You have judged the actions and motivations of others as if you somehow knew what those were. You have judged the color of skin and body language and body odor; you have judged value and relationships. You have even judged the value of a person’s life by the quality of your concept of beauty (William P. Young, The Shack).
I am guilty. I have definitely judged people. Snap judgments. That person smells; he must not care about his hygiene. Her clothes are dirty; she must be poor. He’s attractive, he must be conceited. She’s so skinny; I bet she’s anorexic. How easy is it to judge? After all, when I make those judgments, I feel justified. Judging makes you feel superior to the one you judge. I mean really, don’t they deserve judgment?
There are sins that we classify as taboo or forbidden. Maybe we don’t say that we feel that way out loud, but somewhere deep inside, we have decided that if this person does x, y, or z, I don’t think I can be associated with him.
Here are a few examples.
Gay and lesbians in America. Are you uncomfortable? I brought up the topic. Does that mean that I support same-sex marriage? Did you start to judge me? How is it that something as little as attraction makes everyone completely insane and up in arms against each other? Yes, the Bible clearly states that this is a sin. But it also states that divorce is a sin. How come our American culture embraces a divorce rate that is sky rocketing but stares in horror if two men are holding hands? Jesus loves the gay man, the lesbian, the bisexual, and even the transvestite just as much as he loves anyone else. Hey Christians, how about we start showing that same Christ-like love too?
People who smoke or drink in India. Golly. If you even think about having a beer or smoking a cigarette, you better be prepared to be judged. Like American culture, Indian culture has a list of what is taboo for the Christian. This person is not accepted in the church, as a matter of fact, he would probably be kicked out of the church if he tried to attend. How unlike Christ is that? Didn’t he spend time with sinners? With the tax collectors? With the lost and lonely? How far have we fallen from right relationship and right living with God?
People caught in the act of adultery in the Muslim culture. They are not only rejected, but killed. They have committed the ultimate sin and don’t even have a chance for repentance. They are so quickly judged as a cheater. They never have a chance to be forgiven or even ask for forgiveness. If only they knew the story of Jesus with the woman who was caught in the act of adultery. How much do you think that would affect their ways? How much do you think that would affect life and judgment?
By what criteria do you base your judgment?
Just as the parable that Jesus preached in Luke 15 says that if a shepherd loses one sheep, he will go searching for him, so we should do the same. That parable ends by Jesus stating, “There will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.”
Doesn’t that mean that we are supposed to help the lost? That we are supposed to reach out to the drunkard, to the murderer, to the lesbian, to the adulterer? Rather than avoiding them and acting as though they have some sort of disease, we are called to reach out to them. So, do they deserve to be judged? No, they don’t deserve judgment any more than Mother Theresa or the pastor at your church.
