On our drive to Prineville on
Saturday, for the Memorial Service, we counted five deer down alongside the
road, along with a number in fields. A
reminder that care must be given I haven’t seen that many fresh kills
before.
We haven’t seen much rain in the
past few months, it was ironic that we had to encounter a heavy downpour in the
high desert, between Madras and Prineville.
I started going down hill a
little after 1400 Saturday and ended up taking pain killers – as per label – for
the next 24 hours, doing better today.
Wind is a whistling out
there. Carla dug up some potatoes, they
are beautiful – but it is too warm to continue in the garden right now. She is doing fine, but as we get a bit older
we are finding that we don’t last quite as long.
Mathew 7:1
Judge not, that ye be not
judged. KJV pasted from BibleGateway.com
Oh, how the world loves this
verse. They wave it in front of
Christians when they try to explain that what they are doing is sin and grievous
to God.
“Who are you to judge me?” they
proclaim. “God tells you ‘judge not’ so
leave me alone.”
Yet, everyone, Christians and
sinners alike make judgement calls every day.
Not just what clothes to wear, but who they wish to associate with and
what activities are okay and which ones are not.
Most parents try to steer their
children away from the influence of what they consider bad. They don’t want their children associating
with those that commit crimes, or harass and bully others. They make their decision based on judgement
of the character of these people. They
indeed judge.
So why is it wrong to judge that
way, but a Christian cannot?
Mathew goes on to write:
Mathew 7:2-5 For with what
judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall
be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou
the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in
thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to
thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is
in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first
cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast
out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
We want to make sure that our
life is in order with God. That we have
asked the Holy Spirit to search our heart and help us overcome any beams that
are a hindrance to our helping others.
We have no right to try and
point others from sin, if we are participating in that same sin – often in
private and where we think no one sees us.
As Christians it is important
for us to remember that there is a difference between making judgement calls on
a person’s actions when we are doing the same thing or something that may even
be worse; and conveying a sincere desire to help them find Jesus out of
love.
It is the person that we must
not judge, not the actions. We can help
each other overcome sin; we can help each other strengthen our faith. But pointing a finger and wiggling it is not
the answer.
Probably most, if not all of us,
are guilty of making a judgement call about someone, when we are doing the exact
same thing – or worse. As a matter of
fact often we notice those sins because we are also participating in
them in some form.
There is also a difference
between judging someone and discerning their actions are against God, His Word
or His people.
It is important for us to
question questionable preaching or teaching, we must review and compare it with
God’s Word and seek help from trusted scholars of theology who have proven their
desire to interpret the Word of God without prejudices where they try to approve
sinful behavior.
We can tell whether a truth or
an untruth is told and then we must proclaim the truth. Some WILL call that judging others, but we
have no choice if God’s Word and His Church are to be rightfully declared to the
world.
Hebrews
4:12 For the word of God is quick, and
powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing
asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and
intents of the heart.
In addition to God’s Word as a
comparison – there are also those that are given the gift of discernment by
God. While we must also look carefully
at what they are saying and make sure it lines up with God’s Word, they have the
responsibility to speak up and let us and others know when they have been shown
someone is preaching a false doctrine.
1 Corinthians 12:9-11 To another faith by the same Spirit;
to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
10
To
another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to
another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of
tongues:
11
But
all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man
severally as he will.
People are correct when they
tell others not to judge – however, they are incorrect if they think God is
supporting their position.
As Christians we must have a
heart to God, a close relationship with the Holy Spirit. We must share our concerns from a position of
love and desire to help others, not just put them down.
We are all sinners, those of us
who have accepted Jesus as our Savior have been saved by the Grace of God – and
while that may offend the sensibilities of some sinners, it is the truth and if
they feel judge by it, the judgement is not by us, but by God.
Their anger is often a result of
the Holy Spirit condemning them in their heart and they are lashing out, rather
than accepting they are sinning and need Jesus.
John
14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am
the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by
me.
2 Corinthians 5:10-11 For we must all appear before the
judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body,
according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
11
Knowing
therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto
God; and I trust also are made manifest in your
consciences.
Our job is not to pass
judgement, but to make others aware of the salvation of Christ by which they can
avoid His terrible wrath – when HE judges!
Later, Art :-)
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