Let’s talk about being judgmental.
We Christians often come across as being judgmental, both to each-other and to the lost world. There is a whole lot to say about this and a whole lot of Scripture to get into and I’m barely going to scratch the surface here. However, as I have looked at social media posts recently, this is something that I have been thinking about a lot and so I do want to talk about it a little.
I think there are two reasons Christians can sometimes come across as being judgmental.
First, we are sometimes misunderstood because we don’t condone sin and, in a culture with an increasingly “anything goes” attitude, sometimes people call that being judgmental. Being willing to stand up for God’s Word and saying that what God calls sin is, in fact, sin, is not being judgmental, at least not wrongfully so. In fact, it’s something that we should all do. It’s something that we are commanded to do. But how we do it does matter.
This brings me to the second reason why people say that we are being judgmental. All too often, we are being wrongfully judgmental. We speak out against sexual sin and abortion and addiction and many other things. That is as it should be. But, if we aren’t careful, we get so passionate in our arguments against these things, we leave the impression that we believe that anyone who struggles with these things cannot possibly be a Christian. Some of us may really believe that is true. We may lead others to believe that is true. Let me assure you, that is not true. Believing that way is wrong and leading others to believe that way is wrong. God does not teach that in His Word and His Word, not our opinion, is the true standard.
Don’t get me wrong here. I am not saying that someone can walk an isle, get baptized, live any way they want, and truly be a Christian. Repentance (turning from sin) is an important theme that runs throughout Scripture, including the New Testament. In fact, repentance is one of the very first things that Jesus preached about. Look what He said here.
Mark 1
14 Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
Once you are saved, as a Christian, you do have a choice about sin.
1 Corinthians 10
13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
You may have more on you than you can bear but there is no such thing as more than God can bear and He will give you the power to overcome any temptation, if you will diligently seek Him concerning it. However, although God is always faithful, we are not and so there is more Scripture to look at concerning this topic.
Paul is probably the greatest evangelist to have ever lived and, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he wrote much of the New Testament. No one would argue that Paul was not a Christian. And look what he said here.
Romans 7
14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.
15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.
You see, Paul struggled with sin. He hated it, he preached against it, and yet, he struggled with it. We all do, every last one of us. We need to be honest about that, with the world, with ourselves, and, most importantly, with God.
We tend to be very harshly judgmental of sin that we have been hurt by or that we do not struggle with. However, we often struggle with variations of the same sin that we so harshly judge.
Perhaps you have been hurt by someone with a drug or alcohol addiction and you think that all such people are horrible. Do you habitually tend to eat a little too much? That is a food addiction. The Bible calls it gluttony and it too is a sin. Don’t think those two things are comparable? In Proverbs 23:20-21, Solomon, the wisest man to have ever lived, jointly referred to the consequences of both gluttony and drunkenness in the same passage of Scripture.
Perhaps you know of someone who has committed adultery and you talk about them as though they are the worst person on earth. Have you looked at someone and had even a fleeting lustful thought about them? If so, then Jesus said you have committed adultery (Matthew 5:28). And Don’t try to go all spiritual on me and tell me you have never had a inappropriate lustful thought. I am completely blind and I have heard someone and had a fleeting lustful thought. Don’t try to tell me you see people and don’t ever do that. I’m just sayin.
Everyone struggles with sin. That’s OK and we should not act like we hate people who openly struggle with sin. It’s when there is no struggle that there is a problem. When there is not even a struggle then there is no real relationship with God. But it often isn’t apparent when there is a struggle and when there isn’t . Very often, if the person is currently losing the struggle, it will outwardly appear that there is no struggle. You don’t know their heart, though. Only God does.
If you beat them over the head with their sin and you call yourself a Christian, then they aren’t likely to listen to you about the God you serve. You will likely lose your chance to lead them to Him or, if they already know Him, to draw them closer to Him. That’s tragic, because only in Him can they find any real hope.
If you are someone who struggles with sin and you do not yet have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, listen to me. You are not alone and I mean that in more than one way. Romans 3:10 says that no one is righteous and Romans 3:23 says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Absolutely everybody sins. You haven’t sinned enough that He doesn’t want anything to do with you. Romans 10:13 says that “whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved”. It doesn’t say “those who are good enough” because nobody is good enough. He knows you better than anyone knows you and He still loves you enough that Jesus took the punishment for your sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says that Jesus never sinned but he took our sins on himself and Romans 5:8 says that He died as punishment for those sins. He knows every bad thing you have ever done and, knowing that, He willingly did what He did for you. That’s love! If you want to know more about that, go to the Scott Duck Ministries website and click on “The Most Important Thing”.
If you do have a personal relationship with Him and you struggle with sin, listen to me. He wants to draw you closer to Him and He wants to help you. Remember that 1 Corinthians 10:13 says that you do have a choice about your sin. Really seek Him and begin to confess your sin to Him (He already knows about it anyway) and ask Him to help you with it. Things won’t turn around over night but, as you get to know Him better, you will seek Him more, you will better discern His leading, and because of that, He will be able to help you more. James 4:8 says “Come near to God and He will come near to you”. Really start praying and studying His Word every day and see what happens. Often, he is able to use those the most who have struggled the most.
If you are a Christian who likes to “minister” by beating people over the head with their sin, listen to me. Stop It! You are ruining your witness for Him. Not only that but, when you act that way while proclaiming His name, you hurt His reputation and, in so doing, you hurt the witness of every other Christian. When you hurt someone by beating them over the head with their sin and your self-righteous attitude, you severely decrease the chance that anyone will ever lead them to Christ or draw them closer to Him. Yes, we must be willing to stand up and call sin what it is, but we aren’t going to get people to listen to us by standing there with a bible in one hand and a whip in the other.
Everybody, listen to me. God loves you more than anyone else ever has or ever will. Come to Him or come back to Him. He is the only way to Heaven, He is the only way to true and lasting peace, and He is the best friend you will ever have.
