FRIDAY October 23, 2020

The Problem of Judging

Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.
Romans 14:4

Paul spoke about disunity. It had been a major problem in the local churches. Paul knew that, at times, people argue. In the body of Christ, there were individuals who were guilty of being divisive. They judged and strove with others. Paul knew some believers were immature in Christ. They might have had difficulty letting go of their ritual practices, but they should not be condemned by others.

The body of Christ is supposed to be united, not divided. There are too many people causing disunity as they try to bring their convictions onto other people. They judge other people’s liberties in Christ. In reality, they are trying to play the part of the Holy Spirit. Yet they have no business trying to change other people’s hearts. They have no right to place judgment on another person. They are not God! The Holy Spirit is the only one to convict a person. Instead of trying to convict others, those who are mature in Christ need to come alongside younger Christians in a loving, kind way so they can receive what you have to say––be sensitive to them.

Paul gave Christians the principles of conduct in the way we live and act. There are three important guidelines in the Christian life: conviction, conscience and consideration. A Christian should have a conviction about everything he or she does. That way, they will choose not to grieve the Holy Spirit by what they do. They should have a clear conscience. Any actions taken are motivated by pure love. A Christian who judges and condemns another is responsible for pushing away that person from Christ––sad.

Christians will need to be careful with their liberties in front of those who are immature. If you are a mature Christian in Christ, be open to the Holy Spirit. May God speak to your heart about not causing a younger believer in Christ to stumble. Make sure you do not do things in public to offend a weaker brother in the Lord. Are you considerate toward other people with your Christian liberties?

Don’t judge a man by where he is, because you don’t know how far he has come.
~C.S. Lewis~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!