By David ReayFriday 29 Jan 2021LifeWords DevotionalsDevotionsReading Time: 2 minutes
My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?
For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? (NLT)
The church can be guilty of having a celebrity culture. We make a lot of fuss over a well-known person becoming a follower of Jesus, perhaps treating that individual as a special class of Christian. They are urged to write a book and we are urged to buy the book.
Most of us are not famous, not celebrities. We are ordinary people in the hands of an extraordinary God. Whether we have achieved much in a worldly sense or have hardly any achievements at all, we are utterly dependent on the grace and mercy of Jesus.
And so we need to beware of dispensing special favours to those we regard as special people. Our text reminds us that we can make judgements based on appearances or social status. If someone seems rich or successful or even just stimulating company, we may favour them in such a way as to dismiss others who don’t attract us.
Of course we may prefer some to others and spend more time with some than others. And of course we respect those who hold positions of authority. But we never fail to understand that the ground is level at the foot of the cross. Whether rich or poor, we need mercy and grace. Our wealth or education or status does not make us a special class of people. In the providence of God, we are all equally ordinary and equally extraordinary.
Blessings
David