Tag Archives: judging

Something Better (Word to the Wise)

12 Tuesday Apr 2016

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, ,

Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right (Proverbs 16:8, NKJV). If there is a steady bit of counsel, I will give young people it is this: as you grow older the regrets become more pronounced; minimize your regrets early on. We will all have regrets, even the most-saintly among us. That is just the way it is. We can do something about minimizing our regrets, even if we got a late start in life. This proverb illustrates what one can do. righteousness needs to be understood in relation to the Lord, not in relation to how a man judges it. For certain, man will judge whether or not you are righteous, but if you are making certain you are applying the Lord’s standard to your life, then whatever it is that man evaluates will matter little to you. Remember the counsel the apostle Paul gave to the Corinthians? He knew they were judging him; he only wanted them to measure him by the Lord’s standard (1 Corinthians 4:1-5). That is to be our approach also. Paul had regrets, but he had something even greater – and that was hope. RT

 

Wrong comparison (Word to the Wise)

15 Tuesday Mar 2016

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished (Proverbs 16:5, KJV). To be proud in heart is to elevate oneself to a position that is too high. A good illustration of this is in Luke 18:9-14. The religious leader (a Pharisee) looked upon himself in comparison to the one to the side of him. He prayed to the Lord about how grateful he was to not be like the tax-collector standing nearby. He compared himself to the wrong standard. The Lord speaks about how one’s prayer was heard, but the other prayer was not. It is that way with us also. We would like to say to ourselves that we would not be guilty of such things and, hopefully, this is so. On the other hand, we need to always check ourselves and be reminded, but that for the grace of God I might be like that particular religious leader that Jesus used as a point of illustration. RT

Just as they did

12 Wednesday Mar 2014

Posted by in love, Preaching, Wisdom

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Nicodemus asked, “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?” (John 7:51) Making judgments in life is something we all do and cannot fail to do. That is just the way life is! The standard we use, however, is of most importance. To a godly person it goes without saying that the standard used needs to be (and is) God’s word coupled with charity. Unfortunately, many who identify themselves as Christians fail to utilize both. The standard is not God’s, but their own, and what charity is used is merely perceived, not real. It was in this failure to apply both that the religious leaders utilized, killing the Lord. When we do what they did, we will “kill” just as they did.

 

Judgment Amiss

12 Wednesday Feb 2014

Posted by in Behavior

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

What does it mean to “judge according to the flesh”? When Jesus was confronted by the religious leaders He made it plain that as they judged Him their judgment was entirely wrong. It was wrong because of the standard they used—a standard that was according to the flesh (John 8:15). In connection to this Jesus said He judged no one, that is, He judged no one “according to the flesh.” Jesus did not say that He did not render (or make) judgments when He walked on this earth, only that the standard He used was not the same standard they used. To judge according to the flesh, then, is to use a standard that looks only at the appearances presented and not at the substance of what is actually going on (John 7:24). Consequently, when we make judgments—and we all do—let us be slow in the making of them, being sure we apply the “golden rule” (Matthew 7:12). We need to use only God’s standard of righteousness (Hebrews 4:12) in making judgments. When we see something that is amiss, let us seek to correct it, but in a way that we desire to be corrected when another sees us amiss.

A Direct Influence

15 Wednesday Jan 2014

Posted by in Faithfulness

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

If from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks, and if one can be known by the quality of the fruit produced, then it is reasonable to conclude that both the words spoken and the deeds done are indicative of a person’s heart. People are able to see this and judge. People of maturity understand this, but people full of sin (or self) are quick to point out that one (especially one who is a Christian) is not allowed to judge another, especially one guilty of sinful behavior. It is interesting that these are the same people who look upon the Lord and faithfully proclaim they would NEVER deny Him, but their lives have denial written all over them. The deeds we do, the words we speak, and the thoughts we think reflect directly on (or against) the Lord’s influence in our lives.

Judgment Day

29 Tuesday Oct 2013

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

,

                There are a good many people in this world who have heard something (perhaps a great deal) about a judgment day. What their thinking with regard to this judgment day is varies. It varies because there may be no belief that it will occur; it varies because many who do not identify themselves as Christians feel as if they are in good standing with the Lord because their good out weighs their bad. It is tremendously unfortunate when those who call themselves Christian fail to keep judgment day in view like they should.

It is not that judgment day is not thought about, but that it is not thought about in the right way. Life is precarious; it does not matter how strong a person might be, how wilily he (or she) is at getting out of dangerous circumstance, or anything else. One day we all will stand before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10). We will be judged by those things we have done in the body, whether good or bad.

How should one understand “good” or “bad”? To begin, it is not to be understood in such a way that it’s man’s prerogative to determine what is good or bad. Second, it is not to be understood as some people speak: “He is a good man; look at all the good things he does for the community. Surely God will look favorably upon him!” Third, the bad are not those (only) who are incarcerated, vile in human behavior, or an immoral reprobate.

What is to be understood is this: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works” (Titus 2:11-14, NKJV). There is a judgment day coming and Jesus is our judge. RT