“My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.” James 2:1
Have you ever felt like people were treating you different from others? Have you ever felt like you were mistreated because of a belief that you had or for the clothes you were wearing or because of something you said?
Most of us have had this experience, and for most of us, it hurts.
James tells us that God hates this type of behavior. He uses the word “partiality.” To be partial to someone means to show them special favor. This isn’t always bad: A father might show special favor to his son in ways that he wouldn’t to his son’s friends. A husband might rightly show special favor to his wife that he would never show to other women.
But in the context of the book of James, he is exhorting his hearers to stop showing special favor to certain groups of people and to start treating everyone the same. In James’ day, there were groups of people who were tempted to mistreat other groups of people, and James wants them to know that this does not honor God. Everyone should have equal value because all are valuable in the sight of God.
Read
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
- What does God creating humans in his image have to do with this verse?
- Are you tempted to be partial to certain types of people?
Prayer
Father, help us to love as you love. Help us to see your image in each person you have made. We are tempted to be selfish and unloving. Forgive us for this because of Jesus. May the world know that we are your children by the way we love one another. May you use our love as a witness to the truth of who you are. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
This devotion is adapted from the James Study Guide. Pick up a copy today for only $9.99. The Study Guide includes a 15-week curriculum, a small group study, a group inductive study, as well as 75 daily devotions for your personal or family worship.
