Having Genuine Faith

Text: James 2:1-9

Sermon:
Imagine two scenarios with me: 1.) We are meeting at the sanctuary of our church;
everyone is settling in their seats. A visitor enters the sanctuary. They are nicely groomed
and nicely dressed. They smile big and greet everyone with a handshake. How do we
greet them? Do we make them feel welcomed? 2.) We are meeting at the sanctuary of our
church; everyone is settling in their seats. A visitor enters the sanctuary. They are clothed
in dirty, oversized clothes. They sit down distant from the rest of the congregation. They
timidly greet the few people near them, and they remain quiet. How do we greet them?
Do we make them feel welcomed?
Both visitors are looking for a place to feel cared for and safe. Both visitors are looking
for companionship, yet traditionally, only one of these visitors will be immediately
accepted.

As a society, we tend to treat well-dressed, impressive-looking people better than those
that are in shabby, disheveled clothes. We do this because we would rather identify with
successful people because we believe their success will benefit us.

We treat people this way for a few reasons: 1.) Poverty makes us uncomfortable, and we
don’t want to face our responsibilities to those who have less than we do. 2.) We want
rich people to join our churches and help support them financially.

As usual, Jesus focused his attention on the poor and those in the outskirts of society.
Jesus understood the value of human beings. Our value is inherently given to us by God.
We do not add on to our natural value by the resources that we have or the money that we
have. Jesus loves us regardless of our financial status. Jesus loves us and expresses his
love for us, which reminds us how to love others regardless of their status.

If we claim Christ followers, then we must live as he required, showing no favoritism and
loving all people regardless of whether they are rich or poor.

Regardless of how we perceive them; we are living out our faith fully. In our faith, we are
demonstrating Jesus’ love to those who may not know it.

James presents three principles on faith 1.) Total commitment to Jesus is an essential part
of faith. A person cannot be a Christian simply by affirming the right doctrines or
agreeing with biblical facts. You must be all in. 2.) Godly actions are a natural by-product
of true faith. A genuine Christian will have a changed life. 3.) Faith without good deeds
doesn’t do any good.

Paul has emphasized the purpose of faith: to bring salvation. James emphasized the
results of faith: a changed life that results in serving others and not copying the world
around us.

We should not ignore rich people, because then we would be withholding our love. But
we must not favor them for what they can do for us while ignoring the poor people, who
can offer us seemingly little in return.
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Conclusion: Let us be people who love fully and accept freely.