In Deuteronomy twenty-four, verse fourteen, God often warns Israel not to take advantage of the poor but to treat them with compassion and respect. Believers who fail to treat the poor and needy will bring God’s condemnation upon themselves.
Christians should avoid favoritism towards one group of people over another. Specifically, the rich over the poor. Why would anyone do such a thing? The temptation is to treat wealthy people well to earn their favor. It is simple as hoping to receive some of their money.
Poor people can’t do much for us, at least not materially. But these are worldly, non-Christian attitudes. Anybody that claims to trust in Christ is supposed to treat everyone well. However, the test for each believer is, do we treat rich people better because of the potential benefits that could occur? Do we mistreat poor people due to them not being able to give us anything in return?
In James chapter two, verses two through three depict a person coming to your church wearing a gold ring and nice clothes and another coming in plain clothing. Would you greet them the same? Sinful favoritism involves attention and honor. If you give extra attention to the wealthy man while engaging with the poor man as little as possible, that is favoritism. If you give the rich man one of the best seats while directing the poor man to stand or to sit on the floor as a servant would, you are showing favoritism.
Even more so today, the place a person was seated reflected their status in that group. It wasn’t just about having a good view of the platform or being on the aisle. It was about recognizing a person’s social status. One’s social status in the world should not determine their status within the family of Christ. The poor and needy should receive treatment no differently than the rich.