"I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark. I will not judge those who hear me but don’t obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken. I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it. And I know his commands lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say.” John 12:46-50 (NLT)
A lot is said these days about "judging", but in the midst of that popular societal buzz and the assertive comments that come with that conversation, I have a question: If God has called something sin and we simply agree with what He's said,... are we judging or just repeating and declaring the truth? When He walked the earth, Jesus spoke about judging and He pointed out the danger of our judging...
“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged." Matthew 7:1-2 (NLT)
...but He also didn't shy away from repeating the truth of His Father. So again, if God has called something sin and we repeat what He's said,... are we judging or just repeating and declaring the truth?
I think the key to answering that depends in part on our individual level of humility, our honest awareness of the magnitude of grace that God's shown us personally, and our motive in calling sin out if we do. If it's plain gossip, or if we're doing it to make ourselves look more pious, using it as a weapon to slam someone else, or doing it to make ourselves feel better about our own failures, then the answer is pretty clear and self condemning. But if we call it out because we recognize that sin has a cost to both the person committing the sin and potentially to other people around them and we do it in gentle humility - recognizing that we ourselves have been just as guilty in God's eyes by whatever sins that we ourselves have been guilty of in the past, then there may be a distinct difference. Our motives are clear before the ultimate judge whom we have trusted to forgive our own detestable crimes against Him...
"They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” John 8:7 (NLT)
God may be the only true judge of our motives because He knows us better than we know our own selves. He's not suffering from our biases or the imperfections of character that we've allowed along the way. So we should take care even in this latter kind of "judgment", but I don't think we should be afraid to recognize sin in agreement with what God has said or to avoid becoming a party to it ourselves. Knowing the totality of what God's said is absolutely critical in that effort. Reading it in context and continuing to remind ourselves of it by continually rereading it and studying it is our guide to navigating this life according to His rules - along with the leading and counsel of the Holy Spirit.
Calling out someone else's sin can be a dangerous thing if we do it for the wrong reasons, but sometimes it can also be problem if we don't do it. I think we might be considered at least partly responsible, by complicity, for someone else's failures and suffering if we don't warn them or attempt to correct them out of love for them while God sees. The simplest examples are those found in raising our own children, but it applies to others we cross paths with in life as well. As followers of Jesus Christ, if we love the others that God created as we're commanded ... do we warn them when they're in error or just let them fall?
To "judge" someone else's salvation is definitely wrong - only God knows their heart and true standing and has the authority to make those judgments as He will in our own case as well, but in my opinion, the world's definition of 'judging" is far too broad and presumes (perhaps in the act of "judging" by their own definition) the motives of the person they might accuse. The world seems intent on avoiding any kind of judgment because sinful mankind doesn't like being told that it's doing something wrong (because it carries conviction) and it prefers to do what its lusts lead it to do without any kind of condemnation or consequence, but in fact the price to be paid will be exacted at final accounting. In the meantime though this has led to widespread compromise and acceptance of many things contrary to God's irrefutable standard and could cost many their eternal future. So do we just stand by and watch? Is that what we're called to do? Is this what it it really means to be salt and light?
Deception is a tool that our God's enemy uses unsparingly and studying God's solid advice and direction in earnest begins to reveal just how much compromise even some modern "Christians" are willing to make against the word of an uncompromising God for their own purposes. We need to be willing test the spirit and be willing to test everything against what God's said for our own protection. The enemy is unmercifully on the move.
As a young man in my teens, I was given a piece of sage advice that has guided me carefully over the growing number of decades since. I've found myself embracing it with far more care and diligence with the passing of time and have used it as an unfailing shield against the advent of potential deception. The advice goes like this:
"Never take another man's word for what God is trying to say to you from His Word. Read it for yourself in context and ask the Holy Spirit to give you understanding of it." It's sound advice and that exercise begins to help build Godly discernment.
"For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths." 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NLT)
If we claim to believe God, as true Christians or Christ followers and we're serious, then we need to know what He's said - what God inspired men to write down and has protected since for our knowledge - the Bible. If we're to know the truth of anything , the benchmark of the real truth has to be that very same book. Think about it. Without the bible, what would we know about God this late in history? Coming to know God through what He's said and through an ongoing relationship with Him begins to reveal His standard and shows us how far the world has strayed away from it. It also begins to make us understand how late the hour is according to God's plan... and it is very late.
It's time to get serious about knowing who God is and understanding what He's instructed. It's also time to make sure that we're following it and perhaps being more bold in telling the truth gently out of a heart of compassion for souls that're at risk...
"A servant of the Lord must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone, be able to teach, and be patient with difficult people. Gently instruct those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change those people’s hearts, and they will learn the truth." 2 Timothy 2:24-25 (NLT)
In order to follow the Apostle Paul's instruction, one must know the truth ... and be willing to speak it to those who are opposing it in the hope that the Holy Spirit will use it to change their hearts. This is not being judgmental. I've come to the conclusion that some use the issue of being "judgmental" as a shield against being "convicted" for their own actions and some others just as a popular self elevating podium for social rise.
"Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted." Galatians 6:1 (NKJ)
We should take care in what we piously "judge" and look down on. Some of those things that I once may have mocked in my youthful pride came to visit me pointedly in my own existence by divine appointment until I came to fear mocking anything and was humbled in my own soul before God and was moved to completely surrender my pride. Our sanctification, in the process, may come at a cost to our self view, but it births a refinement of spirit that brings Him glory and also a spirit that begins to bear resemblance of a creature more worthy of deeper relationship with its selfless, humble, and grace dealing Creator.
“Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked. You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven." Luke 6:35-37 (NLT)
We need to take care that our motives are right and born of a compassionate Christ-like spirit and motive, but whatever deceptive and twisted accusations may be hurled against us, we shouldn't allow them to keep us from speaking God's truth to those being crippled by sin or allow them to cause us to feel shame for repeating it. We're not ashamed of God, so how could we be ashamed of what He's said? We see all around us how such silence has allowed moral and spiritual decay to take ground that belongs to God and how it's affected the world's societies and the people that God created for Himself. I could imagine that there may one day be an accounting for such and in that event I don't desire to be found lacking. If our loving, truth filled admonitions are rejected, then at least they've heard it and we've planted ammunition for the Holy Spirit to use as He will.
Perhaps those focused on "judging" others should consider making more of a point of focusing on speaking the truth of God and of the gospel instead of focusing on the sin of another person. The Holy Spirit then is able to use the truth to speak to the hearts and minds of those who will be persuaded to surrender to God. His truth and Spirit can do far more than our own limited abilities. And given the core deadliness of sin, there are none of us who were not worthy of death. Let us not forbid the reality of that to sink in and remind us of our humbled place before Him. Our judgments made from wrong motives can become judgment on our own heads. On the other hand, our Christlike compassion for another still wrestling with sin and the weight of it all should give us pause to consider our approach to their suffering, suffering once similar to our own. Our response to them won't go unnoticed by the One who righteously judges us all. To Him be all the glory, honor, power, respect and adoration for all that He is and all that he does.
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