James 2:1-10: My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism.

COMMENTARY: All religious people think that their religion is the right religion, the best religion, the religion that God favors. They also believe that their religious leaders (i.e. Pastors, Priests, Rabbis, Apostles, Bishops, Elders, Overseers, Rabbis, Priests, Pastors, Popes, Missionaries and Evangelists) are endowed by God with more spiritual knowledge, power and authority than most religious people have. They also think that all other religions are wrong or deficient in some way. It can be said that they have an elitist attitude about the religion they choose to follow.

These attitudes do not describe Jesus after he was baptized. He did not expect or receive any of the special privileges that other religious leaders of his day received. In fact, the following can be said about Jesus:

• • • • • • He resisted efforts by some to make him a king.
          • He had no reputation.
          • He was poor and homeless.
          • He was a servant of everyone.
          • He chose followers who were common tradesmen (e.g. fishermen, tax collector)– not religious leaders.
          • He was a target of insults and abuse.
          • He did not receive praise/glory from men.

J‎esus was not a member of the religious ruling class. In fact, he rebuked the religious leaders for their religious behaviors. Jesus was not religious and he did not show any partiality toward religious people. After he was baptized he did not follow any religious laws. In fact, he broke all Jewish religious laws. He showed no favoritism to Jews but rebuked them for their religious behaviors and beliefs. These attitudes and behaviors set him apart from his Jewish neighbors — especially religious leaders.

2 For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, 3 and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?

COMMENTARY: All religions work hard to distinguish themselves from other religions. And within religions, great effort is made to distinguish religious leaders from others. Religious leaders commonly wear special clothing and they often sit above the rest of the congregation in meetings.

Religious people also judge other religions regarding their beliefs and their religious practices and find them to be wrong or deficient when these beliefs and practices are not the same as their personal religion. Jesus says that these habits are evil. They are evil because the motive for judging is to elevate one religion and denigrate another. Pride always seeks to elevate the religious person, and this is often done by judging other religions and finding them deficient in their beliefs and practices.

5 Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? 7 Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?

COMMENTARY: See this link for understanding of wealth and poverty. Religious people are wealthy because they have a lot of pride in their religion and their obedience to religious laws. In their zeal to advance their religions and elevate their pride, they evangelize others to join their religion. And when someone does join their religion, they are oppressed and enslaved to that religion through pressure to obey its unique religious laws.

8 If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF,” you are doing well.

COMMENTARY: See this link for understanding of what it means to love your neighbor as yourself. Also see God’s Strategy for Overcoming Division and Creating Unity — Love Your Neighbor

9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

COMMENTARY: Verse 9 says that showing partiality is sin. This idea of sin does not fit into the practices or doctrines of either Jews or Christians. Both religions are well-known for exclusivity which is acted out weekly in their denominational, religious gatherings. Jews meet with Jews, Catholics meet with Catholics, Lutherans meet with Lutherans, and so on. When it comes to religious meetings, members of one religious sect or denomination never meet regularly with other sects or denominations. They may sometimes set aside their differences for some inter-denominational, ecumenical service, but those events are just for show. After those events, each religion goes back to its own little assembly to practice its own unique, preferred religion. This is partiality. This is sin.

The Old Testament gives a view of partiality in the twelve tribes. The brothers seem to get along, but there is often conflict between brothers. Once they enter the promised land, they divide themselves into two kingdoms and become enemies. This all happens because of favoritism and partiality.

Religious division is a major symptom of Old/First Covenant religion. Modern day denominational divisions are symbolically represented in Old Testament tribalism. But that all changes when individuals become New Covenant disciples.

New Covenant disciples do not align themselves with religious organizations of any kind. They live in 9the world of religion, but they are not members of any part of the world of religion. They do not follow the religious rules of any sect or denomination. They follow God’s spiritual laws that are written on their hearts. They no longer sin because they are no longer show partiality and favoritism to any religious organization — large or small, formal or informal.

STUDY TIP: See this link for understanding of holiness.

Holiness means to be set apart from religion. The following is a short list of things are true about people who are set apart from religion:

• • • They do not go to religious meetings in religious buildings.
    • They are not members of religious organizations.
    • They do not practice religion in public.
    • They do not try to influence people through religious behaviors or speech.
    • They practice pure religion — not defiled religion.
    • They do not observe religious rituals or traditions.
    • They will confront religious leaders about their religious habits and teachings.
    • They do not pay tithes or offerings to religious organizations.
    • They do not idolize religious leaders.
    • They will have Jesus’ qualities and the characteristics of New Covenant disciples.
    • They will imitate Jesus’ ministry functions.

These attitudes and practices describe Jesus who was holy (i.e. set apart from religion). As a holy person, he was not show any special respect for religious people — especially religious leaders. Instead of revering and honoring religious leaders, he rebuked them. He dared to rebuke religious leaders because he did not defer to any man or show partiality to anyone

We see this attitude toward religious leaders when he drove the money changers out of the temple. And we see it in his confrontations with scribes and pharisees. Because he feared no man he could speak truth to everyone — including the most important religious leaders of his day. This lack of fear is what set Jesus apart from others and made him holy. He had the heart of a warrior when it came to telling people things they needed to hear about religion. He is the model warrior for all New Covenant disciples to imitate in their own efforts to tear down religious idols and high places.

Religious people are not like Jesus. They defer to religious leaders and are always partial to people who share their religious beliefs. According to verse 9, this is sin. To be sinless on the account of deference and partiality is to be like Jesus. To be sinless it is necessary to be set apart from religion.

10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.

COMMENTARY: Verse 10 says that stumbling on this one point is guilty of sinning on all points of God’s spiritual laws.

Religions go to great lengths to distinguish themselves from all other religions. In the Bible, this is called making names for themselves. In modern language, this is called branding.

Religious branding creates distinctions that make it easy to differentiate one religion from another. These distinctions encourage demonstrations of partiality toward members of one religion while showing less favor toward members of all other religions and toward people who have no religion at all. This partiality is tribalism which is the opposite of God’s desire that all his people would be united in one faith.

These kinds of behaviors help create a sense of security for a particular religion while effectively separating it from other religions. This security is constructed in strongholds of thinking, and reinforced in mutual financial support and communal worship.

It is very clear from the history of religion that members of one religion show greater love for members of their own religion than they do toward members of other religions. This is partiality. Partiality does not allow loving your neighbor as yourself and does not look out for the interests of others. Religion is sin because it puts limits on the definition of neighbors to whom love is shown.

Regarding keeping all points of the law in verse 10, the law to which this refers is religious laws. In other words, religious people may do a good job of obeying all of the laws of their chosen religion, but still fail  to satisfy God’s spiritual laws because they do not satisfy the royal, spiritual law which says to love your neighbor as yourself. Religious people sin, therefore, because, while showing partiality toward members of their own religion, they fail on the one critical point of showing true, impartial love toward everyone — including members of other religions.

The rich oppressors in verse 6 are those who are rich in pride and self-righteousness are not necessarily materially rich. They do not take people to legal courts as we understand courts today. Rather, this terminology symbolically represents the judgments with which Pharisees constantly evaluate (i.e. judge) obedience to religious laws and coerce people who do not obey those laws to be more religious. Of course they do not consider obedience to religious laws to be coercion. They call it evangelism.

STUDY TIP: See this link for understanding of what it means to love your neighbor as yourself. Also see this link: 

Philippians 2:3-4 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;

COMMENTARY: Conceited people will readily and often boast about themselves. They may boast with words, but they may also boast about their wealth through the clothes they wear, the cars they drive, and the homes in which they live. Everything about them says “Look at me! I am special! I am hot stuff! I am rich! I am cool!

People who think they are really special in some way and who brag about their unique qualities (e.g. beauty, brains, skills, etc.) are not attractive to others. People will soon tire of hearing conceited people brag about themselves and they great things that they have done. This is especially true in business, entertainment and politics. It is also true in religion.

Religious people are prideful, conceited, arrogant boasters. Their behaviors are designed to communicate to others that they are close to God and enjoy God’s favor. They think they say and do religious things because it pleases God, but the truth is that they just want others to think well of them because they desire the praise of men.

Some people display their religion with words, some with clothing and jewelry, some with bumper stickers, some by giving to religious organizations, and some by going to religious meetings regularly. These are all normal, accepted behaviors in the world of religion, but to God, they are fleshly displays of religious pride that elevates the religious person.

This verse does not say that pride is sin, but there are many verses that tell us how God see pride (i.e. it is evidence of an evil heart) and how he will deal with it.

Romans 2:11-12 For there is no partiality with God. 12. For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who sin under the Law will be judged by the Law.

COMMENTARY: Verse 11 makes it very clear that God does not show favoritism to anyone — especially one religion over another. Verse 12 can only be understood by knowing to which law it refers. Here is how it should be interpreted:

For all who have sinned because they do not have God’s spiritual laws written on their hearts will also die spiritually because they do not have God’s spiritual laws written on their hearts; and all who sin by observing religious laws will be judged by God and found guilty of sinning against his spiritual laws.

Romans 2:27-29: Then those who are physically uncircumcised but keep the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. 28 For he is not a real Jew who is one outwardly, nor is true circumcision something external and physical. 29 He is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, spiritual and not literal. His praise is not from men but from God.

COMMENTARY: Those who are physically uncircumcised keep God’s spiritual laws because his  laws are written on their hearts. They are New Covenant disciples. Those who have the written code follow religious laws made by men but break God’s spiritual laws.

Real Jews are spiritual Jews — not ethnic or religious Jews. Spiritual Jews are not concerned about physical circumcision or any other physical, religious activity or symbol. Spiritual Jews understand that God is only concerned with the condition of the heart — not with the flesh (i.e. religion). Spiritual Jews do not seek praise (i.e. affirmation) from men who will reward them for their religious behaviors. Spiritual Jews are content with the knowledge that God knows their hearts. Their reward is spiritual life that comes through God’s spoken word.

See Circumcision and Israel, Jerusalem, Jews, Christians and Gentiles.

Romans 5:12: Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned 

COMMENTARY: Just like Jesus (i.e. a messiah) is a symbolic representation of all New Covenant disciples, Adam, after he ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, symbolically represents all Old/First Covenant religionists.

It is the nature of Old/First Covenant religionists to evangelize others to join their religion. Thus it can be said that the sin of religion was spread through the world of religion through Adam’s evangelistic efforts.

Since Adam symbolically represents all men/women, it can be said that sin is spread through the world by anyone who practices religion. This happens primarily in families, but also through other kinds of relationships.

Since Old/First Covenant religion leads to death, it follows that all efforts to evangelize others to practice religion lead to spiritual death. It can be similarly said that anyone who teaches/encourages someone to practice religion is a spiritual father/mother.

Romans 5:13: for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 

COMMENTARY: There are two references to law here. In the phrase “until the law,” the law in view is God’s spiritual laws. In the phrase “when there is no law” refers to religious laws. With these understandings, the verse could be rightly restated as follows:

Until people live according to God’s spiritual laws, the world of religion is full of sin. But, God does not find sin in people who do not follow religious laws.

Romans 5:20 The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more,

COMMENTARY: The law in this verse refers to religious laws. Sin increases because people interpret the Bible literally and create religious laws out of those literal interpretations.

Grace is a symbolic term that refers to the spiritual life that comes through God’s spoken voice/word which communicates his spiritual laws.

STUDY TIP: See this link for an in depth discussion of grace.

The presence of religious laws provides the incentive to sin by being religious. Sin is a transgression of God’s spiritual laws because religious laws require listening to the voices of religious leaders (i. e. false prophets) instead of God’s spoken voice.

The story of Adam and Eve shows that God allows people to choose to be religious. They had a choice to eat from the Tree of Life or from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. They were spiritually alive as long as they ate from the Tree of Life, but they died spiritually (i.e. they could no longer hear God’s spoken voice) when they ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. When they ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, they sinned by eating evil soulish food served by false prophets.

Abounding grace accrues to people who have practiced religion zealously for a long time. The more religious they were, the more they appreciate being set free from religion. The more the have listened to false prophets, they more they will appreciate hearing God’s spoken voice. Having been spiritually dead while sinning practicing religion, they have great appreciation for being spiritually alive while listening to God’s spoken voice.

Romans 7:9: I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died;

COMMENTARY: We are spiritually alive when we do not follow (i.e. are apart from)religious laws. This is represented as Adam and Eve’s status before eating the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

This status changes when we yield to temptations  from the world of religion to be religious. People who are raised in religious homes learn from an early age that religion is normal and learn to interpret the Bible literally instead of symbolically. This social pressure is like a commandment that says “you must be religious to be accepted and get along with others in this family/community.” This is how the sins of the fathers are passed down to succeeding generations. Parents essentially command their children to practice religion.

When children respond to this commandment, sin is activated (i.e. becomes alive) in them and they die spiritually.