Trailblazin Ministries

Favoritism: Part 6 - James 2:5b

Written by LaRosa Johnson
Wednesday, 19 September 2007

"Listen closely." Those were the words (paraphrased) that we had from James when we last left our study. He had just finished accusing them of showing favoritism and then having selfish motives for doing so; now, in order to calm them back down, he tells them to listen, and reaffirms that they are dear to him. By doing this, James was setting them up for something very important and thought provoking. Today, we will begin to get a glimpse at what that something is, as it further pertains to the issue of showing partiality. Today's passage picks up in James 2:5b, as we take the time to break down phrase by phrase the message that James is working to deliver.

James 2:5b (NASB95) - did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith

To begin his petition towards a solution to this problem of favoritism, James starts with a question, of which we are taking a look at the first part. The question, "Didn't God choose the poor to be rich in faith?" In a way, this is almost a rhetorical question because it demands a positive answer, like many of his previous questions to them. Now, for this question, there are three words that we need to take a look at, and they are: 1) poor, 2) rich, and 3) faith. Who did God choose? The poor. What did He choose them for? To be rich. What did He want them to be rich in? Faith. Any reader can clearly see that this is written very plainly in the text and it doesn't require a great amount of Biblical exegesis. As always though, there is more than meets the eye as we can only take away so much from the English translation and from a single passage of Scripture, since Scripture is able to interpret itself. Let us start with the who.

Who did God choose? Again, we see in this passage that God has chosen the poor of this world. In this particular context (referencing back to the example given of the rich and the poor man), we know that James is not referring to those who are poor in spirit (Matthew 5:3), but instead is referring to those who are financially and economically poor. Why is this important to note? It is important because all throughout Scripture we see that God does not show favoritism, and He is always one to look out for the poor and destitute of society. If you go all the way back to His choosing of the Israelites, by no means were they a great nation, but a small community that really had nothing going for them, other than a promise that God had given to their ancestors through Abraham. And then when you get into the Mosaic Law, God made plenty of provisions for those who were in poor financial circumstances. Examples of this included a mandate to not fully harvest a field so that the poor could glean from the edges of the field, the concept of a kinsman redeemer who would reclaim (repurchase) someone's property if they were forced to sell it due to a debt that was owed; even every 50 years all those who sold themselves (and their family) into slavery were given the opportunity to be freed from that obligation, or even the clearing of all debt every seventh year. In the Mosaic Law, it is clearly seen that God had a place in His heart for those who were poor. Even Jesus Himself became poor so that we could receive what is being spoken of here in this passage (2 Corinthians 8:9). It was in saying this that James was also making direct reference to his readers as well, since many of them were on the lower end of society and fell into this category.

So, what is it that God chose the poor for? He chose them to make them rich in faith. In other words, God made it so that the poor of this world would be able to obtain salvation and an abundance of spiritual blessings. As a quick side note, this is not to say that the rich cannot obtain salvation, but God specifically provisioned it for the poor. By saying that God chose them to be rich in faith, James is ultimately saying that God provides the necessary amount of faith to believe the message of the gospel in order to receive salvation and eternal life. Plus, we can see from other passages what it means to be rich in faith, and what all that entails. Take a moment to glance at these passages: 1 Corinthians 1:26-29; Ephesians 1:3; Romans 10:12; Romans 11:33; and 2 Corinthians 6:10. The common thread in each of these passages is that there are spiritual blessings for believers and that they come in an abundance. Now, these spiritual blessings have nothing to do with the earthly realm, but are solely spiritual; thus, even when everything is going wrong in this earthly dimension, we can still rest assured that we have a great abundance of spiritual blessings. These blessings include: the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), our spiritual armor (Ephesians 6:10-18), faith, spiritual wisdom, among many other things. And it is through faith, faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, that we are able to have all of these things. Why? Because God shows no partiality and has a heart for those who are unable to help themselves.

Now, this is only the beginning of what James has to say to his readers. There is also a second part to this question, which we will get into next time. Through this study we have gained a firm grip that God has chosen the poor to be rich in faith because He is not a God that shows favoritism. If our God is so great a God to show such great kindness towards the poor, then why shouldn't we, as God's children, exemplify the same character and qualities as our Father? That is what I will leave you with today, take time to think about why you are or are not displaying the same character as your Heavenly Father.