The Message, September 8, 2024: "LOVE Our Neighbors," James 2:1-10, 14-17
Author: Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
September 10, 2024
“LOVE Our Neighbors”
A Message by Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
James 2:1-10, 14-17
Several years ago, one scene from
the movie, “Ted 2” was filmed up the street from the church that I was serving.
The production company reached out to the church and contracted with us to use our
parking lot as their staging area, and our fellowship hall to serve the meals.
The parking lot was full of campers and vans, fuel trucks, lighting trucks, and
catering service trucks. Every day, crowds of people would gather on the
sidewalk hoping to catch a glimpse of the gaffers, and the caterers, and the
sound and lighting technicians.
Of course, you know that is not the
case. The townspeople did not flock to the fence to see the crew, they wanted
to see Mark Wahlberg, or Seth MacFarlane, or the one and only … Tom Brady. They
were in town for an entire week to shoot a scene that lasted about a minute and
a half in the movie, and I am not going to lie … it was a pretty big deal in
town. It was very exciting stuff!
The production company told me that
I was welcome to stop by if I wanted to join them for one of their meals.
Naturally, I resisted the urge to do so. I am not one of those people who
chases after fame and fortune and celebrity. However, my reserve cracked as the
week was drawing to a close. I thought, “It would be rude of me not to go over
and offer them welcome.” So, I walked next door. (Yes, I could see weeklong the
spectacle from the parsonage.)
I went through the chow line then
went inside. I sat down for dinner with Boston comedian Lenny Clarke and with
Tom Brady’s look-a-like double. After the meal I was talking with the caterer
and just happened to run into Mark Wahlberg. We chatted for a while, then New
England Patriot running back, Stephen Ridley drove up in his very nice car. I
felt like hot stuff rubbing elbows with celebrities.
The following week, I set up a VIP
table during our monthly pancake breakfast. I told people that it was for Mark
Wahlberg … just in case he showed up. You know, because we are pals now.
I will say that Mark and I did spend
some time that night talking about his faith. He kept calling me, “Father,” but
I told him that Scott was fine. But he insisted that he should show me the
respect of addressing me by my title. He also shared with me that some of the
friends that he grew up with were residents of the prison right down the street
from the church, and how he had made better choices in his life so that he did
not end up there too.
Now, I do not share this story as
some sort of humble brag. I do not share it so that you will “oooh” and “aaah.”
I do not share this so that you will know how cool your pastor is. Okay … maybe
a little bit. But the point really is about how we all fawned over the one or
two celebrities that were there rather than the one hundred or so support
people that labored for a week to make that ninety second scene.
My guess is that most of us do NOT
rub elbows with movie stars and professional athletes in our everyday lives.
Not even a big shot like me. Mark Wahlberg did NOT show up and take his seat at
the VIP table at the pancake breakfast. Mark and Lenny do not exactly light up
my phone, email, or social media. Mark never even mentioned me when he was
doing the press junket for Ted 2!! But, we do have opportunities to do that
which James warned us against in his letter to the early church.
Do not show partiality. Do not show favoritism.
Of course we have favorites. We have
favorite television programs, and favorite restaurants, and favorite movies. We
have a tab on our web browsers for our favorite websites. We have favorite
places to go on vacation and might even have favorite passages of scripture.
All of those are fine. Where we get into difficulty is when we treat SOME of
our neighbors with favoritism.
In his letter to the First-Century
Christian community, James was addressing a very specific concern. The early
church was primarily comprised of ordinary folk … the humble, the poor, the
servants, the underprivileged. At that point they were still occupied by the
Romans. The ordinary citizens worked hard to care for themselves and care for
their families. Many of the wealthy were in good with their Roman overlords,
but even still they tried to extract as much as they could from their tenants
and their servants. The simple working-class folks sometimes found themselves
in court because they had trouble paying their debts.
And then James addressed what must
have been happening in those early church assemblies. Someone dressed in fine
robes and wearing fancy rings and other jewelry entered the room and people
fell all over themselves to offer them the prime seats down front. (Of course,
in today’s church that would be sweet seats in the back. But I digress.) The
leaders of the “assembly” pushed the ordinary folk … the gaffers, and cooks,
and lighting techs … to the back, and gave the good seats, the seats of honor
or privilege to the wealthy.
It seems as though some of the
members of the early Christian community had adopted the mentality and
behaviors of their oppressors. Those among them that had achieved or attained
power, or influence, or resources then treated members of their own community
with disdain and disrespect. James was criticizing those whom he saw as
double-minded Christians, those who professed to follow the Way of Jesus, those
who proclaimed that the poor ought to be blessed, but then did the opposite.
Perhaps they did it thinking that
there might be some transactional benefit for themselves or for their
congregation. If we treat them well, maybe they will treat us well. Perhaps
they thought that if one of the wealthy folks converted it would be a “trophy”
for Jesus. We do not know for certain. James does not give us that additional
information. What he DOES tell us is that it is wrong.
Showing favoritism, showing
partiality was a violation of the Royal Law. The Royal Law was the supreme law
above all laws. The Royal Law was given by none other than the King of Kings,
Jesus Christ. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” You shall love your
neighbor. The Royal Law was not a theoretical exercise, it was practical. This
is how we live in the Kingdom of God.
James based his argument upon the
words of Jesus and upon the words or Torah, these words from Leviticus: “Do
not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism
to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.” (Leviticus 19:15)
“Do not seek revenge or bear
a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your
neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:18)
And
in Matthew’s Gospel we read: “Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God
with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This
is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love
your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets
hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
Earlier in his letter, James tells
us … and by “us” I mean all of those who profess Jesus as Lord … that we have
the Word of Truth, the Word of God, implanted within us. We hear the Word, we
are instructed by the Word, and then we are to become Doers of the Word. And in
this following chapter, James tells us precisely what Doers do. Doers of the
Word love their neighbors.
And when we show favoritism, or
partiality, or preference we violate that law. We are like evil or unjust
judges when we treat one with honor and respect and not the other. The love of
neighbor is the Royal Law, it is the Law of the Kingdom of God.
At the end of the first chapter of
his letter, James tells us that true religion, or true piety, or true faith
means that we are doers … we put the Word of Truth into practice … we care for
the orphan and the widow. Here in the second chapter, he tells us that the
quality of our faith is reflected in the quality of our community. Division and
conflict reveal a profound lack of understanding of faithfulness. The Royal Law
tells us that we should offer mercy and love to all people, no matter who they
are.
Faith makes a difference in us.
Faith makes a difference in the ways that we live our lives. Faith makes a
difference in our relationships with our brothers and sisters, our neighbors.
We favor people without even
realizing that we are doing it. It is a subconscious behavior. We gravitate
toward people with similar interests and beliefs. Whether we do it
intentionally, or not, we tend to gravitate toward people that are like us. It
is safe. It is comfortable. And there is nothing wrong with that very normal
and natural behavior.
However, it does become a problem
when it impacts the manner with which we interact with others.
It
becomes a problem when we become the “evil or unjust judge.”
It
becomes a problem when it causes us to withhold love, or grace, or mercy.
It
becomes a problem when we treat others with disdain or disrespect.
It
becomes a problem when we treat others based upon some preconceived notion or
prejudice.
It
becomes a problem when we step over the hungry or the homeless as we walk out
of worship on our way to brunch.
Let
us remember that in his life and ministry Jesus often spent his time with those
who were considered by others to be “OTHERS” … the least of these, the
undesirable. He was criticized and condemned for doing so.
And
now, let us pause for a moment of honest self-reflection.
Who
is the one that we consider to be the “other”?
Who
is it that we consider to be the undesirable?
The
immigrant? Or the indigent?
The
poor? Or the rich?
The
Democrat? Or the Republican?
And
then we must ask ourselves … why? Do we withhold favor because of who we think that they are?
We
cannot break the law just a little bit. It is like a piece of glass … when it
is broken it is not sort of broken, it is broken. We cannot sort of or mostly
follow the Royal Law. Jesus did not say, “Love SOME of your neighbors. Love the
ones you like. That’s good enough.”
That
is the Royal Law, the Law of the Kingdom. Love our neighbors. Amen.
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