A sermon offered for the 15th Sunday after Pentecost at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Roanoke, Alabama.
Principal text: James 2:1-17
"See in the world’s system, while the folks in the middle may aspire to be the rich man, they typically suffer the same fate as the poor man. And so, we are left to answer James’ question, 'My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ?' Do we choose the system of the world? Or Jesus? Is our religion pure or are we just hearers of the Word and not doers? Do we just give lip service to our faith by offering 'thoughts and prayers' instead of bread? James shines a light on the Christian community to show what systems are at work. And we cannot avoid his question 'Which side are you on?'"
Which side are you on?