Sermon – An Honorable Mention
Psalm 40; James 2:1-17
Farmville Presbyterian Church
9/8/24
When people start talking about honorable mentions, it is natural to think about competitions. Honorable mentions are one of those strange awards in which you do not actually win anything, but the judges think that you should be recognized for doing well. It probably depends largely on how you want to look at it. I was given an honorable mention once as a child, and I guess it was nice to at least be recognized. Other mentions can be particularly honorable, though, as we saw in the recent Olympics – and even more impressively, in the tragically overshadowed Paralympics. There is no honorable mention in the Olympics as an award, but especially in the paralympic community, there is plenty of honor being shared. The athletes are so incredibly impressive, even if they do not win a medal. The one that still confounds me is the American gold medalist in compound archery. It was the most incredible Olympic performance I have ever seen, able-bodied or disabled. Out of 150 possible points, Matt Stutzman scored 149, so he made all 10’s except for one 9. And he did this without arms. That’s right. He scored bullseye after bullseye with a bow without arms. Maybe you have seen some of the video on the internet. I watched the whole match in awe and amazement. The gold medalist in compound archery was born without arms and still managed to beat his opponent who had both arms but was in a wheelchair. He holds the bow with his foot, but that is all I am going to tell you. Go look at the video on the internet or see me after the service.
Now, here is the kicker. If you passed Matt Stutzman on the street, a man ambling by with no arms, you would have no inkling of his greatness. His difference might make him hard to look at. He would not be anyone you might consider a world class athlete, and yet, in 2015, he hit the world record distance shot with a bow for anyone at 310 yards. Yes, over three football fields away. He did better than anyone with arms.
The folk who deserve honor are not always the obvious ones.
James is worked up for the same reason, and he brings this for our attention today. He is genuinely upset, even outraged with how some people are being treated. The rich and wealthy or “important” people are being honored and treated better than everyone else, but the poor and the despised are given the least attention and the least privilege.
There is no shock here. If the Governor were to come by your house, you might tidy up a bit. If a homeless person were to swing by, you might not give the place the same attention. Playing favorites is as old as time. As soon as we started to figure out that everyone is not the same in the world, that some are better than others, then we started treating people differently. Except, that is not how God sees us. James wants us to see the poor as honorable and deserving of special treatment because they have a special place in God’s heart. If anyone should be regarded as special, it should be the “least of these.” Jesus highlighted the smallest, the weakest, and the poorest as most precious in God’s Kingdom. We just don’t live that way.
This is not about treating everyone the same. James is not worried about you giving the same concern to someone who has nothing as you give to someone who has everything. He is looking for honest expressions of kindness and mercy. The wealthy and powerful do not generally need kindness and mercy, at least not from us. Of course, everyone gets in a bad spot from time to time, but the poor and despised live in a bad spot all the time. It is not about being kind every once in a while but holding those around us in our heart in a special way.
Honestly, I was struck by the language in verse 6 about the people dishonoring the poor. Somehow James knows that they have not been hospitable to the poor. Either he has seen this himself or (more likely) someone has made a report, and for someone to bother to share this, it must have been bad. Not only have they not been kind, but the audience has been ugly to the poor, to the very people who deserve the most deference in James’ mind. The same people who have always been looked over, avoided, neglected, and shamed are actually the ones of deserving our honor – that is our attention and kindness.
Our minds are just not wired this way. It is not the way the world works, not the way our system works. We celebrate success and achievement. We honor the Olympians with all their fingers and toes. Who works for the honor of the forgotten? Where is there dignity in the poor?
And yet there is beauty in all of God’s children, if we will see it. It might be in a child orchestra like the Landfill Harmonic with children who play with instruments made from things found in the town dump. It might be from the coop formed by subsistence farmers creating opportunity and potential with seed banks and collective bargaining. I’ve seen this myself in Haiti. It might be from investing in education in an underserved area like Church Hill on the east side of Richmond. Rise Academy, a fully licensed, independent school for this depressed area was born out of the willingness of one couple to share tutoring out of their home. An entire ministry called Church Hill Activities and Tutoring came to life which has become Rise Academy. It is pretty amazing, an independent school for the ones who need it. Closer to home, the Fresh Boyz Club has been around more than 15 years and gives young men an alternative, uplifting, and supporting fellowship through brotherhood and service in the community.
Words will never save us. All talk is cheap as you know well. This is where James goes with the idea. Anyone can talk a good game, but when the rich and poor both show up, who gets the must attention?
One problem is that when we see people, we see them for what they have and less for who they are. Being poor is not a stain. It does not define anyone or own anyone.
Another problem is that we follow the money. This is the same for all of life. Everyone is looking for wealth and money is power. Who gets what they want in politics? Churches also depend on money, and while we are hopefully much more heartfelt in our stewardship, it is hard not to cater to the ones who have.
What would it look like for people who are always overlooked to be celebrated? What would it look like for those who are considered less to be given more? What would it look like for those who have the least honor to be given the most honor? That, my friends, might sound like the Special Olympics, but that also really sounds like the Kingdom of God. It is God’s vison for us all to live it. To God be the glory. Amen.