So I asked myself...what have I done to earn the authority to judge others?
What qualifies me to lash out with such harsh words and judgment against people I don't know?
The answer is Nothing. Absolutely nothing! I was a cursing, blaspheming, angry, unhappy, depressed, fearful, lusting, unforgiving woman before I knew Christ. I had NO idea what it meant to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I had NO idea that my lifestyle was a slap in the face to Christ. Yet here I am, fighting judgmental thoughts about my brothers and sisters who are victim to the same beast. To the same sins. Trapped and enslaved to their own desires.
Winning at nothing, failing at everything. I used to be just like this.
I lied. I cheated. I've stolen many things. Sexually, I was immoral.
God knew this. He knew what I was doing and yet He still loved me. He rescued me from a dangerous lifestyle. The enemy was closing in on me and I had nowhere to go. My past was shaking up my present with everything that had a hold on me.
I was angry and hurt all of the time and even judgmental then. LOL. How foolish!
I thought I had learned about judgment and was doing a good job. I wasn't judging anyone. But, until this past weekend at Church, I realized how much I failed in that area. And I realized, I have NO RIGHT to judge anyone.
So then....can I have an opinion? Opinions and judgments are only separated by a fine line. I would recommend for each of us to tread carefully in this area.
So then I asked myself, what do the two words mean? Are they one in the same?
Judgment - the forming of an opinion, estimate, notion, or conclusion, as from circumstances presented to the mind.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Judgement
Opinion - a belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.
a personal view, attitude, or appraisal.
Based on the above mentioned...yes they are. Almost the same.
To be judgmental, can also mean to have an overrated opinion. Or to be opinionated. Am I reading this wrong??
Am I understanding this correctly? So when I watch a television show, and that woman is dressed inappropriately, and I say,
"She needs Jesus! No respectful woman of God would wear something like that! How disgusting!"
Does that mean I have cast judgment on that woman? Yes. Am I right when I do these things?
No.
Jesus speaks about judgment.
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged." Matthew 7:1
In Luke 6, Jesus talks about this again. He says,
"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn and you will not be condemned." Luke 6:37
These commands are the words of Jesus. He spoke this, and commanded us NOT to judge each other. So why do I do this? Why do I judge people? Why am I disobeying Christ?
I'll be honest, to know that I am failing in this area upsets me. But, I know that Jesus is faithful and He will forgive me my sins and make me a better version of myself. I do not want to be a judgmental person. I want to be free of carrying this burden to judge. I don't like it, and I rebuke it in the name of Jesus. I am going to continue to pray for deliverance. For God to give me a better heart and mind when I see e a mistake or an area where someone can improve.
If you are going through what I am going through, ask God....ask Jesus to help you.
Pray to him so that He may remove your judgmental heart and bind this sin in hell.
Jesus also says,
"First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Matthew 7:5
I thought long and hard about this, and came to a conclusion.
How would I be able to see the speck in my brother/sister's eye if I am blinded by the plank in my own? And if I am trying to take the speck out of their eye, but I can't see what I'm doing, wouldn't I hurt the person more so than help? Wouldn't I cause more damage, because I can't really see what I am doing?
Jesus has really been correcting me in this and helping me to understand what this means.
I am praying that I continue to ask for help in this area, and remain prudent in what I say to others and renouncing judgmental thoughts.
I will NOT have a judgmental spirit.
No comments:
Post a Comment