⁶. . . Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? ⁷Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?

Showing favoritism toward the rich and famous only puts us at a disadvantage. When we kowtow to them, we concede to them the superior position over us. What an irony!

Favoritism has serious drawbacks. First, when we defer to those who are wealthy, we overlook their mistreatment of others. Wealth gives people a sense of superiority and entitlement. The wealthy can afford to have servants, many possessions, bigger homes, fancier clothes, better culinary experiences, and the list goes on. They become the envy of others, and they know money “buys” influence. As they live life, they easily ignore or overlook the suffering of others. And it is altogether too easy to capitalize on the disadvantage of others.

Secondly, genuflecting before the wealthy becomes our servile effort to avoid their displeasure, here depicted in the extreme of dragging people into court. This would not involve a mere fine or community service in the Roman world of James’ day, but jail time or public humiliation.

Thirdly, and most significantly, when we coddle the rich among us, we encourage the impious treatment of the name of Jesus Christ. The early Christians were much more sensitive to the abuse of Jesus’ name than Christians today. How many of us would walk out of a movie theater featuring a favorite actor who uses the name of our Lord Jesus as a common expletive? That would be blasphemous to James. And one can only imagine the Lord’s reaction if He were sitting with us, as we “enjoyed” the entertainment.

James is not saying that wealthy Christians in our congregations are guilty of all these things. But they are from the class of people in society that tend toward these avarices. In the church, wealthy people should be encouraged to genuinely follow Christ rather than to relish in their possessions and societal status. It had not been that long since the church in Jerusalem, of which James was a leader, was characterized by sharing their possessions:

And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. (Acts 2:44–45)

What James says to us who are not wealthy is that we should not give preferential treatment to those who are.

Lord, help me be content with what I have and generous toward others.