Showing respect of persons is one of the oldest sins in the world. It means to respect one person over another person. It means to accept or reject a person on the basis of some outward standard such as race, wealth, education, or position in life. The Bible warns, “But if ye have respect of persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors” James 2:9.
If you accept or reject people on the basis of such outward standards, you will likely miss the true worth of a person. You might even miss the worth of the Lord himself. After all, he had no wealth and no college degrees to speak of.
Showing respect of persons breaks the most basic law of the Christian faith, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” This law fits with all the other laws God gave to form a unit. To break one of God’s laws is to violate the will of God. No matter how good you may be in other areas of life, if you show respect of persons, you have acted against the will of God.
God will judge us, in part, as we have judged other people. If we want God to be merciful to us on the day of judgment, then we must show mercy to others today. This is simply the Golden Rule in action. It is evident from the Bible that our Lord is no respecter of persons. Neither should his children be.