Grace for All! – September 3, 2025

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Read: James 2:1-13

My brothers, have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ without showing favoritism. James 2:1(EHV)

Grace for All!

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

He was one of the poorest people in town. His coat was old and stained. His shoes were held together with duct tape. And he didn’t smell the best.

It took a while, but he finally accepted the pastor’s invitation to come to church. And when the pastor came out to greet the people at the beginning of the service, he immediately noticed something. His guest was sitting right next to one of the wealthiest men in town.

But that’s not what God noticed that Sunday.

What God noticed was two equally sinful human beings sitting together, confessing their sins and hearing the same message of forgiveness—grace for all!

That’s what James tells us in today’s verse: “My brothers, have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ without showing favoritism.”

There are lots of differences between your friends at school. Some are loud, some are quiet. Some are tall, some are short. Some are superfast, and others are supersmart. Noticing differences isn’t wrong—God made us all special in different ways! But what’s wrong is when we start thinking: “That person is more important . . . and that person doesn’t matter as much.”

God wants you to look at your rich friend, your funny friend, your serious friend, your smelly friend, your friend who struggles with reading, and your friend who is really good at sports all the same way—as unique dear souls who need Jesus. Just like you. We all have the same problem that has consequences. We are all sinners who deserve to be separated from God for all eternity in a real place called hell.

But here’s another similarity: Jesus died for the rich and the poor, the popular and the unpopular, the person with the rusty old car and the one with a shiny new Tesla. That’s grace for ALL!

Remember that guest at church? He did notice he was sitting next to one of the wealthiest men in town. But the most important thing he remembered was this: They stood side by side, confessed their sins and heard the best news in the world, “Your sins are forgiven.”

That’s grace for all!

Prayer:

Dear Lord, you have made all of us uniquely different. Help me not to rank people by what they look like, how smart they are, or what they own. Help me see others the way you see them—as people you love, people you died to save, people you have forgiven. Thank you for giving grace to all of us. In your name we pray, Amen.

The questions below are to help families discuss this devotion. The questions are divided by age group as suggestions, but anyone could reflect on any of the questions as they desire.

Questions for Younger Children

• What are some differences you notice between your friends? (Think about personality, talents, appearance, etc.)
• What’s something that’s the same about all your friends—no matter how different they are?

Questions for Elementary Age Children

• Have you ever caught yourself thinking one person is more important than someone else? What happened?
• What did this devotion teach you about how God wants you to look at the people in your life?

Questions for Middle School and Above

• When are you most tempted to show favoritism? (Like choosing teams, making lunch buddies, picking seats?)
• Think about a worship service at your church. What parts remind you that everyone there—no matter how different—are all really the same?

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