For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.
There are a lot of curio shops at the beach. Each shop is filled with hundreds if not thousands of little curiosities. Many of them are glass or porcelain. They are things that easily break. Some shops have a little sign on the shelves that says, “YOU BREAK IT, YOU BUY IT.”
Now you might say that breaking a wing off of that little glass angel was not such a big deal. With a little glue, you can make it “as good as new.” The problem is, no matter how good you are, the break is still there. It is no longer “new.” As far as the store is concerned, it is now worthless. So if you are the one who broke it, you buy it.
The law is kind of like that little glass angel on the shelf at the curio shop. Break one little chip off of one wing and POOF the whole thing is broken.
So what does this mean?
Is James suggesting that there is no hope? Is he telling us not to bother trying?
Remember that James started out talking about people who show favoritism. They favored the “rich” while ignoring the brothers and sisters who are poor. His point is that God’s law of love does not have exceptions.
Application: Practice treating the poor like you would treat the richest man in the world for a whole day. (Let us know how it goes!)
Food for Thought: Why does James use the word “stumble” to describe what is going on?
Maybe because even though we have all stumbled, it wasn’t an experience that led to death or total failure. We have a great hope for recovery.
Happy Tuesday morning!
Rob,
Thanks for sharing your insight here. I think you may have “stumbled” upon the answer to today’s question! 🙂
The impossibility of perfection.
God’s mercy spares us from immediately being judged.
God’s grace allows us to still walk in the spirit.
How wonderful to not be under the law.
How beautiful to walk and live a righteous life.
Thank you for joining us today! I love the poetic response!!
Hey, I think someone’s trying to write Psalm 151…😉
I love the devotion and the responses. I love the title too. It is easy to stumble. We all stumble. We all have a great need. We have all broken the law and are deserving of hell. James is letting us know we have a great need. Thankfully, we have a greater Savior. The cross fixes all the brokenness.
Thank you, Rich! Indeed we do have a greater Savior! Thank God for God!!
Interesting visual regarding the broken wing. This is exactly the way the unregenerate sees himself. He is totally fine. He would see the broken wing that is glued back on as an “unfortunate incidental”, everyone has a broken wing they would say always hoping against hope that God would overlook the “insignificant” sinful patterns in their life. The law cares nothing about feelings. The law doesn’t fix broken things. The only way that angel can be sold as new is to be re-made by it’s creator
Keith,
Thank you for sharing! You turned the illustration around and applied it to us. What a great insight!
👍