Respecter of Persons

 Oftentimes I've seen it and so have you. People seem to forget those less popular, less affluent, less prestigious, less athletic, less interesting, less educated, poorer groomed and those who are insecure with themselves. Often the persons described are the SAME person. All these characteristics go together. When a person is cursed by one flaw, it seems they have all the flaws. I feel so sorry for these folks! The popular, prestigious, affluent, well-groomed and secure seem to forget the feelings of the down-casts. This is so wrong!
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James 2:1 “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. 2For 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; 3And 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: 4Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? ... 8If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: 9But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. 10For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. “

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Although James is talking of the wealthy, the admonishment would be the same for the down-cast of any type. If we don't include ANY person we're in sin! We are all guilty of it at some time or another, but God expects us to do better! We need to empathize... put ourselves in their place. I've been there and done that! As a child I fit the description of the less popular and the poor. My ability to perform in school raised me beyond being a downcast, but even today I feel it at times.

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What should we do? When there is an activity, make a special effort to include those who aren't normally included. If a person seems to be a poor conversationalist, include them in your discussions. Ask them what they think of the subject in vogue at the moment. Ask them what their own interests are. You might learn something yourself! Love them just as you love those who are more as you are. Step out of that predictable slot “I'll sit with my friends.” or “”I'll eat with my family”. Make others your friends and family!

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In churches we tend to gather with those whom we already know, with family and with people who like similar activities. That's normal, but taken to the extremes of exclusion it looks cliquish to the ones excluded. We must do better at making a special effort to be in unity. Let's start right now with a commitment: Look for the new person at church. Invite them out to dinner. (Don't worry, it won't cost you a dime. People want friends, not your money!) Invite them to your home for an evening. Your friends will still be around later... new people may not be!

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Do you want the church to grow? Look around! Who's missing? I bet it's those that haven't been included. I'm pretty good at breaking the barrier myself, but others aren't as forceful.

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My ministry at my former church was to look for the second-time visitor. If they liked us enough to come back, I wanted to include them. I invited old and young, wealthy and poor and popular and not so popular. They all appreciated it. I bought their meal the first time as I could afford it. I never lost! Each time a new friend was made and God provided the finances. I attended a church with about 32 people in attendance. John Maxwell (before he became famous) preached on church growth for three months. Within a year our church was over 300! How was it done? By inviting, loving and including people! That works. Let's all make a resolution to do our part right now.