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We are still in the sermon 
series of James, and I said this

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in the first sermon of James, 
that James is not just a letter 

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epistle, but it's it's also 
considered a wisdom literature 

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of the New Testament. 
It is 2 genres in one wisdom 

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literature in the Old Testament 
will be Psalms and Proverbs and 

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Song of Song of Songs and and 
all those books. 

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And James is considered the New 
Testament version of that. 

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For example, last week's sermon,
James gives us wisdom about 

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anger. 
We all know anger is bad. 

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Nobody needs, you know, a long 
talk or sermon on why it's bad. 

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But James was saying we all know
anger is bad, but James is 

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saying it's worse than you 
think. 

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Not only anger, you know it 
hurts feelings. 

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It makes you do things you 
regret all of that. 

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But anger prevents you from 
receiving God's word. 

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Anger prevents you from 
receiving correction, not just 

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from other people, but from God.
You if you have anger in your 

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heart, you essentially refuse 
the wisdom of God. 

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So that's that was last week. 
And in today's passage, James 

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gives gives us wisdom about a 
new topic. 

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And it's it's kind of surprising
he mentions this, but James 

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says, watch out for favoritism. 
We all know it's bad. 

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We all know that we shouldn't do
it. 

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But James says, again, it's 
worse than you think. 

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Watch out for favoritism. 
So the question we want to 

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answer is how can we be free 
from showing favoritism in our 

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lives? 
How can we be free from showing 

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favoritism in our lives? 
Well, I think for .1 I'm going 

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to 1st define what favoritism is
and what is not. 

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So number one, we need to 1st 
understand what favoritism is. 

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James chapter 2 I'll be reading 
verse one through 4. 

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Today's passage is until 13, but
one through 4 for this point, my

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brothers and sisters, do not 
show favoritism as you hold on 

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to the faith in our glorious 
Lord Jesus Christ. 

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For if someone comes into your 
meeting wearing a gold ring and 

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dressed in fine clothes, and a 
person dressed in filthy clothes

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also comes in. 
If you look at look with favor 

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on the one wearing the fine 
clothes and say, sit here in a 

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good place and you say to the 
poor person, stand over there or

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sit here on the floor by my 
footstool. 

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Haven't you made distinctions 
among yourselves and become 

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judges with evil thoughts? 
James is Speaking of how 

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favoritism is affecting the 
church. 

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The dictionary says the the 
standard Dictionary of of 

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definition of favoritism is the 
practice of giving unfair 

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preferential treatment to one 
person or group at the expense 

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of another. 
So it's unfair preferential 

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treatment and there is a 
personal group that is at 

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expense. 
There is a victim and this is 

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done usually for some sort of 
personal gain. 

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Some examples of favoritism. 
There's favoritism of a maybe of

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a child at home. 
Typically this happens often. 

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The last child gets away with 
everything and while the first 

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child gets in trouble for the 
very same things. 

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Or in more traditional Asian 
households, the first child, 

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especially male, kind of gets 
free reign on whatever he wants 

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to do. 
And then the other children have

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more strict roles. 
This is something that I've 

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experienced with, you know, 
several people or I, I've heard 

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from several people, parents 
give, you know, the children are

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getting married and parents give
more money to one child than the

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other. 
There's favoritism at work. 

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Some employees that are, you 
know, the favorites of the boss 

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are allowed to bend rules, while
others get in trouble for the 

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same things. 
So those are examples of 

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favoritism. 
But really James speaking about 

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favoritism in the church, it's 
when leaders give more 

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attention, better treatment to 
wealthier or more influential 

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members. 
So in this passage, he says it's

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a rich guy and a poor guy, and 
the rich guy gets the premium 

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seats and the poor guy gets, 
since you're not only the bad 

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seats, it's the one by the 
footstool. 

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So the feet that smell like 
feet, that's the is there a is 

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there a good and bad seats at 
our church? 

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Is the back the better seats? 
Yeah, well, maybe, but for sure 

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that we don't have any stinky 
seats. 

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I I think most of us have a 
general idea what what 

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favoritism is. 
And but at the same time, we 

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have often mistaken 
understanding of what favoritism

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might be. 
So I'm going to give you some 

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examples of non favoritism. 
It seems like favoritism, but it

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really is not. 
Remember, favoritism is 

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preferential treatment that is 
unfair. 

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OK, so some examples of non 
favoritism. 

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Some people think that time a 
teacher, a parent or pastors, 

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any kind of leadership, a boss, 
how much time he or she spends 

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with a group could be issued 
with favoritism. 

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So if a teacher or a parent 
spends more time with one person

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than the other, ah, there is 
favoritism. 

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But often parents or teachers 
will spend more time with the 

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person who is in in in need. 
They say it's a academically, 

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you know, struggling kind of 
issue. 

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Then, of course, the child who's
struggling more will get more of

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the time. 
So it's a matter of responding 

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to need. 
This applies to pastors and 

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elders and other leaders of the 
church. 

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We spend more time with people 
who are in need. 

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We spend more time with people 
who are perhaps, you know, 

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becoming leaders soon. 
So equip and train. 

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So how much we spend time with 
someone is not necessarily 

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favoritism. 
So it's not time. 

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It's so also it's not it's not 
about feelings either. 

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So we have to distinguish 
between having favorites and 

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favoritism. 
I think it was our tenth year 

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anniversary service. 
So a couple years back it was, 

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it was right here. 
And then I pointed out the 

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people that's been here from the
beginning for, for, for my first

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location. 
And I said that there I have 

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special affection and special 
appreciation for them. 

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Why our first location? 
This is our 4th location. 

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Our first location was terrible.
Soon as temperature becomes 78 

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or higher in here, people start 
complaining, right? 

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And our first location, it was 
minimum 85 everything. 

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It was impossible, right? 
If we were people were up in 

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stage were just covered in, in 
sweat and people didn't leave. 

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They they kept coming. 
The people who were there in the

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hard times and the rough times I
have special appreciation for. 

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So in our 10 year anniversary, I
point, I I said that I said I 

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have special love for you. 
And someone asked me as a joke. 

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They they weren't serious. 
But afterwards like, hey, pastor

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isn't a favoritism. 
Well, feelings itself is not 

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favoritism. 
But if I gave those people 

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preferential treatment, unfair 
preferential treatment, now that

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will be favoritism. 
So for instance, Wesley has been

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there in our in our first 
building. 

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So I said, OK, you know Wesley. 
And then there's, you know, like

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Sarah over there. 
Johnny, You know what? 

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There's a bunch of people here. 
And for the people who are there

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from there, when you guys come 
in, you guys will get a little 

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reserved with your name on on 
whatever seat you want. 

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Yeah. 
Who's clapping? 

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OK, Favorites, your seats will 
be right here, front row. 

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Those will be your seats. 
Now that will be unfair 

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preferential treatment, right? 
So you get it. 

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It's not time, it's not 
feelings, but it's about 

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equality in action and 
treatment. 

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Every person does every person 
feel valued, welcomed and 

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shepherded? 
And every person who is in need,

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do they get the the right 
person's attention, the leader's

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attention in this passage, the 
people getting the attention, 

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people getting the time. 
We're not people in need. 

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They're just the ones who are 
wealthy. 

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They were getting attention a 
time for really no reason. 

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That's why this was so damaging.
OK, so we got that out of the 

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way. 
Defining favoritism Now let's go

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to how we could overcome showing
favoritism #2 how can we 

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overcome favoritism #2 we must 
understand why favoritism, it's,

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it's so damaging. 
We all get as bad. 

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But it goes further than that. 
James is saying, hey, it's worse

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than we think. 
It's actually sin. 

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It's actually very harmful. 
It's very damaging to the 

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church. 
Let's read verses 5 to 7. 

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Listen, my dear brothers and 
sisters, didn't God choose the 

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poor in this world to be rich in
faith and heirs of the Kingdom 

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that he has promised to those 
who love him? 

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Yet you have dishonored the 
poor. 

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Don't the rich oppress you and 
drag you into court? 

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Don't they blasphemy the good 
name that was invoked over you? 

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What's James saying here? 
He's generalizing here. 

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He's not saying all poor love 
God and all rich are wicked. 

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He's not saying that. 
But in the Bible throughout it 

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is said that the that we are 
everyone is poor and desperate 

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spiritually. 
And in multiple areas of the 

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Bible, including James saying 
that the poor are able to see 

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their emptiness, able to see 
their poorness better. 

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And the rich, because they're 
independent, they are 

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self-sufficient through their 
wealth. 

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They it is hard for them to see 
that they are poor in spirit. 

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It is hard for them to see that 
they need Jesus like everyone 

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else. 
That's what James says. 

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God chose the poor in this world
to be rich in faith in the heirs

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of the Kingdom of God. 
And rich are often corrupt and 

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oppressive. 
James is saying in God's 

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Kingdom, these are our values. 
God has a way of flipping the 

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script that the world has. 
The poor becomes rich, the last 

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become first, the poor, the 
sick, the rejected, the 

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neglected, they all have a 
special place in the Kingdom of 

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God. 
And then the world is the exact 

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opposite. 
The world shows favoritism 

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everywhere. 
It has the opposite values of 

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God. 
The root word, the Greek word 

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root word for favoritism in the 
Greek is prose, a poem which 

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means faith. 
So literal translation of 

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favoritism is received by 
looking at faith. 

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Favoritism means I will, 
depending on how you look, 

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depending on your postal poem, I
will change how I react to you, 

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how I receive you. 
In college, when I was a senior 

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in college, I was the president 
of my Christian club. 

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And then I ran into some high 
school friends who, you know, we

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all went to EC Irvine together 
and, and they told me that, you 

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know, one of them was the 
president of their fraternity. 

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So a couple of presidents just 
talking and, and I was jokingly 

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and he was talking about 
clubbing and I was like, you 

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know what? 
I'm, I'm, I'm going to go to 

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that club and I'm going to find 
you. 

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And he said, tell me they won't 
even let you in. 

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Of course, I, I would always 
wear UCIUC Irvine hoodies and 

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shorts and, and sandals or 
something like that. 

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And he says, bro, you know, you 
can't even get in. 

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And I was genuinely confused. 
I I've never been to a club. 

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And I was like, what do you mean
I can't get in? 

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He's like the bouncer won't let 
you in. 

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And I thought bouncers were 
like, if you cause trouble, like

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they come in and they beat you 
up. 

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I didn't know that they were the
gatekeepers. 

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Some of you guys were like, 
obviously. 

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So you guys been clubbing 
before. 

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OK. 
The ones that look confused are 

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you guys are the innocent ones. 
I I I like you guys. 

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So the bouncer's job is 
literally to look at the 

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prostopoem and judge 
accordingly. 

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The bouncer looks at you. 
Oh, you're wearing a hoodie and 

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shorts. 
Get out of here. 

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Oh, you're dressed, I don't 
know, in black and and stylish. 

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All right, come on in. 
The bouncer determines whether 

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you accept it or not. 
The world, the world's value 

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system is that literally 
everyone, we're bouncers. 

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And we judge on base how 
somebody looks, color of their 

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skin. 
Do they look nice? 

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Do they look rich? 
Do they young or old? 

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And we say, I'm going to base 
how I treat you based on how I 

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judge your Prosopone, your face.
So there's two ways of living. 

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The world looks at the face 
judges this person. 

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Does this person deserve my time
or energy? 

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Does this person have enough 
accomplishments, enough similar 

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things, for me to be nice to 
them and welcome them? 

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But the God's Kingdom is 
opposite. 

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00:15:22,480 --> 00:15:25,360
We do not judge by prose the 
poem. 

229
00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:34,320
In fact, we don't judge at all. 
Instead, we ask, does God value 

230
00:15:34,320 --> 00:15:38,120
this person? 
If the answer is yes, we treat 

231
00:15:38,120 --> 00:15:40,800
them as the valuable person they
are. 

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00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:44,720
In fact, God values even more 
the poor, the neglected, the 

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00:15:44,720 --> 00:15:48,000
sick, the widows and the 
orphans, the ones who are in the

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00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:51,440
outside looking in. 
God values them even more. 

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00:15:51,920 --> 00:15:54,360
So we value them because God 
values them. 

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00:15:57,880 --> 00:16:00,400
I mentioned this in one of our 
member meetings, but I don't 

237
00:16:00,400 --> 00:16:05,240
think I mentioned in a sermon. 
But do you guys know some of you

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00:16:05,240 --> 00:16:08,480
guys have Instagram or TikTok or
Facebook? 

239
00:16:09,160 --> 00:16:11,480
You guys heard of POV husband? 
Raise your hand. 

240
00:16:12,360 --> 00:16:15,400
I've seen him online before. 
Three people have heard of him. 

241
00:16:15,760 --> 00:16:20,000
You get liars. 
Anybody nobody heard of POV her.

242
00:16:20,160 --> 00:16:21,720
OK, thank you. 
Thank you. 

243
00:16:22,680 --> 00:16:25,400
It's just a guy who makes food. 
Don't don't be like oh, I'm so 

244
00:16:25,440 --> 00:16:26,360
ashamed. 
It's OK. 

245
00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:32,680
It's just a guy making food. 
OK 2019 he came to our church 

246
00:16:33,120 --> 00:16:38,600
about six months OK. 
And two years ago he got married

247
00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:43,720
and he came here with his wife. 
This is pre before he got 

248
00:16:43,720 --> 00:16:46,200
famous. 
Right now he has like 3,000,000 

249
00:16:46,200 --> 00:16:47,160
followers or something like 
that. 

250
00:16:48,760 --> 00:16:53,520
Most of you who are here 2019 
don't remember him. 

251
00:16:54,840 --> 00:16:59,240
OK, If you were here 2019 and 
you don't remember him, raise 

252
00:16:59,240 --> 00:17:00,200
your hand. 
Just kidding. 

253
00:17:00,200 --> 00:17:05,240
You know you don't have to. 
So before he became famous, he 

254
00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:08,640
came here six months and then 
two years ago he came here once.

255
00:17:10,119 --> 00:17:12,599
Most of you guys don't know that
it's OK. 

256
00:17:14,280 --> 00:17:20,640
But if he came back next week, 
let's say it comes back, I'm 

257
00:17:20,640 --> 00:17:26,200
betting that more than a few 
people will be wanting to talk 

258
00:17:26,200 --> 00:17:29,560
to him. 
In fact, I don't think there 

259
00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:32,200
will be like a line like when we
have tacos, but I think there 

260
00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:35,280
will be people like, OK, I want 
to talk to him next. 

261
00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:40,280
There will be several groups of 
people wanting to meet him. 

262
00:17:41,000 --> 00:17:50,840
That's that's my guess now. 
What changed from 2019, 2002 to 

263
00:17:50,840 --> 00:17:54,760
if he came back next week, why 
would he get different treatment

264
00:17:55,040 --> 00:17:59,760
for my church? 
The only difference is his 

265
00:17:59,760 --> 00:18:03,640
accomplishments. 
He's famous now. 

266
00:18:04,800 --> 00:18:10,440
It's 3,000,000 followers now. 
Somebody who was largely ignored

267
00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:16,000
in 2019 might get a King's 
welcome in 2025. 

268
00:18:16,680 --> 00:18:20,120
The only difference, 
accomplishments. 

269
00:18:23,080 --> 00:18:25,360
Let's imagine this. 
I'm, I'm making up a scenario. 

270
00:18:25,360 --> 00:18:29,080
Let's say there is this woman, 
right? 

271
00:18:30,960 --> 00:18:34,240
She gets a corporate job. 
Of course, most corporate jobs. 

272
00:18:34,240 --> 00:18:38,840
It's the man's world. 
And she, she, she gets higher, 

273
00:18:38,840 --> 00:18:42,200
she works hard. 
And then after work, she notices

274
00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:43,960
the boss goes out. 
What? 

275
00:18:44,160 --> 00:18:46,760
Just the men, they golf, they 
drink. 

276
00:18:47,280 --> 00:18:48,800
It's a little good old boys 
club. 

277
00:18:50,360 --> 00:18:53,840
And then she realizes they're 
the ones who get the promotions.

278
00:18:54,160 --> 00:18:58,120
They're the ones who get raises.
Even though she might outperform

279
00:18:58,120 --> 00:19:01,480
some of them, she's getting 
largely ignored. 

280
00:19:02,600 --> 00:19:05,080
It's favoritism and it's 
traumatic. 

281
00:19:06,760 --> 00:19:09,360
And let's say she's also Asian 
American, comes from a 

282
00:19:09,360 --> 00:19:13,240
traditional family background 
where the males of the family 

283
00:19:13,240 --> 00:19:15,920
are typically thought to be more
valuable. 

284
00:19:17,320 --> 00:19:19,920
And let's say she has the older 
brother, I guess it could be 

285
00:19:19,920 --> 00:19:21,040
younger brother. 
It doesn't matter. 

286
00:19:21,040 --> 00:19:26,400
She has a brother and he doesn't
do anything for the family. 

287
00:19:27,080 --> 00:19:31,880
They go on family vacations, she
pays, she plans, and all he does

288
00:19:31,880 --> 00:19:34,440
is complain about the food, 
complain about where they're 

289
00:19:34,440 --> 00:19:38,040
going. 
She does the planning and 

290
00:19:38,040 --> 00:19:42,120
driving, and the brother just 
gets to chill with the parents. 

291
00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:48,240
She never seems to be able to 
please her parents, and the 

292
00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:51,640
brother seems like the parents 
are pleased just because he 

293
00:19:51,640 --> 00:19:58,160
exists. 
So she experiences favoritism in

294
00:19:58,160 --> 00:20:02,600
the family, favoritism in the 
workplace, probably experience 

295
00:20:02,600 --> 00:20:04,840
favoritism in the schools that 
she went to. 

296
00:20:07,480 --> 00:20:11,440
And then she comes to church and
what happens? 

297
00:20:14,120 --> 00:20:18,520
James is saying the same thing 
is happening. 

298
00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:23,840
She favoritism at work, 
favoritism in the family. 

299
00:20:24,240 --> 00:20:30,760
She comes to church and she sees
the exact same thing happening. 

300
00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:37,800
And that's what James is asking 
questions here. 

301
00:20:38,840 --> 00:20:43,240
Listen, didn't God choose the 
poor in this world to be rich? 

302
00:20:45,880 --> 00:20:50,960
You have dishonored the poor, 
James is saying. 

303
00:20:51,400 --> 00:20:55,000
That very person who's rejected 
everywhere else, when that 

304
00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:57,840
person comes here, that person 
should be treated like a king or

305
00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:02,160
a queen. 
James is saying you have 

306
00:21:02,160 --> 00:21:06,440
dishonored the poor, the very 
person that needs to be valued 

307
00:21:06,440 --> 00:21:12,400
and loved and cherished. 
You gave her the world's 

308
00:21:12,400 --> 00:21:15,760
treatment. 
The same rejection, the same 

309
00:21:16,080 --> 00:21:22,200
favoritism. 
That's what James calls the 

310
00:21:22,200 --> 00:21:26,760
church. 
You've become judges with evil. 

311
00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:31,880
You've been seeing how you treat
that person. 

312
00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:39,200
Based on the Prosto poem, one of
the symbols of the early church 

313
00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:46,000
was the ark, Noah's ark, and I 
think it was. 

314
00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:49,440
It was a beautiful symbol. 
Perhaps it should be the symbol 

315
00:21:49,440 --> 00:21:52,800
of the modern church. 
See, God sends a pair of each 

316
00:21:52,800 --> 00:21:56,760
animal into the ark. 
Some are magnificent animals 

317
00:21:56,960 --> 00:21:59,320
like lions and tigers and 
giraffes. 

318
00:22:00,840 --> 00:22:07,240
And there were cute animals too,
Pandas, puppies, koalas. 

319
00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:12,440
But it wasn't just the cute or 
the magnificent animals that 

320
00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:16,480
made the cut. 
The unwanted animals made the 

321
00:22:16,480 --> 00:22:21,440
cut too. 
The rats, the snakes, the 

322
00:22:21,480 --> 00:22:24,480
skunks, the porcupines, the 
bats. 

323
00:22:26,120 --> 00:22:32,320
They were all welcomed as well. 
The symbol of Noah's Ark was 

324
00:22:32,320 --> 00:22:37,560
part of the church symbolism 
because people wanted to stay at

325
00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:40,240
God's church. 
All are welcome. 

326
00:22:41,240 --> 00:22:45,040
You can be a lion or a panda. 
University loved and university 

327
00:22:45,040 --> 00:22:48,200
welcomed here. 
Of course we'll welcome you, but

328
00:22:48,200 --> 00:22:50,120
we'll treat you same just like 
everyone else. 

329
00:22:51,480 --> 00:22:53,960
That's why a lot of rich people 
and powerful people, they meant 

330
00:22:53,960 --> 00:22:56,720
not going to church because they
don't get the special treatment.

331
00:22:59,640 --> 00:23:01,920
It was Noah's ark, because you 
could be somebody who is 

332
00:23:01,920 --> 00:23:05,880
rejected by the world, treated 
unfairly by the world, neglected

333
00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:09,960
by the world, and you will still
be welcomed in God's house. 

334
00:23:10,680 --> 00:23:16,080
Noah's ark, everyone is welcome.
Isn't Noah's ark? 

335
00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:20,280
Isn't that such a beautiful 
picture of God's Kingdom? 

336
00:23:22,840 --> 00:23:25,880
This is why favoritism is so 
harmful and we need to 

337
00:23:25,880 --> 00:23:30,760
understand why it's so harmful. 
When you show favoritism, you 

338
00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:32,600
are representing a different 
Kingdom. 

339
00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:37,760
The entire world judges on 
looks, give preferences, 

340
00:23:37,760 --> 00:23:39,960
treatment for being rich, good 
looking and powerful. 

341
00:23:41,560 --> 00:23:46,000
When someone comes to church and
it's the same, then the wrong 

342
00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:52,280
Kingdom has been demonstrated. 
We did not point the way to the 

343
00:23:52,280 --> 00:23:56,400
cross, we pointed the way to the
world. 

344
00:23:56,560 --> 00:24:07,200
We said we are just like the 
outside in modern day. 

345
00:24:07,880 --> 00:24:09,400
You know, back then I think it 
was easier. 

346
00:24:10,040 --> 00:24:14,720
You could tell who was rich. 
They were jewelry and they were 

347
00:24:14,720 --> 00:24:16,800
fine clothes. 
Like just by looking you could 

348
00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:19,040
tell if this person was rich or 
not. 

349
00:24:19,680 --> 00:24:22,080
These days it's really hard to 
tell. 

350
00:24:23,600 --> 00:24:25,680
When you get on the airplane, 
you know, you pass by the first 

351
00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:29,720
class in the business. 
Sometimes it's like what? 

352
00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:32,680
You're in first class, you're 
wearing the same thing as me. 

353
00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:37,200
It's hard to tell. 
I don't think that's something 

354
00:24:37,200 --> 00:24:38,920
that the modern church struggle 
with. 

355
00:24:39,640 --> 00:24:43,920
Someone comes in a nice car. 
It's not like, oh, you know, sit

356
00:24:43,920 --> 00:24:48,200
over here. 
I don't think, I don't know, 

357
00:24:48,200 --> 00:24:53,120
maybe it's $1,000,000 car maybe,
but everyone has similar range 

358
00:24:53,120 --> 00:24:57,080
of cars, at least here. 
So what's the preferential 

359
00:24:57,080 --> 00:25:02,440
treatment? 
I think it's are you similar to 

360
00:25:02,440 --> 00:25:05,800
me? 
Do you have a good personality? 

361
00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:10,160
Am I going to enjoy talking to 
you? 

362
00:25:11,560 --> 00:25:15,760
Is there something in it for me?
Oh, look at we're at the same 

363
00:25:15,760 --> 00:25:19,840
age, similar profession. 
Oh, but that guy's so funny. 

364
00:25:20,960 --> 00:25:23,040
Is there something to gain out 
of the relationship? 

365
00:25:24,480 --> 00:25:28,920
So you're extra nice to one 
person while ignoring someone 

366
00:25:28,920 --> 00:25:36,560
else? 
James says 8 and 11. 

367
00:25:36,560 --> 00:25:38,320
Remember I said it's worse than 
you think. 

368
00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:40,240
That's what James is saying. 8 
through 11. 

369
00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:46,080
I'll quickly read it. 
Indeed, if you fulfill the royal

370
00:25:46,080 --> 00:25:48,680
law prescribed in the scripture,
love your neighbor as yourself, 

371
00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:51,600
you are doing well. 
If, however, you show 

372
00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:54,640
favoritism, you commit sin and 
are convicted by the law as 

373
00:25:54,640 --> 00:25:57,840
transgressors. 
For whoever keeps the entire law

374
00:25:57,840 --> 00:26:00,320
yet stumbles at one point is 
guilty of breaking a law. 

375
00:26:00,680 --> 00:26:03,600
For he who said do not commit 
adultery and also said do not 

376
00:26:03,600 --> 00:26:05,000
murder. 
So if you do not commit 

377
00:26:05,000 --> 00:26:07,920
adultery, but you murder, you're
a law breaker. 

378
00:26:09,760 --> 00:26:12,680
James saying this, there's a lot
of good people. 

379
00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:20,240
You guys do good things, but if 
you stink just on the side I do 

380
00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:23,560
a little favoritism. 
James is saying that doesn't 

381
00:26:23,560 --> 00:26:26,120
make sense. 
That's like saying I don't 

382
00:26:26,120 --> 00:26:28,920
commit adultery, but on the side
I do a little bit of murder. 

383
00:26:29,040 --> 00:26:37,280
So it does not make sense. 
Favoritism is serious business 

384
00:26:38,120 --> 00:26:40,400
because you're literally 
representing the Kingdom of God 

385
00:26:40,400 --> 00:26:43,680
to that person. 
And if you represent the wrong 

386
00:26:43,680 --> 00:26:47,160
Kingdom, that is a serious 
offense. 

387
00:26:50,360 --> 00:26:55,160
And James ends this section of 
of how about favoritism of how 

388
00:26:55,160 --> 00:27:01,880
we can be free from it? 
Verses 12 and 13 speak and act 

389
00:27:01,920 --> 00:27:04,800
as those who are to be judged by
the law of freedom. 

390
00:27:05,480 --> 00:27:08,120
For judgement is without mercy 
to the one who has not shown 

391
00:27:08,120 --> 00:27:11,640
mercy. 
Mercy triumphs over judgement. 

392
00:27:13,600 --> 00:27:15,560
Let's focus on the law of 
freedom in verse 12. 

393
00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:19,600
This law of freedom is the same 
language from last week's 

394
00:27:19,600 --> 00:27:21,720
sermon. 
It's about the obedience that 

395
00:27:21,720 --> 00:27:27,200
leads to freedom. 
James is saying when you don't 

396
00:27:27,200 --> 00:27:31,960
show favoritism and when you 
give people impartial love, you 

397
00:27:31,960 --> 00:27:34,440
are being free. 
Why are you being free? 

398
00:27:34,640 --> 00:27:37,040
Think about it. 
Why do we show favoritism? 

399
00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:40,640
The example is somebody who is 
rich and it seems like the 

400
00:27:40,640 --> 00:27:43,280
leaders are really giving 
preferences treatment to this 

401
00:27:43,280 --> 00:27:45,120
rich guy. 
Why would I do that? 

402
00:27:45,120 --> 00:27:47,040
Why would a pastor or elder do 
that? 

403
00:27:48,160 --> 00:27:51,520
Because if a rich person comes 
and gives a lot of money, what 

404
00:27:51,520 --> 00:27:54,040
happens? 
It solves a lot of problems. 

405
00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:56,760
We have security. 
We could do more things. 

406
00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:00,880
Our our church could be bigger 
and and whatnot. 

407
00:28:00,880 --> 00:28:07,120
There's a lot to gain from it. 
So if I'm insecure, if I'm 

408
00:28:07,120 --> 00:28:11,000
paranoid about how God's going 
to provide, then I will be. 

409
00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:14,880
Favoritism will be something 
that will be a big temptation. 

410
00:28:16,840 --> 00:28:23,320
How do you become free from it? 
You show love to everyone. 

411
00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:28,840
You are impartial and then 
you're saying, Lord, in my 

412
00:28:28,840 --> 00:28:30,600
insecurity, Lord, I give it to 
you. 

413
00:28:32,080 --> 00:28:34,560
I'm not trying to get some rich 
person to solve my problems. 

414
00:28:34,560 --> 00:28:39,840
Lord, I give it to you, our 
finances, I'm going to trust in 

415
00:28:39,840 --> 00:28:41,120
you. 
I'm going to hope in you. 

416
00:28:42,480 --> 00:28:45,400
And then you are free. 
You don't have to show 

417
00:28:45,400 --> 00:28:47,640
favoritism. 
You don't have to gain something

418
00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:50,320
from somebody else. 
You're free. 

419
00:28:50,920 --> 00:28:53,280
You just have to love that 
person and serve that person. 

420
00:28:55,560 --> 00:28:59,600
And James ends with 13 Mercy 
triumphs over judgement. 

421
00:29:00,760 --> 00:29:02,320
Mercy and judgement are opposite
things. 

422
00:29:02,560 --> 00:29:05,080
Judgement says. 
You look like you're someone 

423
00:29:05,080 --> 00:29:07,200
that can help me. 
All right, I'll be good to you. 

424
00:29:07,480 --> 00:29:10,120
I judge. 
And then you pass the test. 

425
00:29:10,600 --> 00:29:12,160
You have my time. 
You have my energy. 

426
00:29:13,120 --> 00:29:17,960
Mercy is the opposite. 
Why are people more some people 

427
00:29:17,960 --> 00:29:21,000
more likable than others? 
There's something about them, 

428
00:29:21,800 --> 00:29:23,480
their personality, their 
achievement. 

429
00:29:23,480 --> 00:29:28,560
Something about them. 
Mercy means there's nothing 

430
00:29:28,560 --> 00:29:31,160
about us. 
Nothing about me is likable or 

431
00:29:31,160 --> 00:29:34,440
lovable, but I am loved 
regardless. 

432
00:29:36,760 --> 00:29:39,520
That's mercy is what God has 
shown us. 

433
00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:45,480
There's nothing in us, nothing 
we did to deserve becoming a 

434
00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:48,560
child of God. 
There's nothing about us that 

435
00:29:48,560 --> 00:29:53,440
deserve going to heaven. 
But God looked at us, he said. 

436
00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:56,040
I'm not going to look at what 
you did or what you didn't do. 

437
00:29:57,400 --> 00:30:01,040
I'm going to look at what my son
Jesus Christ did for you, what 

438
00:30:01,040 --> 00:30:06,000
he accomplished instead of you, 
and I'll treat you with love. 

439
00:30:07,880 --> 00:30:09,640
My son clothes you in 
righteousness. 

440
00:30:09,640 --> 00:30:12,680
But now I will look at you as a 
righteous person. 

441
00:30:13,360 --> 00:30:14,960
I will make you my son, my 
daughter. 

442
00:30:15,680 --> 00:30:17,880
I will love you. 
I will save you. 

443
00:30:19,680 --> 00:30:25,480
God showed mercy to us first. 
And because of that, we can show

444
00:30:25,480 --> 00:30:29,520
mercy to other people whether 
they deserve it or not. 

445
00:30:29,520 --> 00:30:33,040
We are always treating them 
better than they deserve. 

446
00:30:34,360 --> 00:30:36,800
Judgement is opposite. 
Do you deserve it? 

447
00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:40,040
Did you earn it? 
Let's be free from it. 

448
00:30:41,280 --> 00:30:45,440
Let's be people of mercy. 
Main point. 

449
00:30:46,680 --> 00:30:48,720
We can be free from showing 
favoritism. 

450
00:30:49,200 --> 00:30:52,560
When mercy triumphs over 
judgement in our lives. 

451
00:30:52,960 --> 00:30:53,760
Let's take time to pray.