Giftofwords.net

By Kyle (kyle@giftofwords.net)
Verses: John 8:1-12
You can get a downloadable/print-friendly copy here (Adobe PDF)

I got caught being extremely judgmental to a friend of mine the other day. When I thought about it after the fact, it made me feel extremely horrible. It got me thinking that night, and I stayed up late into the night pondering on judgment, and how we as God’s people relate to it.

Why are we so darn critical of each other?  How come we are always so quick to judge people on a vast number of  levels? Whether it’s the way someone dresses, the way they speak, the color of their skin, their profession, who they hang out with, how well they do in school, or what music they listen to, we are always so quick to point out their flaws and cast judgment on them. I just want to know why it’s always about how we are better than other people, or about how a particular person’s opinion or  behavior isn’t correct or doesn’t belong.

What if we were more concerned about our own flaws then worrying about someone else’s? Wouldn’t that solve so many of our problems? Judgment is a big problem in today’s church. We are so quick to cast judgment and criticism to those that don’t see our way. For instance, if you drink alcohol (even casually) and you attend a Baptist church, you are almost certainly going to receive heavy criticism from fundamentalist Baptists in the church. If you show up and your shoes don’t match your belt, there are going to be some people who frown down at you and may even be openly hostile towards you.

I say these things to shed some much needed light on this horrible issue. We Christians are so judgmental of those that are among us and those that are not. We tend not to associate with people who don’t behave like we do because we think we are better then they are when in fact, we are all created equally, and equally we all deserve to hear the Gospel preached. We need to be looking beyond the mistakes and problems that people have, and instead of worrying what they’ve done in the past, worry about what they can do in the future. Let’s look beyond the differences and the personality issues that we all have, and instead, do some work for God like we were supposed to be doing in the first place.

The Gospels make one huge point about Jesus’s ministry. The people that Jesus associated with were not the do-gooders, the church leaders, and those that were generally considered the moral example of the day. Instead, Jesus associated with what was considered the scum of the countryside: tax-collectors, roman soldiers, and even Samaritan adulterers.

“Wait…what?”

“You mean, Jesus, the most perfect individual to have ever walked the earth, didn’t associate himself with the “moral pillars” of society?

No. He didn’t.

One of my favorite stories in the Gospels is when Jesus comes to the rescue of a woman caught in the act of adultery. Some judgmental do-gooders in the town sought out this girl and brought her before Jesus, in an attempt to trap Him. When they were about to stone her for her crime (stoning was the punishment for adultery back then), Jesus pointed out that she wasn’t the only one amongst them to have sinned. They dropped their stones and walked away, defeated. (John 8:1-12)

Before we jump the gun and judge someone for who they are or something that they’ve done, let’s all remember that each of us have a sinful nature, and that to each of us, the grace of God was offered equally.

After all the accusers walked away, Jesus spoke to the woman:

“Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” (10b-11a)

The end is the best part:

“Neither do I…go and sin no more…I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (11b-12)

Tags:   judgment · KyleNo Comments