NIV: You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you.
The Message: In fact, what you've done is condemn and murder perfectly good persons, who stand there and take it.
Woah, what an indictment for the rich. They have condemned and murdered perfectly good persons who stand there and take it. It reminds me of Jesus words about having anger in your hearts:
Matthew 5:22 (NIV) But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
It is what is in our hearts that matters, not what is in our purse, or in the bank, or on show in our homes. It doesn't matter how well dressed we are, what sort of job we have, how powerful we may be, how inconspicuous we are, what matters to God is what we have in our hearts.
These words to the rich aren't just to those who have pots of money, the ones people look up to, men (and women) of power. James isn't just warning them of the impending judgment, the time when we have to account for all our actions. No, he is speaking to each and every one of us.
Take a look at this website:
Put in your annual income and see just how rich you are in comparison to the rest of the world. It is a sobering fact that most of us here in the west are amongst the richest in the world. You may think you have no money, you can't get a new car every year, or buy complete changes of wardrobe every season. Holidays abroad have had to be replaced by holidays in your own country, or maybe even "staycations". You have takeaways once a month instead of once a week, you only dine out/go out once a week instead of several nights a week. Your children get presents just on birthdays and Christmas not whenever they see something they "need" (and it is amazing how children find they "need" so much!). Maybe you struggle to pay the bills, finding it hard to make ends meet, to have enough food in the house to last the week and pay for everything else that needs sorting, yet even so, you are still amongst the richest in the world.
If you earn £50,000, you are apparently in the top 0.71%. If you earn £10,000, you are in the top 11.5%. Even with an income of £5,000, you are still in the top 13.48% and if you only earn £500 a year, you are in the top 50%!!!!
Those are sobering figures, and just go to show that James' words aren't just for the ones who pay more in tax than my annual income, but are actually meant for each and every one of us.
When we do others down in order to better ourselves, or to keep the status quo, to make ourselves look good, feel good, or whatever, we are doing exactly what James is accusing the rich of doing. Instead of storing up treasures in heaven for ourselves, we are actually storing up judgment and condemnation. Judgment and condemnation. Not the sort of words you want to have spoken to you. I know I don't like the idea of judgement and condemnation, but that is what is in store when we fail to show the love of Christ to others. What about the times when we (and if you don't do this, I know I do) walk past the person selling the Big Issue and pretend we don't see them, or tell ourselves they need to go and get a job and they are just scroungers? When we don't make a donation or give to the church because we have bills to pay, debts to meet, and they have enough money anyway, there are others who earn far more who give so they don't need our offering, and anyhow, you might be supposed to give 10% but really, how can anyone manage on 90% of what our income is?
But is that showing the love of Jesus to our fellow man? Is it really what Jesus would have us do? When we in the west the richest people in the world?
Matthew 6:19-24 (NIV) Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
No-one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
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