Judge no one, You are not Qualified (pt 1)

In this section Paul sends a strong rebuke to the church as a whole. He is addressing a real problem that existed in Rome and that exists today throughout the Christian community. His rebuke has to do with judging one another as Christians within the church for actions associated with their beliefs. Paul categorizes this division using terminology of “weak in faith” and “strong in faith”. He defines the strong as being a gentile who has converted to Christianity and the weak as a Jewish Christian who also converted to Christianity but insists on following the laws of Moses. This led to a great division between the two groups within the church because they were judging one another.

There are at least three points we can ascertain from Paul in this section: 1. stop judging; 2. the Lord is our master; 3. God is the one who judges. This message should resonate with all Christians around the globe. Albeit, Paul is making three key points, our focus should be on judging one another. The other two points flow quite nicely into the first point. For example, if we work backwards from the point that God is the ultimate judge, He gave us His son Jesus as our Lord and master who was given all authority to judge the world so the world may honor Him (John 5:22-23). Therefore the conclusion is we already have in place the only judge we need to keep us on the path of righteousness.

It is clear through scripture that God is the ultimate judge (Romans 8:33). That is not to say when we see something wrong or hear false teaching we should not address it in love especially if it hinders the walk of others. This is the point, that God is the ultimate judge and He has given over to Jesus the sole responsibility to judge the world because there is no one else worthy to do so. As Scripture teaches us in (Revelation 5:1-9), Jesus is the one who opens the scrolls, He is the only one found worthy to do so.

All too often Christians misinterpret the “do not judge” commandment to the extreme and will ignore the bad behavior or the false teachings of others in the church because they believe in their heart that God has commanded them to stay silent. We should not be accusatory or judgmental to anyone especially our Christian brothers and sisters. The exception is if they are falsely teaching the word of God. Especially if these teachers are purposely leading Christians down a path of total destruction. This has been occurring since the first century and it seems to be more obvious today. We need to have sound doctrine coupled by a strong theology that is biblically based. We also need to test every Spirit to ensure the message you are receiving is biblically correct (1 John 4:1-2).

Our responsibility as a Christian is to walk closely with the Lord and grow in faith and our love for Jesus on a daily basis. We should share the good news with everyone and we should allow the Holy Spirit to guide us and to teach us. The only way we can do this is through constant communication by staying in our word daily, listening more than speaking when praying and trusting in the Lord for all things. When we discover an error from the false teachers do not become judgmental, find the truth and substantiate the truth through the word of God. God’s word is our anchor for developing a strong personal relationship and ensuring we are growing in Christ and not in the world.

My prayer is that we all seek the Lord on a daily basis. I pray that we seek the Lord through the Holy Spirit and that the Holy Spirit will teach us and guide us. I pray that we live the life that God has planned for us and that we will put God before all things in our lives. In the Mighty Name of Jesus I pray Amen! Amen!