1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:01,600 All right, good morning, church family. 2 00:00:01,600 --> 00:00:15,740 If you would find your seat, and as you find your seat, let 3 00:00:15,740 --> 00:00:20,220 me invite you all to open your Bibles or type in your devices. 4 00:00:20,220 --> 00:00:24,700 The Book of James, chapter 2. This morning we're going to be 5 00:00:24,700 --> 00:00:30,020 in verses 6 to 13. I want to once again thank Fred 6 00:00:30,020 --> 00:00:33,900 for preaching last week a message from Book of Acts about 7 00:00:34,180 --> 00:00:35,980 Antioch and being ascending church. 8 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:39,120 And this morning we're going to resume our study in the book of 9 00:00:39,120 --> 00:00:44,040 James. So James chapter 2, verses 6 to 10 00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:49,480 13, if you'll follow along and your copy of God's word, James 11 00:00:49,480 --> 00:00:54,960 26 but you have dishonored the poor man. 12 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:59,320 Are not the rich the ones who oppress you and the ones who 13 00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:03,000 drag you into court? Are they not the ones who 14 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:05,720 blasphemy the honorable name by what you were called? 15 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:10,040 If you really fulfill the royal law, according to the scripture, 16 00:01:10,320 --> 00:01:12,680 you shall love your neighbor as yourself. 17 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:17,680 You are doing well. But if you show partiality, you 18 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:20,800 are committing sin and are convicted by the law as 19 00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:24,240 transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law 20 00:01:24,280 --> 00:01:28,560 but fails and one point has become accountable for all of 21 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:31,080 it. For he who said do not commit 22 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,320 adultery also said do not murder. 23 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:39,280 If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a 24 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:44,080 transgressor of the law, so speak and so act as those who 25 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:46,760 are to be judged under the law of liberty. 26 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:51,120 For judgment is without mercy. To the one who has shown no 27 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:57,000 mercy, mercy triumphs over judgment. 28 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:08,800 You pray with me, Lord, this morning we pray, we plead that 29 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:15,640 you would have mercy on us. For God, we are keenly reminded 30 00:02:15,640 --> 00:02:20,240 and aware that we stand before US sinners who are in desperate 31 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:26,800 need of mercy. As the Lord, as we come to you 32 00:02:26,920 --> 00:02:31,000 and as we receive that mercy, Lord, I pray that you would then 33 00:02:31,000 --> 00:02:37,280 help us to go and show mercy to others, Lord, that we would be 34 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:42,560 quick to be merciful, that we would not be like the the 35 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:48,120 servant who was forgiven 10,000 talents and yet wouldn't forgive 36 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:53,080 100 denarii. God help us to be a people who 37 00:02:55,640 --> 00:02:57,440 show mercy the way that you show mercy. 38 00:02:57,440 --> 00:03:03,680 Lord, help us to be a people who know all too well that we've 39 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:08,080 been shown grace and therefore we show grace. 40 00:03:09,440 --> 00:03:11,520 I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. 41 00:03:14,520 --> 00:03:19,760 Richard Baxter, in his book The Reformed Pastor, writes this. 42 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:26,880 Oh, then let us hear these arguments of Christ, whenever we 43 00:03:26,880 --> 00:03:30,560 feel ourselves grow dull and careless. 44 00:03:32,400 --> 00:03:37,720 Did I die for these souls, and wilt not thou look after them? 45 00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:44,680 Were they worth my blood, and are they not worth thy labor? 46 00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:49,440 Did I come down from heaven to earth to seek and to save that 47 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:53,760 which was lost? And wilt thou not go to the next 48 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:58,120 door, or street, or village to seek them? 49 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:05,040 How small is thy condescension and labor compared to mine? 50 00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:11,440 I debased myself to this, but it is thy honor to be so employed. 51 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:15,800 Have I done and suffered so much for their salvation? 52 00:04:16,120 --> 00:04:19,640 And was I willing to make the a fellow worker with me? 53 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:27,280 And wilt thou refuse to do that little which lieth upon thy 54 00:04:27,760 --> 00:04:29,840 hands? End Quote. 55 00:04:33,800 --> 00:04:37,320 Christ died not only because he loves our neighbor. 56 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:43,920 He also died to give us, give us the ability to love our 57 00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:48,960 neighbor. It is only by Him that we are 58 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:54,320 able to do this. Those who have been shown grace, 59 00:04:55,360 --> 00:04:59,800 give grace. This morning we're going to 60 00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:01,040 start with the exhibition of the text. 61 00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:03,360 I'll go through it verse by verse and then I'll give you 7 62 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:07,000 points of application. So if you will start with me in 63 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:11,880 verse 6, where James verses six to seven, where James writes 64 00:05:11,880 --> 00:05:14,800 this, but you have dishonored the poor man. 65 00:05:15,400 --> 00:05:18,360 Are not the rich ones the rich, the ones who oppressed you and 66 00:05:18,360 --> 00:05:19,880 the ones who drag you into court? 67 00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:23,280 Are they not the ones who blasphemy the honourable name by 68 00:05:23,280 --> 00:05:27,400 which you were called? Now 2 weeks ago we looked at 69 00:05:27,400 --> 00:05:31,400 this command from James where he said my brothers show no 70 00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:35,280 partiality, in other words, show no favoritism. 71 00:05:35,640 --> 00:05:40,960 And James gives an example of this that might be hypothetical 72 00:05:40,960 --> 00:05:46,040 or could be real in the church. Suppose two men walk into a 73 00:05:46,040 --> 00:05:49,280 church. One of them is rich and one of 74 00:05:49,280 --> 00:05:52,080 them is poor. And the church has two different 75 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:56,560 responses to these two men. To the rich man they offer him a 76 00:05:56,560 --> 00:06:01,320 good seat, but to the poor man they offer him the floor. 77 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:06,960 And James says that such behavior of Christians is evil. 78 00:06:07,880 --> 00:06:11,280 And then he gives 3 reasons why the church should not do this. 79 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:14,040 We looked at the first reason 2 weeks ago. 80 00:06:14,560 --> 00:06:18,600 The first reason being, has not God chosen those who are poor in 81 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:20,440 the world? And this morning we're going to 82 00:06:20,440 --> 00:06:23,000 get to the second and the third reason. 83 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:26,240 So the second reason that James gives is this. 84 00:06:26,520 --> 00:06:30,720 You have dishonored the poor man. 85 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:35,720 James's point is that in the church's attempt to honor the 86 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:40,360 rich man, what they've actually done is dishonored the poor man. 87 00:06:40,640 --> 00:06:45,320 They have shamed him. Imagine how this poor man must 88 00:06:45,400 --> 00:06:51,000 feel to be told by a church, by Christians, that he is only 89 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:56,720 worthy to sit on the floor. The third reason that James 90 00:06:56,720 --> 00:07:00,760 gives is that he says you are trying to honor the 91 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:04,600 dishonorable. James describes the rich with 92 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:07,280 reactions, all of which are dishonorable. 93 00:07:07,640 --> 00:07:11,040 A They oppress you. That word oppressed there can 94 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:13,400 also mean exploit. They exploit you or they 95 00:07:13,400 --> 00:07:16,200 dominate you. Douglas Moo writes this. 96 00:07:16,600 --> 00:07:21,360 A small group of wealthy land owners and merchants accumulated 97 00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:25,760 more and more power while large numbers of people were forced 98 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:28,880 from their land and grew even poorer. 99 00:07:29,120 --> 00:07:30,920 Now we know historically this happens. 100 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:34,800 It still happens today sometimes in other countries, but we we 101 00:07:34,800 --> 00:07:38,080 know historically that people would be forced from their land 102 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:41,840 by the wealthy land owners and they would become poor and poor 103 00:07:42,160 --> 00:07:46,320 B, They drag you into court again. 104 00:07:46,440 --> 00:07:50,000 Douglas Moo writes practices familiar in every age, such as 105 00:07:50,000 --> 00:07:53,800 forcing people to forfeit their land for late payment of 106 00:07:53,800 --> 00:07:58,440 mortgages or insisting on ruinous interest rates for any 107 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:02,480 monetary help. Again, this still goes on today. 108 00:08:02,920 --> 00:08:07,240 And we know historically this happened and see, they blasphemy 109 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:13,520 the name of Jesus. And so James's point that he's 110 00:08:13,520 --> 00:08:17,880 telling the church is church, these are not your friends. 111 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:23,920 They oppress you, they sue you, they blasphemy you. 112 00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:27,760 Why are you trying to honor them? 113 00:08:29,400 --> 00:08:32,080 Why are you trying to impress them? 114 00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:36,080 These are not your friends. Look at verse 8. 115 00:08:37,280 --> 00:08:40,240 If you really fulfill the royal law, according to the scripture, 116 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:43,039 you shall love your neighbor as yourself. 117 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:47,880 You are doing well. Now 2 questions emerge from this 118 00:08:47,880 --> 00:08:50,160 verse. The first question being what 119 00:08:50,160 --> 00:08:54,560 does James mean fulfill the law? The Greek word for fulfill. 120 00:08:54,560 --> 00:08:57,040 It's a very broad term. It's translated some 11 121 00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:58,480 different ways in the New Testament. 122 00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:01,720 Here it has the nuance of keeping or obeying. 123 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:05,120 If you really obey the law, if you keep the law. 124 00:09:05,560 --> 00:09:09,720 Paul writes in Romans 1310 that love is the fulfilling of the 125 00:09:09,720 --> 00:09:12,440 law. He writes in Galatians 514 that 126 00:09:12,440 --> 00:09:17,240 the whole law is fulfilled in one word, love your neighbor as 127 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:20,840 yourself. Second question is, is what is 128 00:09:20,840 --> 00:09:22,520 the royal law? It says if you really fulfill 129 00:09:22,520 --> 00:09:26,200 the royal law, what is that? This is the only place that this 130 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:28,280 phrase is used in Scripture. It's not used anywhere else. 131 00:09:28,840 --> 00:09:31,640 The Greek word for royal means pertaining to a king. 132 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:35,880 And so you could read this as if you fulfill the King's law. 133 00:09:36,320 --> 00:09:39,240 Now, this is not only the Old Testament law. 134 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:42,960 This is the Old Testament law plus the law of Christ. 135 00:09:42,960 --> 00:09:46,240 So really all of Scripture, this is everything that God is 136 00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:50,880 commanded to us, James writes, if you fulfill the royal law 137 00:09:51,160 --> 00:09:56,520 according to the Scripture, reminding us all that what 138 00:09:56,520 --> 00:10:01,600 dictates our practices and church is not culture, it is not 139 00:10:01,600 --> 00:10:05,960 custom, it is not a choice, but scripture. 140 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:09,200 And so James is challenging the church. 141 00:10:09,440 --> 00:10:13,040 He says, church. What did the Scripture say? 142 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:21,800 Here's what it said. Love your neighbor as yourself. 143 00:10:23,960 --> 00:10:26,000 This goes all the way back to the Leviticus 1918. 144 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:30,280 It's repeated five times in the Gospels, twice in Paul. 145 00:10:31,120 --> 00:10:34,360 Jesus said this was the second greatest commandment only after 146 00:10:34,440 --> 00:10:36,640 loving the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul 147 00:10:36,640 --> 00:10:39,320 and strength. And James says that if you do 148 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:43,520 this, if you love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well. 149 00:10:45,680 --> 00:10:47,880 One of the ways that we can gauge how are we doing 150 00:10:47,880 --> 00:10:50,040 spiritually? It's not the only way, but one 151 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:53,640 of the ways is, are you loving your neighbor as yourself? 152 00:10:55,480 --> 00:10:56,960 Because if you are, you're doing well. 153 00:10:58,280 --> 00:11:02,680 Look at verse 9. But if you show partiality, you 154 00:11:02,680 --> 00:11:07,520 are committing sin or convicted by the law as transgressors. 155 00:11:08,120 --> 00:11:10,200 James is kind of drawn a contrast here. 156 00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:12,480 He's drawn a contrast between loving our neighbors as 157 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:15,120 ourselves and showing partiality. 158 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:19,560 In other words, if we show partiality or favoritism, by 159 00:11:19,560 --> 00:11:22,320 definition we cannot be loving our neighbors as ourselves. 160 00:11:22,320 --> 00:11:24,880 I think that's the contrast he's saying and James just comes 161 00:11:24,880 --> 00:11:28,800 right out and he says, look, if you show partiality, you are 162 00:11:28,800 --> 00:11:33,480 committing sin and you are convicted, literally exposed or 163 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:36,920 rebuked by the law as transgressors that were 164 00:11:36,920 --> 00:11:39,440 transgressors can also be translated as violators. 165 00:11:40,080 --> 00:11:43,360 You are convicted, you're exposed, rebuked as a violator 166 00:11:43,360 --> 00:11:45,320 of the law. Now this goes back to the 167 00:11:45,320 --> 00:11:48,160 argument I was making two weeks ago where I was where I said 168 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:51,960 that favoritism, it's not a matter of culture, it's not a 169 00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:55,440 personality trait, it's not a personal preference. 170 00:11:56,640 --> 00:12:00,200 Favoritism is sin. It makes us transgressors of the 171 00:12:00,200 --> 00:12:04,600 law. Look at verse 10 for whoever 172 00:12:04,600 --> 00:12:09,840 keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable 173 00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:13,920 for all of it or is guilty of all of it. 174 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:19,960 This is a pivotal verse. It's a pivotal verse and 175 00:12:19,960 --> 00:12:23,240 understanding why Jesus is so necessary. 176 00:12:24,920 --> 00:12:27,960 One of the questions that will sometimes get asked is this. 177 00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:34,200 If a man or a woman only committed one sin in their life, 178 00:12:35,120 --> 00:12:38,760 suppose they lived a perfect life for 80 years and they only 179 00:12:38,760 --> 00:12:44,360 did one wrong thing, would Jesus still have to die on the cross 180 00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:48,480 for them? And the answer is yes. 181 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:55,400 Why? Why? 182 00:12:55,680 --> 00:13:02,640 Because whether we commit 10,000 sins or only one sin, we're 183 00:13:02,640 --> 00:13:06,640 guilty of the entire law. Now you may be wondering, how 184 00:13:06,640 --> 00:13:10,320 does that make sense? How is committing one sin make 185 00:13:10,320 --> 00:13:16,840 you guilty of all of it? Imagine if you are hanging off a 186 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:24,600 very tall Cliff by a chain link. You're you're there's a very 187 00:13:24,600 --> 00:13:27,840 tall Cliff. You're somewhere, you know, 300 188 00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:30,600 feet above the ground. You're hanging on to this chain 189 00:13:30,600 --> 00:13:37,000 link. How many of those links need to 190 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:49,880 break for you to die? How many 1 Only one link needs 191 00:13:49,880 --> 00:13:53,320 to break for you to fall to your death. 192 00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:58,800 The same is true with the law, Paul writes in Galatians 310. 193 00:13:58,800 --> 00:14:03,480 Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in 194 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:09,880 the book of the law and do them. So yes, if you only break one, 195 00:14:10,080 --> 00:14:14,680 you're under a curse because cursed be everyone who does not 196 00:14:14,680 --> 00:14:17,880 abide by all of it. Look at verse 11. 197 00:14:19,480 --> 00:14:21,720 For he who said do not commit adultery also said do not 198 00:14:21,720 --> 00:14:23,400 murder. If you do not commit adultery 199 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:27,480 but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 200 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:32,800 James's point is that Moses brought down the mountain 10 201 00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:35,880 commandments, not one. We don't call it the one 202 00:14:35,880 --> 00:14:37,360 commandment. We call them the 10 203 00:14:37,520 --> 00:14:39,960 commandments. Some might think that they are 204 00:14:39,960 --> 00:14:42,200 righteous because they have never committed adultery. 205 00:14:43,400 --> 00:14:45,520 I have never been unfaithful to my wife. 206 00:14:46,040 --> 00:14:48,360 I have never been unfaithful to my husband. 207 00:14:48,360 --> 00:14:51,400 But, James writes, there are nine other commandments and one 208 00:14:51,400 --> 00:14:56,120 of them is do not murder. So you're not an adulterer, but 209 00:14:56,120 --> 00:14:59,080 are you a murderer? Because if you are a murderer, 210 00:14:59,080 --> 00:15:02,120 you have broken the law. Now, James is using extreme 211 00:15:02,120 --> 00:15:05,400 sense here to make a point. In other words, if this is true 212 00:15:05,400 --> 00:15:08,080 of adultery and it's true of murder, it's also true of 213 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:10,800 favoritism. What he's getting at is that if 214 00:15:10,800 --> 00:15:15,000 a person says, well, I have never murdered someone before, 215 00:15:16,320 --> 00:15:18,200 well, have you ever shown favoritism to somebody? 216 00:15:19,560 --> 00:15:22,120 James's point is that God does not give us a pass on our 217 00:15:22,120 --> 00:15:25,000 favoritism simply because we have not murdered someone. 218 00:15:26,920 --> 00:15:31,720 The verse 12 so speak and so act as those who are to be judged 219 00:15:31,720 --> 00:15:36,480 under the law of liberty. James exhorts the church to both 220 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:41,040 speak and act as those who will be judged. 221 00:15:41,320 --> 00:15:44,280 In other words, it's not as though only the lost world would 222 00:15:44,280 --> 00:15:45,920 be judged. Christians will be judged as 223 00:15:45,920 --> 00:15:47,360 well. We will all stand before the 224 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:49,200 judgment and we will all be judged first. 225 00:15:49,200 --> 00:15:53,400 Peter 417 for his time for judgment to begin at the 226 00:15:53,400 --> 00:15:58,800 household of God. It begins with us, but when we 227 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:02,640 are judged, we are not judged in the same way that the lost world 228 00:16:02,640 --> 00:16:04,520 is judged. We are judged under the law of 229 00:16:04,520 --> 00:16:06,240 liberty. What is that? 230 00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:09,520 This is the same phrase that James used earlier that we 231 00:16:09,520 --> 00:16:13,000 looked at a few weeks ago. I think James's point here is 232 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:16,720 that typically when someone is judged by a law, that law 233 00:16:16,720 --> 00:16:20,480 enslaves them, right? If, if you break the law, if I, 234 00:16:20,560 --> 00:16:24,000 if I murder someone, I broke the law and I stand before the 235 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:25,840 judge. The judge says you broke the 236 00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:29,320 law, you've got to go to jail. That's how it works. 237 00:16:29,320 --> 00:16:32,680 The law typically enslaves us. As a law breaker, you're 238 00:16:32,680 --> 00:16:35,840 punished and you're locked up. But the law by which Christ 239 00:16:35,840 --> 00:16:41,160 judges us is the law of liberty, a law of freedom, a law of 240 00:16:41,160 --> 00:16:44,120 grace. When we are judged, we are 241 00:16:44,120 --> 00:16:46,960 disciplined, but we are not condemned. 242 00:16:47,600 --> 00:16:50,080 We have been set free from condemnation. 243 00:16:51,200 --> 00:16:56,040 And James's point is that when you realize this, this reality 244 00:16:56,320 --> 00:17:00,720 should inform how we speak to others and how we act towards 245 00:17:00,720 --> 00:17:04,319 others. We should act and speak as men 246 00:17:04,319 --> 00:17:08,200 and women who have been graciously set free, guilty men 247 00:17:08,200 --> 00:17:10,960 and women who have been graciously set free. 248 00:17:12,680 --> 00:17:16,920 Look at verse 13, for judgment is without mercy. 249 00:17:17,520 --> 00:17:22,119 To the one who has shown no mercy, Mercy triumphs over 250 00:17:22,240 --> 00:17:25,119 judgment. James here makes a terrifying 251 00:17:25,119 --> 00:17:28,760 statement. It is a statement that is meant 252 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:33,160 to convict us all when we stand before the judgment throne of 253 00:17:33,160 --> 00:17:44,280 God and God judges us. He will show no mercy if we have 254 00:17:44,280 --> 00:17:50,960 shown no mercy. This truth is well attested by 255 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:53,080 Jesus. Jesus said in Matthew 615, If 256 00:17:53,080 --> 00:17:55,720 you do not forgive others the trespasses, neither will your 257 00:17:55,720 --> 00:18:01,400 Father forgive you. This does not mean that we earn 258 00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:04,680 our mercy by showing mercy, nor does it mean that we forfeit our 259 00:18:04,680 --> 00:18:07,840 mercy by showing no mercy. Doesn't mean that at all. 260 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:10,400 Here's what it means. It means that a person who has 261 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:17,960 truly been shown mercy. Do you want to know how you can 262 00:18:17,960 --> 00:18:21,520 know if God has truly shown you mercy? 263 00:18:22,240 --> 00:18:26,240 You will necessarily and certainly show mercy to others. 264 00:18:29,480 --> 00:18:35,160 You will. It will define you. 265 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:41,720 And James concludes with his powerful statement, Mercy 266 00:18:41,880 --> 00:18:47,160 triumphs over judgment. Literally, mercy boast against 267 00:18:47,320 --> 00:18:50,400 or mercy exults over. That's you translate it that 268 00:18:50,400 --> 00:18:51,120 way. Judgment. 269 00:18:51,120 --> 00:18:53,440 Now what does this mean? Douglas Moo writes this. 270 00:18:53,640 --> 00:18:57,440 The believer in himself will always deserve God's judgment. 271 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:02,320 Conformity to the royal law is never perfect, as it must be, 272 00:19:02,960 --> 00:19:06,600 but our merciful attitude and actions will count as evidence 273 00:19:06,600 --> 00:19:09,160 of the presence of Christ within us. 274 00:19:09,920 --> 00:19:14,080 In other words, when we stand before the judgment throne and 275 00:19:14,080 --> 00:19:19,040 God judges us, God should judge us for not keeping His royal 276 00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:22,080 law. God will look at us and He will 277 00:19:22,080 --> 00:19:27,240 say you did not love your neighbor as yourself. 278 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:30,760 I mean, you did sometimes, but not that much. 279 00:19:32,200 --> 00:19:36,440 That's what he should say. But here's what God will say. 280 00:19:38,360 --> 00:19:45,520 The mercy that you have shown to others testifies to the mercy 281 00:19:46,160 --> 00:19:52,280 that I will show you. I should show you judgment, but 282 00:19:52,320 --> 00:19:59,760 mercy triumphs over judgment. We'll stop their exposition. 283 00:20:00,960 --> 00:20:04,760 Application of the text. I have 7 points of application 284 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:10,080 number one. Number one is a question, Why 285 00:20:10,080 --> 00:20:15,840 would we ever try to impress or win the approval of the lost 286 00:20:15,840 --> 00:20:21,680 world? Why would we ever try to impress 287 00:20:22,320 --> 00:20:25,400 or win the approval of the lost world? 288 00:20:26,400 --> 00:20:28,400 You know, one thing I've learned about human nature is that so 289 00:20:28,400 --> 00:20:32,840 often we try to impress and win the approval of the wrong 290 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:34,800 people. Isn't that true? 291 00:20:36,360 --> 00:20:38,960 So often the people that we want to press so dearly, the people 292 00:20:38,960 --> 00:20:42,440 that we want to win the approval of so dearly, are the wrong 293 00:20:42,680 --> 00:20:45,920 people. We don't know this example that 294 00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:47,920 James Gibbs is real or hypothetical. 295 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:49,960 But let's suppose for a minute that it was real. 296 00:20:49,960 --> 00:20:52,440 Let's just suppose it was real. Here are these Christians in the 297 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:56,160 church who are trying to gain the approval of the rich. 298 00:20:56,720 --> 00:20:58,640 The rich man walks into the assembly. 299 00:20:59,240 --> 00:21:01,040 They immediately pay attention to him. 300 00:21:02,440 --> 00:21:04,880 They offer him a good seat. Why? 301 00:21:05,280 --> 00:21:08,720 Because they want his favor. They want his approval. 302 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:13,240 And James question to the church is why? 303 00:21:15,840 --> 00:21:21,880 Why are you favoring the rich? Isn't it the rich who are 304 00:21:21,880 --> 00:21:25,760 oppressing you? Isn't it the rich who drag you 305 00:21:25,760 --> 00:21:29,400 into court? Isn't it the rich who blasphemy 306 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:33,240 the name of Christ? Why are you trying to win their 307 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:37,480 approval? And this got me thinking. 308 00:21:39,400 --> 00:21:44,000 Why would we ever try to impress or win the approval of the lost 309 00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:48,720 World? Whether it's at work or at 310 00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:53,960 school or in our families or on the sports field or at our 311 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:59,320 children's school or in our communities, why would we ever 312 00:21:59,320 --> 00:22:03,280 feel the need to impress the lost world? 313 00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:07,360 Why would we ever feel the need to win the approval of the lost 314 00:22:07,360 --> 00:22:11,880 world? Now, let me be very clear. 315 00:22:11,880 --> 00:22:14,320 James is not suggesting that the church should neglect the rich 316 00:22:14,320 --> 00:22:15,960 man. He's not saying that at all. 317 00:22:16,360 --> 00:22:18,800 Or worse, he's not saying that we they should dishonor the rich 318 00:22:18,800 --> 00:22:22,040 man, give the good seat to the poor man in the the floor to the 319 00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:23,080 rich man. He's not saying that at all. 320 00:22:23,400 --> 00:22:26,920 He is clearly challenging than their motivations for why are 321 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:29,520 you trying to honor the rich man above the poor man? 322 00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:33,720 Why are you doing this church family, how much of what you do 323 00:22:33,720 --> 00:22:37,400 in your life, how much I asked this question to myself, how 324 00:22:37,400 --> 00:22:41,160 much of what you do in your life is rooted and a desire to 325 00:22:41,160 --> 00:22:44,080 impress or win the approval of the lost world? 326 00:22:47,480 --> 00:22:49,680 I want, I want you to stop and ask yourself that question. 327 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:54,320 How much of what you do in your life is rooted and a desire to 328 00:22:54,360 --> 00:22:58,560 impress or win the approval of the lost world, which includes 329 00:22:58,680 --> 00:23:05,160 your lost family, your lost friends, your lost Co workers, 330 00:23:05,840 --> 00:23:14,670 your lost classmates. I was listening to a talk by 331 00:23:14,670 --> 00:23:18,750 this former Navy SEAL who was a Christian, and he was talking 332 00:23:18,750 --> 00:23:20,430 about sharing the gospel with the lost world. 333 00:23:22,120 --> 00:23:25,160 I like listening to Navy Seals. I, I, I'm like, I, I think I was 334 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:28,600 meant to be a Navy SEAL, but I, I would never pass buds. 335 00:23:31,720 --> 00:23:33,600 We all know that one of the reasons that we struggle to 336 00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:35,880 share the gospel with the lost world is that we're either 337 00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:39,440 intimidated by them or we fear the disapproval in that true. 338 00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:42,040 One of the reasons that we don't share the gospel, we're either 339 00:23:42,040 --> 00:23:44,200 intimidated by them or we fear their disapproval. 340 00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:48,520 And he said something so simple. I mean, just so simple. 341 00:23:48,520 --> 00:23:49,600 And this is this is what he said. 342 00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:54,040 Why would we ever be intimidated by the lost world? 343 00:23:56,040 --> 00:23:59,720 Why would we ever want the approval of the lost world? 344 00:24:01,600 --> 00:24:05,960 They have nothing to offer us and we have everything to offer 345 00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:12,440 them. And I was like, man, that's 346 00:24:12,480 --> 00:24:18,920 right. They have nothing to offer us. 347 00:24:20,520 --> 00:24:22,360 We have everything to offer them. 348 00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:39,780 Why do I care what you think about me #2 The king has given 349 00:24:39,780 --> 00:24:44,500 us instructions not only how to form a church, but also how to 350 00:24:44,500 --> 00:24:47,500 act in it. The king has given us 351 00:24:47,500 --> 00:24:50,940 instructions not only how to form a church, but also how to 352 00:24:50,980 --> 00:24:54,100 act in it. When I think about this example 353 00:24:54,100 --> 00:24:57,240 of favoritism and James, the lingering question that keeps 354 00:24:57,240 --> 00:25:01,760 hanging over my mind is this, how does the church get there? 355 00:25:03,840 --> 00:25:07,040 How does a church get there? How does the church get to a 356 00:25:07,040 --> 00:25:10,760 place where they are actually honoring a rich man over a poor 357 00:25:10,760 --> 00:25:12,240 man? I I thought about me like, what 358 00:25:12,240 --> 00:25:14,480 if our, our church would never do this? 359 00:25:15,000 --> 00:25:16,560 By God's grace, I don't think we would ever do this. 360 00:25:16,560 --> 00:25:18,080 But I'm just thinking like, what if we did? 361 00:25:18,080 --> 00:25:20,360 How did we get there? If somebody rich walk through 362 00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:22,800 those doors, we would offer them a good seat. 363 00:25:22,840 --> 00:25:25,680 And if somebody, you know, or we, you know, we'd offer them, I 364 00:25:25,680 --> 00:25:27,680 don't know, the, the, the blueberry strudel back there, 365 00:25:27,680 --> 00:25:30,160 whatever that is. And, and then if a poor man 366 00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:32,240 walked in, you know, we would be like, there's a water fountain 367 00:25:32,240 --> 00:25:37,200 back there. Like, like how, how, how would a 368 00:25:37,200 --> 00:25:41,760 church get there? How does the church grow this 369 00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:44,280 dysfunctional? And I realize, well, how does 370 00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:48,160 any church grow dysfunctional? How does it happen? 371 00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:49,880 How does any church get dysfunctional? 372 00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:53,000 It's not as though these churches that James is writing 373 00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:54,960 to are the only dysfunctional churches. 374 00:25:55,480 --> 00:25:57,280 Good grief. Just read the book of First 375 00:25:57,280 --> 00:26:00,400 Corinthians. Corinth wrote the book on 376 00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:03,440 dysfunctional church. You got a man sleeping with his 377 00:26:03,440 --> 00:26:05,360 step mom. They're getting drunk at the 378 00:26:05,360 --> 00:26:07,400 Lord's Supper. There are divisions in the 379 00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:11,880 church and they're not alone. The Galatians are trying to 380 00:26:12,040 --> 00:26:17,080 force people to get circumcised. The Ephesians have lost their 381 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:20,040 first love and revelation in the Philippian church. 382 00:26:20,120 --> 00:26:23,240 Women are fighting with each other at Thessalonica. 383 00:26:23,240 --> 00:26:28,000 People are refusing to work. How does this happen? 384 00:26:30,240 --> 00:26:34,160 It happens because the church forgets that the king has given 385 00:26:34,160 --> 00:26:41,600 us instructions, James writes. If you really fulfill the royal 386 00:26:41,600 --> 00:26:47,800 law, according to the Scripture, the law is royal because the 387 00:26:47,800 --> 00:26:53,400 King gave it to us. We're in the process of forming 388 00:26:53,400 --> 00:26:56,560 a new church right now. If you're visiting, I know you, 389 00:26:56,720 --> 00:26:59,880 that's new to you, but we are in the process of forming a new 390 00:26:59,880 --> 00:27:03,960 church. And one thing that we must never 391 00:27:03,960 --> 00:27:06,160 forget is this. The King has given us 392 00:27:06,160 --> 00:27:10,000 instructions not only on how to form a church, but also how to 393 00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:16,440 act in it. We must never let culture, 394 00:27:16,720 --> 00:27:22,400 tradition, preference, precedent dictate how we act in the 395 00:27:22,400 --> 00:27:26,680 church. We're actually in the process of 396 00:27:26,680 --> 00:27:32,640 writing our bylaws, but let us never forget that the King has 397 00:27:32,640 --> 00:27:38,120 written the original bylaws and they're not able to be revised. 398 00:27:39,560 --> 00:27:42,120 There's no 3/4 vote to revise these. 399 00:27:48,880 --> 00:27:52,800 The King has given us instructions for what we are to 400 00:27:52,800 --> 00:28:03,800 do in our new church #3 love is showing favoritism to every 401 00:28:03,800 --> 00:28:10,400 neighbor. Love is showing favoritism to 402 00:28:10,400 --> 00:28:13,880 every neighbor. I've been thinking about this 403 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:15,680 command. You shall love your neighbor as 404 00:28:15,680 --> 00:28:16,920 yourself. I've been thinking about all 405 00:28:16,920 --> 00:28:19,880 week. It's impossible, isn't it? 406 00:28:21,040 --> 00:28:24,200 I mean, we, we say this, you know, we teach into kids classes 407 00:28:24,200 --> 00:28:26,040 and we grow up. It's on T-shirts, it's on 408 00:28:26,040 --> 00:28:27,840 billboards. We throw it out there. 409 00:28:27,960 --> 00:28:29,920 Have you ever stopped and actually thought about this? 410 00:28:30,840 --> 00:28:34,280 Like what it really would require to love your neighbor as 411 00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:41,800 yourself? It's impossible when you think 412 00:28:41,800 --> 00:28:44,440 about whatever require of me, whatever require of you. 413 00:28:44,760 --> 00:28:46,800 I thought, who actually lives this way? 414 00:28:47,080 --> 00:28:49,760 I've never met anybody who actually lives this way. 415 00:28:51,320 --> 00:28:57,680 I know not one. And I thought about this command 416 00:28:57,680 --> 00:29:00,160 and I realized there are two universal truths regarding this 417 00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:02,480 command. Number one, we will fail at this 418 00:29:02,880 --> 00:29:07,920 and #2 we must strive for this. We will fail at it. 419 00:29:08,000 --> 00:29:12,960 We must strive for it. I think that James brings up 420 00:29:12,960 --> 00:29:17,080 this command because it's clear that the church is not loving 421 00:29:17,080 --> 00:29:19,680 the poor man as themselves. I think that's why he brings it 422 00:29:19,680 --> 00:29:21,400 up. They're not loving the poor man 423 00:29:21,400 --> 00:29:23,440 as themselves. They are loving the rich man as 424 00:29:23,440 --> 00:29:25,720 themselves. They are not loving the poor man 425 00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:28,960 as themselves. And it occurred to me that love 426 00:29:28,960 --> 00:29:32,760 is showing favoritism to every neighbor. 427 00:29:34,720 --> 00:29:36,600 You know that this probably doesn't get asked. 428 00:29:36,600 --> 00:29:37,680 This guy asked more in the South. 429 00:29:37,680 --> 00:29:39,400 I realized I, like you guys are not going to know what I'm 430 00:29:39,400 --> 00:29:40,880 talking about here. This is a question that gets 431 00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:42,520 asked in the South. This is a question that gets 432 00:29:42,520 --> 00:29:46,120 asked in the South. People be like, hey now, now, 433 00:29:46,120 --> 00:29:51,960 which son does dad favor? Which daughter does mom favor? 434 00:29:53,960 --> 00:29:59,240 I never liked that question because the answer is all of 435 00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:03,520 them. I favor all my sons. 436 00:30:06,880 --> 00:30:11,840 I like them all. They're all my favorite. 437 00:30:16,640 --> 00:30:22,920 James writes that favoritism is sin and the reason it is sin is 438 00:30:22,920 --> 00:30:27,800 because it shows a lack of love for those we don't favor. 439 00:30:32,400 --> 00:30:34,400 The other day when it was really windy, I don't know if you guys 440 00:30:34,400 --> 00:30:36,040 remember, it was really windy this past week. 441 00:30:36,760 --> 00:30:40,040 I was going to check the mail and I noticed that one of my 442 00:30:40,040 --> 00:30:43,400 neighbour's trash can lids had blown open and trash and 443 00:30:43,400 --> 00:30:44,880 recycling were all over the street. 444 00:30:46,160 --> 00:30:49,680 This has happened multiple times in the past and the reason is is 445 00:30:49,680 --> 00:30:53,280 he stacks his trash can too much and he doesn't close it 446 00:30:53,280 --> 00:30:57,520 properly. Immediately after I checked the 447 00:30:57,520 --> 00:31:01,240 mail I I see all the trash recycling immediately I see it 448 00:31:01,360 --> 00:31:08,440 and in my flesh I thought not my problem not my problem. 449 00:31:10,680 --> 00:31:15,000 He needs to learn to push his trash down or get a bigger trash 450 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:19,800 can. And as soon as I said that in my 451 00:31:19,800 --> 00:31:23,080 head, it is as if the Holy Spirit literally said in my 452 00:31:23,080 --> 00:31:28,200 head, love your neighbor as yourself. 453 00:31:32,440 --> 00:31:35,480 I realized that if I had done this, if I had made this mistake 454 00:31:35,520 --> 00:31:39,080 or even if my wife had made this mistake, I would go pick up the 455 00:31:39,080 --> 00:31:46,000 trash. Why would I not do the same for 456 00:31:46,000 --> 00:31:50,400 my neighbor? So I went and picked it all up, 457 00:31:51,760 --> 00:31:58,400 pushed it down. I did wash my hands and I closed 458 00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:08,440 his lid. We favor every neighbor because 459 00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:20,120 we love every neighbor. 4 Jesus's death takes on a new 460 00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:25,640 meaning when I realize I am guilty of all the law. 461 00:32:27,760 --> 00:32:33,360 Jesus's death takes on a new meaning when I realize I am 462 00:32:33,360 --> 00:32:39,960 guilty of all the law. Imagine if when we get to 463 00:32:39,960 --> 00:32:44,640 heaven, somebody went around asking everybody how much sin 464 00:32:44,640 --> 00:32:48,280 did they commit? They wanted to know who was the 465 00:32:48,280 --> 00:32:49,960 worst Sinner that made it into heaven. 466 00:32:50,760 --> 00:32:52,920 They're really curious, like how I really want to know who was 467 00:32:52,920 --> 00:32:54,600 the worst Sinner that made it in here. 468 00:32:54,800 --> 00:32:57,640 So they went around asking people, but they posed the 469 00:32:57,640 --> 00:33:01,520 question like this. How much of the law did you 470 00:33:01,520 --> 00:33:05,320 break? At the end of their survey, the 471 00:33:05,320 --> 00:33:09,960 questioner was perplexed and confused because everybody gave 472 00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:13,520 the exact same answer, all of it. 473 00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:18,560 How much of the law did you break? 474 00:33:18,920 --> 00:33:26,120 All of it, James writes. Whoever keeps the whole law but 475 00:33:26,120 --> 00:33:31,440 fails and one point has become guilty of all of it. 476 00:33:33,640 --> 00:33:37,720 And Jesus's death takes on a new meaning when I realize I am 477 00:33:37,720 --> 00:33:45,760 guilty of all the law. My boys and I are watching the 478 00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:48,320 TV show Lost right now. It's a 20 year old show, 479 00:33:48,320 --> 00:33:50,720 something something older than probably some of y'all who are 480 00:33:50,720 --> 00:33:53,360 here. It's still a good one though. 481 00:33:54,720 --> 00:33:58,200 My favorite, maybe second favorite character is a guy 482 00:33:58,200 --> 00:34:02,160 named John Locke. All these random people are on, 483 00:34:02,320 --> 00:34:06,360 they crash on an island on a plane, and John is the only one 484 00:34:06,360 --> 00:34:08,960 who realizes that this island is a special place. 485 00:34:09,080 --> 00:34:10,360 He's the only one who realizes it. 486 00:34:10,960 --> 00:34:13,880 He's the only one who believes in the special nature of this 487 00:34:13,880 --> 00:34:15,639 island. Do you know why? 488 00:34:16,920 --> 00:34:21,159 Because he got on the airplane as a paralyzed man and when he 489 00:34:21,159 --> 00:34:23,199 crashed on the island he could walk. 490 00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:27,320 You see the other people couldn't see it. 491 00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:30,920 They couldn't see the wonder and amazement of this island. 492 00:34:31,120 --> 00:34:37,760 They couldn't feel it. I find the same thing happens in 493 00:34:37,760 --> 00:34:43,440 Christians lives. Christians will look back over 494 00:34:43,440 --> 00:34:48,840 their life and they will think, I never murdered anybody, I 495 00:34:48,840 --> 00:34:52,040 never raped anyone. I've never stolen anything major 496 00:34:52,040 --> 00:34:54,400 in my life. I've never embezzled money, I've 497 00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:57,760 never committed adultery. I've never even gotten a speedy 498 00:34:57,760 --> 00:35:04,520 ticket in my life. Hey, praise God for all of that. 499 00:35:07,120 --> 00:35:10,920 Here's the temptation. What did Jesus save you from? 500 00:35:14,280 --> 00:35:23,400 What did Jesus save you from? The reason why some Christians 501 00:35:23,400 --> 00:35:27,920 are not absolutely humbled and crushed at the thought of being 502 00:35:27,920 --> 00:35:30,560 saved is because they failed to see that they are guilty of 503 00:35:30,560 --> 00:35:36,840 breaking the entire law. Jesus didn't save us from being 504 00:35:36,840 --> 00:35:41,360 an unkind person. He didn't save us from being an 505 00:35:41,360 --> 00:35:45,480 unwise person. He didn't save us from being a 506 00:35:45,480 --> 00:35:51,440 misguided person. He saved us as transgressors of 507 00:35:51,440 --> 00:35:56,600 the entire law who deserve eternal punishment in hell. 508 00:36:01,520 --> 00:36:04,640 How much of the law are you guilty of? 509 00:36:05,600 --> 00:36:10,440 Am I guilty of all of it? All of it. 510 00:36:15,760 --> 00:36:21,480 And until you realize that, until that sinks in, you won't 511 00:36:21,480 --> 00:36:28,520 wonder at your salvation. You'll think Jesus saved you 512 00:36:28,520 --> 00:36:34,520 from some bad choices in your life, from being directionless. 513 00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:38,640 That's all he'll be. He'll be a savior. 514 00:36:38,760 --> 00:36:40,680 He'll be not much better than Google Maps. 515 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:54,960 He gave me direction. 5 Be careful that we don't develop a 516 00:36:54,960 --> 00:37:00,000 low view of our sin because we are not like tax collectors. 517 00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:05,480 Be careful that we don't develop a low view of our sin because we 518 00:37:05,480 --> 00:37:09,600 are not like tax collectors. The argument that James is 519 00:37:09,600 --> 00:37:13,720 making in verses 10:50 is because it seems that the church 520 00:37:13,720 --> 00:37:16,640 does not think that favoritism is that big of a deal. 521 00:37:18,280 --> 00:37:20,440 It seems that they don't think that it's that big of a sin. 522 00:37:20,560 --> 00:37:23,600 And to make his point James uses 2 extreme examples. 523 00:37:23,600 --> 00:37:26,640 He says God commanded do not commit adultery and do not 524 00:37:26,640 --> 00:37:28,440 murder. And his point is, is that 525 00:37:28,440 --> 00:37:31,440 suppose a person never committed adultery, but they murdered 526 00:37:31,440 --> 00:37:33,960 someone, does that make them a righteous person? 527 00:37:34,480 --> 00:37:37,840 Or vice versa, suppose a person never murdered someone, but 528 00:37:37,840 --> 00:37:40,160 committed adultery. Does that make them a righteous 529 00:37:40,160 --> 00:37:43,440 person? I think James's point is that 530 00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:46,160 favoritism. Listen, it may not be murder, it 531 00:37:46,160 --> 00:37:50,720 may not be adultery, but if you show favoritism, you are still a 532 00:37:50,720 --> 00:37:54,480 transgressor of the law. He's wanted the church to feel 533 00:37:54,480 --> 00:37:57,560 this. When we think about the 534 00:37:57,560 --> 00:38:01,120 seriousness of our sin, there are two extremes. 535 00:38:01,120 --> 00:38:04,680 We can be on 2 extremes here. They are extreme. 536 00:38:04,840 --> 00:38:10,120 A all sin is the same. Period. 537 00:38:12,520 --> 00:38:17,960 All sin is the same period. So whether I am lusting or 538 00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:22,880 committing adultery, they are the same, so it doesn't matter. 539 00:38:24,240 --> 00:38:27,080 That's not true. That's not true. 540 00:38:28,600 --> 00:38:33,360 Extreme B is all sin is not the same period. 541 00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:40,480 All sin is not the same period. So my sin of covetousness or my 542 00:38:40,480 --> 00:38:46,000 sin of anger, it's not good. I know, I know, I shouldn't do 543 00:38:46,000 --> 00:38:47,280 this. It's not, you know, but you 544 00:38:47,280 --> 00:38:49,360 know, I mean, that's not murder or adultery. 545 00:38:50,720 --> 00:38:56,560 That's also not true. That's also not true. 546 00:38:56,560 --> 00:39:02,080 And what James is addressing here is extreme B. 547 00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:06,640 It is so easy to be like the Pharisee and the parable of the 548 00:39:06,640 --> 00:39:13,000 Pharisee and the tax collector. God, I thank you that I am not 549 00:39:13,000 --> 00:39:22,160 like other men, extortioners, unjust adulterers, or even this 550 00:39:22,160 --> 00:39:33,000 tax collector. The apostle Paul murdered 551 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:42,720 Christians, who knows how many? 100, 1000 Even though I have 552 00:39:42,720 --> 00:39:52,160 never murdered Christians, Jesus died the exact same death for me 553 00:39:53,320 --> 00:39:57,800 and for you as he did for Paul. Everything about that. 554 00:40:01,000 --> 00:40:06,000 Every whip, every thorn, every nail. 555 00:40:07,280 --> 00:40:15,080 Was just as necessary for my sin as it was for Paul's. 556 00:40:21,030 --> 00:40:31,590 Think about that. 6 Those who have been shown grace give 557 00:40:31,590 --> 00:40:34,910 grace. Those who have been shown grace 558 00:40:34,910 --> 00:40:37,720 give grace. James Wright speak and act as 559 00:40:37,720 --> 00:40:40,680 those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. 560 00:40:40,800 --> 00:40:43,760 My way of wording this is that those who have been shown grace 561 00:40:44,080 --> 00:40:47,120 give grace. When we stand before the 562 00:40:47,120 --> 00:40:52,760 judgment throne, God will not judge us based on merit or 563 00:40:52,760 --> 00:40:58,280 reciprocity or performance or reputation or morals or 564 00:40:58,280 --> 00:41:03,160 tradition or fairness or social status or wealth or 565 00:41:03,160 --> 00:41:06,760 productivity. He judges us based on the law of 566 00:41:06,760 --> 00:41:11,200 liberty, the law of grace. And James exhorts the church 567 00:41:11,200 --> 00:41:15,600 church family speak and act in light of this reality. 568 00:41:16,680 --> 00:41:18,160 Now, the church was not doing this. 569 00:41:18,160 --> 00:41:20,560 If this is a real example, they were not doing this. 570 00:41:20,760 --> 00:41:23,960 These two men walked into the church and immediately they were 571 00:41:23,960 --> 00:41:28,200 brought into the courtroom of their minds and one was judged 572 00:41:28,200 --> 00:41:31,120 worthy and the other was judged unworthy. 573 00:41:32,320 --> 00:41:36,960 And James is making the point. Church family, imagine if that's 574 00:41:36,960 --> 00:41:38,800 what happens when we get to heaven. 575 00:41:41,800 --> 00:41:43,800 How many of us would be judged worthy? 576 00:41:47,840 --> 00:41:52,000 Praise God that he shows no favoritism at the judgment. 577 00:41:53,400 --> 00:41:55,640 Then we stand there. He doesn't look and say, you 578 00:41:55,640 --> 00:41:57,520 know what, I always liked you, Matt. 579 00:41:57,640 --> 00:42:01,600 Fred, not so much or vice versa. Fred, I always liked him. 580 00:42:01,680 --> 00:42:03,080 I always had a heart for missionaries. 581 00:42:03,240 --> 00:42:06,920 Pastors, not so much. Can't trust those pastors. 582 00:42:09,440 --> 00:42:13,160 Imagine if God played favourites at the judgement throne. 583 00:42:17,440 --> 00:42:30,320 Those who have been shown grace, they give grace, they do seven 584 00:42:31,440 --> 00:42:38,160 last point, Mercy is not an optional add on, it is necessary 585 00:42:38,160 --> 00:42:43,200 for entrance. Mercy is not an optional add on, 586 00:42:43,240 --> 00:42:47,720 it is necessary for entrance. Have you ever noticed or have 587 00:42:47,720 --> 00:42:50,040 you noticed that almost everything these days has 588 00:42:50,040 --> 00:42:52,680 add-ons? I'm I'm so tired of them. 589 00:42:53,240 --> 00:42:54,960 Everywhere you go there's an add on for something. 590 00:42:55,560 --> 00:42:58,640 You book a plane ticket. Would you like a seat upgrade? 591 00:42:59,480 --> 00:43:02,360 How about trip insurance? You book a hotel. 592 00:43:03,200 --> 00:43:07,440 Would you like a late check out? How about a room upgrade for 593 00:43:07,440 --> 00:43:09,640 only 2999? You can have spa access. 594 00:43:11,680 --> 00:43:15,880 You go to Disneyland fast pass. Would you like a photo package? 595 00:43:16,320 --> 00:43:19,720 How about a meal package? You go to a concert. 596 00:43:20,240 --> 00:43:23,320 Would you like AVIP upgrade? There's backstage passes. 597 00:43:24,160 --> 00:43:26,920 You go to a restaurant? Would you like added sauces for 598 00:43:26,920 --> 00:43:31,040 an extra 299? Would you like guacamole on your 599 00:43:31,040 --> 00:43:36,120 burrito that does cost extra? How about an appetizer or a 600 00:43:36,120 --> 00:43:40,640 dessert? James writes that in 601 00:43:40,640 --> 00:43:46,240 Christianity, mercy is not an optional add on. 602 00:43:50,400 --> 00:43:53,920 I'll take a #1 combo. God, would you like to add mercy 603 00:43:53,920 --> 00:43:55,040 to that? No thanks. 604 00:43:59,680 --> 00:44:05,920 Mercy is necessary for entrance into the Kingdom. 605 00:44:07,960 --> 00:44:13,960 Judgement is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy, 606 00:44:16,120 --> 00:44:21,880 meaning if we don't show mercy and grace and forgiveness to our 607 00:44:21,880 --> 00:44:26,640 neighbors, we won't be admitted into the Kingdom. 608 00:44:33,640 --> 00:44:38,920 But if we do show mercy, then mercy triumphs over judgment 609 00:44:39,680 --> 00:44:44,000 because Jesus promised us. Blessed are the merciful, for 610 00:44:44,000 --> 00:44:49,400 they shall receive mercy. Let's pray.