2009-03-06
Good Morning Dear Ones,
The Holy Spirit directs me to continue writing about how we can make righteous judgments. We have already seen the following steps: 1) Go before God’s throne of grace and examine our hearts first; 2) Ask if we are being self-righteous or walk in love; 3) As if we seek the motive of people’s hearts or only seeing their outward appearance; 4) Ask if we are judging from our own traditions and interpretation of the Law. As a reminder: MT 7: 1-2 [from Christ’s Sermon on the Mount], “Do not judge others, so that God will not judge you, 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.” Now, let’s pick up with the next directive, 5) Examine if we admit it when we are wrong and are willing to change our behavior to conform to Christ’s.”
With a healthy balanced personality, ordinary people are able to make reasonable judgments by the time they reach adulthood. However, their judgments are seriously hampered without the advantage that the ethical system given to them by Biblical truth. If we go back to 2 TIM 3: 16-17, we see what is some of the reason for this. “All Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.” Furthermore, we must understand what we learn from 1 COR 2: 14-16, “Whoever does not have the Spirit cannot receive the gifts that come from God’s Spirit. Such a person really does not understand them; they are foolishness to him, because their value can be judged only on a spiritual basis. Whoever has the Spirit, however, is able to judge the value of everything, but no one is able to judge him. As the Scripture [IS 40:13] says,” ‘Who knows the mind of the Lord? Who is able to give Him advice?’ We, however, have the mind of Christ.”
There are many reasons why good judgment gets blocked, too many to name them all here. But nevertheless, it’s useful to look at a few of the common ones. Egotism: The screen that is put up by a person overly taken with his own self-importance. Cultural bias: Thinking slanted by fear of another culture’s attitudes and practices. Fear of losing face: Irrational fear that one’s life or culture will not be respected. Chauvinism: Unreasonable belief that the group to which one belongs by his gender, social position, etc. is superior and thus, should have more power than another. Situation ethics: Ethics rationalized to fit a situation in which one finds himself. Denial: Refusal to accept the proven facts of a situation. Emotional and spiritual imbalance in one’s personality, is another example. And, these examples are just a few. There is a religion (which I’m choosing not to name here) which teaches that all the world’s main religions are right and thus, can be believed. The obvious impossibility of this is simply not addressed. The people belonging to this faith may be perfectly nice people, but their theology is denying the differences between the major founders of each of the other belief systems accepted. As a clarifying example, if Islamic Jihad, the belief that any person refusing to accept their faith should be exterminated, is taken, how can one also accept the teachings of a faith which reveres preserving human life?
Because of these and other blockages to making good judgments, many human errors have been made repeatedly over history. A lot of human suffering has been the result. This happens on the person to person level, the same as it happens between nation to nation level. Let me return to the question of foundational vs. situation ethics. We find the stable foundation of God’s teachings made clear and unchangeable. RO 12: 2, “Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God’s transform you inwardly by the complete renewal of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God-what is good and is pleasing to Him and is perfect.” God is unchangeable, steady, reliable in telling the truth in love, and can be counted upon to keep His promises [JAS 1:17; HE 13: 8; 1 JN 4: 7; PS 106: 1; PS 138: 8; PHIL 1: 6; PS 116: 4-5]. Situation ethics is standing on quicksand. It is filled with rationalization, lies, and judgments that don’t reflect the values God holds precious and wants us to hold in high regard. Humans can talk themselves into almost anything. Only God’s foundation is stable and truly useful for the making of good judgments. HE 10: 13-17 gives us insight into the importance of Christ’s Atonement to us. “There [in heaven] He now waits until God puts His enemies as a footstool under His feet [PS 110: 1; AC 2: 35]. With one sacrifice, then, He has made perfect forever those who are purified from sin. And the Holy Spirit also gives us His witness. First He says, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them in the days to come, says the Lord: ‘I will put My laws in their hearts and write them on their minds.’ And then He says, ’I will not remember their sins and evil deeds any longer’” [JER 31: 31-34]. Consider the impact of this truth on our judgment.
PRAYER: O Lord, all of us have a sense of self that You built into us. If the adversary has his way, we would never admit when we have made a wrongful judgment. Yet, that is totally the opposite to Your way. You would have us take responsibility for our own mistakes and correct them. You are often a God of second chances, which is why, through confession, repentance, and having faith in Your Son, You are willing to not only forgive us, but also to forget what we did wrong [HE 8: 12]. The devil is the “father of all lies and a murderer” [JN 8: 44]. He would have us rationalize our sins and claim values You esteem to be set aside. We thank and praise You for the truth You tell us in 1 JN 4: 4, “But you belong to God, my children, and have defeated the false prophets, because the Spirit Who is in you is more powerful than the spirit in those who belong to the world.” Admission of wrongs and stoppage of the wrongful behavior is cleansing and stress-reducing. You have asked us to seek You out, take the advice You give us, and to pray with a thankful heart. In return, You give us “the peace that passes all human understanding” [PHIL 4: 6-7]. Being honest, speaking the truth in love, and facing whatever consequences that are to come is hard to do. Our natural selves want to avoid all kinds of pain-physical, emotional, and spiritual. Yet, we owe it to You, in the face of the wisdom, compassion, and love You always show us, to take that “hard path that leads from a narrow gate,” the one that leads to eternal life with You [MT 7: 13-14]. We would never want the wide path that leads to hell. Our judgments are often difficult for us, so that is why we understand our need to seek You out for Your wisdom in making them. We must dedicate ourselves to standing on the firm foundation of teaching You have given us, and by virtue of our daily study of Your word, know when something we are doing is wrongful and must be stopped. Situation ethics is something we must resist. We ask for Your blessing and direction on our lives, so that we may please You and know You better. These things we say and praise and thanks we offer, in the powerfully holy name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Next week, I will go on with the list of ways to make good judgments, at the direction of the Holy Spirit. God’s forgiveness is worth the embarrassment of having to admit when we been wrong in a judgment we made. David offered this confession, which revealed his understanding of Who God really is. We must ask, do we understand God too? PS 51: 3-4, “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You alone, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified in Your sentence and blameless when You pass judgment.” David was an imperfect human, and he knew it. Yet God loved him enough to protect him from Saul’s assaults on him and to promise him that his line would eventually rule forever [1 SAM 7: 12-13]. God called David “a man after My own heart” [1 SAM 13: 13-14]. Even the good and then ill king of Judah, Hezekiah, said these humbling words, in IS 38: 16-17. “Lord, I will live for You, for You alone; heal me and let me live. My bitterness will turn into peace. You save my life from all danger; You forgive all my sins.” God’s response was to allow Hezekiah another 15 years of life, rather than to make this illness terminal. In my own life, I have gone from a miserable existence filled with self-loathing to a life of hope, love, relationships, and forgiveness through Christ Jesus. So, I can attest to the love that God has, even for the least admirable people who listen to the truth of the Gospel and believe in His Son. PS 32: 1, “Oh, what joy for those whose rebellion is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!” When we are honest, admitting to our mistakes, willing to stick to living in concert with God’s teaching, and make corrections of faults that the Holy Spirit brings to our attention, we can really live a joy-filled life, one that is peaceful and without inordinate pain. We can live with the hope of the resurrection, and for what more could we ask?
Praise and thanks be to our Lord!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn