Who would you rather sit beside:
- A well dressed individual, wearing the latest in fashionable clothing
- A shabbily dressed individual, in old clothing that clearly had not been washed in some time
At this point you probably think I am asking a trick question. Realizing who I am and that this article is on a church website you may think you know what answer I want you to pick. However, this is not about me wanting you to pick one option over the other. Nor is this about you selecting an answer to make me happy. This is about you thinking about why you picked one option over the other.
Let’s be open and honest. Given the option most people will select the first choice, the well dressed individual. If you don’t believe me take a trip on public transit. Ride a bus or a subway for an hour or so and watch where people sit. Consider where you sat down. Look at the people who are standing when there are vacant seats and consider why are they standing?
This week we continue with our study on James. Our passage deals with judging and discrimination. James has some hard words for us when we are found to be in judgement of others based on our biases and discriminatory ideals.
One of the questions we need to consider with this passage is who should be doing the judging?
Text: James 2: 1-17
Questions for Sunday:
- Who did you sit beside?
- Why?
Prayer for Sunday:
Gracious God, in this time and in this place allow my thoughts to focus on you alone. I confess that in my living I have judged others based on my own standards and have not considered people in the full light of your love. Forgive me I pray, Amen.