Christian love does not mean that I must like a person and agree with them on everything. I may not like the words they use or their habits or agree on how to parent, and I may not want them for an intimate friend. Christian love means treating others the way God has treated me. It is an act of the will, not an emotion that I try to manufacture. The motive is to glorify God. The means to do this is the power of the Spirit within (“for the fruit of the Spirit is love”). As I act in love toward another person, I may find myself drawn more and more to them, and I may see in them (through Christ) qualities that before were hidden to me.
We shall be judged “by the Law of liberty.” Why does James use this title for God’s Law? For one thing, when we obey God’s Law, it frees us from sin and enables us to walk in liberty (Ps. 119:45). Also, law prepares us for liberty. A child must be under rules and regulations because he or she is not mature enough to handle the decisions and demands of life. The child is given outward discipline so that he or she might develop inward discipline, and one day be free of rules.
There is one obvious message to this section: our beliefs should control our behavior. If we really believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and that God is gracious, His Word is true, and one day He will judge us, then our conduct will reveal our convictions.
8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. 11 For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. 13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Love others and treat others as we would like to be loved and treated
- Be quick to mercy and slow to judgment
- Our deeds will be judged
- God remembers our sins against us no more (Jer. 31:34; Heb. 10:17); but our sins affect our character and works. We cannot sin lightly and serve faithfully. God forgives our sins when we confess them to Him, but we must still face the consequences of sin.
CLOSER LOOK:
Verses 8–9: James makes it clear about the alternatives to being impartial. Love is right and good. Favoritism is sin and stand convicted. James was optimistic; the “if-clause” in the phrase “if you really fulfill the royal law,” was written in Greek in such a way that an obedient response was anticipated.[1] The “royal law” was given in Leviticus 19:18 and affirmed by Christ (Matt. 22:39): “Love your neighbor as yourself.” The law is royal or regal (basilikon, from basileus, “king”) because it is decreed by the King of kings, is fit for a king, and is considered the king of laws.[2] Why is “love thy neighbor” called “the royal law”? For one thing, it was given by the King. God the Father gave it in the Law, and God the Son reaffirmed it to His disciples (John 13:34). God the Spirit fills our hearts with God’s love and expects us to share it with others (Rom. 5:5). True believers are “taught of God to love one another” (1 Thes. 4:9).
But “love thy neighbor” is the royal law for a second reason: it rules all the other laws. “Love is the fulfilling of the Law” (Rom. 13:10). There would be no need for the thousands of complex laws if each citizen truly loved his neighbors.
The “royal law” is the law of love, a law superior to all other laws.[3] When James says, “if you show partiality, you are committing sin,” James is alluding to Lev 19:15, which prohibits favoritism to either the poor or the rich. What James is saying is that by loving others as ourselves with a nonpreferential love, that is the answer or response to those who show favoritism.
Verses 10–11: James was aware there would be some who would tend to dismiss their offense of prejudice as a trivial fault. They would hardly consider themselves as lawbreakers. We do the same thing today when we or others try to weigh one sin against another or say this sin is not as bad as that sin. James went on to make it clear that this was no small offense. “Whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.” There are no special pardons. God does not allow selective obedience. We cannot choose to obey the parts of the Law that are to our own liking and disregard the rest. Some of the Pharisees were guilty of this. They carefully observed some of the requirements of the Law, such as keeping the Sabbath and ignored others, such as honoring their parents (see Jesus’ comments in Matt 15:1-7). Sin is a violation of the perfect righteousness of God, who is the Lawgiver. James is saying that the whole divine law has to be accepted as an expression of God’s will for His people. The violation of even one commandment separates an individual from God and His purposes
Utilizing the extreme instances of adultery and murder, James showed the absurdity of inconsistent obedience. A basketball, whether it misses the hoop by an inch or a foot, still fails to score. Likewise, the one who shows partiality becomes a transgressor just as readily as if they had murdered or committed adultery
Verses 12–13: Total obedience is the key. One must both habitually speak and act (Gr. present tense imperative) as those to be judged by the Law. God’s Law (called the law of liberty here), because of its wise constraints, brings true freedom (cf. 1:25). Disobedience to God’s Law brings judgment. And to those who have not been merciful, James gives a strong warning that God’s judgment will be without mercy. Just as love triumphs over prejudice, “mercy triumphs over judgment.” The verb “triumphs” or “exults over” (katakauchatai) appears only here, in James 3:14, and in Romans 11:18.[4] Believers who do not practice partiality, but who practice love (vv. 5, 8) and mercy, will triumph at the judgment seat. Those who have not shown mercy will not receive mercy.
God has ordained unalterable laws. Complete and consistent obedience is required if spiritual maturity is to be accomplished. The believer is commanded to accept others with courtesy, compassion, and consistency.
[1] J. Ronald Blue, “James,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, eds. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985), 825.
[2] J. Ronald Blue, “James,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, eds. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985), 825.
[3] The phrase royal law reflects the Latin lex regia known throughout the Roman Empire. From legal-lingo.net: “A law ostensibly enacted by the Roman people granting wide legislative and executive powers to the emperor, later interpreted as providing that the emperor was a source of law, the emperor had full legislative powers, and the emperor’s will or pleasure had the full force of law.”
[4] Strong’s 2620. BDAG – “to have a cause for boasting because of advantage in power, triumph over.”