JAMES 2:1-17

[2:1] My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

[2] For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in,

[3] and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,”

[4] have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

[5] Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?

[6] But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court?

[7] Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?

[8] If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.

[9] But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

[10] For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

[11] For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.

[12] So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty.

[13] For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

[14] What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?

[15] If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food,

[16] and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?

[17] So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

You hear it all the time.  Money is the root of all evil.  Unfortunately, that’s not what the Bible actually says.  If you turn to I Timothy you’ll see that what the Bible actually says is that, “The love of money is the root of all evil.” (6:10)

No arguments there.  The love of money can lead to all kinds of avarice, anger and anxiety.  For example, did you know that it’s the number one cause of fights between husbands and wives.  It’s true. Over the years I’ve also seen children fight over inheritances and when you think about it money is at the center of almost all the political posturing that’s going on right now.  Deficits and taxes, foreclosures and Swiss bank accounts, Medicare and Social Security, Wall Street versus Main Street.

The love of money can also entice people to behave in ways that aren’t very virtuous. A woman found that out when she lost her purse in a shopping mall.   Fortunately, for the woman an honest boy found the purse and returned it to her.  When the woman opened the purse though she didn’t know what to think at first.   “I don’t understand,” she said.  “When I lost the purse there was a $20 bill in it. Now there’s a $10 a $5 and five $1’s.”  The boy who found the purse nodded his head.  “That’s right,” he said.  “That’s because the last time I found a lady’s purse she didn’t have any change for a reward.”

Sad to say, but money can bring out the worst in people.  That’s true today and it was also true for the early Christians.  All you have to do is look at the words that James wrote in his letter.  James was deeply troubled by what he saw going on in the early church.   Apparently, the rich and the poor were being treated differently. So, James wrote these words:   “For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ while you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet…’ you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court?  Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?”

The reason why money leads to so much avarice, anger and anxiety is because most of the time money is looked upon as a token.  It’s what you use to figure out who’s winning the game.  The goal is to accumulate as much money as you can.  That way people will see that you’re successful.  It like the parents who invested a lot of money into their son’s piano lessons.  When some guests came to visit one day the mother asked her son to play something for them.  When he sat down at the piano bench she leaned over and whispered, “Make sure you play something expensive.”

Or how about this real life example.  Did you see what the good people down in Allen Texas did?  It was on the national news this past week.  They spent $60 million to build a brand new state of the art stadium for their high school football team; $60 million! 

In our society money is a token.  It’s what you use to figure out who’s winning the game and it’s a way of evaluating people.  If you’ve got a lot of money it means you’re savvy and smart.  It means you’re ambitious and industrious.  On the other hand if you don’t have a lot of money it probably means you’re a lazy lackadaisical loser. 

When you look at money as a token it can get you into all kinds of trouble.  James makes it clear in his letter though that there’s another way of looking at the money in your pocket.  As far as James was concerned money isn’t a token.  It’s a tool.   It’s a tool that God has given you to take care of your family.  It’s a tool that you use to make sure your children get a good education and your parents are taken care of in their later years.  It’s a tool that God has given you to make the world a better place not just for you but for your sisters and brothers. 

Once again, listen to the words that James wrote in his letter.  “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”

Money is either a token or a tool. It’s either a token that tells you who’s winning the game or it’s a tool that you can use to do God’s Will and here’s one more thing to ponder.  How you view your money will determine how you use your money.

There’s a story that is told about a rich young man who went to see a rabbi.  The rich young man asked the rabbi what he should do with his life.  After he asked the question The rabbi led him over to a window.  “What do you see when you look out this window?” the rabbi asked.  The rich young man look around and then said, “I see children playing in a park.  I see couples sitting on a bench holding hands and I see a homeless man begging for money.”  The rabbi then took the rich young man and had him stand in front of a large mirror.  “What do you see now?” the rabbi asked.  “I see myself,” the rich young man said.  “Behold,” the rabbi said  the window and the mirror are both made out of glass but as soon as you add silver to the glass you cease to see others and see only yourself.  Before you can decide what you are going to do with your life you must decide if your life is going to be a window or a mirror.”

Every once and a while it’s good to take a step back and ask yourself this question: “What does my money represent to me?”   Is it a token or a tool? Life is always better when you use it as a tool to do God’s will. Amen.

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

September 9, 2012