…have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?... but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
James 2:4, 9

The first nine verses of James 2 are usually understood to be about not showing favoritism to the rich over the poor. That is true. But that is not the whole truth. The bigger picture of this section is about not showing favoritism at all. While favoring the rich over the poor is an example, and the situation to which James was speaking specifically, favoritism of any sort is equally sinful.

What if we read James’ words in this section and overcompensate by showing favoritism to the poor over the rich? Are we any better off? Not at all. Imbalance is never corrected by adopting an imbalance in the other direction. Never.

Can you think of other areas in which we may show favoritism—even in the Church? Do we favor the successful, well-spoken, or the beautiful? Do we prefer testimonies from professional athletes and movie stars over plain folk? Are we kinder to people who “believe just like us” in secondary or non-essential matters? Do we segregate ourselves to have fellowship only with people who share our hobbies, interests, family dynamics, or who are no younger or older than we are?

It doesn’t matter what brand of favoritism we practice, but according to James, if we “show partiality, [we] commit sin.” Let us therefore examine our hearts to find any partiality in them, confess it as sin, and prayerfully set it aside by the grace of God. Let us receive others, regardless of who or what they are, as Christ has received us.