It is amazing that we can claim to be followers of Christ and yet take so lightly the words of His servants. For how could we act as we do if we took seriously the admonition of James the servant of God, “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. 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; 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: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom that he hath promised to them that love him”?
Paul saw these things in another light than did those of whom James makes his complaint. “By the cross,” he said, “I am crucified unto the world.” The cross where Jesus died became also the cross where His apostle died. The loss, the rejection, the shame, belong both to Christ and to all who in very truth are His. The cross that saves them also slays them, and anything short of this is a pseudo-faith and not true faith at all. But what are we to say when the great majority of our evangelical leaders walk not as crucified men but as those who accept the world at its own value—rejecting only its grosser elements? How can we face Him who was crucified and slain when we see His followers accepted and praised? Yet they preach the cross and protest loudly that they are true believers. Are there then two crosses? And did Paul mean one thing and they another? I fear that it is so, that there are two crosses, the old cross and the new.
Verse
My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. . . . Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? James 2:1, 5
Thought
But what are we to say when the great majority of our evangelical leaders walk not as crucified men but as those who accept the world at its own value-rejecting only its grosser elements?
Prayer
Thank You, Kind Father, for the cross that saves us. Let us be crucified on that cross.