On Judging Others

 

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On Judging Others

[NIV] Matthew 7: 1&2 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you”

   Our Lord said ..“Do not judge, or you too will be judged” .. Just what do these words mean? We cannot help judging others, sure, after all we are only human! We ought to be able to read others characters, and to know whether others are good or bad. As we watch others act we can’t help forming opinions about them. The holier we grow and more like Christ, then the nearer will be our moral judgments. We are not meant to close our eyes and be blind to peoples faults and sins.

Q: “So what does our Lords words really mean to us?”

   He is saying this .. ‘It is uncharitable judging against others for which He warns us, we are not actively looking for evil things – actions – behaviours in others. We are not to see others through the warped glasses of prejudice and unkindly feeling. We are not arrogate* to ourselves the function of judging, [*Arrogate:~take or claim something without justification], as if man was answerable to us. We are to avoid a critical or censorious spirit. Nothing is against speaking good of those we see and know, it is though uncharitable judging and speaking of those that are condemned.

Luke 6:37 “Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned”

   One reason this is wrong, is that it is putting one’s self in Gods place. Words you don’t want to said of you is .. “Who made you judge and executioner” .. on hearing these words should be a warning that you have gone too far. For He/God is the one true judge, with whom every human soul is judged. Judgment is not ours to make but is Gods.. God only is the Lawmaker and the Judge, He who is able to save and destroy, so who are you that judges your neighbour?” .. In condemning and censuring others we are thrusting ourselves into Gods seat, taking His sceptre into our hands, and presuming to exercise His perogatives.

2 Chronicles 19:6 “Take heed to what you are doing, for you do not judge for man but for the Lord”

   We don’t know what may be the cause of the faults we would condemn others. Some peoples flaws are an inheritance that they have received from our parents. They were born with the weakness that now mars their adulthood. Or, their faults come through errors in their training and education. Once, a Nurse fell with a Baby in her arms, years later, and all down the years the man goes about with a lameness or a deformity, which mars his beauty of form. But he's not responsible for the marring, and criticism of him is cruel and unjust. There are now hurts in his character, and wounds of the soul, which it is quite unjust to condemn with anything but pity, for they are the inheritance by someone else’s hands.

1 Corinthians 4:4&5 “My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore judge nothing”

   We don’t know the things in a persons circumstances or experiences which are the real cause of the faults, or even peculiarities we are disposed to censure. We don’t know what troubles they have endured, what secret sorrows they have had to carry, that are so impressed upon their hearts, as to affect their temper, or even the cause their conduct. . .It written ..

“If we could read the secret history of our

enemies, we should find in each persons

life, sorrows and sufferings, enough to

disarm all our hostility and angst”

...If we take time to wonder at a man’s unmercifulness, they will seem unsocial sour or even cold. But all the while they are carrying a burden which almost crushes the life out of them. If we knew all that God knows of their life, perhaps, just perhaps, we might not speak words of ill over them. Then may be our own censure would not be so harsh.

   A great deal of our judging of others over misjudging or unjust judging, because we don’t know all the facts, that are leading upto this point in their lives. It would oftimes grieve us, and make us ashamed of ourselves, if, when we have judged an other severely , that is if we should be shown a glimpse of their inner life, revealing hidden sorrows & struggles, which are the root cause of the things in them we have blamed.

   Betty and me would often be out in the car, when we’re cut up, by someone. I might go to react, Betty would say STOP, you don’t know the day they could be having or had, or the pressures that are on them to be somewhere. As frustrating as it can be, she always tries to get me to see the other side of the coin. When all I want to do is rage, it is very disarming.

   Very often all we will see is but fragments of their lives, and no judgement formed on a fragment can be fair, we can only see one side of the coin, when there may be another that altogether changes it’s quality. The two sides could be seen as thus …

‘One side is always but blurred, like

a mass of crushed leaves, that are just out

of focus. The other side is seen in sharp

focus, showing the exquisite beauty

of the flower.’

. . . Life is full of similar 2 sided views of people and their acts. We would see someone out in the World, and they appear harsh & stern. Then we see them at home, and maybe see them around their invalid child, then all comes together a full life picture. It would therefore have been unjust if we made our judgement of them, from our ‘one-sided’ view of them, without seeing them with their child, loving ~ caring ~ nurturing.

   There was a young man whom was severely criticised by his work colleagues for his closeness & meanness. He was paid a very good salery, but livid very miserly, without even basic comforts, which his friends thought he could easerly afforded, and without any of these generous expenditures in a social way which his work colleagues indulged in. Many thoughts were made of his stinginess. That was only one side of life, but there was in fact another. When the young man had an only sister, actually they were ‘Orphans’, she greatly suffered (in other words was very sick), she was stuck in her room, of which she was mostly bed ridden because of her illness. He was her only brother thus provided all her care needs.

   This was the reason he lived so frugally, saving every penny he could, often going without many things others his age took for granted and thought necessary, so that she never went without, so she had the best care he could give her, and many comforts. This was the other side of his (hidden) character, the one side of which his work friends were unknowledgable & uncompassionate about. Surely we can see how unjust their judgement was based upon the one side they saw of his conduct. To judge from only seeing a fragment, is to judge ignorantly not least to say unfare.

[NIV] Matthew 7:2/5 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye”

   Our own imperfections also make us unfit for judging fairly. With ‘beams in our own eyes, make it that we can not see clearly to pick the planks out of our brother eye’s. One of the qualities which make us incapable of impartial judgement of others is … ENVY. There are very few of us who can see our neighbour's lifes work disposition without some warping & distortion of the picture. Envy .. has a strange effect on our moral vision ..

• It shows the beautiful things in others with the beauty dimmed ..

• It shows the blemishes and faults in an exaggerated way ..

• In other forms too, the miserable selfishness of our hearts obtrudes itself and makes our judgement of others oftimes really unkind and uncharitable

[NIV] Romans 8:26/7 “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people”

   Another reason we should not judge others is that we need then to rise up out of their distresses. We are set together in life to make each other a lot better than we are. Their way to do this is not prattling on about their faults or short comings. Constantly pointing out their faults never cured anyone. There is a time, in friendship & love, for telling others their faults, but as I have already said, it can only be said in these relationships, also be only said in a spirit of lovingkindness.

   We are often told one of the finest qualities in a friend is that they will faithfully, with love, tell us our faults. We would like to think it is so, but not many of us have grace enough to welcome and accept such correction. A parent may tell their own child their faults, so long as they tell us with love & affection, NEVER – EVER to ever approach with anger or impatience. There was a time when a teacher could tell a pupil of their mistakes and then show how to correct them, again if it was done with a loving desire for their improvement.

Nagging is not a means of grace

   There is a more excellent way, that is love. It’s better when we wish to correct faults in others, be careful to let them see in us, in relief the virtue, the excellence, which is opposite to the defect we see in them ..

[NLT]Proverbs 3:12 “For the Lord corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights”

[NIV]Proverbs 2:10/11 “For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. 11 Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you”

.. It is the habit formed by a certain type of person, that if they were to hear from a close member of their family & friends mispronounce a word, they never correct them, or tare strips of off them, right there and then, that would just be belittling. Instead they find the best and earliest opportunity, to show them the best time/way to use and pronounce the word. To correct in this manner is for sure the most wise in helping them and others out of their faults of character and conduct, in a more friendlier & softer way.

#That is our Lords way, with His disciples

He never scolded them#

   He bore patiently with their dullness, and slowness as scholars. He [Jesus] never wearied of repeating the same lesson over and over again, but was never censorious. Even Jesus did not judge them, He didn’t keep telling them of al the blemishes He saw in them. It was just not His way of seeking their growth into better, sweeter life, for His heart is always full of love. He helped them ever toward a longer life. We always need to remember to relate to others to grow into spiritual beauty. Consciousness accomplishes nothing in making people better. You must always remember that scolding never really helped anyone…

Only LOVE creates LOVE

… We too often take too much delight in discovering something NOT beautiful about someone, and swooping down upon what ever they did wrong. Instead what is needed, is a complete change of mindset, in approaching them with love, when having to correct them...

[NIV] Psalms 35:24 “Vindicate me, O Lord my God, according to Your righteousness”

… If ever criticism is ever indulged in, it should be done with deep humility, and with sincere desire, that for their sake helping them making changes, only ever done just between you and them.

   We ALL therefore need to train ourselves, to see the good in each other and NOT evil. We need to speak more approving & edifying, shinning the light on each others beauty within. And not words that are bitter ~ twisted ~ or hurtful & condemning words that would impact others for years to come. We must always try and look at  others through eyes of love, and not those of ..Envy or Selfishness .. therefore we should seek to heal with words of true affection & gentleness.

   Jesus Christ came in peace, lived with lovingkindness and peace, even keeping silent all the way through His persecution & crucifixion. Can we honestly say the same? Next time we feel like ripping into someone .. S T O P .. Think ~ breath ~ count to 10 next time you find yourself becoming embroiled in a heated discussion, and end up saying some thing you will regret.

Prayer

Heavenly Father with each passing day, make us, mould us 

little more like Jesus, and alittle like our earthly selves. 

Amen

Even I only

 

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Even I only

   Elijah, at a certain great crisis, thought he was the only one left to stand for God. There were others but he never knew of them. He was the only one in this field of God. He stood alone, one man against the King and Priest & people. It must have looked like utter foolishness, or splendid heroism.

   There comes a time in our lives, that it is all who are Christians, when we must stand alone for God, without companionship, perhaps without even sympathy or encouragement. Here is a young person, the only one of his family who has confessed Christ Jesus. He takes Him [Christ Jesus] as his saviour, and then stands up in front of the World, and vows to be His [Christ Jesus] and to follow Him. Elijah then decides to visit home. This is because the members of his immediate family circle are indeed very dear to him, although none of them are Christians, and so he must stand alone for Christ amongst them. Perhaps they even oppose him in his discipleship, in varying degrees this often happens in our own experience. Could be that they are just indifferent, making no opposition, only just quietly watching his/your life to see if is just a passing fad with you. If you were consistent for 60yrs. They would still have ready their ..’I told you so’ .. ready. In any case, how ever, we must stand firm for Christ alone without the help that comes your family’s companionships.

# So what if they make you feel alone,

and you feel like everyone is against you.

The fact is your not alone, don’t sit under

this attitude, for God is with you #

   It may be your in the factory, in School, pupil or teacher. As a young Christian you find yourself standing alone. You return to the Lords table to you weekly duties full of noble impulses, but find himself the only Christian. His companions are ready to sneer, and they point the finger of scorn at him with irritating epithets .. below of the word was formed …

… or they might even persecute him in petty ways. At least they are not Christ's friends, he is a follower of the Master finds no sympathy among them in his new life. He has learnt that he must stand alone in his discipleship , conscience all the while that unfriendly eyes are upon him. Many a young & older Christians find it very hard to be the only one to stand for Christ in your normal circle of friends & family, and to stand Christ in your circle in which his daily work fixed him to this one place.

This kind of aloneness, as it can put upon us great responsibility…

• Like .. your the only Christian in your family,
• Like .. your the only one at home through whom to reveal His Love ~ His Grace ~ His Holiness
• Like .. to show your family the beauty of Christ, to the Works of Christ, the things He would do if He lived there.

… Perhaps the salvation of all the souls of your family depends on you being true & faithful in your own place. If you falter, if you fail in your duty, your Loved ones may be lost, and the blame will be yours, their blood on you . . . [NLT]John 5:37/8 “And the Father who sent me has testified about me himself. You have never heard his voice or seen him face to face, 38 and you do not have his message in your hearts, because you do not believe me” … In like manner if the only Christian in the place where you work .. Shop ~ office ~ factory. A peculiar responsibility rests on you there too, a responsibility which no other would share with you. You are Christ’s only witness there, if you don’t testify there for Him, at this time there will be no other to do this.

[NKJ] Matthew 5:14/16 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they  a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven”

   I read of this story about a lady called Miss Havergal from Düsseldorf in Germany ..

It tells of her experience in a girls school,in the early 1900’s. She went there to teach

soon after she had become a Christian andhad confessed Christ. Such her heart was

warm of love for her Saviour, and she waseager to speak for Him. To her amazement,

however, she learned among the hundredgirls in the school she was the only Christian.

Her first feeling was one of dismay , she couldnot confess Christ in that great company of,

Worldly unchristian companions. Her gentile,sensitive heart shrank from a duty so hard.

Her second thought however, was that shecould not refrain confess Christ. I am the

only one here, she said. And this thoughtgave her great strength and inspiration to her.

She realised that she had a mission in thatschool, that she was Christ’s witness there. His

only witness, and that she dared not fail.

[NLT]1 Thessalonians 2:4 “For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts”

   The same sense of responsibility rests upon every thoughtful Christian, who is called to be Christ’s only witness in a place ~ in a home ~ in a Shop ~ in a School student or teacher ~ in a circle of friends. You are Christ’s only servant there, and dare not be unfaithful, else all your work in Christ, may fail. Remember He’s the light set to shine for his master, and if His light be hidden the darkness will be unrelieved [lacking variation, i.e.:- Monotonous] So there is special inspiration in this consciousness of being the only one Christ has in a certain place.

   We will often be the only one Christ has at a particular place, where we are in that moment. There may well be thousands of other lives about us, though we may only be one, of a large congregation where we live. Yet each one of us has a life that is alone in it’s responsibility in it’s danger, in the mission, and duty. You may be left feeling that though are others close beside me, but NOT one can take my place, or do my duty, or fulfil the mission, or even bear my responsibility..

   We can understand how that Elijah had failed God that day when he was the only one God had to take a stand for Him, the consequences would have been most disastrous, the cause of God would have suffered irreparably. Are we sure that the calamity to Christ’s Kingdom would be any less if one of us should fail God in our lowly place, any common day?

   I’m sure there are some of you think that “I have nothing to offer that god can use, S T O P, think again, as no matter how little , or lowly, you think yourself, God can still use you.

   There is a story of a child finding a leak in the dyke that shut off the sea from Holland, and stopping it with his hand till help came along, ending up he stayed there all night, holding back the floods with his little hands. It was but a little trickling stream that he held back, yet if he had not done this, it would have soon become a torrent, and before the morning the sea would have swept over all the land, (as Holland is for the most part flat plains), submerging fields homes and Cities. Between the sea and all this devastation that was halted by a boys hand. Had the child failed the flood would have rolled in with remorseless ruin. We understand how important it was the boy should be faithful to his duty, since he was the only one God had that night to save Holland.

[NKJV] Romans 14:4 “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand”

   Do you know that your failure in your lowly place and duty may not let in a sea of disaster which shall sweep away human hopes & joys, possibly human souls? The humblest of us dare not fail, for our one life is all God has at the point where we stand.

   The truth of personal responsibility is one of tremendous moment. We won’t escape it by being in a crowd, one of a family, or of a congregation. No one can live our lives ~ do our work ~ meet our obligations ~ bear our burdens. No one but ourselves can stand for us before God to render an account of our deeds. There is another part to this lesson, in that we are responsible for our own Life & Duty.

   The prophet thought his work had failed, because the over throw of ‘Baal-ism’ seemed incomplete. But God confronted him by telling him of 3 other men to come, each in his time, and to do his part of the work in destroying ‘Baal-ism’. In fact Elijah’s work had not failed but it was only a fragment of the whole work.

   The best work any of do in this world is but a fragment. We all enter into each other work, and other in turn will enter into our work, and finish or carry on the work we started till completion. Out duty is just carry on planting seeds, we are to simply to well in our part, no matter how small part. If we do that, we should never fret ourselves, about the part we cannot do. That part belongs to someone else, coming after us.

Elisha follows Elijah 1 Kings 19:19-21 “So Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat ploughing a field. There were twelve teams of oxen in the field, and Elisha was ploughing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders and then walked away. 20 Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to him, “First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you!” Elijah replied, “Go on back, but think about what I have done to you.” 21 So Elisha returned to his oxen and slaughtered them. He used the wood from the plough to build a fire to roast their flesh. He passed around the meat to the townspeople, and they all ate. Then he went with Elijah as his assistant”

   For all Elijah’s years of being alone prophet all his life, and only God by his side, now he has someone to work along side of him. This has to have been a foreign to him? Whilst we may feel alone in our own responsibility, we need to give no thought for our own duty, our own little fragment of the Lords work. The things we cannot do, after the work has passed from our hands to another. There will be comfort in this, for any who fail in their effort and leave tasks unfinished which they hoped to complete, no worry this finishing is for another mission.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, Thank you for walking along side us, even when the road the going is tough. You are my comforter, strong tower of refuge. You have already traveled the path, and so made a way where there seems to be no way. help us to become a 'Baranbas' one who encourages.

The 3 C's

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The 3 Cs

   Today is a breeding for the 3 C’s, as we are tough. I would go as far as saying that from a young age we are brain washed as to what is acceptable. To the poi9nt we are made to be/feel an out-cast, if we feel nothing using the 3 C’s, in fact it’s OK, I hear you ask ‘What are the 3 C’s you’re talking about?

They are ….

·       Criticize . . to judge wrongly

·       Cursed . . .Foul language & calling names

·       Condemn . anyone falsely

   If you say ‘NO’ to any of the above, I will call you out and disagree with you. So lend me your conscience a while, so it may be . . . Challenged ~ Stretched ~ Tempered ~ even Questioned.

Ø Criticize . . to judge wrongly

Math 7 : 1  “. .Judge not, that you be not judged. .”

  In other words, if you don’t want others to judge you don’t judge them.,,

1 Kings 8 : 32  “. . hear in heaven, and act, and judge Your servants. .”

... You no matter if we stand in a quite darkened corner, or, stand on a busy street, we are foolish to think God is neither watching or listening to our false judgement of what ever see or hear.

   So what is it to judge someone who is appointed to pass the law? Although there is a supreme judge, he may be so, but be assured that ‘Only God’ truly knows the hearts of man, we can’t.

2 Chronicles 19^:6/7   “. .and said to the judges, Take heed

to what you are doing, for you do not judge for man but

for the Lord, who is with you in the judgment. ⁷ Now

therefore, let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take

care and do it. .”

   I want you to take time to answer these 3 questions honestly…

1.     In the UK.. How many of you have seen the advertisement of a car being driven fast down a country road, just as he loses control?

2.   Another advertisement, where after scoring for his football/Soccer, after having a pint of beer or 2 with friends after the match, on his way home looses control of his car, and crashes through the fence scything down the kids playing there?

3.   Lastly, and again let’s be honest here, have driven over the speed limit all the time?

John 8: 7  “. .He who is without sin among you, let

him throw a stone. .”

   Who loves a good action movie? Come on now be honest? Well, these films are normally rated at 15+ (in other words, this film is only suited for those over 15 years of age), because of the use of bad language and other content. OK then let me paint you a scene, There you are watching say ‘Lethal Weapon’, when there is a knock on the front door. When you open it to see who’s there, it’s Jesus. Mind if I come to hang out with you, when he sits down he asks what you watching as he sees a film paused. Will you still watch it or turn it off?

   Would you be comfortable with the bad language used often, or turn it off quick, hiding what you were comfortable watching before Jesus came around? Instead you turn off the TV. Yet you were happy to have lots of violence & bad language, But you turn off it because you feel it won’t be Jesus thing. How dare you! If you can show who we are 24/7, then we cannot judge others, because the judge on-high is always there taking notes on what we do ‘behind doors’.

1 Kings 8: 32  “. .Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants. .”

So next time instead of hiding things from our Lord, say this..

Psalm 7: 8&9  ^{“. .}The Lord shall judge the people: judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me. Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins. .”

…Lets also praise each other, and build each other up, when we beat temptation.

1 peter 1: 13/16   ^“. .Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. .”

   Who is without partiality to ‘judge’ according to ones works, and conduct yourselves throughout time of your stay here, and yet fear knowing that you were not redeemed corruptible. . .But with precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish.

   Let me leave you at the end of the first ‘C~Critisize’ with this thought who stand in front of God as white as the day He washed us clean and redeemed us, think careful before you answer! 

(The next 2 C's will be up in the coming days)