Henry Krabbendam - James - World Evangelical Alliance

fact, it is a known fact that God in his irony takes delight in lifting up the
poor, the humble, the “little people,” and in bringing down the rich, the arrogant,
the "big shots," all of which leaves little room for pride (Deut. 4:37; 7:6-
7; 14:2; 1 Sam. 2:1-10; Job 5:15-16; Ps. 9:19; 68:10; 69:33; 102:17; 113:7;
140:12; Is. 56:3-4; Mt. 5:3; 11:25; Mk. 12:37; Lk. 6:20; 12:32; 1 Cor. 1:26-
29; 2 Cor. 8:9; Gal. 2:10). This very much resonates with the fact that riches
are a weightier temptation than poverty (See Mk. 10:17-27), as we saw in the
context of James 1:9-11. In fact, it is complementary to it. At any rate, neither
the presence of, nor a visit by, the poor, should be a surprise! This, of course,
puts the present shameful conduct of the Church in perspective. “The position
of honor accorded to the poor man” in Scripture in general is “in sharp contrast
with the way in which he is dishonored” (Dibelius, 138), insulted, and
shamed (See Lk. 20:11; John 8:49; Acts 5:41) in the setting portrayed by
James. In fact, according to James, this conduct is so shameful because the
poor individual is robbed of the only thing he has left. This is not his dignity,
even if this suffers as well, but rather his status before God!
Therefore, by treating the poor the way you do, James holds forth, you
do not only regard them as inferior to yourself, and from this perspective dishonor
them. Neither do you simply follow in the footsteps of the world,
looking at them from a worldly perspective and through worldly eyes, and
from such vantage point despise them. No, it is much more serious. In insulting
the poor, as you do, you dishonor and despise what God exalts in his
electing grace. Ultimately you dishonor God himself (Moo, 1985, 108), because
such “measurement of value is directly opposed to God’s” (Johnson,
224). Your despicable treatment is clearly unacceptable on a number of
counts!
(2) But James marshals still additional fire power by means of a logical
implication. Every one should recognize that this condemns the present evil
practice of welcoming poor visitors or attendees in the assembly, whether
potential church members or (possibly) members in full standing. After all,
look at a “beggar” from the biblical perspective. As a Christian he is in an exalted
position (Jam. 1:9), both before and after he enters a place of worship!
The question may well, in fact, should, be asked whether the perpetrators of
this abominable practice truly grasp the awesome reality of what it is to be
one of God’s elect, rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom! It should make
anyone gasp. Apparently the Church must both be reminded, and remind itself
of this again and again (Eph. 1:18).
In short, do not let external poverty of folks ever fool you. They may be
“poor” from a worldly perspective (Moo, 1985, 91). But they are chosen of
God. This means, as Paul “cries” out, that God selected them, “singled” them
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