Devotions
Rev Gav
Judgment
Romans 2.1–11
Therefore you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others; for in passing judgement on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.
You say, ‘We know that God’s judgement on those who do such things is in accordance with truth.’
Do you imagine, whoever you are, that when you judge those who do such things and yet do them yourself, you will escape the judgement of God? Or do you despise the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? Do you not realize that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But by your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgement will be revealed.
For he will repay according to each one’s deeds: to those who by patiently doing good seek for glory and honour and immortality, he will give eternal life; while for those who are self-seeking and who obey not the truth but wickedness, there will be wrath and fury.
There will be anguish and distress for everyone who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honour and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality.
Reflect
“Get in, Paul! Well said that man!”
Our role, as a leaders and pastor of FAB Church, is to provide a framework for you to live out your Christianity, and this framework is physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual.
- Physical. Providing opportunities to meet together online and engage with digital content.
- Emotional. Providing direct pastoral support and safe places you can share your deepest hopes, desires, fears, and anxieties.
- Intellectual. Providing you with a biblical theology that is sex-positive and inclusive.
- Spiritual. Giving you opportunities to meet directly with God, and meet God in and through each other.
In other words, the framework we provide at FAB supports your body, feelings, thoughts, and worship. All four are interconnected but today’s Bible Reading written by Paul, taken from his letter to the church in Rome, lands pretty much in the area of ‘intellectual’.
Have you ever heard someone say that something is ‘unbiblical’? Well, this was happening two thousand years ago!
Judgment in this context is not ‘assessing which decision to make’ but ‘pronouncing God’s verdict and sentencing or condemning someone’. If the world was a courtroom with God sitting at the bench, to judge would be to kick God out and take God’s place! Saying that God judges someone is the same thing as judging them yourself, and if it’s not startlingly obvious, we are not God and should never be speaking for God in this way!
Paul could not have made it any clearer, “It doesn’t matter who you are, there are no excuses, when you judge someone you condemn yourself!”
So, how do we discern what is right and what is wrong? Well, perhaps this is the wrong question to ask.
I remember once, driving at night, being caught in a terrible snow storm. I was on a highway and the road was completely snowed in such that my headlights could no longer pick out the lines or where the edge of the road met the verge. Thankfully, there was a snow plough and salt truck in front of me, and by directly following the truck’s red tail lights I knew I would not veer off the road. In the same way, Paul explains that we are to ‘patiently do good’. In other words, we are to keep our eyes fixed, not on anyone or anything else, but on Christ.
Jesus didn’t say, “Compare yourself to everyone else and point the finger at them.” No, he said, “Follow me.” If we do this, then we will do well, oh, and if someone points the finger at you and judges you because of your race, ability, age, gender, sexuality, social startus, economic status, eligibility, or anything else, send them to me! 😉
Pray
Holy God
Help me to keep my
eyes fixed on Christ
and to never point
the finger at others.
When others judge me,
may I respond with
love and kindness,
secure in the knowledge
of the life I have in you.
This day and always.
and then
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It always leaves me feeling people believe they are better than me when they judge me.
But the world is so judgemental , especially now. Its an epidemic . I try to rise above and at the very least , my Christianity is teaching me not to judge .
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Tim Rogers wrote:
I wonder if, when people judge, it is not because we are secure in our faith but because we are insecure. If the philosophies or gods (with a small 'g') we believe in need defending, perhaps they are not God after all?
I used to defend the Bible as the ultimate authority. It had become my 'god'. Like a wall, I felt it needed defending, and if you attacked a particular biblical doctrine, it was like taking a brick out of the wall, and if you did this I was worried it would collapse and my faith would collapse with it. To my shame, defending what I perceived to be 'the truth' led me, at times, to judge or exclude people — including myself.
After the trauma of losing everything — my wife, my house, my job, my financial security — my faith was deconstructed brick by brick. To cut a long (and painful) story short, because my faith is now in Christ alone and is secure, I no longer feel like I need to defend specific doctrines. This in turn has led me to be less judgmental and more inclusive.
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I think you are absolutely right.
Faith offers security and confidence.