James 2
Respect of person is sinverses 1-13
My brethren – have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ
the Lord of glory – with respect of persons
FOR if there come to your assembly a man with a gold ring
in goodly apparel – and there come in also
a poor man in vile raiment
and you have respect to him that wears the gay clothing
and say to him
Sit you here in a good place
and say to the poor
Stand you there
or sit here under my footstool
Are you not then partial in yourselves
and are become judges of evil thought?
Hearken – my beloved brethren
Has not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith
and heirs of the kingdom which HE has promised to them
that love HIM? BUT you have despised the poor
Do not rich men oppress you
and draw you before the judgment seats?
Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by which you are called?
IF you fulfill the ROYAL LAW according to the scripture
You shall love your neighbor as yourself – you do well
BUT IF you have respect of persons – you commit sin
and are convinced of the law as transgressors
FOR whosoever shall keep the whole law
and yet offend in one point – he is guilty of all
FOR HE that said
Do not commit adultery – said also – Do not kill
now if you commit no adultery – yet if you kill
you are become a transgressor of the law
So speak you – and so do
as they that shall be judged by the LAW OF LIBERTY
FOR he shall have judgment without mercy
that has shown no mercy
and mercy rejoices against judgment
Faith without works is deadverses 14-26
What does it profit – my brethren – though a man say he has faith
and have not works? Can faith save him?
IF a brother or sister be naked – and destitute of daily food
and one of you say to them – Depart in peace
be you warmed and filled
Notwithstanding you give them not those things which are needful
to the body – what does it profit?
EVEN so faith – IF it has not works – is dead – being alone
YEA a man may say
You have faith – and I have works
show me your faith without your works
and I will show you my faith by my works
You believe that there is one God
you do well – the devils also believe and tremble
BUT will you know – O vain man
that faith without works is dead?
Was not Abraham our father justified by works
when he had offered Isaac his son on the altar?
See you how faith wrought with his works
and by works was faith made perfect?
And the Scripture was fulfilled which says
Abraham believed God
and it was imputed to him for righteousness
and he was called the Friend of God
You see then how that by works a man is justified
and not by faith only
Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works
when she had received the messengers
and had sent them out another way?
For as the body without the spirit is dead
so faith without works is dead also
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Has not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which HE has promised to them that love HIM? (1861 “HE has promised” [epaggello] means to make a verbal commitment by one person to another agreeing to do something in the future, assert, profess, claim, or to announce that one is about to do or furnish something)
DEVOTION: James is concerned that believers think along with the same thoughts that the LORD thinks. We are to have the mind of Christ once we become believers. We have to continually reboot our minds to think the way the LORD wants us to think. HE doesn’t think like the world thinks. HE thoughts are greater. HE has a correct way of looking at the life of those who are to be HIS followers.
One of the first thoughts that come into our Biblical brains should be that outward appearance and possessions is not what the LORD is concerned about in HIS followers. HE always looks at the heart first. HE wants to know the motivation behind any action that is taken in a believer’s life.
Money isn’t everything. It is not in first place like many human beings think it should be in. God always speaks of the poor who are rich in faith. HE wants to make faith the first priority in the life of a believer and in the life of the church. Churches sometimes think that it would be better to only reach the rich of the community so that they can have enough money to keep the church going. This is wrong thinking. The LORD is the one who provides for the church. HE will keep any church that is faithful to HIM going.
Any church that has respect of persons in its leadership is headed in the wrong direction. Every church has to evaluate where it puts its priorities. Biblical thinking doesn’t come naturally. It takes the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the leadership to help them think correctly.
Our churches should be filled with individuals who love the LORD with all their heart, soul and body.
CHALLENGE: This group will remember how to keep God’s perspective.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 13 For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shown no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment. (448 “without mercy” [anileos] means inexorable, merciless, the lack or will to show compassion. This is the first use of mercy in the verse. 1656 “mercy” [eleos] means compassion, kindness or goodwill towards the miserable and the afflicted)
DEVOTION: James continues to encourage the believers to combine faith with works. He gives illustrations of Abraham and Rahab. Each showed their faith by their works. That is the command that James is trying to show to these individual believers.
He gives another example of people coming to church. One individual is rich and the other is poor. How are they going to be treated? If the rich one is given a seat in a good place and the poor one is given a seat in the back or on the floor, is that right? James says NO!!
He points out that there is a ROYAL LAW that is to be obeyed. God loves the poor. HE wants them to be treated like any other neighbor. HE wants every believer to treat the poor with love.
James points out that those who don’t obey the ROYAL LAW will be guilty of breaking all of the commandments. Therefore there needs to be compassion for the poor. There needs to be kindness to those who are in need. Each individual believer cannot say to someone in need, “Be you warmed and filled” and give them nothing to help. Faith has to have works involved. It is our Christian duty to help those in need. Does this mean that this is part of the gospel? NO!! The gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This needs to be preached. This needs to be accepted by those who hear the Word of God. IF they refuse the gospel does that mean that we don’t need to help them? NO!!! Helping those in need is part of our Christian duty as we manifest Christ to the world.
Our primary goal is to go and make disciples.
There are two ways we can go in this life. We can be a respecter of persons or we cannot be a respecter of persons. God wants us to not be a respecter of persons. Too often we find that people like only those who look like them and act like them and have the same amount of money as them.
In the church this is not supposed to happen. We are not to look on the outward appearance but on the heart. That is where God looks. If we look at outward appearances we will be deceived. There are many hypocrites out there. They will be nice to our face but behind our back they say all kinds of evil about us.
We are responsible to God to treat everyone alike in the church. We are to give everyone an even chance to serve the LORD with their gifts. God has showed kindness toward us when HE gave us our salvation. Remember that mercy is “not giving us what we do deserve.” We deserve hell for eternity but because of Christ we can have heaven for eternity. So, because we have been given mercy we should give it to others.
The problem in the church today is that sometimes we are too busy judging others to show them any mercy. Are we judging or showing mercy? We make this decision each Sunday. Do we only call the big givers when they miss a Sunday??? Do we show compassion on every individual in our congregation? Is there a couple or individual who needs our special attention during the week? Has the LORD laid a burden on us for these individuals? Are we doing something about it? Remember that there is the sin of omission that Scripture tells us that is just as bad as sins of commission.
CHALLENGE: Check your personal compassion meter. Is compassion toward someone in need HIGH on your priority list? Or do you think that you are the one who is in need and everyone should be helping you? Remember that there is ALWAYS someone who has greater needs than you do. You could be the only one that God is sending to help them.
: 19 You believe that there is one God; you do well: the devils also believe, and tremble. (1140 “devils” [daimonion] means evil spirits, demons, pagan god, or demonic being)
DEVOTION: The Bible teaches ONE God in three persons. It is called the Godhead. Theologians named this one God Trinity. We read about the three persons of the Godhead working together for the salvation of all those who will repent and turn to God for eternal life.
Now James is talking to a congregation that is made up of individuals who think that just because they believe there is one God they will be going to heaven.
These individuals think that as long as they just believe in one God they will go to heaven. They are ones who are just sitting in church doing nothing for God. They are ones who think that as long as they go to church and give some money they will be going to heaven.
James warns them that just sitting in a pew believing that there is only one God is not enough. There has to be fruit that shows that you are a follower of Jesus Christ. Your fruit doesn’t mean you are saved but the combination of belief plus fruit shows that you have put your faith into action.
Apparently the church had become a convenient place to gather to sing and listen to a message but it didn’t produce servants of the LORD. These individuals were only serving themselves.
James stirred the pot by telling them that even the demons in Satan’s group believed in one God. They knew that one day they were going to meet God for their final judgment. He wanted the humans who thought they were OK with God to realize that they were going to fact judgment based on their actions after they said they had believed on God.
Also a partially Biblical doctrinal statement is not enough. There needs to be a doctrinal statement that covers all the doctrines of the Bible or the whole counsel of God. Too many people think that as long as they believe the basics they are in a good relationship with God. God wants all believers to study to show themselves approved. One statement in Scripture helps us understand this concept: “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling….” It never says to sit in a pew and wait for the LORD’S return!!!
Note: There is only one devil or Satan who is the leader of the fallen angels. There are many demons but only one devil. Remember that the amount of angels created by God is without number. Many of them followed Satan when he fell from heaven.
Also they are trembling because they know one day there is going to be final judgment where they are going to spend eternity in the lake of fire with their leader and all those who reject Jesus Christ. They are not looking forward to that day.
CHALLENGE: Belief is manifested in works that bring glory to God. Works never save but they manifest that there was genuine faith. We need all believers to be active for the LORD with the gift/gifts HE has given them.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed to him for righteousness: and he was called the friend of God. (1343 “righteousness” [dikaiosune] means state of him who is as he ought to be, the condition acceptable to God, a status of legal rectitude that satisfies the moral requirements of God’s character, or uprightness.)
DEVOTION: Abraham received a lot of tests or trials from the LORD. He was told to leave his home country to go to a strange country. He was told that he was going to have children when he was old when he thought he would have to make a servant his heir. He was promised that land he was living in but it wouldn’t happen for hundreds of years.
God promised him many things. He believed God. The real test came when God told him to offer up his only son Isaac. He took the wood. He took the fire. His son asked him where the sacrificial lamb was. He told his son that the LORD would provide the sacrifice.
He knew he was to sacrifice his son to show the LORD that he loved HIM more than his son. The LORD already knew this fact but HE wanted Abraham to realize this truth.
We are to love the LORD more than anyone or anything in our life. HE sometimes puts people to the test by taking everything to see if they genuinely love HIM. HE did it to Job in the Old Testament. HIS desire is for every believer to put HIM first in their life.
Now we have Abraham given a righteous standing with God because of his willingness to offer his son to the LORD. He was declared righteous in the eyes of the LORD. We are declared righteous in the eyes of the LORD when we put Christ first in our life. We show by our actions what place the LORD has in our life.
CHALLENGE: What are my actions and your actions showing the LORD today?
:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. (3498 “dead” [nekros] means 1 properly. 1a one that has breathed his last, lifeless. 1b deceased, departed, one whose soul is in Hades. 1c destitute of life, without life, inanimate. 2 metaph. 2a spiritually dead. 2a1 destitute of a life that recognizes and is devoted to God, because given up to trespasses and sins. 2a2 inactive as respects doing right. 2b destitute of force or power, inactive, inoperative. [Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship])
DEVOTION: James is clear about the need for good works in the Christian life. For this he has been accused of being against Paul’s teaching that salvation is through faith alone by grace alone. Nothing could be further from the truth!
What we have tried to create is a false dichotomy between faith and works. What James helps us to see is that faith interacts synergistically with good works in the life of the believer. That means that while good works do not establish our righteousness before God, they do help show that our repentance and salvation are real. This is because we have adopted a new approach to life, one where we seek to serve God through all that we do. Paul says the same thing through Ephesians 2:8-10, where he emphasizes that God created good works beforehand so that those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ would do these things.
A Christian who does not act like a Christian is worse than a stillborn baby. The true follower of Jesus Christ turns over every aspect of his life in submission to Jesus Christ, and that means that he does not have the right to decide what it is he wants to do. This especially means that the believer in Jesus Christ cannot go on acting like the world and living according to the world’s value system.
Thus, God’s plan is for His children to show that they have been saved by doing good works. By doing so, they often earn the right to witness and tell people about Who motivated them to do so in the first place.
CHALLENGE: Is there an area of your life where you would say that you are not doing what is good? Ask the Holy Spirit to search you and show you any area that that needs change. Then share that with at least one person today. (MW)
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Assemblyverse 2
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Scriptureverses 8, 23
Lawverses 10-12
Law of libertyverse 12
Abrahamverses 21, 23
Friend of Godverse 23
Rahab the harlotverse 25
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
Godverses 5, 19, 23
Promises of Godverse 5
One Godverse 19
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
Lordverse 1
Jesus verse 1
Christ verse 1
Lord Jesus Christverse 1
Lord of glory verse 1
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
devils (demons) – fallen angelsverse 19
believe in one God and tremble
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Rich manverses 2, 3, 6
Poor manverses 2, 3, 5, 6
Poor of this worldverse 5
Rich men oppressverse 6
Judgment seats (courts)verse 6
Neighborverse 8
Bodyverse 26
spiritverse 26
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Respect of personsverses 1, 9
Being partialverse 4
Evil thoughtsverse 4
Despised the poorverse 6
Oppress verse 6
Blasphemeverse 7
Sinverse 9
Transgressorsverses 9, 11
Offend in one pointverse 10
Commit adulteryverse 11
Killverse 11
Not have mercyverse 13
Not providing needful thingsverse 16
Faith without works is deadverses 17, 20, 26
Vainverse 20
Faith without worksverses 24, 26
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins
Faithverses 1, 5, 14, 17, 18, 20-23, 25
Rich in faithverse 5
Chosenverse 5
Heirsverse 5
Promisesverse 5
Love HIMverse 5
Name by which we are calledverse 7
Royal lawverse 8
You should love your neighbor as yourself
Law of libertyverse 12
Mercyverse 13
Faith with worksverses 14, 17, 18, 20-22, 24, 25
Saveverse 14
Peaceverse 16
Provide needful thingsverse 16
Show faith by your worksverse 18
Belief in one Godverses 19, 23
Justifiedverses 21, 24, 25
Works make faith perfectverse 22
Believedverse 23
Imputedverse 23
Righteousnessverse 23
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Abraham justified by worksverses 21, 23
Believed God
Called friend of God
Isaacverse 21
Rahab justified by worksverse 25
Received the messengers
Sent them another way
Church (New Testament people of God)
Brethrenverses 1, 5, 14
Brotherverse 15
Sisterverse 15
Naked and destitute of food
Last Things (Future Events)
Heirs of the kingdomverse 5
Judged by law of libertyverse 12
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QUOTES regarding passage
4 In the second part of his conditional sentence, James now characterizes the conduct he has described in vv. 2–3. He gives his verdict in two clauses, each in the form of a question that expects a “yes” answer. (Greek uses the particle ou to indicate this kind of a question; we accomplish the same thing in English by using the word “not”). Logically, then, the questions are equivalent to assertions (cf. TEV: “you are guilty of creating distinctions among yourselves and making judgments based on evil motives”). James’s first accusation uses a form of the verb diakrinō, which has two meanings that would make sense in this context: “separate, make distinctions” and “doubt, waver.” The NIV, along with most other modern translations and commentators, adopts the former meaning: have you not discriminated among yourselves? (see also NRSV; NASB; REB; NLT; TEV; NJB).12 This meaning of the verb is certainly attested in the NT (see, most clearly, Acts 15:9) and obviously fits the context. But it does not advance James’s argument very far, since this conclusion was obvious on the face of the matter. The second interpretation might then be the better option. The verb frequently refers to an internal attitude of doubt in the NT (e.g., Matt. 21:21; Mark 11:23; Acts 10:20; Rom. 4:20; 14:23; Jude 22). More importantly, James has already used the verb with just this meaning (1:6) to introduce a key motif in his letter: the warning to Christians not to have a divided heart in their relationship to God and to one another. “Among yourselves” would then be translated “in yourselves,” James’s point being that the discrimination exhibited in the community is another manifestation of a wavering, divided attitude toward God. The improper “division” being made between rich and poor reflects the improper “divisions” harbored in the minds of the believers. Consistently Christian conduct comes only from a consistently Christian heart and mind.
Christians who discriminate in the manner James has depicted in vv. 2–3, second, are judges with evil thoughts. The reference to “judges” might suggest that the “meeting” that James describes is some kind of judicial setting (see the notes in the introduction to this section). But James may also be influenced by the apparent OT source for his imagery, Lev. 19:15, which condemns partiality in the context of a judicial dispute. He may also be using the very word “judges” with a pejorative sense. In 4:11–12, he condemns Christians who speak against other believers of taking upon themselves the rights of a “judge” that only God can legitimately exercise. When Christians show favoritism toward people in the assembly, they implicitly claim God’s own right to stand in judgment over other people. But James’s addition of the phrase with evil thoughts leaves no doubt about the negative nature of this “judging.” The NIV rendering suggests that the judges are characterized by evil motives (see NLT; TEV). This is a perfectly acceptable rendering, since the Greek word involved (dialogismos) often refers to “thoughts” in the NT (Matt. 15:19; Mark 7:21; Luke 2:35; 5:22; 6:8; Rom. 1:21; 1 Cor. 3:20). But the “thought” would refer more definitely to the sinful standards that the judges are using to make their decisions (cf. REB; NJB) or even to the verdicts that the judges reach. (Moo, D. J. (2000). The letter of James (pp. 104–105). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: Eerdmans; Apollos.)
4 The expressed condemnation of this practice is put in question form. However, the Greek construction leaves no doubt as to James’s opinion. The negative particle ou (“not”) shows that he expects his readers to agree with his conclusion: “Have you not discriminated?” The practice illustrated in vv. 2–3 rests on an unjustified distinction. The basis for showing favor is terribly wrong. Those acting in this way “become judges with evil thoughts.” Here the play on words in the Greek is not apparent in the English translation. The word translated “discriminated” (diekrithēte) is built on the same root as the word for “judges” (kritai). In so judging between men, the readers had become unjust judges. (Burdick, D. W. (1981). James. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews through Revelation (Vol. 12, p. 178). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
Are ye not divided in your own mind? (οὐ διεκριθητε ἐν ἑαυτοις; [ou diekrithēte en heautois?]). First aorist (gnomic) passive indicative of διακρινω [diakrinō], to separate, conclusion of the third-class condition (future) in a rhetorical question in the gnomic aorist (as if past) with ou expecting an affirmative answer. For this idiom (gnomic aorist) in a conclusion of the third-class condition see 1 Cor. 7:28. “Were ye not divided in (among) yourselves?” Cf. 1:6; Matt. 21:21. Judges with evil thoughts (κριται διαλογισμων πονηρων [kritai dialogismōn ponērōn]). Descriptive genitive as in 1:25. Διαλογισμος [Dialogismos] is an old word for reasoning (Rom. 1:21). Reasoning is not necessarily evil, but see Matt. 15:19 (πονηροι [ponēroi]) and Mark 7:21 (κακοι [kakoi]) for evil reasonings, and 1 Tim. 2:8 without an adjective. See James 1:8 and 4:8 for διψυχος [dipsuchos]. They are guilty of partiality (a divided mind) as between the two strangers. (Robertson, A. T. (1933). Word Pictures in the New Testament (Jas 2:4). Nashville, TN: Broadman Press.)
2:4. The illustration is followed by a penetrating inquiry: Have you not discriminated among yourselves? The question in Greek assumes an affirmative answer. James’ brethren must plead guilty not only to discriminatory divisions but also to assuming the role of judges with evil thoughts of partiality. (Blue, J. R. (1985). James. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 824). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
Class wars (2:1–9). Here is that age-long rivalry between the rich and the poor. The rich man gets the attention, the poor man is ignored. The rich man is honored, the poor man is disgraced. How tragic it is when local churches get their values confused and cater to the rich while they ignore, or even reject, the poor. If fellowship in a church depends on such external things as clothing and economic status, then the church is out of the will of God. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 367). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
Ver. 4. Are ye not then partial in yourselves, &c.] That is, guilty of such partiality as must appear to yourselves, and your own consciences must accuse you of; or don’t ye distinguish, or make a difference among yourselves, by such a conduct, towards the rich and the poor: and are become judges of evil thoughts; or are distinguishers by evil thoughts; that is, make a distinction between the rich and the poor, by an evil way of thinking, that one is better than the other, and to be preferred before him. (Gill, J. (1809). An Exposition of the New Testament (Vol. 3, p. 504). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
YOU MAY NEVER KNOW
by Anne R. C. Neale
You may never know what impact you make to others,
Just a simple gesture of love and kindness to them
Might have been needed so badly by your friends,
It can make a lasting impact of you, Amen,
Just a simple act of making cookies,
For someone who lives alone,
Or just popping in to say hello to them too,
Or even just calling them on their telephone.
These kindnesses are wonderful and a kindness can multiply,
Passed on to other people too,
Look for theses great opportunities,
They are a great help to others from you,
It is that simple act or gesture,
That is needed by others you see,
A helping hand in time of trouble,
Is wonderful for others including me.
It is appreciated most sincerely,
Its impact you will never know,
But they bless you tenfold for your kindness,
And thank you most deeply that’s so.
Jesus meets with His disciples and institutes the Lord’s Supper.
INSIGHT
More than 2000 years ago, the Lord Jesus Christ ate a ceremonial meal with His disciples. This meal originated in the Passover and pictured Christ’s death, our need to receive Him personally for our salvation, and the fact that all those who are His people are a communion of saints. During the meal, He instructed His disciples to observe this ceremony regularly and with gladness until His return.
And so, whether called the Lord’s Supper, Communion, or the Lord’s Table, Christians today observe a solemn but joyous ceremonial meal which looks back to the redemption of the Cross and forward to the glory of the Second Coming. (Quiet Walk)
In a drawing that illustrates an article in the most recent Harvard Magazine, a sad homeschooled girl sits imprisoned in a house made of books labeled “reading,” “writing,” “arithmatic,” and “Bible.” Outside, children happily play, skip rope, and run races. The image must have seemed strange to the many homeschool families who, unlike the editors, know how to spell “arithmetic” and who, unlike many educational professionals, tend not to separate out-of-class activities from learning.
The article, on the other hand, in which Harvard Law professor Elizabeth Bartholet calls for a presumptive national ban on homeschooling, should be alarming.
The article summarized the arguments from a recent Arizona Law Review paper in which Bartholet argues that homeschooling not only violates children’s rights to a ‘meaningful education’ and their right to be protected from potential child abuse, but may keep them from contributing positively to a democratic society.”
To argue her first point, Bartholet must (and indeed does) reject studies, such as the 2010 study published in the Widener Law Review, that conclude homeschooled children reach “levels of academic achievement similar to or higher than their publicly schooled peers.” She singles out the research of Dr. Brian Ray, who’s conducted some of the most extensive studies on homeschooling to date.
Ray’s 2009 survey of standardized test results from more than 11,000 homeschooled students over 25 years from all 50 states, led him to conclude that, on average, “Homeschoolers are still achieving well beyond their public school counterparts—no matter what their family background, socioeconomic level, or style of homeschooling.”
Bartholet dismisses Ray’s research as “advocacy dressed up by science.”
In response to the Harvard article, recent Harvard grads Melba Pearson and Christian author Alex Harris wrote articles dismissing Bartholet’s claims as ideology dressed up as advocacy, pointing out how growing up homeschooled prepared them not only to attend Harvard, but to excel there.
What of Bartholet’s argument that the lack of oversight of homeschooling families can conceal child abuse? Nowhere does Bartholet mention that according to the most widely-cited research, nearly 1 in 10 public school students in the U.S. will be subjected to sexual misconduct by school employees. Of course, public schools are filled with many good and dedicated teachers and workers, but homeschool families are filled with good and dedicated parents.
Let me be clear: Every single case of abuse is horrific, and anyone anywhere who perpetuates such abuse should be stopped and prosecuted. What’s unclear is why, for Bartholet and Harvard Magazine, the outliers in one arena disqualify it, but not in the other.
The reasons behind Bartholet’s highly selective criticism are laid bare when she admits what she thinks to be the real bogeyman of many homeschool families: “a majority of are driven by conservative Christian beliefs, and seek to remove their children from mainstream culture.” Well, there you have it.
Our response to such “extreme religious ideologues,” she suggests, should mirror Germany, where homeschooling is illegal. And, apparently unable to hear herself talk, Bartholet concludes “I think it’s always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless, and to give the powerful ones total authority.” So, giving the powerful government authority over the education of children will solve the problem of powerful parents having authority over children?
And therein lies the fundamental confusion, one that’s been debated in various cultural contexts throughout history and, that, when gotten wrong has destroyed lives and human flourishing. Does government have unlimited authority, or does it function best by preserving the inherent authorities possessed by other institutions throughout society, especially the authority of the family?
As Princeton professor Robert George pointed out, this article isn’t so much an argument against homeschooling as it for the compulsory secularization of America’s children. This kind of power grab, for which Bartholet advocates and against which George warns, is only made easier when parents surrender their God-given authority and responsibilities to the state. Outsource is one thing. Surrender is another.
This article is just one indication of growing challenges to parental rights everywhere. There are others, including the Summit on homeschooling to be held at Harvard this summer, where Bartholet will be a featured speaker, as well as William and Mary Law professor James Dwyer who once said, “…the reason parent-child relationships exist is because the State confers legal parenthood.”
At root, this isn’t a debate about better or best educational environments or practices. It’s a debate about where our most fundamental rights come from. Those who think the State grant rights seek a legal monopoly on the minds of the next generation. Those who think the State’s job is to recognize rights and protect them look elsewhere for the source of those rights. Who are the real ideologues again? (Break/Point)
THE CROSS AND JUSTIFICATION
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1
The cross is the door that leads to all blessings. Without it there is nothing. Without the cross and all it means, we have no blessings from God at all. But the cross opens the possibility to all of the endless blessings of the glorious God.
What are they? The apostle Paul never got tired of saying these things. Read what he says in Romans. He puts it like this: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” “Justified by faith” means that the moment you believe in what happened on the cross and see that is God’s way of reconciling you unto Himself, you are immediately regarded as just, your sins are all forgiven and blotted out, and you are clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
“Therefore,” says Paul, “being justified by faith, we have peace with God.” That is the first thing that comes out of this belief. There is no more important word in the letter of Paul than the word therefore. Note it. He always brings in this word “therefore” at a point of this kind. He has been laying down the doctrine, and especially the doctrine of the cross, and then he says, “therefore”—in the light of that, because of that, this is what follows.
And here is the first thing that follows. “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God.” Do you realize what that means? Do you realize that is the most important and most wonderful thing that can ever happen to you, that you are given peace and made at peace with God? All our troubles in this life as human beings are due to the fact that we are in the wrong relationship to God. It is as simple as that.
A Thought to Ponder: Being justified by faith means that the moment you believe in what happened on the cross, you are immediately regarded as just.
(From The Cross, pp. 178-179, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
Threescore Years and Ten
“The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.” (Psalm 90:10)
When Moses wrote these words near the end of his life, he was 120 years old (Deuteronomy 34:7), but all the rest of the people of Israel (except Caleb and Joshua) who had been over 20 at the beginning of the 40-year wilderness wanderings had died there (Numbers 14:28-34), and so there were no others over 60 years old.
In former days men had lived much longer. Adam died at 930 and Noah at 950, but then Shem only lived to 600, and Abraham died at 175 years of age. Thus, the normal lifespan by Moses’ time was down to 70 or 80 years, and he prophesied that this would continue.
It is remarkable that, with all the increase in medical knowledge, this figure has stayed about the same, and there seems to be little the gerontologists can do to increase it.
Furthermore, the latter years are largely “labor and sorrow,” just as God told Adam when his sin brought God’s curse on the earth (Genesis 3:17-20). No matter how much we try to prolong our lives, we are “soon cut off.”
But then, we “fly away”! The soul/spirit complex of the Christian believer, released from its weary body, flies away to be with the Lord. Those left behind may sorrow, but “to depart, and to be with Christ…is far better.” The Christian may confidently say with Paul: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:23, 21). In the meantime, as our time grows shorter, it is more important than ever that we “walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time” (Colossians 4:5). “So teach us to number our days,” prayed Moses (and so should we), “that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Psalm 90:12). (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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