This is all I have to wear for now: James 2:1-9 1. My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. 2. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in godly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile (poor) raiment. 3. And ye have respect to him that wears the gay clothing, and say unto him, sit thou here in a good place; and say unto the poor, stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: 4. Are ye (you) not then partial yourselves, and are become judges of evil thought. 5. Hearten, my brethren, hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him. 6. But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgement seats? 7. Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by which ye are called? 8. If ye fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, THOU SHALT LOVE THY NEIGHBOR AS THYSELF, ye do well: 9. But if ye have respect of persons, ye commit sin, and are convicted of the law as transgressors. You know we go to church Sunday after Sunday, how many times have we witnessed someone come from the streets and enter into the assembly during worship? Not often enough. This scripture speaks to our attitude as to how we treat the various people in our community, theyre way of life and the walks of life from which they come. Young people come to church for the first time, many dont have proper so called church clothing. We as elders or lay people in the church trip up our noses at what they wear. Tight pants, a small shirt, cleavage out. We stir at them, shun them and criticize the outer apparel. And treat them as if they have something contagious, sitting them at the back of the church. What happened to loving these very folks into the kingdom. Let a politician, someone well dressed enter in, these are they that get ushered to the front of the room and treated as royalty. Are they bringing something more into the church then the persons without proper so called clothing, without a wallet full of money? These very people that have nothing for the time being are the ones that are able to go back out and win more souls for the kingdom. These very same people will change their appearance as the Holy Spirit moves on them, convicting them concerning the poor dress code. We are not perfect when we come to the Lord, neither do we have all the luxury dress as you do. Matter of factly, who says that your long begging clothes are the proper garments to be worn? What makes you the judge of someones clothing? Yes, God does things decently and in order, but He cannot do it if we turn the poor folk away from entering the church with our nasty, high minded attitudes. God is not pleased with that. God needs the young people, the street people as well as those dressed well and those whose pockets are wealthy. We all have a place. God changes our hearts, not man, God orders our steps, not man, God shapes our thoughts and actions, not man. So why do we trip our noses up at those that dont look like us when they enter into the church walls? If God is able, why do we fret, dont you believe that God will change their minds about how to order their dress? You only become a stumbling block to those seeking salvation, and cause offense. This my friends is a sin. Father, in the mighty name of Jesus, forgive us our ignorance, forgive us of our high minded behavior, thinking that we are better, when we are no better than a liar when we act selfish and arrogant in shunning potential new members of your kingdom. Father, forgives us of being stumbling blocks and discouraging people from seeking salvation. Let today be a new day for us in our attitude towards those less fortunate at this time. We know that all things are temporary, including some situations. Thank you Father that today we change our mind sets and allow you to work in us to treat people better, that we love one another as Christ loves us. That we appreciate all people for what they have and do not have. Let your mind be in us and let us be true to your word Lord, to give you the honor, the glory and all the praise. We bless you and thank you again and again for your mercy. In Jesus name. Amen.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 15:56:49 +0000
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