant faith is one that does the work. 

I mentioned last week that the book of James is one that has long been contentious, and this morning’s scripture reading might perhaps be the most controversial part of the whole thing.   For instance, the great reformer Martin Luther did not like the book of James.  He referred to it in writing as an “epistle of straw”.  While he never formally advocated for it to be removed from the bible, he did put forth the opinion that it should be removed from the curriculum in high education.   One of Luther’s major issues with James was this morning’s scripture reading.  This is because one of the major doctrines that Luther emphasized was salvation by faith alone.   This is the idea that forgiveness and salvation can not be earned through our merit, behavior, or good works.  Luther felt that this morning’s scripture was contradictory.  It is easy to see why Luther felt that way.  For instance, Paul’s writing in Ephesians that states “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast” does seem to be in contrast with James that states “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

Martin Luther was protesting practices like selling indulgences, where people could buy forgiveness.  The protestant reformation was built by reclaiming and leaning into the belief of salvation by faith alone, so it is not hard to understand why Luther might take issue with this morning’s scripture.  It sort of feels like the author of James thought there might be some disagreement with the point being made here because the author breaks out a couple of rhetorical devices.   First, the author introduces a fictional dialogue partner to argue against in verse 14-19.   The point being made here is that faith and deeds cannot be separated.   Belief should not exist just on its own.  As James points out, even demons believe there is a God.  Faith is more than just belief.  The author then goes on to back up their claims with examples from the Old Testament.   In both the instances of Abraham and Rahab, it is not their actions that earned their righteousness.  The point being made is that their actions were proof of their righteousness.    
Martin Luther was worried this scripture could be used to argue that our deeds earn us righteousness, but this morning’s scripture is not stating that salvation is earned.  The point being made here is one that is far more based in practicality and common sense.   Our faith is not an abstract, it is something that we actively live out and if we are living our faith out then it will lead us to act.    When our faith does not lead us to action then that is when we begin to have problems.   

There is an old story that illustrates this.  The story goes that there was a particularly dangerous section of coastline.  For years and years an old lighthouse had served as a warning to ships but due to decades of municipal budget cuts, the light house slid into disrepair and eventually reached a point where it had become to cost prohibitive to repair. 

A bunch of local boat owners did not like this.  They wanted their coastline to be safe, so they banded together.  They set up patrols to help guide other boats at night, and when a boat did get in trouble they were there to help.  Others took notice and wanted to help to, so this informal group of costal helpers grew, so they decided to organize.  They called themselves the Rescue Yacht Club, and to have a central spot to coordinate their efforts and gather they built a clubhouse.  They still did nightly patrols, and they still helped people, but as their building was beginning to get finished their meetings started to be more focused on items like what should the carpet color be and less how do we make the coast safer.  

Once the clubhouse was finished, they discovered that there was some ongoing cost, so they began charging dues.  This money covered the cost of running their clubhouse, but it also created some extra funds that they decided to use to make their building even better.  At this point the Rescue Yacht Club ran into a problem.  They still had plenty of members, they had plenty of money, but they had a problem filling the nightly patrol schedule.   The nightly patrols were cold, dark, and wet.  They also did not always end with people being rescued.  Most times nothing terribly exciting happened, so most of the members preferred to stay in the comfort of their clubhouse.   In response to this problem, they decided to install a telephone.  People knew where they were after all, so if they were needed someone could call them. 

This led to an end of regular patrols by the Rescue Yacht Club.  Unfortunately, the coast was still dangerous.  There were still people out there who needed to be guided to safety, there were still boats in danger, and people who might need to be rescued.  A group of concerned citizens decided that if the Rescue Yacht Club was not going to be doing it regularly, then they would.  They formed the Community Rescue Boat Society and resumed the nightly patrols.   After a while of doing this informally, they also decided that having a central location would be helpful and acquired a piece of costal property a few miles down the road from the Rescue Yacht Club.   They also eventually turned to asking for dues, and eventually also decided that their focus was not going to be on the nightly safety patrols. 

Today, it is still a dangerous coastline.  There are still people lost in the dark who need someone to show them the way, there are still people who are in danger of running aground on deadly obstacles, and there are still people in need of rescue.   Unfortunately, there is no one on that particular coast doing that, but there are several of the finest yacht and boating social clubs you will ever find.   

If the people in that story were real, they would likely all believe in the importance of a safe coastline.   They likely would point to the prestigious history of how their organization helped make the coastline safer, but at the end of the story that is not what they were doing.  The belief no longer influenced the actions and none of the organizations on that coast could show any proof that backed up their supposed belief in safety.    In the same way our faith is not a label or a demographic.  Our faith is not a membership in some club, where we pay our dues so that it can go on our resumes.  Our faith is in God the Father, who loves the whole world.  So that means our faith must lead us to loving others.   Our faith is in Jesus the son, who did come to be served, but to served.  So that means our faith must lead to serving others.  Our faith is in the Holy Spirit that empowers and equips.  So that means our faith must empower us to proclaim the good news through our actions.  
           
Friends, our faith should not be something that we keep private.   It should be no secret to anyone that we follow Jesus, because our actions- the way we live our life reflects Jesus.  We’ve all heard it said that “actions speak louder than words.”  How we act should declare to the world what we believe far more than sharing a Facebook post or a bumper sticker on our car. 

Our desire to act like Jesus cannot just be an idea, but again it must be something we live out.  This morning’s scripture is very specific about this.  Notice James specifically calls this out in verse 15: “Supposed a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.”   We are supposed to care for one another and the way we care for one another is a metric for a living and vibrant faith.  When we see there is a need, we should ask “what can I do to help.”  Or better yet we respond with “May I help you in this way. . . “ and then freely volunteer to do something that is needed.   Beloved children’s TV icon Mr. Rogers once said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”  Church, when people look for the helpers, we are who they should find.  Not because we think doing good is going to save us or earn us forgiveness, but because following Jesus compels us to love and have compassion for others. 

​This morning’s scripture has been one that has been contentious and misunderstood.  We are saved by faith alone, not by works- but that does not mean our faith does not go to work.  Faith is more than abstract beliefs, it is a way of life, a way of being like Jesus.  So may people know that you are a Christian because you act like a Christian.   May you have a faith of action.  May we be the helpers.  May we see the needs around us and may we meet the needs.  Because we are a people of faith, when there is a need in our community may we be the first ones to stand up and say “Here I am Lord, I will go Lord”  

Scripture:  James 1:16-27 
​               Earlier this month Lifeway Research released the results of a survey they did to assess how knowledgeable churchgoers were on the Old Testament.  To do this they asked a series of questions where the respondents were asked how accurately they could describe specific stories found in the Old Testament.  The story that people felt the most confident about was the story of David and Goliath which 74% believed they could describe accurately, with few errors, or give a basic overview.   The stories of the sacrifice of Isaac, Jonah and the big fish, and Daniel in the lion’s den also all had 63% report some degree of confidence.  There was a lot less confidence in other stories.  For instance, only 25% said they could tell the story of Romulus and Remus from the bible in some capacity.  The problem is that this is a control question, and the story of Romulus and Remus is not actually in the bible.    Only 40% of respondents correctly stated they believed this was not a bible story.   These results led the researchers to conclude that American Christians might be overconfident in their knowledge of the Old Testament.  This backs up the Barna research group findings as well.  They regularly do a survey to test biblical literacy, and each time their findings are consistent which is many Americans have a positive view of the bible and own one, but they rarely read it.
               When I read about studies like this most recent one from Lifeway Research, I am struck by an odd juxtaposition.   For the past several years study after study has shown that collectively, we could do a better job at knowing what the bible actually says.  Yet at the same time, the idea of “the bible says it, I believe it, and that settles it” is still a common viewpoint.  Yet the research has shown that statistically some of the people who claim this viewpoint, don’t actually know what the bible says.  Which kind of feels like a person who looks at themselves in the mirror, and as soon as they go away forget what they look like.    This morning’s scripture was meant to challenge its original audience, and I think it is still one that should challenge us today.  This scripture is one that should lead us to examine ourselves and stare in the proverbial mirror.  Instead of forgetting what we see this scripture should move us to go forward with changed hearts. 
               The book of James is an interesting one in the bible.  When it comes to its origins, author, and even composition it is one that there is a surprising lack of agreement on.  While the details might vary, there is general agreement that James is different than the letters of Paul found in the bible.  Those letters tend to be addressed to specific churches and often about specific issues.  James was not written to a specific church, but likely was written with the intent to distribute among a wider area.  Many biblical scholars consider James to be an example of ancient wisdom literature.  James is a collection of thoughts about what moral and Godly behavior looks like.  In other words, James is all about how to act right.  James does not get too concerned with theory and poetic language of the heavenly realm; it is all concerned with how we attempt to live a God honoring life in our present reality.
               Despite being concerned with practical matters, James is still a book that has been somewhat contentious and has long been a subject of debate among biblical scholars.  We can find ourselves getting into the thick of it fairly quickly with this morning’s scripture.   From this morning’s scripture reading, I think that verse 22, “Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.”   In our modern-day church language we have been conditioned to automatically equate word with the Bible.  Yet, that cannot be what the author is referring to, because the bible had not been compiled and some parts of it potentially not even written.   The author of James is not referring to a specific book.  Verse 18 refers to the world of truth as a gift from God, and verse 21 mentions the world planted within you.  So the word in James, is not a specific book, because it is something much more personal that has been internalized.   The word is the gospel message, that leads to faith.   The word is that which has opened our eyes to Christ and changed our hearts.
               We of course find that gospel message in the Bible.  However, it is our far too simple to read a scripture like this morning’s and assume the word automatically equals the bible.  Because the word is the gospel, the truth of God, that has the ability to connect us to God. This is why the gospel of John begins with “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.”   There the Word is clearly not just the bible; it is Christ himself.   For the word to be the word, it must be felt, it must draw us closer to God, and drive us to a faith in Christ.     Of course, the bible can do this.  I like how our United Methodist doctrinal statements puts it and defines the bible as “containing all things necessary for salvation.”
               The word is the way in which the message of salvation we receive can change us, the word is not just what is written on a page.  We find the same idea elsewhere in the bible such as Hebrews 4:12 which states, “For the word of God is alive and active.”  The word is the received truth that continues to work in our lives.   The word transforms us from within.   The reason why solely equating the bible with the idea of the word, is because the bible can be used to force compliance from without not transformation from within.   Far too many times the phrase “The bible says” has been wielded as a club to try and beat people in line or condemn some kind of non-conformity.  The bible can and perhaps should function as the word of truth in our lives, but that word of truth is meant to transform us, not be an understanding that we force on and insist others to conform to.  The bible should not be used to force others into compliance but rather it should open our eyes to being more Christlike and change our hearts. 
               As we consider how the word of truth does this in our lives, I think this morning’s scripture is particularly illuminating in a couple of ways.  First, we find verse 21 which states “Therefore get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.”  This verse is a good example of how the bible has been used as a club.  Depending on the decade and century moral filth can be video games, or comic books, or any kind of music, or all dancing, or even bowling.  This verse does not actually define any of those things or anything as moral filth, but that has not stopped others from deciding what should qualify and then haughtily proclaim, “well, the bible says. . .”    This verse though is not meant to create a rules list, it is meant to cause introspection.  This should cause us to ask, “what in my life is influencing more than the good news?”  No one exists as an island on their own, we always have influences that shape us and speak to who we understand ourselves to be.  The moral filth of this scripture is anything that personally pulls us away from Christ.  It is any voice that has more influence over us than Jesus Christ, the true Word of God. 
The message of Jesus, the gospel of salvation, and the good news of grace that many of us find in the bible should be the loudest word that forms our identity.  As this morning’s scripture states the word is planted within us, and thus grows out of us.  The word of truth, the gospel that saves us should begin to define us.   Our identity, who we understand ourselves to be, should be rooted in Christ.  One the primary ways we should understand ourselves is as someone who has been saved by faith in Christ alone.   This is what the analogy of a person who looks in the mirror and does not see themselves is all about.  Our faith is not like a jacket that we only put on when the weather gets a little rough or cold.  Our faith is meant to be a defining characteristic of who we are.  If our faith does not influence every aspect of our lives, it is like forgetting what we look like. 
               This leads right into the second way this scripture points to how the word of truth transforms our lives.  If the good news of Jesus is central to who we understand ourselves to be, then that good news should influence our actions.   Faith is not just hearing the word, it is doing the word.  Verse 27 of this morning’s scripture gives guidance as to what it means to “do the word” where it states, “Religious that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this:  to look after orphans and widows in their distress.”  In the patriarchal culture of the first century, the orphans and the widows were the most disadvantaged and most vulnerable of their society.   To help the orphans and widows is an act of mercy and grace.  It is giving of oneself for the sake of giving to help another.   Giving selflessly for others is doing the gospel, because that is exactly what Jesus did for us.  
               As we will proclaim in the  Communion liturgy in moments, Christ died for us while we were yet sinners.  That proves God’s love for us.  We do not deserve eternal life, we have not earned forgiveness.  All of this is a good and perfect gift from the Father who does not change like shifting shadows.  All of this is a gift without price.   Christ is a gift freely given out of love.   That is the heart of the good news, and that is the basis of the gospel we proclaim.  That is the word of truth, so when we actively give of ourselves, we are living out that truth.   When we take the time to protect those who are most vulnerable, then we are living out the gospel.  When we intentionally meet the needs of someone else, with love being our primary motive, then we are the good news.   The word is more than just the bible, it is the truth that transforms our hearts and the word is an action that we do out of love.  
               There will always be voices out that will proclaim “the bible says” and use that as a platform to push what they think other people should be doing.  This morning’s scripture gives us a different option, we can also proclaim “the bible says”, but instead of using words may we use actions.  May we communicate what the bible says about grace and love by how we notice others, by how we have compassion for others, and by how we do the work of serving others, especially the most disadvantaged and vulnerable in our society.   May we communicate what the bible says by living a life that is actively being transformed, as we seek to gird of all that pulls us away from God and we let Christ be center to our identity. May the word of truth, the perfect gift from God, define us as we strive to be doers of the word so that we may better make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of this world.