Is it Ever Right to Judge Someone?

I know, I know, you think the answer to this question is obvious.  Surely you've heard all the comebacks.
Don't judge me.
Only God can judge me.
Don't judge or you'll be judged.
Even the Bible says not to judge other people.
Let the one who has never sinned cast the first stone.

We've heard them all.  But are they true? When one of these arguments is made what is usually going on?  Someone is being told that what they are doing is wrong.  This tends to make people angry.  And don't think it just happens between some left wing activist and a right wing big brother.  This kind of argument crops up in the church among people of faith all the time.

But I want to know if it is an appropriate argument?  Are we really supposed to just let anybody do anything because we are told NOT to judge?  Can we take no moral stand against anything?

Let me just be really straight-forward.  I am convinced that 99% of the time this arguments is used there is some sort of sin at the heart of it.  And the person saying, "don't judge me" is really saying, "don't tell me what to do."  Or, "I know I shouldn't be doing this but I don't want to stop."  The "don't judge me" card is just the easiest way to get out of the conversation.

So here's the low-down, nitty-gritty about judging others, straight from God's Word.
Paul said, "I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people - not all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters.  In that case you would have to leave this world.  But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people" (1 Corinthians 5:9-11).

Paul then says, "What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church?  Are we not to judge those inside?"  He then commands the church in Corinth to, "expel the wicked person from among you" (1 Corinthians 5:12,13).

So here's the answer to the question, is it ever right to judge someone?  Yes ... and, No .
Yes.  If the person IS a believer in Jesus Christ we are OBLIGATED to judge their behaviors and take corrective action when necessary.  Not based on our own judgment but on the judgement of God's Holy Word.
No.  If the person is NOT a believer in Jesus Christ we are not working from the same play book and therefore have no right to judge them.  Paul says we must leave the judging in that situation to God.

As a pastor this issue irritates me to no end.  When Christians complain about having their actions judged or get angry with other believers for "judging" them I start to get upset.  If you are actively involved in sin it is every other Christians right and duty to call you out.  And the Bible says that the desired response is one of repentance and restoration (see Matthew 18:15-17).

Look at it this way.  Let's say that I'm the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys.  Would I have any right to got to a Giants training camp and start telling their receivers they were running the wrong routes?  Zagging when they should have zigged?  NO!  We're not on the same team!  We don't use the same play book or listen to the same coach.  They would have every right to kick me out of their camp.  But with my own team, if someone turns left when they were supposed to go right, now I can stop them and correct the issue, both for their benefit, my benefit and the benefit of the whole team.

No Christian (an individual who claims Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior) should EVER use the, don't judge me, argument.  It is unbiblical to pretend to be autonomous when you are so closely connected to other believers through the Holy Spirit.

Now, before you start throwing stones at me, there is something else we need to look at.  It is true that, "with the measure you use it will be measured back to you" (Matthew 7:2). So we must be careful not to be overly critical in judgement.  No one is perfect - but that doesn't give someone else a get-out-of-jail-free card.  My sin does not nullify God's Word for your life.  Yes I sin, but that doesn't mean I can't point out your sin.  It just means I should be as loving and merciful in dealing with your sin as I would hope you would be in dealing with mine.

Being a judgmental person is no fun for you or for anyone else.  But for the sake of holiness among us we MUST judge those who are fellow Christians so that we might keep Satan at bay.  Tolerance is Satan's joy ride and, "don't judge me" is the ticket.

If we love God we will address sin when it is obvious.  If we love others will we address that sin with as much grace and mercy as Jesus Christ showed to us on the cross, seeking repentance and restoration, not condemnation.  If we keep our mouths closed I guess that means we don't love God or others...

Now, if you're going to get angry with me about this post remember, don't judge me if you don't want to be judged.

A Good Run Will Clear Your Head

Went for a run today - it's beautiful outside today after all the rain we've had.  While I was running I was thinking and praying as I often do... in between the cries of pain.  I was thinking about some of the mistakes I've made recently.  Financial mistakes.  Interpersonal mistakes.  Leadership mistakes.  I was just thinking that I hoped God could forgive me and help me not make them in the future.  I was feeling a little bad about it because the mistakes we make always have consequences and most of the time we would rather not have to endure those.  Anyway, while I was running the Holy Spirit spoke a verse to my heart.

God works all things together for good, to those who love Him and all called according to His purpose.

I had to ask myself a question.  Do I believe in God and what the Bible says or not?  If I don't really believe it then I could just by-pass that passage and go on to something else and continue asking God to forgive and help.  If I DO believe then I must trust that God spoke that verse into existence and that He meant it.

Since I do believe the Bible is God's Word to mankind I have to adjust m life to His Word, not the other way around.  God works ALL things together for good.  So here's what I was thinking...

• God works.  He is always working.  He has never stopped working since creations fall.  He is working to reconcile mankind to Himself through Jesus Christ.  He is forgiving. Merciful.  Just. And Loving beyond measure.  And He works.  Always.
• All Things are under His control.  God is not limited to my successes.  He can work through my failures as well.  If the only thing God could was take good and make it better He would have a LOT of free time on His hands.  The Bible says that there is no one good - not even one.  And I mess up WAY more than  I succeed.  But God is not limited.  He works through the things I do well and the things I totally bomb!  He can work ALL things.  Good, bad and ugly.
• He works all things for the good.  God is not sitting in heaven keeping track of my failures and counting them against me so that He can watch me suffer through the consequences.  He is constantly working in my life and yours to bring about the best good for His Kingdom and for us through our triumphs and our tragedies.  He is never working for evil in our lives, He is ALWAYS working for good.

I got home feeling much better.  A good run will clear your head and help you to think about things you'd forgotten or maybe never realized.  With a clear head the Holy Spirit can speak directly to your need.  I needed to be reminded that it's not about me, it's about Him.  What He's doing and what He wants.  

God is always working in and through and around my life in the positive things that happen and the negative things to bring about His ultimate good.  I can trust that my successes He can use. I can trust that my failures He can use just as well.  And because I love Him He has a plan and purpose for my life that is not sidetracked by failures but only by my lack of trust and faith.

Thank You God for being a limitless God who is always working in my life AND in every other life.

I Should Have Known

Does your perspective ever change?

I was waiting for something the other day and it didn't come.  So I was talking to God about it.  God, I really need this.  Please cause it to show up today.  I thought it was supposed to be here and it wasn't so I was concerned.  I wanted God to know that I needed it and that I was trusting Him to get it to me.  Then my wife shows up.  I mention to her that I hadn't got the thing I was waiting for and that I was nervous and she says, "It's not supposed to be here for another couple days" she says.  "Oh..."  In a split second my perspective changed.

I had been praying and all concerned because what I thought was supposed to happen, hadn't.  Then I learn that it was never supposed to happen the way I thought it was.

I don't know about you but this happens all the time to me.  I think one thing and worry and stew and get upset only to learn that the plan had changed or I just didn't know all the facts.  So what I thought, was not.

Unfortunately I'm this way with God a lot too.  I think He is going to do something or that he "ought" to do something and He doesn't.  Do you want to know the harsh truth?  That is NEVER His fault.  Like the line in the very first Lord Of The Rings movies from Gandalf, "A wizard is never late.  He arrives precisely when he means to."

God is never late.  He never misses an appointment.  He never forgets about a meeting.  Nothing ever gets lost in the mail with God.  So if I am worried about something, He never is.  He knows exactly what the plan is.

I guess that is why the Bible encourages us to, never worry about anything, because God has got it all under control.  Instead we are told to pray and petition God with thanksgiving.  Honestly, I haven't got this part figured out yet.  I still worry.  I still get upset when things don't work out the way I think they should.  But I'm recognizing more and more that God never needs my permission or my reminders.  In everything I am to simply pray with faith that God will do what He has planned when He has planned to do it.

I should have known the other day that there was no need to worry.  My God's got this.

It's Time to Stop the Bleeding

Life hurts.  At least sometimes.  Anybody who tells you life is always wonderful or great is lying to you.  The Bible says that the sun shines on the good and the bad.  Which means the rain pours on both at times too.  At some point in your life you become the solitary person standing under the rain cloud while life dumps on you.

I've been there.  I know the feeling.  When we thought our baby boy was deaf... only to learn he could hear just fine.  He simply didn't care that we were banging pots inches from his head.  We'd later learn he had classic or severe autism.  At about nearly four the fights would begin.  I remember being in the room when our youngest was born and the Dr. called in the Neo-Natal crash team.  That was a scary few minutes.  And I remember just last year when the Dr. told us he had O.C.D., among other things.  When you get bad news, over and over, it feels like you're bleeding out.  Slowly the life-blood is leaving your body.  And without that blood you can't function.  You get weaker not stronger.  You lose interest in life.  And soon what you have isn't a life - it's just survival.

There's a story in Luke 8 about a woman in this very situation.  Literally.  She was bleeding out and no one could stop it.  Most agree she probably suffered from a menstrual cycle that never stopped.  She was at best anemic but probably suffered from low blood pressure and low blood sugar as well.  And besides the incredible physical toll this took on her body there was an even bigger spiritual toll.  As a Jew who was constantly bleeding she was in a continual state of uncleanness.  She would have been cut off from her people, from worship, from society.  In fact, her very presence that day in the midst of the crowd could have gotten her killed.  If others recognized her... well, every person she touched was now ceremonially unclean.

And it's not like she hadn't tried to better her situation.  She wasn't sitting around waiting for some miracle.  No, she had used every last penny she had seeing one doctor after another who promised a cure but delivered disappointment.

Until the day she risked her life and her illness to find hope and healing.  She pushed through the crowd with one thought, just touch his jacket and you'll be cured.  She barely had the energy to make her way through the crowd.  Several times she thought she would miss Him as she had to stop and catch her breath.  She expended every last ounce of energy to get close enough to touch Him.  But as soon as she did the bleeding stopped.  She knew it.  She could feel it.  It was all she could do to keep from screaming out in happiness but in the middle of the crowd - she was still too tired and scared to be discovered.  She may have been healed but that didn't take away the stains the blood and illness had left - that was enough to make her and everyone around her unclean, unworthy.  But the bleeding had stopped.  Energy would return.  Focus and strength would soon follow.  She was going to experience life like she had only dreamed she would.

What are you bleeding from?  Abuse?  Those who were supposed to love you treated you like dirt until you began to believe that's all you were.  Someone took your innocence, or you gave it away and the guilt and pain you carry just acts like an open wound that won't close.  Your spouse left.  Said they never really loved you.  Your child is sick and not getting better.  You lost your job and can't find another one.  Your car keeps breaking down and you can't afford the mechanic.  Every one a cut that takes a little more out of you.

It's time to stop the bleeding.  It's time to realize that the only thing you're truly risking is the life you so desperately want.  There's a man named Jesus who can stop the bleeding.  Can heal the wound and give you hope and life.  And more than that, He wants to!  He wants to help you but He won't force you.  Are you willing to risk the life you have for real life through Him?

Send us a message here at Real Life and we'll get you information on how to stop the bleeding and begin to experience real life.

Breaking The Rules

There are lots of quips about rules.  Here's a couple.
Rules were made to be broken.
Women often fall for the bad boys - rule breakers.
Rule followers are called, "teacher's pet."

Rules are necessary.  But rules without common sense and purpose lead to legalism in every area of life.  Find rules without a moral or ethical guide and you'll find orderly chaos.  Rules are about order.  Without rules things would be pretty difficult.  And yet even Jesus- the Son of the Great Rule Maker - knew there had to be balance (He learned this from His Father of course).

See the pharisees and religious teachers were all about the rules.  Obey the Sabbath.  You can't rub wheat in your hand on the Sabbath because that would be "threshing" the grain and that is work.   You can't heal someone of a disease on the Sabbath because that is work (how they came to that conclusion I have no idea).  They had rules for everything!  You had to wash your hands, no not that way, not that way either... there was a certain way you had to wash your hands in order to be ritually clean - or a rule follower.  They had rules about where they could walk and what they were allowed to touch.

Here's a bit of truth that might hurt a little.  You can obey EVERY rule in the Bible and still miss connecting with Jesus in a way that leads to salvation.

The religious teachers obeyed every rule.  But they were, as Jesus indicated, the farthest from the Kingdom of God.  In contrast, Jesus said that the prostitutes and tax collectors were close to the Kingdom of God.  Why?  Let's let Jesus explain.  In Luke 18 Jesus has an encounter with a young man who wants to know what he still needs to do to get to heaven.  Jesus tells him, "obey the commands."  Which he promptly says he has done since he was a child.  STOP HERE.  If Christianity or religion was about rules wouldn't Jesus have put aside whatever He was doing and patted that young man on the back and said, "well done good and faithful servant!"  Wouldn't He?!  But instead He points out that obedience to rules is NOT what Christianity is all about.  It's more about relationship the rules.  The relationship with God through His Son Jesus Christ and the relationship with other people whom God loves.  That's why instead of a commendation Jesus tells him, "there is something you still lack.  Go and sell your possessions and give them to the poor."

Wait a minute.  Selling everything you have and giving the proceeds to the poor is not a rule.  I have not seen that rule in the Bible anywhere.  So why did Jesus say it?  Because the young man was so focused on obeying the rules that he missed the fact that the rules were created to help maintain a proper relationship with others and with God.  If you obey the rules but miss the purpose for the rules you've gained nothing!  Just a miserable life of trying to earn something that can't be earned.

You cannot get to God by following rules.  You can only get there by following the Risen Lord.  The rules you find in the Bible will help you follow Him.  They will foster your relationship with Him and make it better but they will not earn you any special favor or place with God.  I want to be a Christ follower.  I want to obey the rules because they help me follow Christ more closely but it's not about the rules, it's about the relationship with Him.

A Straight Shooter

I've heard this saying a time or two.  Honestly, probably just on television.  But I'll bet you can figure out what it means with no clues at all.  Really there are not too many options.  Either you're talking about someone who is shooting at something... and hitting it.  Or you're using it to describe a person who is honest and direct.  A straight shooter with the truth, like a bullet, or an arrow screaming toward the bulls-eye.

Bullets and arrows don't typically get off-target.  They generally hit exactly what they were aimed at.  Wait, you didn't hit your target last time you tried?  Well, either your sights were off or you aimed at the wrong thing.  Bullets and arrows are designed for one thing and one thing only to move as quickly as possible with as little drag as possible toward whatever they are aimed at.  Nobody invents a bullet that intentionally elevates or skews to one side or another.  Bullets are fine-tuned to go as straight as possible for as long as possible.  I've never seen an arrow that looked like a "C".

The only time an arrow or bullet stops is when it is moved off target by something else.  A branch for instance can change the trajectory. Even the wind can drive a bullet off course unless you compensated for it.

Think about your life as an arrow.  You're moving through the air headed right for something.  You're always moving straight-ahead in whatever direction you've been aimed.  There are some things that distract or can begin to move you off course - but then you're never really "off" course, you're just off a particular course.  Headed straight for whatever is in front of you.

The writer of Psalm 25 asks a question.  "What are God-worshipers like?"  And the answer he comes up with is, "Arrows aimed at God's bulls-eye."

The straightness of the arrow, it's aerodynamic properties and flight properties are only half the equation.  What the arrow is aimed at is as important as how good an arrow it is.  A straight arrow, a fast bullet, aimed at the wrong thing is still going to be wasted.

What kind of an arrow are you?  Do you get distracted, off-target easily?  Have you hit a few sin-branches or been blown off course by the wind of deception?  You are speeding toward something, do you know what it is that your aiming for?

As a follower of Jesus Christ I want to be a straight shooter- not perfect in my life - but purposeful.  I want to be the best arrow I can be and then I want to aim for perfection through the Holy Spirit.  A straight shooter has to have a straight arrow and a clear target.

Are you aiming for God's bulls-eye?