DO
NOT JUDGE OTHERS
Matthew
7:1-2 (NASB) says “Do
not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge,
you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be
measured to you.”
James
4:11-12 (NASB) says
“Do
not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a
brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the
law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a
judge of it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is
able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your
neighbor?”
James
5:9 (NASB) says “Do
not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves
may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.”
The
Bible tells us to examine our own motives and conduct instead of
judging others. The traits that bother us in others are often the
habits we dislike in ourselves. Our untamed bad habits and behavior
patterns are the very ones that we most want to change in others.
Do
you find it easy to magnify others faults while excusing your own?
If you are ready to criticize someone, check to see if you deserve
the same criticism. Judge yourself first, and then lovingly forgive
and help the other person.
The
statement “Do Not Judge.” is against the kind of hypocritical,
judgmental attitude that tears others down in order to build oneself
up. It is not a blanket statement against all critical thinking, but
a call to be discerning rather than negative.
We
are to put our trust in God to be the final Judge.
DO
NOT SLANDER OTHERS
Matthew 15:19 (NASB) says “For out of the heart come evil
thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness,
slanders. “
Ephesians
4:29-32 (NASB) says
“Let
no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as
is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that
it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit
of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all
bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away
from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another,
tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has
forgiven you.”
1 Peter 2:12 (NASB) says “Keep
your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in
which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good
deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.”
We
can grieve the Holy Spirit by the way we live. The Bible warns us
against unwholesome language, bitterness, improper use of anger,
brawling, slander and bad attitudes toward others. Instead of acting
that way, we should be forgiving, just as God has forgiven us.
ARE
YOU GRIEVING OR PLEASING GOD
WITH
YOUR ATTITUDE AND ACTIONS?
This
is sometimes difficult to do, but the Bible tells us that we are to
act in love toward our neighbors, just as God acted in love toward us
by sending His Son to die for our sins.
Remember:
We all have faults, no one is perfect! If you don’t go “Fault
Looking”,
you won’t be a “Fault
Finder”.
Don’t be the devil’s mouthpiece – always do your best to speak
words that edify (build up)!
End
Of Post