Defiled Religion

James 2:1    Santiago 2:1
    “Hermanos míos, la fe que tienen en nuestro glorioso Señor Jesucristo no debe dar lugar a favoritismos.” NVI
    “My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.” NKJV

    In the last verses James was talking about visiting widows and orphans--the outcasts of society. He said by doing this, you are showing pure and undefiled religion, not a religion that is useless. Now he is telling us to avoid partiality in the church, and the context implies in the manner of money. Evidently the church was giving good seats to the rich while degrading the spot of the poor. Perhaps this is the example of a defiled religion. We are to love all of God’s children, and how can we do that if we are blinded by the prejudice of an outcast society?
        Application:
    I need to be more careful of my prejudices. I think the way to start is by practicing the ‘Hope for the Best’ method Pastor G and Margret taught us, not only for people I know but for people that I meet as well.