Written by Pastor Jack Wellman– Mother Teresa
Wrestling over the Word
I hate to see Christians engage in debates with one another and using Scripture to do it. They are wielding the sword of the Word but then using it against their brother or sister. This is clearly sin and God never intended His Word to be used like this. This must grieve the Holy Spirit terribly. Imagine someone arguing over who is right or taking one Bible verse but using it out of context against what someone else believes. It’s like we’re wrestling God. We’ve got to stop it or someone could get hurt (spiritually, anyway). The Apostle Paul said it only leads to the ruin of the hearers (2nd Tim 2:14).
With our Eyes
I constantly need to remind myself to stop judging by sight. For one thing, I’m usually wrong, and for another much more important reason, its sin! God alone can see into the heart. It says, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart” (1st Sam 16:7), yet I often do just the opposite. I’m getting better, but I have a long way to go. What about you?
By Appearances
We judge rich people far too harshly and easily, assuming that they inherited it all and didn’t have to work for it. That might be the case in a few instances, but certainly we can’t judge ever person who’s rich in that same way or we’ve sinned. There were several saints who were rich. There was Abraham, David, Solomon, Lydia, and possibly even Barnabas. God doesn’t hate rich people and He expects us to not judge them unfairly. They will have to give an account someday, and it won’t be to us (Rom 14:12). The very same could apply to the very poor. Most of us don’t know the whole story behind a person’s life.
Conclusion
It’s far too easy to judge by sight, isn’t it? I know it’s also easy to get into debates about doctrine, but I avoid those, so let us not judge by sight but trust God to judge righteously. They will stand before God and not us. Only when it is a grievous sin or very serious sin should we approach our brother or sister, but that’s not judging…that’s called loving your brother or sister enough to tell them the truth. Otherwise, let us not judge others because only He knows the whole story behind every person and every detail of their life. We don’t.
