February 1 Daily Devotional

Scripture for Day 32—James 2:1

¹ My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

Devotional:

Notice that this verse begins—"My brothers." We could say "brethren" or "brothers and sisters" because the point is not gender-specific. The point is to appeal to fellow redeemed children of God. When you belong to Christ, you belong to everyone else who belongs to Christ. This verse appeals to you as a child of God.

Your central duty as a child of God is to "hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." This is a command—"hold" or "have" "the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." You see, contrary to the fears of Martin Luther and others, James is a deeply Christian book. As the Lutheran scholar R. C. H. Lenski commented:

It is worth noting that here and throughout this epistle James [not only] deals with Christian conduct, but ever does so on the basis of "the faith [in] our Lord Jesus Christ," in which James is one with his brethren.

Are you right with God through faith in Jesus Christ? That's central. It has many practical implications—as the book of James demonstrates—but they all flow out of this foundational fact: being right with God by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Cry out to the Lord in prayer and renew your grip on Christ alone.

"My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus' Name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
all other ground is sinking sand." (Edward Mote)^†

We do good works because we are saved, not in order to be saved. "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Eph. 2:8–10).

Note well, this Scripture modifies the command to hold the faith in Christ by summoning us to live out its implications. Hold the faith in Christ, and do so without "partiality" (ESV; NKJV), without "favoritism" [NIV; NASB], or without "respect of persons" [KJV]. Favoritism contradicts faith. Showing partiality goes just as much against the grain of trusting Jesus as serving mammon goes against the grain of serving God.

Why? First, because "God shows no partiality" (Acts 10:34). Second, because "if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors" (James 2:9). But third—and this is the emphasis here—because "our Lord Jesus Christ [is] the Lord of glory." If (when?) you deem certain people to be so very important, do you not thereby eclipse the one Person who actually is all-important?

^†Click here for the full hymn and tune.

Click here for background on the author of Are You For Real?: Meditations in the Epistle of James for Secret or Family Worship.