My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old 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 become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: 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? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? James 2:1-7
“James presents a hypothetical situation in which a rich and a poor man come into a meeting. There would be nothing unusual about this, for there were certainly rich believers. If the attitude of the leaders was to favour the rich to the detriment of the poor, they were guilty of discrimination, which James condemns as offensive. The sin is in the fact that these leaders, whom the author calls my dear brothers, have set themselves up as judges by elevating the rich and insulting the dignity of the poor. God is on the side of the poor, not because they are poor but because they are responsive to him and are near the Kingdom.
If they are rich in faith, they inherit the Kingdom. God rejects the rich, not because of their riches but because they commit violent acts: they are exploiting you … dragging you into court, … slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong. The ‘name’ to which James is referring is the name of Jesus Christ. The rich assume that their wealth entitles them to do what they like and that they are not subject to the same rules as others.
Christian communities in Africa are not immune to this sometimes unconscious discrimination in favour of the rich since the power of money is strong when many are poor. The rich are easily noticed and gain the respect of leaders. Then the poor find themselves shoved to one side because, as the proverb says, ‘thin cows are not licked by their friends’. They are ignored because they are ‘thin’ and cannot make a financial contribution to the community.”
Solomon Andria (Madagascar) in “James” in Africa Bible Commentary, Tokunboh Adeyemo, General Editor (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006).
So far so good in Africa. Thanks for your prayers for me and the African staff and regional workers that I am mentoring this week. Let me tell you about one of them.
Romeo Nkongnou lives here in Cameroon. He’s an enthusiastic emerging Christian worker. He took GTP courses, started moderating them for others, and then agreed to serve as Global Trainer and French Programs Manager for GTP.
Romeo gets it and wanted me to come train him to spread trainings 2×2 with country coordinators across the regions. Today we wrap up the first training, Journey of Empowerment (JOE).
JOE has four lessons: (1) You matter! (2) You are part of something bigger! (3) We choose God’s path together to make a difference. (4) We hold each other accountable to stay on track.
This is not insignificant in Africa filled with corruption and favoritism, where little gets done without bribes or knowing the right people, and where people get labeled as thin or fat cows. We teach people to train others in a new, biblical way to live.
But let’s face it. Africa and America (and everywhere else) have corruption and favoritism. I appreciated how Solomon spoke of “unconscious discrimination” today. We do it and do not even realize it.
This brings the 2×2 aspect of JOE into view. When we don’t realize we are part of the problem rather than part of the solution, we need others to help us get on track and stay on track. That’s what JOE does.
We have delivered JOE in English with French translation. Learn more about JOE here. Watch a video, download the brochure, and/or register for the next on demand cohort in January 2026.
And in case you missed it, consider joining me on a Journey through Advent. Click here to download my 30-day devotional, Waiting (start reading today on 1 December 2025).
And click here to register for zooms on 8, 15, and 22 December 2025 on which we will explore the topic of Waiting more deeply. You are welcome to attend, one, two, or all three zooms.