Monday, 25 June, 2018

Beware of Personal Favouritism

Posted on Thursday, 30 April, 2015Sunday, 20 August, 2017 by Zheluo Cai

Beware of Personal Favouritism

James 2:1

James taught the strongest possible connection between faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and impartiality. God does not play favorites, yet we do (cf. 2:9), sinners that we are. The world’s love shows its true nature in its lack of love for the many who suffer under desperate circumstances. Just as James earlier demonstrated the incompatibility of double-mindedness and prayer, he here showed the impossibility of combining faith and the approval of the world.

Can favoritism or partiality coexist with the glorious Christ of faith? Impossible. God does display preferential treatment, but toward the poor (2:5) with the intent to demonstrate the greatness of his grace. Special respect of persons based on their high social standing is antithetical to faith in God. Believers must never mix faith with partiality. If they do, it is just another case of double-mindedness. When favoritism dominates, the obedience of faith is compromised and undermined.

Richardson, K. A. (1997). James (Vol. 36, pp. 108–110). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

The Once and Future Stars of Andromeda.
Credit and Copyright: ESA/Herschel/ PACS/SPIRE/J.Fritz(U.Gent) / XMM-Newton/EPIC/W.Pietsch(MPE). The big, beautiful Andromeda Galaxy, aka M31, is a spiral galaxy a mere 2.5 million light-years away. Two space-based observatories have combined to produce this composite image of Andromeda, at wavelengths outside the visible spectrum. In reddish hues, image data from the large Herschel infrared observatory traces enormous lanes of dust, warmed by stars, sweeping along Andromeda's spiral arms. The dust, in conjunction with the galaxy's interstellar gas, comprises the raw material for future star formation. X-ray data from the XMM-Newton observatory in blue pinpoint Andromeda's X-ray binary star systems. These systems likely contain neutron stars or stellar mass black holes that represent final stages in stellar evolution. More than twice the size of our own Milky Way, the Andromeda Galaxy is over 200,000 light-years across.

The Mohawk people are the most easterly tribe of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy, an Iroquoian-speaking indigenous people of North America. The Mohawk were historically based in the Mohawk Valley in present-day upstate New York west of the Hudson River; their territory ranged north to the St. Lawrence River, southern Quebec and eastern Ontario; south to greater New Jersey and into Pennsylvania; eastward to the Green Mountains of Vermont; and westward to the border with the Iroquoian Oneida Nation's traditional homeland territory. Their current major settlements include areas around Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence River in Canada and New York.

The flag of Malaysia is composed of a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton bearing a crescent and a 14-point star known as the Bintang Persekutuan (Federal Star). The 14 stripes, of equal width, represent the equal status in the federation of the 13 member states and the federal territories, while the 14 points of the star represent the unity between these entities. The crescent represents Islam, the country's state religion; the blue canton symbolises the unity of the Malaysian people; the yellow of the star and crescent is the royal colour of the Malay rulers. It was first raised on 16 September 1963.

Germany - Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution Tuesday, 19 June, 2018
Exercise increased caution in Germany due to terrorism. Terrorist groups continue plotting possible attacks in Germany. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, local government facilities, hotels, clubs, restaurants, places of worship, parks, major sporting and cultural events, educational institutions, airports, and other public areas. Read the […]
Belarus - Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions Monday, 18 June, 2018
Exercise normal precautions in Belarus. Read the Safety and Security section on the country information page. If you decide to travel to Belarus: Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive Alerts and make it easier to locate you in an emergency. Follow the Department of State on Facebook and Twitter. Review the […]

Ethiopia Saturday, 23 June, 2018
Summary: Addis Ababa: Saturday 23 June: A large rally in support of Ethiopian Prime Minister, Dr Abiy Ahmed, was disrupted by a grenade attack, resulting in c80 injured, some seriously. Minor incidents were reported as crowds dispersed, but the streets are now mostly calm. We encourage visitors to continue to follow our advice below on […]
GOV.UK
South Africa Friday, 22 June, 2018
Latest update: Safety and Security section (Crime) - revised information; risk of crime increases in urban areas, particularly central business districts of major cities and townships on the outskirts of major cities; a higher state of awareness is required if travelling through these areas
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