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James 5:1-6
God's Judgment & Concern for the Poor
Introduction
As I have stated before, James' letter is hard-hitting. He tells us
things we don't really like to hear, but we need to hear them and respond
to them if we want to be right with God.
We're going to use this passage as a SPRING-BOARD to talk about two
important biblical themes . . .
God Will Judge All Unrighteousness & Injustice
Read vs 1-6. We saw earlier in this letter that the Christian community
to whom James is writing were being oppressed and persecuted by wealthy
non-Christians. This passage explains that oppression more clearly.
They have lived a life of selfish greed in complete disregard of the
needs of the poor (vs 2, 3a, 5a).
Worse than that, they have used their power to exploit the poor by
not paying them for their labor (vs 4a), and by oppressing them
in court (vs 6; 2:6b-7).
But the main point of this passage is that a literal day is coming when
God will call these people to account for their actions and judge them.
As hundreds of biblical passages affirm, God will judge all unrighteousness
and injustice. James speaks like an Old Testament prophet (beyond his
immediate audience) to the oppressors.
They are oblivious to the fact that their greedy hoarding is only
providing the evidence for their judgment (vs 3b). They are like
cattle being fattened for slaughter (vs 5b).
They feel safe about not paying their laborers because they have no
human legal recourse, but God has heard their pleas and will prosecute
their oppressors (vs 4b).
How does this doctrine make you feel? It arouses two very different
responses in most people.
On the one hand, most feel glad that passages like this are
in the Bible. Although I have no delight in God's judgment of people,
this doctrine is crucial to the moral integrity of the biblical world-view.
Specifically, it answers the question “How can a loving and powerful
God exist since this kind of injustice (HOLOCAUST; STALIN PURGES; YUGOSLAVIA)
is so common?” The answer is that God will bring this injustice
to an end and he will judge the ones who did it. The fact that that
day has not yet come does not mean that people will not be brought to
justice; it only means that God has not executed the sentence yet.
On the other hand, most also feel worried. I wonder “Where
does this leave me?” I'm no HITLER or STALIN—but it's not
like I've never cheated or exploited anybody, either. How does God decide
who gets judged and who doesn't?
One of the best ways to answer this question is to study the original
Passover. The Israelites had been enslaved and oppressed for decades by
the Egyptians. They cried out to God for justice and, at the right time,
God answered their request. That night he was sending an angel of death
to take the life of every first-born Egyptian son, which would convince
the Pharaoh to let them go. That was the good news for the Israelites.
But the bad news was that the angel of death would take their sons also—unless
they made proper preparations. God's provision was that they slay an unblemished
goat, eat it, and display the proof of its death by painting its blood
on their doorways. When the angel of death saw that this prescribed payment
had been made, he would “pass over” that household—thus
the name “Passover.”
This historical event is also a lesson in symbolic theology. Its symbolism
teaches us three crucial lessons about God's judgment.
The threat of judgment to the Israelites teaches that all who sin
fall justly under God's judgment, not just the “bad people.”
When God judges, he must judge all who have sinned (i.e., he
will judge you and me) unless their sins have been dealt with through
his prescribed method.
The required death of the unblemished lamb foreshadowed the death
of Jesus, whose sinless life qualified him to die in our place.
This is why Jesus died on the day of Passover—to make it clear
that he is the fulfillment of this prophetic picture (1 Corinthians 5:7).
The command to eat the lamb and display its blood on the doorway
symbolizes God's insistence that we must personally receive Jesus' death
as payment for our sins. God makes this provision for all of us,
but it doesn't help us unless we choose to admit our need for it and
personally receive it. The moment we do this, the Bible says we are
forever exempted from God's judgment (Romans 8:1; John 5:24).
If God came in judgment tonight at 12 midnight, where would you be at
12:01 a.m.? Would he “pass over” you?
Christians Have a Moral Obligation to Express God's Concern for the
Poor
What is the application of this passage to those of us who have received
Christ? James traces one application in vs 7-11 (cultivate patience
and endurance in adversity instead of taking out your frustrations on
each other). But since we have already studied this themes in James, I
want to develop another line of application . . .
It is clear in this passage that God's judgment is aroused not only
against the oppressors, but also on behalf of the poor. This passage
is one of literally hundreds of passages in the Bible which teach us
that as members of God's family, we have a moral obligation to manifest
his concern for the poor (see Proverbs 14:31; 29:7). This may be an
uncomfortable message for many of us to hear, but we need to hear it.
When I speak of the poor, I am referring to those who lack sufficient
food, shelter and medical care through no major fault of their own. Living
in the suburbs, as most of us do, it's easy to think that the only people
who are poor are those who are lazy, or to be ignorant of just how widespread
this problem is. Consider the following facts.
One quarter of the world's population (over 1 billion people) live
in desperate poverty. 12-15 million people will die this year of starvation
and malnutrition-related diseases. This figure includes 35,000 children
each day, including 50 percent of all children in Central America before
they reach age 6.
Americans represent only 6 percent of the world's population, but
we have almost 50 percent of the world's income and we use 35 percent
of its resources. As a country, we eat enough food to feed the 1 billion
people who live in desperate poverty. Most Americans have adequate access
to medical care, but 40 percent of all Latin Americans have no access
to any kind of medical care.
Of course, there are also plenty of poor in the U.S. In Columbus'
Windsor Terrace, for example, the average household (consisting of one
parent with five children) has an annual income of $3,100.
Yet American Christians spend just a little bit more annually on missions
(their major way of helping the poor) than they spend on chewing gum!
Ironically, the roles of Jas. 5:1-6 have been reversed. As Ron
Sider says, we are “rich Christians in an age of hunger.”
These are overwhelming facts—facts which usually give rise to objections
which we need to think through . . .
“Many people are poor because they have made wrong choices.”
True. Many are poor because of personal sin like laziness or drug use—but
many more are poor for reasons outside their control. Poor people must
have determination to better their lives—but they also still need
help.
“These problems are very complex, and none of them will be fully
resolved until Christ returns.” True. But this fact doesn't release
us from the responsibility to practically and creatively manifesting
God's concern for the poor until Christ returns.
“I have a responsibility to use my resources to care for my own
family.” True. But the same God who tells us we have this responsibility
also tells us we have a responsibility to express his concern for the
poor—and most of us have the means to do this.
“Poor people need the message of Christ's forgiveness most of
all.” True. But most of the two billion unreached people also live
in poverty, so we will have to address this area if we want them to
take the gospel seriously.
“Individual Christians should be free to followw their own consciences
on how they address this issue.” True, we must give each other
the liberty to follow our consciences and God's individual calling for
our ministry focus. But it is not legalistic to say that all Christians
are called to help the poor in some way, any more than it is legalistic
to say that all Christians are called to share Christ with others. Besides,
how many of us can really say that our tendency is to get legalistic
about this issue? Isn't it true that most of us (including myself) tend
to ignore and rationalize it?
What sorts of things can all Christians do to represent Christ in this
area? I would like to suggest five steps we can all take.
Familiarize yourself with what the Bible says about God's concern
for the poor. A concordance or Topical Bible will keep you
busy for a long time because of the hundreds of passages on this subject.
Through this, the Holy Spirit builds personal conviction in our hearts
which motivates us to redemptive action.
Adopt a biblical definition of “rich” and “poor.”
Realize that most of us are “rich” in that we have far more
than we need to survive (1 Timothy 6:8). Nothing will help
this better than visiting the inner city or the third world. Through
this, an impersonal abstraction becomes concrete and personal (ME IN
BRAZIL). Reading is also effective (PERKINS & SIDER).
Commit yourself to live below your means and to be as debt-free
as possible. We can learn to resist the advertising lies
that tell us that more things will make us happy, and that we deserve
to have more just because we can afford it. This is necessary not just
so we can become more free financially, but also to free up resources
to help the poor (Ephesians 4:28).
Give consistently and significantly to support ministries which
help the poor in the name of Christ. Your giving to this church
does this by helping to fund our foreign missions (which emphasize relief
and community development as well as evangelism and church planting),
and our local community development ministries (URBAN CONCERN &
MANY OTHER MT'S). Over $230,00 last year went to this cause. And of
course there are other Christian agencies which address these needs.
And some of us will be led by God to give of our time and talents as
a ministry focus.
Influence your children and other Christians to do the same things.
Never underestimate the influence this has.
Footnotes
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