No Partiality With God

(Ephesians 6:9)

Partiality is an awful thing. Whether you call it favouritism or the darker descriptions of prejudice, discrimination, bias or inequity, it is an awful thing.

In this world though it is rampant and has been for many years. We saw it in the civil rights movements in the sixties in the USA and more recently in the apartheid movements of South Africa.

These were well documented, but partiality underlies many other afflictions of modern society that are a blight on human existence.

Partiality is evil

One of the more recent problems today that has its roots in partiality is bullying. A great part of this problem is about who one person likes or does not like for no good reason, and that is partiality. When one person favours another, that is partiality. And when one person picks on another without reason, then the evil of partiality rears its ugly head.

So too things like nepotism in workplaces is another facet of partiality. Where one person has an advantage over others, and where one person is overlooked in favour of another on the basis of some relationship rather than merit, then partiality is to blame.

Likewise the destruction of sections of a population through genocide, especially on the basis of race, religion, colour or ethnicity is partiality at its worst. One only need consider the pogroms and ethnic cleansing in places like the former Yugoslavia or the dreaded Pol Pot regime in Cambodia to see how disgusting that partiality really is. And let us not forget the ethnic cleansing we know as the holocaust in Nazi Germany where six million people died for no better reason that t an accident of birth; they happened to be Jewish.

All forms of partiality are evil. There is nothing good about partiality and it is hated by God. This scripture today indicates as much saying;

Masters, do the same to them, and forbear threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him. (Ephesians 6:9)

In the days when this was written, slavery was not uncommon.

What Paul was telling the Christians who had slaves, is that they should not be harsh or overbearing with their slaves. They were to be treated with the respect due any person because we all have a Master in heaven who can and will judge us if we do not do what is good.

Do not show partiality

So too today, we must be sure not to show partiality against others. James wrote eloquently about this issue.

1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” 4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called? – (James 2:1-7)

In our day to day dealings with people, it is easy to show partiality.

Too often, like the example of James above, people will show greater favour or partiality towards those who are wealthy or have some worldly status. Consider movie or music stars who are accorded favours and partiality simply because of who they are.

Are they any better than anyone else? Is a renowned actor or musician any better than a person who is an exceptional tradesman, construction worker, bus driver, teacher, janitor or burger flipper?

No they are not! But the world accords them with greater accolades than these other seemingly ordinary occupations because they are “rich and famous.”

This is partiality. We in Christ Jesus must reject all forms of partiality and treat everyone equally under the overarching banner of, “Love thy neighbour as yourself.”

Overcoming partiality

As we have seen in the scripture today, God does not show partiality towards anyone. He loves those who love Him and He seeks those who do not in the hope that they will come to love Him. But partiality does not enter the equation at any time.

If a person who is not a believer does the wrong thing, and a person who is a Christian does the wrong thing, they will both suffer the consequences of their actions. The Christian may receive forgiveness and escape condemnation because of their faith, assuming the error was a mistake and not deliberate, but they will still suffer the consequences of the action.

For example, if a Christian has a weakness for alcohol and succumbs to the temptation to get drunk, they will still suffer the hangover and any other consequences that may occur, just as a nonbeliever will. They may be battling to gain control over this weakness, but the Lord recognises our weaknesses and gives us grace knowing that we are still “works in progress.”

As for partiality, we Christians must learn to treat others, whoever they may be, as we would wish to be treated. It doesn’t matter if that other person is somebody famous or a hobo in the gutter, we do not know who God is calling and what He is doing in their lives. As such, we must treat them with the respect they deserve as servants of the living God, knowing they our actions are being monitored by our Lord and Master in heaven.

God shows no partiality so neither should we.

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