James is the half-brother of our Lord, and his writing to the early church had been in existence for a few years. This is believed to be one of the earliest epistles, if not the earliest epistle in the New Testament, because it addresses his readers as the twelve tribes that are scattered abroad. primarily addressing Jewish believers who are part of the dispersion. He has some very practical things to say. We left off with the nature of what true religion was. In verses 26 and 27, two weeks ago, last week was Mother's Week, Mother's Day, and so we gave a special emphasis on Mother's Day. But this morning, we want to get back into the text. And true religion, is not religion that talks by the mile and lives by the yard, but it is visiting and ministering to those disadvantaged people in the church and in society. In particular, verse 27, visiting the orphans and widows. And then to keep oneself unspotted from the world and that's talking about the doctrine of holiness or sanctification, living a pure life before God. Now then, we embark on chapter 2, verses 1 and if we make it that far, verse 13, I think we will. Nonetheless, It's a lengthy passage of scripture. And it deals with the subject of partiality. And I've entitled my message this morning, Prejudice Belies a Christian Profession. It contradicts, is the idea. It undercuts a Christian profession. I believe what he's setting forth in this text of scripture does have relevance. And those who've studied, scholars who've studied this epistle thoroughly believe that it's grounded in Old Testament law and also grounded in the Sermon on the Mount. And I believe Jesus here is giving us the importance of treating others with due respect. And I believe that it could be distilled in what we commonly refer to as the golden rule. How many have heard the golden rule? The golden rule. Well, in Matthew's account it's stated this way, therefore whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the law and the prophets. In other words, it's a distillation of what is taught in the Old Testament. It's not something new. The way you want to be treated, Jesus is saying, is the way you are to treat others. If you wanted to be treated with respect and kindness and patience and gentleness, you conversely are to treat people that way. And that's only right. Luke's account says, and just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise. That's the golden rule. And it's appropriate, and especially in the application of what he's talking about here in this context. We're not to be selective in our love. As a matter of fact, Jesus elevates love to the point of loving our enemies. And in Luke's account, he goes on to write or say, Jesus speaking here, but if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. In other words, sinners, the sinful world, the world outside the church, that's the way they function. You treat them right and they'll treat you right as a rule, general rule. Sinners do that. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back what credit is that to you for even sinners lend to sinners and receive as much back and then he writes this and says this thing that's Luke recording this but love your enemies do good and lend hoping for nothing in return and your reward will be great and you'll be sons of the most high for he is kind to the unthankful and evil therefore be merciful just as your father also is merciful. In Matthew's account he indicates that that exercise of love for enemies is a sign of God's perfect love and his love here toward humankind is what is known as common grace. He loves people, providing them sunshine, he provides them air, he provides them food, he provides them the necessary strength in life to do those things that they are able to do. And so that's the function, that's the goal, that's the trajectory of our Christian experience. To love even our enemies, it's been elevated to that high. I hear people sometimes, marriage and difficulty, I don't like that person anymore. Well you're called to love your enemies, come on elevate your love at least that high. I think the church father, John Chrysostom, John Chrysostom gives us, and this is from the ancient documents, this was his analysis of the effect of what salvation, and that is if we've been delivered from sin's penalty, which is death and hell, and elevated out of that to a position of a right standing before God, we have forgiveness, redemption, on and on. He says salvation in Christ breaks down all barriers between human beings. I want to pick that up when I close. He breaks down all barriers between human beings. It is clear that for James, some of the most intractable problems on this score influenced economic factors. The economy slipped its way into the local church in the way people were treating people. And then he makes this note, I underlined it, he said, rich people in the church were expecting and receiving special considerations from their wealth. In other words, they're the power people. They've got the money. And so they were expecting to be treated in that way. And so consequently it creates a rift in the assembly, an unspiritual rift, a rift that needed to be corrected and addressed because there is danger involved in that bad conduct. And where he begins right off the bat in verse one is stating the need to address this issue by the way of a command, my brethren, my brethren. That would include brothers and sisters, no matter who is in the assembly. It's a generic term to refer to those who are redeemed and were related spiritually one to another. Notice what he writes here. It's commanded. Do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality or favoritism. Favoritism. I think there's a play on concepts here, and we'll get into it. Well, a good time to do it here. He has said and he has added this phrase, it's actually a genitive case, and it should be with our Lord, our Lord of glory, Jesus Christ. I don't know why, and some suggest that it shouldn't be separated and then dealt with. as an apposition to this, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is, by the way, the Lord of glory. No, it should be faith in our glorious Lord, or our Lord of glory, Jesus Christ. Now He is the One who is the High Exalted One. He is the One who has what we call effulgence of glory. Effulgence means to shine forth. He has a glory like He expressed on the Mount of Transfiguration when he changed himself and the apostles couldn't look upon him because of his brilliance. It was brighter than the sun. That's effulgent glory. And that's who our Lord Jesus Christ is in heaven. It is He whom John saw in Revelation chapter 1. The effulgent, glorified Christ, whom he fell as it were dead before him. That same Lord that was chosen by him and with whom he ministered in his humanity. and saw him as a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, that he was not uniquely in his appearance different than any other Israelite in Jerusalem. But this is the God in whom you believe, right? This is the God that he is addressing here, the Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Lord Jesus Christ. He is high exalted. There is no one who is exalted higher than He. No angel can be compared with Him. They pale in comparison to the glorious Lord Jesus Christ. And it is He in whom we have placed our trust. And because we have Anything below Him is nothing by comparison. All the nations, Isaiah said, of the earth are as nothing. They're reputed as nothing in comparison to the Lord. When Isaiah saw that effulgent glory, He fell as it were before him and said, I am an unclean man. I have dirty lips. God is great. I think of that sometimes because it's before this description of our Lord Jesus Christ that I will give an account someday. When judgment takes place at the behemoth seat of Christ, this is the person whom I've trusted that I'll appear before and I'll bow in his presence and say in my mind, say out loud, whatever you say is right Lord. As you evaluate my life, my service, You're calling the shots. I have no defense. And he will reward me accordingly, or he'll scold me and say, you missed it here, missed it there. I don't know. I don't know what that experience will be like. But this is the Lord of glory, the glorious Lord. And there's no comparison, humanly speaking, with him, yet. In this context, verse 2, if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, he's got the finery, he's got the rings, he's got the jewelry, the jewelry that shows he's got money, that he's got prestige. And then it says, and it describes him in fine apparel. It's impressive. It may be made out of the best quality of material, silks and rayon, not rayon, but linens and so forth, dyed in the best dyes. of the day and he comes in and you're automatically drawn to him just by his appearance. And I couldn't help but see the irony of the two situations. Here on the one hand you have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and yet on the other hand These men who come into the assembly, and it's a synagogue assembly, it may be dominated primarily by Christians, don't know, but the word he uses for assembly there is not ecclesia, it's not the church per se. It is the synagogue, the synagogue. But he comes in very impressively. In contrast to that in verse two, he writes, and there should come also in a poor man in filthy clothes. The word filthy describes dirty. He doesn't have the luxury, it seems, of servants to wash his clothes with great regularity. He may be a day laborer. Now, keep that imagery in mind. You got the contrast here with somebody who is highly exalted. James has already, I think, introduced us to this situation and prepared us to be able to cope with what he's talking about here and apply it to us. Look back in chapter 1, verses 9 and following. Chapter 1 of this epistle, verses 9 through 11. Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation. How is he exalted? Well, he tells us here in this context, verse 5, Chapter two, he says, listen, my beloved brother, and has not God chosen? And he's elected the poor of this world, rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom. They've been elevated. Through their salvation experience spiritually, they are blessed with all riches, which are in Christ Jesus. Amen. The person of low degree, the person who's poor, of humble circumstances, he's been elevated. But notice what he says of the rich. But the rich, looking at verse 10 of chapter 1, but the rich in his humiliation, I believe he's addressing believers in the assembly, ostensibly, because he is giving the command there to boast or to glory in exultation for the low, because he's been exalted spiritually. But the rich, in reality, at the point of death, he's going to be no different than the poor man. He's not going to take anything into his grave, although the pharaohs in Egypt thought they could. They would take their riches. I remember hearing a presentation of the Navajo Indians, a missionary to Navajo, he came to our church in Ottumwa and told us how they, according to their traditions, would bury some of their possessions with the dead as long as there is room in there, because they could take it into the next life. Well, you dig the grave up, and you'll find maybe a skeleton, but you'll find those possessions still there. He's brought low. You're brought low. You can't take anything out of this life. Job realized that. We came into this world as dust, and we leave this world as dust. Nothing. The rich in his humiliation, because as the flower of the field, he will pass away, he will die. There is equity in death. All die. But the George Soroses of the world, the Rockefellers, the Ford family, all of these people who have made enormous wealth, they're going to die. That's the reality. They will be humiliated. For no sooner has the sun, with a burning heat, it withers the grass, the flower falls, and its beautiful appearance perishes. So the rich man will also fade away in his pursuits. So why, then, now that he's laid that groundwork, would they do? Well, he had to lay that groundwork so he could address it here, I think. And somebody's warning there is, my brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord, our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, with favoritism. With favoritism. Everybody. is on the same plane, parity, spiritually speaking. Prejudice and favoritism has always manifested itself since the fall. When men fell into sin, it affected how they think, how they function. And generally, the rich function from the standpoint of pride, not everybody. Job was a rich man, and he didn't function that way. And so the believers aren't to show partiality toward anybody who comes there to all be received and welcomed. into the assembly. And so in verses 2 and 3 he illustrates what had or what conceivably is happening in the assembly. Now this word that is used for partiality or favoritism has been rightly pointed out to be the language that is normally applied, especially to legal settings. And that is where a judge is sitting behind a bench. And he is to represent the law. And he is to do it with absolute fairness, no partiality. No lawfare. And it is to avoid, especially with elders in ancient Israel in the city, sometimes elders or witnesses to an event could be bribed into making false testimony, or being, if they were behind a bench, so to speak, could be biased in their opinion. That's what's happening in our courts today. If you've got money, or prestige. You can pay for or leverage influence. And a lot of judges will capitulate or yield to that and compromise the law. And so it's used in that context. And so Dr. Keener, who speaks in the biblical background commentary, says this, because the synagogues, and that's the word that's used here, serve both as houses of prayer, that is places of spiritual gathering for worship, prayer, and the reading of scripture, but they also served as community courts. And so this predominantly legal image necessarily applies to any gathering there. But in particular the gatherings for worship. There's to be no prejudice. Elevating other people over others to their disadvantage. And so. There is this problem. You know, Old Testament law, as I said, is based in the Old Testament law and also the Sermon on the Mount. Deuteronomy 10, 17 says, for the Lord your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords. The great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality. It is inherent, it is intrinsic in the person of God. that when he judges and when he acts in judgment that he does it so impartially, impartially. Deuteronomy 1.17 says, you shall not show partiality in judgment. You shall hear the small as well as the great. You shall not be afraid of any man's presence, for the judgment is God's. That's what the Old Testament law says. And so he's applying that truth to the assembly where the elders and leaders of the church would meet. And it implies in this situation that there were those who act as we have today in our churches, ushers. We have ushers in our church who, when a visitor comes in, they guide them to certain seating and give them a bulletin, as we do here. And if they have questions, we can answer them and so on and so forth. We have ushers. Formally or informally, they had people when coming to the assembly that they would guide them in certain directions as to where they were to be seated. So the person in fine apparel comes in and the poor person comes in, filthy clothing, and then he says in verse 3, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes. In other words, you give him privileged treatment. You give him honor above others. And you say, sit here in a good place, a place of prominence. Now, there have been, in the history of church, the predominance of those, especially in England and so forth, where rich people could buy their own seating and stuff like that. And they would be given unique places in the church house to sit. And their family would sit there. And that even has happened in our own country. People buy their seating. You say, in contrast, in verse 3, you say to the poor man, you stand over here, stand over there, stand out in the annex, the entryway, or wherever it is, as long as you can hear what's going on, you stand there. The idea there, I think, is you don't want him to be a visible phenomena, to be seen. You stand there or sit at my footstool, which would be an act of humiliation. Sit at my footstool. Sit under my feet. And so if this happens, in verses two and three, as he is illustrated, and you show partiality, he says, if this is what happens, verse four, he makes the accusation. He makes the accusation here. Have you not shown favoritism among yourselves? And it's a rhetorical question. In the Greek language, you can put a particle in there that's a negative particle. If it's oo, it expects a yes as an answer. If it is a may, it expects a negative answer. Here, it expects a positive answer. And so he is answering his own question. They understand implicitly what he's saying. You're guilty. You're guilty of showing partiality among yourselves. And notice how he frames it here, and have become judges. We're not sincere, not with kind thoughts, but with evil thoughts. Maybe to gain favor. Maybe to gain access to this individual. Now later in this epistle, so he deals with it here, dealt with it in chapter 1. In chapter 5, again, he deals with this subject. We'll get to it later. Verse 1, come now you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you. Verse two, your riches are corrupted. Your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded. And that harkens back to chapter one. So in humiliation, all of it's corroded, corrupted. You're not going to take it with you. There'll be a witness to you against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. Indeed, the wages of the laborers who mowed your field these are day laborers which is kept back by fraud cry out and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the lord of sabbath the lord of armies You lived on earth in pleasure and luxury. You have fatted your heart as in a day of slaughter. You have condemned, you have murdered the just. He does not resist you. And so he's addressing these issues, these economic issues in this epistle. You've shown partiality. And now, just transitioning, I believe in verses 5 through 7, I believe that grace, the element of grace, forbids prejudice. A person who is a believer, any of us, who have received the grace of God, the redemptive grace of God, are on the same par. And it forbids prejudice. As a matter of fact, it's part of God's program. Listen, my beloved brethren, has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom of God which he promised to those who love him? God's program primarily through the ages is to take the disadvantage. I think Paul expands on this imagery in his first letter to the Corinthians. First Corinthians chapter one. Please turn there. First Corinthians chapter one. Verses 26 and following, For you, my readers at Corinth, see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise. God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things that are mighty, and the base things of the world, and the things which are despised God has chosen, the things which are not to bring to nothing the things that are that are. Why? He says that no flesh should boast in his presence. Now, he didn't say not any of these would be chosen, but he says not many noble, not many of the elites are chosen. But there are in the history of the church, in the history of Israel, people who are power brokers, so to speak, who have been chosen But anybody who understands his salvation experience and the forgiveness of sin understands the enormity of his debt. And so grace, the grace of God that has been extended to you, forbids prejudice. We studied a parable this last Wednesday morning at our midweek service. And that parable is found in Luke chapter 7. And I think it addresses the point at hand here. In Luke chapter 7, verse 36 then one of the pharisees asked him to eat with him and he went to the pharisee's house and sat down to eat and behold a woman in the city Luke describes her and she had this reputation she had the reputation of being a sinner this is verse 37 this is Luke 7 verse 37 and behold a woman in the city who was a sinner When she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, which was an expensive possession. Mary anointed the feet of our Savior on the eve of his in the Passover week with the same thing and it was an expensive a year's wages and stood at his feet behind him weeping and she began to wash his feet with her tears and wipe them. Here's a disadvantaged woman in every way in society And she kissed his feet and anointed them with a fragrant oil. And when the Pharisee, here's the man exalted, here's the man with riches, here's the man who's an elite, here's the man who has status, you see. This man, if he were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who's touching him, for she is notoriously a sinner. Probably a prostitute. Jesus answered and said to him, Simon, I have something to say to you. He said, Teacher, say it. There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed 500 denarii and the other 50. One with a great amount, the other with 50. And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell me, therefore, which of them will love him more? Well, it's obvious. The man whose great debt was forgiven. In either case, Simon here has this sense of his own spirituality and forgiveness of sin as being insignificant. And so the point is, in verse 5, that's Christ's agenda. That's the thing that upset the Pharisees throughout his ministry. He associated with the poor. He associated with the publicans. The disadvantaged, the orphans, the widows, whomever, that's where Christ focused because they had this sense, the great sense of their need before a high, exalted God, a glorious Lord Jesus Christ. And beloved, I just come from a blue collar family. That's it. I have no prestige. Blue collar, that's it. My dad worked at AC Delco initially up in Michigan. It was called Buick Town. And I worked in the factory for four years, punched a time clock. I know what it means to be raised in a home when I first lived there. We had to go down to the neighbor, take a great big galvanized garbage can, and get our water there. Finally, we dug a well. And we got a hand pump in our kitchen. And we could pump. I know what it's like to be raised in disadvantage. Maybe not by standards in Africa, but in the United States of America. We were poor, basically. I know that. And I appreciate, understanding my salvation, I appreciate the riches I have in Christ Jesus. Do you? Do you appreciate what you have in Christ? He's blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus. We've been exalted to that position. So is a believing rich man. But never forget the well from which you were dug, the pit that you fell in because of your lostness and you've been elevated. It's part of the program of God to save the disadvantaged. Notice the practice, verses 6 and 7 of the assembly, what was going on. You have dishonored the poor man. You've disrespected him. You've disrespected him. And then he points out, the very people you're honoring here are the people that are going to abuse you. Do not the rich oppress and drag you into the courts? And it's again a rhetorical question. Yes, they do. They take advantage of you. Do they not blaspheme the noble name by which you are called? Not only do they take advantage of you economically and legally and so forth, but they take advantage of you by desecrating the Lord in whom you believe, the Lord of glory, the glorious Lord Jesus. That's why his name is Noble. It's a noble name by which you've been called. And so in the remainder of this section, Grace forbid. First of all, the faith in Christ, our faith, forbids prejudice. Secondly, grace forbids prejudice. And finally, in verses eight through six, the law forbids prejudice. The law, as it's outlined in the New Testament, as it's outlined throughout the Old Testament, it forbids the use, the exercise, the expression of favoritism, partiality. There is within the law, within the scriptures, the command to love, verse 8. If you really fulfill, the royal law. I don't think that adjective that is used there is insignificant. The royal law. It is the kingly law. It is the law of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is what we read about discipleship, that we are to love one another. A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another as I have loved you. And so shall men know that you are my disciples by your love one to another. If you fulfill the royal law according to scripture, here's the command. It's in italics. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. You're doing well. The law demands it. And the New Testament writers take that and quote that. The Lord Jesus quoted that. Leviticus 19 verse 18, you shall not take vengeance nor bear grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. Not only that, he says the stranger, chapter 19 verse 34 of Leviticus, the stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born. among you, and you shall love him as yourself. So if there are foreigners who come into the land, they may be on trips here and there, or they may have an interest in Israel, you're to treat them like you do your fellow Israelites. In Luke's gospel, Luke records this incident with our Lord. A scribe asked him, what's the greatest law? And so he answered him and said, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength. and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself. And he said to him, you have answered rightly, that is the scribe, do this and you will live. But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, and who's my neighbor? And then he gives the story of the Good Samaritan. I'm not going to take the time to go in it. Suffice to say, Jesus emphasized love of one's neighbor. Love of the stranger, when we have people come into our assembly, we're to extend to them the scepter of hospitality, the scepter of welcome into the assembly, to worship with us and to fellowship with us. That's the part of reality. Paul speaking, writing actually to a Jewish and Gentile audience. In Romans 13, he says, Oh no one anything except to love one another. For he who loves Another has fulfilled the law for the commandments. You shall not commit adultery. You should not murder. You shall not steal. You should not bear false witness. You shall not covet. If there is any other commandment, all are summed up in this saying, namely love. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. That's the law. That's New Testament law in the age of grace. You are to love your neighbor, love your fellow Christians, but love the strangers, love the disadvantaged. Galatians says the same thing, 1 Thessalonians. It's all throughout New Testament teaching. And if you don't, verses 19 through 11, you commit sin. It's the commission of sin if you don't do it. It's high-handed sin because you can't say on the one hand, I love you, Lord Jesus, I believe in you, and then treat with utter disregard and disrespect and diss and insult other people. It's not right. There's no way you can put a smiley face. There's no way you can paint a pretty picture with the inhumanity that many have through church history expressed toward the disadvantaged. It's the commission of sin. Look at verse 9. But if you show partiality, you commit sin. And are convicted by the law as a transgressor. There's no equivocation on this. There's no way to spin it. You've broken God's law. Now, does a person lose his salvation? No. But he sure loses his integrity. That's where the indictment is there, of the sin. And then in verses 10 and 11, the proof. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, yet stumble in one point, he's guilty of all. Guilty of all. You can say, well, I've done all other nine commandments. No, it's not the way it works. And then he illustrates the point in verse 11, for he who said do not commit adultery also said do not murder. So you have two commands. Now if you do not commit adultery, that is, you've not cohabited with your neighbor's wife, But you do commit a murder. Now, these are interesting statements because Jesus Christ elevates them out of the realm of simply physical violation. He said, on the one hand, if you lust after a woman in your heart, you've committed adultery. You've violated the command. And then he also said, if you have hatred in your heart, You've committed murder. I mean, you've violated the intent of that command. So on the one hand, you don't commit adultery. You haven't lusted after women. But on the other hand, you have committed transgression as a murderer of the law. You've hated someone. That's a violation of that law. And now, this is the conduct of believers. The basis of that conduct is verse 12. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of freedom. You see, what happens with a believer, he has been elevated and freed to be able to keep the law. It's freeing. It's liberating law. He had used this phrase earlier, so it's not the first introduction to this concept. Look at chapter 1 again, verse 25, but he who looks into the perfect law which liberates is free and continues in it and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work. This one will be blessed or happy in whatever he does. That's the law of liberty. the judge of freedom. Do you realize that you as a believer now, because of the presence of the Spirit that he has put within you, has elevated you not only to sonship, but liberated you to be able to keep his law. There's no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit. For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh has condemned sin. that the righteousness of the law might be kept by those who walk, not in the flesh, but in the spirit. You and I, through the Spirit's ministry, now can live the liberating law. It's freeing. And then he writes, verse 13, for judgment is without mercy. Resonate in your mind, for judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Blessed are the merciful, Jesus said, for they shall find mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. That poor person comes in you show mercy not Deferential treatment Just closing real quickly here I Believe when I think about this and as I was preparing for this that the early church worked tireless tirelessly it worked tirelessly in my opinion, to break down all sorts of prejudices. Paul writing to the Galatians says, but after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor, which is the law, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. May I add the glorious Lord of glory. For as many of you as were baptized or placed into Christ have put on Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek. There is neither slave nor free. There is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. As Paul labored in the ancient world, as we've studied, just a few months ago in 1 Thessalonians, going into Thessalonica and establishing church, it broke down. All prejudices, it broke down social structures where slaves could meet and worship. Those like Philemon who owned a slave, Onesimus. Onesimus flees his master, goes to Rome, becomes converted, comes back. He's received as a brother. That's what the gospel does. And therefore there should be no prejudice. I believe the Jerusalem Council in Acts chapter 15 settled that issue once and for all. That Jews and Gentiles are received on the same ground. And that is through faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. There's parity between you and me. There's equality. People talk about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Christianity is the only institution that has it all. We have diversity, and we include, and there's equity. We are all seen as the same in Christ. Therefore, prejudice Favoritism Good old buddy networks That's gone That's gone in Christ. Jesus. Don't look down your nose at me. I Promise you I'm working to the end not to look down my nose at you God help us God help us to fulfill our The royal law of liberty. The law, the freedom-giving law. Oh, bless the Lord, beloved. Thank God that God was fair with us in Christ Jesus. No matter what your racial background, no matter what your economic background, He's fair. He receives you in Christ Jesus. That's it. Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling. You have nothing. Let's pray. Father, we thank you that all that we have is in Jesus. And may you remove every vestige of hatred and animosity that we may have toward anyone, but that we might love one another to the fullest extent that the Spirit would grace us with strength to do that. I pray in Jesus' name. be glorified in our midst. In Jesus' name I pray, amen and amen.