Who Cares About Poor People?

You people are more important than those people.

God cares about people in all categories hello and welcome to a brand-new week here on destiny for victory with pastor Paul Sheppard ever you are and how he may be listening. Thanks for making this part of your busy Monday James the brother of Jesus, wrote his New Testament epistle to Christians within scattered all over the world due to intense persecution. As we continue our journey through this book today see that he had some very practical lessons to share with them some wisdom that still holds relevance today. Stay right here or visit Pastor Paul.net to listen anytime on to me that's pastor Paul.net and be sure to subscribe to the podcasts of Apple podcasts its bona fide or where ever you get your podcasts down his Pastor Paul. With today's destined for victory message. Who cares about working with me to James chapter 2 and I want us to begin by looking at the first six verses of James chapter 2 and I've entitled this message. Who cares about poor people who cares about poor people.

James chapter 2 beginning with verse one my brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don't show favoritism.

I love James. This is just one of my favorite books because James done fool around with a whole bunch of theology analogies good now because it gives us the foundational knowledge for our faith but I love the fact that James is just a straight shooter. This is one of the earliest books written in the New Testament before the church was fully formed and organize. That's why you find James just making playing statements and is writing a general letter to the church because the Saints had been scattered in the early days of persecution and he just jumps right in brothers, don't show favoritism. He says suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say here's a good seat for you, but say to the poor man.

You stand there or sit on the floor by my feet have you not discriminated among yourselves and watch this and become judges with evil thoughts. He says listen, my dear brothers 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, and the first words of verse six are but you have insulted the poor pause right there. The first point James makes in what we call chapter 2 is that God cares about poor people and how they are treated matters to him. I need you to take note of that God cares about poor people and how they are treated matters to him. I'm preaching to the 21st century church, mostly to people in America go through our broadcast we now minister to people in other continents we are hearing from people in Africa are hearing from people in Asia hearing from people in Europe who listen regularly to our broadcast and their blessed by but I'm preaching at least in this physical setting. I'm preaching to 21st-century Americans who are exposed to a brand of Christianity that if we're not careful we will get comfortable doing things that God is very uncomfortable with and I want to pastor a church that will never ever be comfortable making God uncomfortable. I want to pastor people who care about what God cares about who hate what God hates who love what God loves so that we can stay in sync with that prayer. We often pray God kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. God's will is being done flawlessly in heaven and our prayer and our practice ought to be Lord Mayor be done here on earth through us. Justice flawlessly. Look at the context James is saying where really followers of Jesus Christ. If we really want to be sincere in our discipleship. He says we have to make sure that in no way are we practicing favoritism in no way are we looking at some folks who because of what they have been commando certain type of respect for months, or a certain type of attention from us and we got to be intentional and deliberate.

James says about not practicing favoritism because God cares about poor people and he cares how we treat them.

Let's establish that from other scriptures and not just this one Psalm 82. The first three verses say God presides in the great assembly. He gives judgment among the" God's. What's that mean that means God is the one in charge. Now this is not a Psalm of David. This is a form of Asaph, and Asaph says I need you to know that God is large and in charge. He presides in the great assembly of beer. He renders judgment among the gods was remained there. He says he renders judgment, even among people you think are big shots. God is really in charge. I know that there is a Forbes list of the 50 richest people I know that there are people who are multibillionaire is because of great companies they have found it but God is not impressed with the Fortune 500.

I need you listen to me. God is not impressed by the things that impressed that God doesn't watch lifestyles of the rich and famous God, no, no, I got to see that I need to see how many houses they have and how much acreage there is and all that I told you recently, I saw on the news because they were talking about somehow status on the market currently $495 million house $495 million and they had no buyers yet and I thought that's newsworthy. It was on the moons no buyers yet so later what role did even go sit on it or they will take a lower price. No way. I got a question. Who cares who cares I'd only been known by the house going kingdom work you want to get to the church of Jesus Christ a little for some homeless people and then disciple them and teach them the word of God, you got my attention but I don't care what you wind up selling your house for because the house is going to Paris and so will you.

So my job is the get you ready for eternity. My job is the teacher that you never follows our first and that all what should do for Christ will last. So listen I'm just not impressed and more importantly, God's not impressed with what people have because he is large and in charge and I love that this passage goes on to say, although people are considered gods in this world very important people. He says how long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked, and then he says that the cause of the week and fatherless maintain the rights of the poor and overpriced. Look at Proverbs 31 verses eight and nine speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves for the rights of all who are destitute speak up and judge fairly defend the rights of the poor and needy use audacity that this Old Testament stuff first Timothy chapter 5 verse 21.

The apostle Paul says I charge you in the sight of God in Christ Jesus and the elect angels to keep these instructions without partiality. Watch this and to do thing out of favoritism so you can see by just as quick sampling.

I didn't put more into my message because I didn't have much time, but the Bible is of admonitions against favoritism your listing to Destin for victory with pastor Paul Sheppard who was senior pastor of destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont California be right back with the second half of today's message. If you're enjoying today's message this as well as many other great teachings by Pastor Paul are available online@pastorpaul.net listen to Destin for victory any time by downloading our free mobile app. The app allows you to select from any recent message from Pastor Paul to contact us for prayer or order resources. You can even take notes on the daily messages right on your mobile device. Search Destin for victory in the App Store and download it today. It's absolutely free. The epistle of James is basically a how-to manual on living the Christian life how to handle adversity to resist temptation and today subject how to treat those who are less fortunate than you are is pastor Paul was arrested today's message. Who cares about poor people God cares about poor people and there are a lot of church folk not you, but others who don't care about poor people I know I've met some of them. Many of you have as well who simply don't care can look at somebody in need and not care can have somebody walk in obviously looking like they are wearing shabby clothes, disheveled didn't get a chance to to go in and get fixed up don't have Sunday's best close and when they show up at some churches, it becomes painfully clear to them that they don't matter church I'm preaching this to tell you they do matter to God and therefore they must matter to us.

They've got a matter we have to be a church and all churches I'm preaching to people who don't sit under my physical pastorate, but I've got other radio pastor or Internet pastor.

Let me tell you something. Although you are not here when shabby people when poor people when people who have all kinds of hard times show up at your place for God sake told at least one person who really does care that they are there. We cannot grow our churches in the country clubs we cannot grow our churches into fraternities and sororities of the best and the finest we can't be a place where the school matter. We've got a be a place where the folk who just don't show up on anybody's list the popular people come in they find a welcome and they find the love of God, and they find they find a future, we gotta believe that place we have to believe that people who show them God cares about you and we care about you because poor people matter to God.

I am astounded by the difference of so-called Christians when it comes to certain areas of our population just don't care. Look at you and not see you.

Have you ever felt that feeling. Maybe it's not over your cold inmate is not over the fact that you know that you can't contend with them in terms of your bank account, but maybe it's about some other area. A line of demarcation because you know we carnal human race. We got a bunch of lines that matter to us. It can be a race line. You have been made painfully clear that you don't fit here. Never felt that I have I gone places and I'm pastor Paul in certain world, but I'm a black dude there and it doesn't matter anything else they could care less. My degrees in my books and my my sermons and and all of that could care less. I served on the national board of religious broadcasters and that they could care less about my little resume. All I am is what I look like to them ever felt that everyone race ever felt that because of gender. Ladies have you ever hit your head real hard on the glass ceiling where you were smarter than the other men in the room but it didn't matter because you are not a man and you slam Joe on that thing and nobody when they saw you believe you would even hand you a handkerchief you ever felt that way you ever felt singles like your half a person goes around a bunch of married folk who act like to be married is to be whole and the beast seemed always to be less then hold, let's just talk on the shop. All of us who were married we will one single and you just need to think back that were times when they made you feel like well is relative to the first thing that is you married yet. Come on, trying to help somebody with names and I will way of looking at people, but this book tells you James says listen God is against you putting people in categories and rice and acting like these people are more important than those people, and he says God cares about people in all categories. Therefore, we have to learn to treat them all with honor and with respect. And so here he's talking about the social economic lines and he says just because one comes in with a nice ring and nice a designer close. Don't give him a certain seat based on their socioeconomic standing, and then find the other person who shabby does not put together who clearly don't have much money and then put them in an inferior place, or worse yet, humiliate them by not giving them a seat at all and he says the basis for doing that is simply that they don't have money.

Listen, I'm telling you folks, we've gotta take it seriously because you got understand as we operate in the kingdom.

This concept is growing and growing in my head I'm sure I'm going to put together a sermon series on it shortly. But I'm becoming more and more aware of the fact that we've gotta teach people that being a Christian is more than a matter of practicing a particular faith being a Christian means you are a citizen of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is real by the King and what he says goals and values must be our values, we gotta learn operators kingdom people we are in this world but were not of this world we got operate like people who are not of this world is why my care that your ports in a negative way, but the kingdom cares that you're poor in a positive way and we've got a lot.the values of the kingdom.

So James says God cares about and therefore how we treat them matters to God. So church.

I want us to understand that as we deal with people in whatever category, but in this case favoritism as it would relate to social economic matters. We must refuse to be like others, even if they are Christian quote unquote. We must refuse to be like others and disrespect the poor. We gotta carrots unfortunate in our world.

We divide Christianity up and I hear people talking about what do you preach the social gospel, or do you preach the moral gospel and what they're trying to say is there some churches that are known for their stance on morals and all of that and the implication is the other churches that really could care less how you live in so you live as raggedy as you want in certain churches and be okay, but in our moral base churches. We stand for holiness and righteousness, and when I gone that folk went up in here living out in the old Conaway and anything in their other churches that preach the social gospel and their focus is on taking care of the poor and looking after prisoners and all of that and that's what really counts, because that's what matter to Jesus and they try to put you in a category, find out which one you in both are kingdom values the kingdom cares how you live in the kingdom cares that you are well cared for by the citizens of the kingdom. So if you asked me what controversy your pastor, I'm going to pastor a church that's the kingdom church and in the kingdom.

Since God is how we live. I'm going preach about how we live and since God cares our response to the poor. I'm going to preach about our response to the poor, and I will not hold up holiness at the expense of love and I will not hold up at the expense of holiness when called to be kingdom citizens.

God cares about poor people.

No one demonstrated kingdom living more than Jesus did.

So if we want to be kingdom people we should follow in his steps. First we follow him in salvation. Then we follow him in sanctification. The process of becoming more like him. It's during the second stage is sanctification that are growing faith should produce in us a greater desire to perform good works, loving others as we love ourselves.

Treating people of all races and all economic classes with love, honor and respect. Just as Christ did stay with us for the next few days as we continue our journey through the book of James right here on destined for victory in Psalm 107. King David writes then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. If you need prayer today. The destined for victory ministry team would like to join you in prayer from the homepage of Pastor Paul.net use the contact us feature. Let us know how we can pray for you while you're there, be sure to ask for pastor Paul's monthly letter of encouragement.

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He says if you really keep the royal law found in Scripture love your neighbor as yourself you're doing right. If you show favoritism, you sin.

That's the third point. Favoritism is sin. It is not a weakness is not a issue I sent you need to work on. Favoritism is sin. That's tomorrow and pastor Paul Sheppard shares his message. Who cares about poor people.

Until then, remember he who began a good work and you will bring it to completion in Christ, you are destined for victory