2008-10-03
Good Morning Dear Ones,
I’m led to continue the comparison of MT 7: 1-5, Christ’s Sermon on the Mount words on judgment, with RO 2: 1-6, 17-24, Paul’s criticism of hypocritical and legalistic Jews of his day. Some points already made are the cases of “the blind leading the blind” [MT 7: 1; RO 2: 17-20], boasting about having the Law, but bringing shame on God [MT 7: 1; RO 2: 23], and causing the Gentiles to speak evil of God because of the Jews’ behavior [IS 52: 5; MT 7: 3-5; IS 46:10; RO 2: 24]. The verses from Isaiah show us that these sins on the part of the Jews were nothing new.
We need to look at MT 7:1 and RO 2: 1, “Do not judge others, so that God will not judge you…Do you, my friend, pass judgment on others? You nave no excuse at all, whoever you are. For when you judge others and then do the same things which they do, you condemn yourself.” MT 7:1 taken alone might sound like we shouldn’t be making any judgments at all. Such is not the case. If that were so, we wouldn’t have the intelligence to discern when we encounter people with whom we shouldn’t be “unequally yoked” [2 COR 6:14]. However, value judgments of others must be avoided, except where we know we are not engaged in the same behavior or behavior similar to theirs-behavior which dishonors God and His teaching. Having this knowledge can only arise from daily study with understanding of God’s word and open, honest, and on-going self-evaluation in comparison to it. There is no room for self-righteousness in this construct. Therein lays the greatest vulnerability to which the Jews were showing their weakness.
We can see an important comparison between RO 2: 2 and MT 7:2, “We know that God is right when He judges the people who do such things as these…For God will judge you in the same way you judge others, and He will apply to you the same rules you apply to others.” God’s judgments are always fair. Thus, if we judge with hypocrisy, then God is right to condemn what we are doing. We certainly know people like that and have even been made to endure their judgments of us. On the other hand, if we were to judge another in the same way, doesn’t it make sense that God is right to condemn our stooping down to their level by doing the same thing? For example, people who are gluttons judging another for being overweight, or people who are poor students judging another person for his weak performance on a test would fit this category. The examples given here are not as serious as others we encounter in our lives, but they do get the point across. Hypocrisy of any kind dishonors God. As I get older, I find that we have plenty on our plates with trying to discover and expunge our own sins, that there is little time for us to be making it our business to expunge the sins of others.
Does this mean that we shouldn’t help people who have come to us for help in getting rid of bad habits? Certainly not, if we are qualified to do this. I have a friend who had the devil’s own time quitting smoking. This regrettable habit is in my own past, so my friend asked me for advice. I wouldn’t ever suggest doing it “cold turkey” as I did, but know enough to recommend really effective modern help that is available. My friend took the advice I gave him, found a good smoking cessation program, and is now happy to be free of his nicotine habit. Knowing if we are qualified to give such advice is the key to success. If a person asks for advice outside of our own expertise, then we should decline to offer it. While I might help someone to quit smoking with my advice, I certainly am not qualified to help someone who needed surgery, for example.
Dealing with an incompetent, hypocritical people can be very painful indeed. Gossip filled with judgments [ones often wrongful] can cause a lot of trouble. Many of us have had the experience of being the recipients of such behavior in our youths. I certainly did. The schoolyard is not always a friendly place. A rumor gets started and it gets passed around like the game of “telephone” played at parties. Each time it moves from one person to another, it becomes more elaborate and mean-spirited. What comes out the other end is so far from the truth that lives can be ruined by it. Consider what our Lord Jesus endured. At the hand of his own village, He was rejected for teaching the truth, “a prophet is never welcomed in his home town” with a story about Elijah being sent only to the widow living in Zarephath in the territory of Sidon and Elisha only to the Syrian commander, Naaman [LK 4: 26-30;1K 17: 8-16; 2 K 5: 1-14]. Moreover, consider the lies that spread around leading to Christ being accused of acquiring His power from Beelzebul [the chief of the demons], in LK 11: 15. How emotionally painful it must have been for Him to endure this scorn! And then, there is the ultimate pain He endured for us at the cross. How many of us would have gone through that for the sake of people who up to that point were enemies of the Father [RO 5: 9-11]? Before we pass any kind of judgment on another person, we must remember the selfless love Christ showed to us when we least deserved it [JN 3: 16; RO 3: 24-25]. He left us with these words, from JN 15: 13, 16, “The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them…You did not choose Me; I chose you and appointed you to bear much fruit, the kind of fruit that endures. And so the Father will give you whatever you ask of Him in My name.”
PRAYER: O Lord, the truths of James’ words in JAS 3: 5, 10 should be etched on our hearts. “So it is with the tongue; small as it is, it can boast about great things. Just think how large a forest can be set on fire by a tiny flame!...Words of thanksgiving and cursing pour out from the same mouth. My brothers, this should not happen!” We thank You, Dear Father, for giving us the discernment we need through the word to make wise judgments where it is appropriate and to refrain from judging in areas where it is Your right only to do so. You are indeed a loving and faithful God. Through the death, burial, and resurrection of Your Son, Jesus Christ, You have given us hope that we no longer must be mired in sin and headed for the certain spiritual death that arises out of a lifestyle of sin. Through the stories of the Bible, You have revealed to us how and when to make wise and righteous judgments, ones that will help us to conform our lives to Your will [RO 12: 2]. You teach us that legalism and elevation of ritual over the content of Your word is wrongful. You encourage us to engage in self-evaluation without guilt, in the effort to discover and expunge sin from our lives. And yes, Dearest Abba, even the most mature of the faithful need to endeavor to better conform to the standard set by our Lord Jesus, for each and every one of us is still a sinner. The apostle Paul spoke eloquently of the conflict between the flesh and the spirit, in RO 7: 14-25. Therein we learn that only the intervention of Jesus Christ and His Atonement could salvage our lives from certain eternal condemnation. You show us the folly of hypocrisy and allow us to see the pain and destruction in the lives of others it brings. One of the most poignant stories is that of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law who took advantage of widows, robbing them of their assets, followed by the story of the widow’s mite in LK 20: 45-21: 4. Your teaching applies throughout all history [PS 107: 43; PS 119: 93], and those who place their faith in You, will emerge victors in Your Son, Jesus Christ. We thank and praise You, offer You our loyalty and honor, and pledge to You our full obedience. In Christ’s powerful and holy name, we pray. Amen.
Next week, I’m instructed by the Holy Spirit to continue the comparison between MT 7: 1-5 and RO 2: 1-6, 17-24. It’s important to consider whether or not a person can escape God’s judgment for practicing hypocrisy and God’s kindness in leading us to repent. There is a verse that can give us great comfort at this time. It is PS 103: 8, “He is merciful and tender toward those who don’t deserve it; He is slow to get angry and full of kindness and love.” When put together with 2 PET 3: 9, we have a picture of just how amazingly loving and caring our God really is. “The Lord is not slow to do what He has promised, as some think. Instead, He is patient with you, because He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants all to turn away from their sins.” There is nothing more important to God than to bring as many people back to Himself for a blissful fellowship in heaven for eternity as possible. His love is sufficient motivation for us all to become obediently faithful to Him. Consider all of this, prayerfully, in our own determination of what our relationship with the God Who loves us so much should be. Thank and praise Him often for the God He is. Praise and honor be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn