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HIS
SERVANTS' MINISTRY
www.hisservants.org
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No
Respecter of Persons
Acts 10:34-35 Then
Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive
that God is no respecter of persons: [35] But in
every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness,
is accepted with him. (KJV) God does NOT show
partiality. In every nation He accepts those who
fear Him and do what is right. Each
and every nation in this world have people who worship
and love the one and only true God of the Bible; who are His children (John 1:12-13). In
Peter’s day, there was prejudice. There was a great
Jewish-Gentile conflict. That conflict has not ended!
What is prejudice? It is suspicion, and/or hatred
of other races, creeds, cultures, poverty, etc.
I had a black lady in one of my bible classes ask
me, "Why do people hate Negroes?" I had
many very good answers from others in class, but
it all boils down to the fact that people do not
know what the Bible states about God’s love! The
truth is stated in these verses. God loves ALL people!
He is NO "respecter of persons."
And if God loves these people, we must love them
also!
Job 34:18-19 Is it fit
to say to a king, Thou art wicked? and to princes,
Ye are ungodly? [19] How much less to him that accepteth
not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich
more than the poor? for they all are the work of
his hands. [KJV] God doesn't care how
great a person may be, and He doesn't pay any more
attention to the rich than to the poor. He made
them all. We in today's world have some terribly
wicked and ungodly leaders in our government. God
is pure and perfect and righteous; and He loves
justice, so He is well qualified to govern this
world. And when He governs, He will do it in a righteous
manner. He does NOT have favorites! He judges according
to our works (Ps.62:12; Jer.17:10). God looks on
the rich man the same way He looks on the poor man
(works). So, just what "work" is most
important to God? That question is answered by none
other than Jesus!
John 6:29 Jesus answered
and said unto them, This
is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom
he hath sent. (KJV) God simply
wants us believe in the One He has sent, and that
is Jesus! This is the number one priority with God
the Father! We must accept God’s only begotten Son,
Jesus the Christ; be ye rich or poor, healthy or
sick, have great power or none at all, famous or
an unknown! This is the first "work"
on which we shall be judged!
James 2:1 My
brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. (KJV) How can anyone claim that you have faith
in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if they favor
some people more than others? WHY do people tend
to treat rich people better than poor people? Do
we feel better about ourselves by associating with
someone of means? Would we rather identify ourselves
with an affluent person rather than an apparent
failure? Are we impressed by their status, wealth,
fame or power? Are we partial to the "haves"
and just do not want to associate with the "have-nots?"
If Jesus came today, rather than when He did, would
you look down on Him? He was poor! He didn’t even
have a place to lay His Head (Mat.8:20).
James 2:2 For
if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold
ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also
a poor man in vile raiment; (KJV) Suppose
two people came to your church service, one dressed
in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another
who is poor and dressed in shabby clothes, which
would you greet first? Wealth may mean intelligence,
wisdom and hard work. On the other hand, it could mean their wealth was ill-gotten at another’s expense,
greed, dishonesty, selfishness or that he inherited
it. God favors NO one (Ps.39:17; Isa.55:8-9). He
judges their heart and motives. We on the other
hand, tend to judge from external appearances (1
Sam.16:7; Mat.23:25-27). We must instead, look at
each person from their character and lifestyle (John
7:24; 2 Cor.5:12; 10:7).
James 2:3 And ye have respect
to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto
him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the
poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: (KJV) If you give special attention and a good seat
to the rich person, this would be telling the poor
man to stand or sit in the back.
James 2:4 Are
ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become
judges of evil thoughts? (KJV) We should
NOT discriminate or be partial to the rich, or the
powerful; but sad to say, far too many times even
God’s children slip up on this! God absolutely does
NOT do this, neither should we! IF we do, we are
indeed judges of evil thoughts. We are guided
by wrong motives.
James 2:5 Hearken,
my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor
of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom
which he hath promised to them that love him? (KJV) James is speaking to believers! He is
talking about those who have little money, and too,
their simple values are looked down on in the affluent
society in which we live; those who are content
with what God has given them (Heb.13:5; Phil.4:11;
1 Tim. 6:6-8). There are very few rich men who make
it to Heaven. WHY?? Because their riches is their
god; and God plainly states we MUST place Him first
in our lives (Mat.10:37-38). We must love God with
all our heart and soul and mind and strength (Mat.22:37).
A rich man places his trust in what he has, and
not in God.
James 2:6 But
ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress
you, and draw you before the judgment seats? (KJV) Despise here means to look down upon;
to scorn; to have a contemptible, haughty, or arrogant
attitude for; to consider worthless. Isn’t it usually
the rich and powerful that oppress the poor? The
rich will not give poor folk an honest deal. How
about politicians who promise to work for and help
the poor? They usually end up exploiting us; taking
advantage of us, and selfishly and/or unfairly end
up lining their pockets. The only thing they work
for is our vote! There are exceptions to all the
above, but they are extremely rare!
James 2:7 Do
not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which
ye are called? (KJV) Aren’t the rich unbelievers
the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble Name
you bear? Worthy is honorable. Today it is
so common to blaspheme the Name of Jesus. TV is
at the top of the list for this. But, too, when
anyone mistreats the poor, they are slandering Christ!
Anything we do to another (whether good or bad),
we are doing to Jesus (Mat.10:40; 18:5; Luke 10:16;
Acts 9:4: 1 Cor.8:12).
James 2:8 If
ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture,
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do
well: (KJV) It is truly good when you obey
our Lord’s royal command found in the Scriptures:
"Love your neighbor as yourself."
I believe that Jesus fulfilled the Ten Commandments
for us. When we accept Him, we receive His righteousness
(1 Cor.1:30). I believe we are under the law of
grace, NOT the Mosiac Law (John 1:17). IF we try
to keep the Mosiac Law (Ten Commandments) we must
keep ALL the laws, which is about 613 laws. If you
break one, you break them all! We CANNOT keep all
the laws, and if we don’t. we are cursed (Deut.27:26; Gal.3:10). Jesus gave us TWO commandments,
found in Matthew 22:37-40. The first is to love
God with our all, the second is love your neighbor
as yourself. The "Golden Rule" is found
in Matthew 7:12.
Matthew 7:12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men
should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this
is the law and the prophets. (KJV)
Simply. . . do unto others as you want them to do
to you. IF you do this, you will NEVER hurt anyone!
And Jesus says this (LOVE) covers the whole Old
Testament; ALL the laws!
James 2:9 But
if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and
are convinced of the law as transgressors. (KJV)
If you favor the rich over the poor, and look down
your nose at them, you are committing sin! If you
have mercy on the poor, you honor God (Pro.14:31).
Do you want to sin? Treating the poor, another race
or culture, in a shabby way, you are making God
angry. Treat them in the way you want to be treated,
and you will honor God.
James 2:10 For
whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend
in one point, he is guilty of all. (KJV)
This is very similar to Deut,27:26 and Gal.3:10.
I praise God every day for the Gift of salvation
through His precious Son, Jesus. I know I cannot
keep the Law, but Jesus did! And He passes on His
righteousness to ALL who have faith in Him (Rom.5:17;
1 Cor.1:30; 2 Cor.5:21; Phil.3:9; Tit.3:5). Thank
You Jesus!
Romans 10:12 For
there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek:
for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that
call upon him. (KJV) There is no difference
between the Jewish people and the Gentiles (non-Jews,
Greek), in God’s eyes. There is only ONE True God;
and He is Lord over ALL people! Yes, the Jews were
God’s chosen people (Ex. 19:5; Deut.14:2;
26:19; Ps.78:52), but they fell short of what God
wanted of them (to be missionaries to the Gentiles);
and they rejected Jesus as their Messiah when He
came. When the rejected Christ, God opened the door
to the Gentile people. Whosoever means anyone that will, can call upon the Name of
the Lord!
Romans 10:13 For
whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved. (KJV) These words are first seen
in Joel 2:32; Jew, Gentile, whosoever,
anyone, everyone who calls upon the precious Name
of Jesus shall be saved!
Leviticus 19:15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou
shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour
the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt
thou judge thy neighbour. (KJV) We should
always judge our neighbors fairly, not favoring
the poor, nor showing honor to the rich. Judges
SHOULD always be fair and just in their sentencing;
not caring whether a person is rich or poor. Sad
to say, all too many judges take bribes and make
judgments accordingly. This is utterly condemned
by God (Ex.23:8; Isa.1:23; 5:23; 33:15; Am.5:12).
We ALL should "do unto others!"
Deut. 1:17 Ye
shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall
hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not
be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is
God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring
it unto me, and I will hear it. (KJV) Moses
was speaking to Israel, telling them to choose wise
rulers over them (Deut.1:12-13).
If only
those who have rule over us would exercise these
qualities, it would be a much better world.
- #1
Fairness.
- #2
Impartiality.
- #3
The ability to recognize they didn’t know it
all.
- #4
Character strength.
These qualities should
be evident in our lives as we live the lives of
God’s children.
Deut. 16:19 Thou
shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect
persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind
the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the
righteous. (KJV) No one should ever twist
justice or show partiality. No one should ever accept
a bribe, for bribes blind the eyes of the wise and
corrupt the decisions of the godly. Because Israel
did not appoint wise judges and Godly rulers, they
were plagued by injustice and rebellion. We should
do our utmost best to elect people who have rule
over us, who make decisions for us.
Deut. 10:16 Circumcise
therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no
more stiffnecked. (KJV) We should cleanse
our sinful hearts and stop being stubborn. Stubbornness
is an abomination to God (1 Sam.15:23; Pro.3:23;
11:20). Only Jesus can circumcise (cleanse)
our hearts! (Deut.30:6; Jer.4:4; Rom.2:28-29; Col.2:11).
Deut. 10:17 For
the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords,
a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth
not persons, nor taketh reward: (KJV) The
Lord your God is the God of all gods and Lord of
all lords. He shows no partiality and takes no bribes.
Moses is telling Israel that God is THE God, the
one and only God, whom they should fear. God treats
everyone the same! He has NO favorites, NO teacher’s
pets, and praise the Lord! God NEVER takes bribes
from anyone!
2 Chron. 19:7 Wherefore now let the fear of the Lord be upon
you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity
with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor
taking of gifts. (KJV) The Lord our God
does not tolerate perverted justice, partiality,
or the taking of bribes. God cannot sin; cannot
lie; does not favor one person above another; does
not accept bribes. He has always been this way,
and always will be this way! He does NOT change!
Romans 2:7-11 To
them who by patient continuance in well doing seek
for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
[8] But unto them that are contentious, and do not
obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation
and wrath, [9] Tribulation and anguish, upon every
soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and
also of the Gentile; [10] But glory, honour, and
peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew
first, and also to the Gentile: [11] For there is
no respect of persons with God. (KJV) Salvation
is by faith alone, NOT works! But, after you have
been saved, you want to do well for the Lord. Any
good work we do after we are saved is a grateful
response to what Jesus has done for us. We can NEVER,
in any way, pay for eternal life; but, we love Him
so much we want desperately to please Him in any
way we can. Salvation is available to whosoever will accept His offer of the best Gift ever; and
it is absolutely FREE of charge!
Col. 3:23-25 And
whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord,
and not unto men; [24] Knowing that of the Lord
ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance:
for ye serve the Lord Christ. [25] But he that doeth
wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath
done: and there is no respect of persons. (KJV)
Heartily means to put your heart and soul in whatever
you do, as though you were working for the Lord
rather than for people. Serve Him eagerly. Do what
you do to please God, not man! Let us remember that
God has no favorites who can get away with evil.
He sees what wrong people do: l-o-n-g coffee breaks,
start late, quit early, slack on the job, loafing
on the job. He knows what you do! He sees your heart!
You will be held accountable! Be loyal, faithful,
willing and glad to serve Him. Don’t be lazy for
God!
Anyone who does wrong will be accountable
for his wrong. Christ Jesus as the Great Judge,
will straighten out everything in your life, and
mine, that we don’t straighten out ourselves! Each
one of us shall be judged in perfect judgment! Right
and true judgment (Ps.96:13; Acts 17:31). Even our
innermost secrets shall be judged (Rom.2:16). We
can hide nothing from God, not even our thoughts
(Eze.11:5).
1 Peter 1:17 And
if ye call on the Father, who without respect of
persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass
the time of your sojourning here in fear: (KJV)
The heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites.
He will judge or reward you according to what you
do. So you must live in reverent fear of Him during
your time as foreigners here on earth.
Luke 10:30-37 And Jesus answering said, A
certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho,
and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his
raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving
him half dead. [31] And by chance there came down
a certain priest that way: and when he saw him,
he passed by on the other side. [32] And likewise
a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked
on him, and passed by on the other side. [33] But
a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where
he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on
him, [34] And went to him, and bound up his wounds,
pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own
beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care
of him. [35] And on the morrow when he departed,
he took out two pence, and gave them to the host,
and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever
thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay
thee. [36] Which now of these three, thinkest thou,
was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? [37] And he said, He that
shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. (KJV)
There are
three different views in these verses:
- #1
The thief . . . what you have is mine.
- #2
The priest and the Levite . . . what I have
is mine
- #3
The good Samaritan . . . what I have is yours.
This parable pictures the
love of Christ for us. Like the traveler, we
too are wounded and left to die. We can do absolutely
nothing to save ourselves. Then steps in the
Good Samaritan (Jesus), and binds up our wounds
and makes arrangements for our care and welfare.
There
are three things to consider in this parable:
- #1
Our lack of love is easy to justify.
- #2
Our neighbor is anyone (whosoever), red, yellow,
black or white; any race, creed, culture, social
background, ANYONE that is in need.
- #3
Love means taking action when you see someone
in need. This does NOT only apply to money!
It includes love; a hug, a smile, just showing
you care. It includes sharing; your time, your
knowledge, a shoulder to cry on. I am referring
to people in true need!
There are
many people who prey on others . . . who
are too lazy to work, who collect food stamps and
welfare checks when they are well able to go out
and make a living for themselves. I am talking about
people who expect, even demand that the government
support them. God has some specific things to say
about them.
Proverbs 6:6 Go
to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and
be wise: (KJV)
Proverbs 19:24 A slothful man hideth his hand in his bosom,
and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again. (KJV)
Proverbs 20:4 The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold;
therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing. (KJV)
Proverbs 21:25-26 The
desire of the slothful killeth him; for his hands
refuse to labour. [26] He coveteth greedily all
the day long: but the righteous giveth and spareth
not. (KJV)
Ephes. 4:28 Let
him that stole steal no more: but rather let him
labour, working with his hands the thing which is
good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. (KJV)
1 Thes. 4:11-12 And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your
own business, and to work with your own hands, as
we commanded you; [12] That ye may walk honestly
toward them that are without, and that ye may have
lack of nothing. (KJV)
2 Thes. 3:10-12 For even when we were with you, this we commanded
you, that if any would not work, neither should
he eat. [11] For we hear that there are some which
walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but
are busybodies. [12] Now them that are such we command
and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness
they work, and eat their own bread. (KJV) ANY able bodied person who
does not work should not eat.
Why
is it wrong to show favoritism to the wealthy, the
powerful, the famous, etc.??
The
Bible tells you!
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