Embracing Mercy: Overcoming Partiality in Faith

"Partiality you pay attention to one you're making distinctions among yourselves you become judges you see how he's developing, partiality has to do with paying attention to one you're making a distinction you become a judge with evil thoughts listen verse 5 listen my beloved Brothers as 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." [02:05]

"Judgment is without Mercy when you stand before God he is going to to be looking for Mercy that's what James teaches us and if you have shown no mercy remember what's on the table partiality partiality is a love issue it's a law issue it's a mercy issue it's a judgment issue if you have shown no mercy you're going to encounter judgment without mercy and mercy triumphs over judgment if you are found to be a merciful person there is going to be Triumph on Judgment Day." [07:20]

"Christianity is a phenomenon on Brethren the thing is in the midst of all of this what James recognizes is that something something happens that's what the Christianity of scripture it's it's God acts upon Wicked lost sinners in a way to turn them from these selfish sinful lost individuals to a merciful somebody that is actually going to survive judgment that's the idea that fits the definition of what a phenomenon is it's something exceptional it's something unusual it's not natural It's Supernatural." [12:00]

"Brethren Christianity is not primarily a point of view or a doctrinal position or a teaching there is teaching there are doctrinal positions but Brethren do you recognize that the phenomenon of Christianity is something that grabs hold of you it is a phenomenon it is miraculous it is a Marvel it is something that amazes people it's something that transforms people it's something that people look back at the the Paul Saul it's like wait something's happened to this guy before he was doing this now he's doing this before we were selfish now we're doing this now we're showing Mercy not just in a partial way in an impartial way way that's the idea here it's just it's a miracle." [12:39]

"Brethren if this gospel is not Supernatural there's no hope for any of us the gospel by definition is Supernatural it's divine it is a Divine phenomenon Brethren it's not just a spoonful of morality that's not what we're talking about here phenomenon Brethren lightning is a phenomenon a Christian is a phenomenon there's a powerful demonstration of God in it and you can touch it right at the point of Mercy you can touch it at the point of partiality." [16:01]

"Brethren the issue is this that like Peter he talks about very well-known verse that Christ he himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree so that what if you want to mix Peter and James so that we might die to selfishness and live to Mercy we might die to partiality and live to showing compassion you see there is a power of the Cross." [10:08]

"Brethren the truth is this this book is full of the supernatural it doesn't it doesn't argue for it it doesn't debate about it it's just a simply a record of showing us the reality Brethren if this gospel is not Supernatural there's no hope for any of us the gospel by definition is Supernatural it's divine it is a Divine phenomenon." [15:42]

"Brethren the thing is you see the thing about partiality is when I'm partial to certain people the real motive isn't Mercy the real motive is what advantage is that for me it's very selfish because you're always seeing that somehow you know of course when it's the rich guy you understand you're going to show favor you hope maybe you'll get something out of that Brethren love in a biblical sense as James goes on to explain in 14-16 is always related to meeting needs." [44:19]

"Brethren we know this that generally speaking throughout God's Redemptive history God chooses those who in the eyes of the world are very insignificant Brethren look where we meet look at the part of the city look at the building we meet in if the mayor drove by right now he he probably or she I don't know which it is now but they might not like all the traffic we need an ordinance against all that but they wouldn't care about us they're not going to come in here generally speaking that's the way God chooses those poor in the eyes of the world the down and outs the ones who are not oh you got to love that the ones who are not are not what just are not fill in the blank we're the are Nots as a general principle." [50:54]

"Brethren you can choose I mean look in much the same way guys you can be partial when when it comes to picking a wife you don't pick all the single girls as much as there's a place for being a respector of persons when it comes to people people of authority we should respect our parents we should respect people in high positions Kings there's a place for that kind but Brethren not that impartiality that speaks to some selfishness this is a judgment day issue Bren I hope you'll think you really want to think you want to be swayed by this this is this is an exhortation to Brethren James wants the people to recognize it's a judgment day issue it's a law issue it's a love issue it's a real serious issue you may not rape them you may not kill them you may not take their wife but Brethren when you show partiality that is that is really rotten in the sight of God so rotten that those people whose lives are characterized by that they're not going to be shown Mercy on that day." [53:18]

"Brethren I say this let Grace Community Church be characterized by Mercy Lord help us we ask in Christ's name amen." [56:32]

"Brethren the real issue in all of this is it does does law does does love does this Freedom produce lawlessness both Paul and James say no way no way brethren it doesn't produce that we're set free from our sins we're forgiven we're freed from the Comon condemnation from the Dominion of sin and now we're just we're free we're free to live in this Freedom it doesn't produce lawlessness it produces love Faith what what really matters in all of this Faith working through love that's what he told the Galatians s Brethren since you love yourself so much and you do you dressed you today you combed your hair today you fed yourself today you got coffee for you today you're concerned about your future you're concerned about your income you're concerned about I mean Brethren what occupies your mind you you do whose needs whose appetites who do you try to make happy Brethren it's you and so if you treat everyone else the same way you treat yourself there's going to be equality." [44:19]