Favoritism

I have had a few responses to yesterday's post and from what it seems, most people seem to agree with me that we cannot just stand on the hinge of making things happen and expect them to happen. Instead, we need to make sure that these things happen by committing to change and allowing the results to become evident. We spend too much time focusing on the broad things that we forget to take care of the things that are eating us to the core. If you do not treat a certain things, they grow on you and become bigger than you could have ever imagined and that is what yesterday's post was trying to convey. As for today, I think I found a book of the bible that is possibly one of my favorites because it leads me to things that I definitely need to work on and that book is James. Have you played a game and picked someone because you knew them better or because you had been friends longer? Have you ever said that some people are better at doing things because of the color of their skin or their sex? Have you ever pushed someone to the side because you did not think that they were capable of helping you or were allowed to be part of a certain situation? I am guilty of all of this in one way or another and that is a big problem because we are told in the bible not to show favoritism. What if God chose favorites and decided to bless some more than others just because he deemed them to be a better Christian or overall person than you? Does not seem fair that we can do it to others but when the table is turned, we cry foul. Favoritism leads to hate and low self-esteem, in our country we were founded on the principal that all are created equal and that everyone has the same rights. Unfortunately we have misconstrued this and it seems as if we believe that anyone who comes here as that right, however, the right is to be given to those who take the necessary steps to become a part of this nation and who abide by the rules. Our nation still sees it's share of racism and would not surprise me if there are illegal slaves in certain areas. The point is that no one is superior to another and favoritism nor hatred should be shown toward any one group or person.

In James 2 1-7, we are given an example of this by James and it is a great concept for us to understand and apply. It states, "My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don't show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, 'Here is a good seat for you,' but say to the poor man, 'You stand there' or 'sit on the floor by my feet,' have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised to those who love him? But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong?" We see here that all are to be treated equally and everyone is deserving of the grace of God. We should not dismiss some people because we are afraid to talk to them or because we think they are too bad to receive the gift of life from God, that is showing favoritism and it is not our place to judge others, that is God's position. That is not to say that we should neglect certain groups because they receive too much attention, but we should be careful as to who we are giving our attention to so that we do not get caught up showing favoritism to just one side. Do you show your friends favoritism over people who you just consider acquaintances? Who do you give more time to? Who is on your mind when you are praying? Your church friends or ALL your friends? Unfortunately we show favoritism everyday and we need to be cautious so that we are not shutting people out when it comes to Christ and when it comes to just giving people the time of day. The person who you think is not as important might be the person in which you are the last person they ever get the opportunity to talk to about Christ but you decided that someone else was more important and you showed favoritism. Do not let the blinders be put on, keep moving forward and let God guide you in everything you do.

I hope you all have had an amazing week and I am continuing to pray for all of you. God is working all the time and he is building us up for something special. Continue to seek his way for your life and listen to him.

God Bless,

Joseph Robinson