Let God Be the Judge
“Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” Matthew 7:1
I am afraid that Jesus’ command for all of us to not judge others is somewhat ignored by lots of folks. I will admit that it is very difficult not to put in my two cents’ worth particularly when it comes to politics, the lifestyles of other folks, morality, and many other subjects. We all have our ideas of how things should be. Those of us who are believers in Christ have, or should have, a fairly strict moral code by which we pattern our lives. We sometimes compare the way that others conduct their lives by how we think and act as we traverse this thing called an earthly life. Those who claim to be Christians all have the same handbook which spells out the right response for every situation in which we find ourselves. It’s called the Bible. God wrote it, thus we know that it is a reliable manual for all of our thoughts and actions that occur on a daily basis.
Regardless of the instructions found in God’s word to lead us to become more Christlike each day that passes, we don’t always follow those instructions. We sometimes treat the scriptures like the father who thinks he can put together the complicated toy without referring to the instructions. When he finds that he has parts left over, and the toy doesn’t work exactly like it is supposed to, he then goes back and checks to see where he went wrong. He then has to disassemble the toy and start over. Likewise when we find that our situation is not resolving, we then go and check our Manual of life and see what we should have done or said. That’s why it is very important to regularly study God’s word in order to know instinctively what to do in times of trouble and disappointment. Even those of us who have been born again by God’s grace still have that sin nature which can get the upper hand if we are not careful to allow the Holy Spirit to keep us on the straight and narrow. It is the struggle between the sin nature and the new nature which we received when we repented and received Christ as Lord and Savior that contributes to our growth into a mature believer. As they say, “No pain, no gain”. Hard work, perseverance, and determination not only contribute to our physical strength, but our spiritual strength as well.
We wonder why it is so difficult to not be judgmental of others. Jesus can give us the ability to basically mind our own business and leave judgment to Him for He is the One who knows the heart of each person, believer or unbeliever. I can’t see into a person’s heart. We might not know what another is going through which may cause him or her to act in a way that we evaluate as inconsistent with what we think is appropriate for a Christian. On the other hand, it is our duty as a brother or sister in Christ to help another who has stepped outside the bounds of Christlike behavior, but we must confront in a loving and helpful manner, and not in a judgmental or accusatory way. When folks who claim to be followers of Christ act in a way that is harmful to the cause of Christ, we must do what we can to show them the way back. Of course, we must be living a righteous life in order to help someone else back into the fold. Otherwise we are nothing more than a hypocrite.
We are not to judge sinners. That’s God’s job. People are not sinners because they sin; they sin because they are sinners. Flip Wilson, the comedian of many years ago, played a character on television who claimed that “the devil made me do it”. The devil can’t make anyone do anything, but he is definitely a cheerleader for the person who lives to please himself or herself. We may disagree or dislike the behavior of those who reject Christ, but God will judge them. Jesus said that whatever criteria we use to judge another person is the same criteria that will be used to judge us. That certainly is food for thought, and it can leave a very bad taste in our mouths if we don’t heed the warning. The only one whom we are qualified to judge is ourselves, and that should take up plenty of time leaving no time to judge others.
One time I was at a gathering of Christian friends. One lady, who is single, was saying how she didn’t like to call on anyone, especially someone else’s husband, to help her do things around the house. I can completely understand that. One of the other ladies said, “Oh, you’re just being prideful”. Now this lady had a husband who could do the “honey do” jobs for her. Later, after I went home, I began to think about what the second lady said, and I thought to myself, “Well, she was just being judgmental”. But, didn’t that make me judgmental? Yes, it did. It is easy to get caught up in an attitude of being judgmental especially when one believes one can justify it. I found that the best thing to do when a thought rises up in my mind that is critical or judgmental, I try to get my mind on something else. I will admit that I haven’t completely conquered by judgmental attitude, particularly when it comes to politics. I cannot see into the hearts of those in leadership, but Jesus said that we can know folks by their fruits, that is, the works, thoughts, and policies that they produce. Rather than complaining about our leaders, the only solution for this country and this world is to pray that the Holy Spirit would bring conviction on each one of them, and that they, from the President on down, would bend the knee, repent, and confess Jesus as Lord and Savior.