Everyday Faith: Community of Allegiance

Recap: A Third Way

• The book of James presents a “Third Way” for followers of Jesus living in a divided world: not revolt, not compromise, but allegiance to Jesus as King. In the first century, "faith" was not just a private belief; it was a public declaration of loyalty. This letter is about what it looks like to live as a community of allegiance—a people whose ultimate loyalty is to Jesus, not the patterns of the world.

The Danger of Partiality

Today, James confronts a subtle danger that threatens this community from within: partiality.

“This passage confronts a hard truth: we are constantly tempted to treat people based on what they can offer us.”

• We have all been shaped by a profoundly transactional culture, where value is tied to productivity, influence, or image.
• James says this cannot be the way of the church. When we show partiality, we deny the very story of the Gospel we claim to believe.

James 2:1–9 (ESV)

“My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called? If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.” (James 2:1–9, ESV)

The World's Operating System vs. The Kingdom's

James isn't just giving a nice moral lesson; he's confronting a deeply ingrained cultural system.

• The Roman Patronage System: The entire social structure of the Roman empire was a transactional pyramid.

  • Wealthy Patrons offered money, power, and protection.
  • In exchange, lower-status Clients owed them loyalty, votes, and public honor.
  • Favoritism wasn't a flaw in this system; it was the system. Your value was determined by who you knew and what you could offer.

• James's example of the rich and poor man was a shocking picture of the world's transactional system walking into the church.

• Our Modern Transactional System: We are trained from a young age that our value is tied to our performance. We learn to operate with an unspoken, deeply embedded question: "What's in it for me?"

How Partiality Shows Up in the Church

If partiality is the temptation to bring a transactional lens into the church, we have to be honest about how it plays out among us.

1. Entitlement:

   • This often shows up among those who have served and given the most.
   • It's the subtle, unspoken belief that our contribution has earned us a certain kind of influence or say.
   • The transactional thought: “I've paid in, so now I deserve a return.”

2. Manipulation:

   • This is a temptation often faced by leaders.
   • It's not always malicious, but strategic—managing people based on fear or what they can offer, rather than shepherding them in love.
   • The transactional thought: “What can I get out of this relationship?”

“When a community is shaped by these two forces—entitlement on one side and manipulation on the other — it stops being a family and starts feeling like a marketplace.”

The Antidote: Grace, Not Transaction

The Gospel is the asteroid that obliterates the world's transactional system.

• God looked at all of humanity—spiritually poor and dressed in shabby clothes—and He did not tell us to “stand over there.”
• Instead, the King of Glory left His throne, came to us in our shame, and said, "You sit here with me."
• He showed no partiality. He didn't weigh what we had to offer, because we had nothing. He offered pure, unearned grace.
• On the cross, Jesus took the judgment our spiritual poverty deserved so He could give us the honor we could never earn.

“We are freed from endlessly trying to justify our seat at the table because we realize Jesus already secured it for us. We stop sizing people up because we remember that God didn't size us up.”

What Now: The Practice of Unseen Kindness

A community shaped by grace is where honor flows downward. It's a place where we stop trying to prove our worth, because our worth has been declared at the cross.

• The new practice: Unseen kindness.
• Grace retrains our hearts to do good when nobody is watching, freeing us from needing the “hit” of recognition or praise.

• We practice kindness that no one posts about. We serve in the margins, off the stage, where nobody is keeping score.
• This practice rewires our souls. We stop needing the transaction and start tasting freedom.

“Imagine a church where no one wonders if they belong because everyone knows they are loved. Where the poor sit beside the powerful, and both are equally at rest. That’s the community of Allegiance James is imagining.”