“Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things, but also approve those who practice them. You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.” (Romans 1:32-2:1).
God’s grace is amazing. Grace is God’s gifts of His power. One of those gifts is righteousness. No matter what horrible sin we’ve committed in our lives, God forgives us when we ask for forgiveness. He loves us and sees us as the perfect people that He created. He wants us to pass on His love in this same way by forgiving when someone asks us for forgiveness. Yet not only do we not forgive, we pass judgment on others. I am disappointed when I see a billboard that says, “Heaven or Hell!” Are we, as Christians, ready to send everyone who doesn’t know Jesus to hell, or do we want them to know God’s love? Please pass on God’s love today by encouraging or caring for an acquaintance or a stranger. When someone asks, “Why do you care about me?” Tell them you’re passing on God’s love. Jesus pleads with us: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) Loving one another is so important to Jesus that He repeated it three times so we would get it. Today, “Serve one another humbly in love.” (Galatians 5:13b). To give us ideas on how to encourage or care for another, please blog on how you have touched someone’s life or how someone has touched your life.
Want to take it to the next level?
Paul is telling us that you and I judge others and that we are just as guilty as the ones we are judging. You may be thinking I’m not full of envy and malice; I’m not a gossip or a slanderer, or boastful (sins we read about yesterday). But the truth is we are human, and we are blind to our own mistakes; we simply forget or rename our sin. When someone does something to hurt us – Do we go back to that person and tell them how they made us feel or do we go to God and tell Him? The truth is most of us go to someone else and tell them how that person hurt us. Our friend may add their experience with that person into the pot, and we end up with gossip stew. Sometimes we realize after the fact that we said something or have acted in a way to hurt someone. Do we go back and apologize? Usually not. Did we tell a “white” lie? Most lies lead to a series of lies. Do we boast? It is human nature to boast; it makes us feel good about ourselves. Are we jealous? I have to admit being jealous when someone tells me they’ve taken a family vacation to an exotic place. I want my children to experience that. Or if I really look at my heart. I want to do that, too. I covet! I’m so thankful that God forgives me. Who am I to judge others when I’m guilty, too.