Why We Must Stop Judging People - Part 2
“We know the God who said, ‘I am the God who judges people. I will pay them back.’ (Deuteronomy 32:35) Scripture also says, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ (Deuteronomy 32:36; Psalm 135:14)”—Hebrews 10:30 (NIRV)
God never gave us the responsibility to judge other people. When we take it upon ourselves to sit in judgment against another person, we have usurped the seat of judgment that belongs to God Almighty ONLY.
“Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive his approval.”—Romans 14:4 (NLT)
“Do not speak against one another, brothers and sisters. The one who speaks against a brother or sister, or judges his brother or sister, 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, judging your neighbor?”—James 4:11-12 (NASB)
God is the only righteous judge because He is the only One qualified to judge people.
“And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make decisions by what His ears hear; But with righteousness and justice He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the downtrodden of the earth”—Isaiah 11:3-4 (AMP)
When we take it upon ourselves to judge people based on what we see and hear, we will inevitably make mistakes, just as Samuel did, because we never have all of the information we need to make righteous judgments. God can see the motives and the intents of a person’s heart. We cannot.
“When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab. He thought, ‘This has to be the one the Lord wants me to anoint for him.’
“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider how handsome or tall he is. I have not chosen him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outside of a person. But the Lord looks at what is in the heart.’”—1 Samuel 16:6-7 (NIRV)
“All the ways of a man are clean and innocent in his own eyes [and he may see nothing wrong with his actions], But** the Lord weighs and examines the motives and intents [of the heart and knows the truth].”**—Proverbs 16:2 (AMP)
Neville Johnson had an experience that changed his life forever and taught him that he was *never *qualified to judge another person.
During one meeting, he was standing at the pulpit and looking out over the congregation that he pastored. Suddenly it seemed like a veil was removed and he could see each person as they really were. He could see their hearts, their true motivations, and their personal struggles.
In that moment, Neville realized that he had badly misjudged many, if not everyone, in his own congregation. None of his assumptions or judgments had been correct. He realized that for weeks, months, or even years, he had been interacting with all of these people based on assumptions that were completely wrong.
After that experience, Neville never looked at people in the same way again, and he cautioned people against making judgments about others. He assured people often that it would be impossible for anyone to judge another person righteously because we simply do not have all of the facts. We do not have enough information to judge another person correctly.
The Apostle Paul said the same thing. He felt that he was not even qualified to judge himself, much less another person.
“But I don’t consider your judgment on this point to be worth anything. Even an opinion from a court of law would mean nothing. I don’t even trust my own judgment. I don’t know of any wrong I have done, but that does not make me right. The Lord is the one who must decide if I have done well or not. So don’t judge anyone now. The time for judging will be when the Lord comes. He will shine light on everything that is now hidden in darkness. He will make known the secret purposes of our hearts. Then the praise each person should get will come from God.”—1 Corinthians 4:3-5 (ERV)
Even Jesus, when he addressed the religious leaders of his day said, “You judge according to human standards [just by what you see]. **I do not judge anyone.” **(John 8:15 AMP).
He said this after the incident when the woman had been brought to Him who had been caught in the act of adultery.
The religious leaders insisted the woman caught in the act of adultery be judged and condemned. But Jesus saw worth in this sinful woman. Jesus saw something of value in her. He looked past her shameful behavior and saw something worth saving—something worth dying for.
After Jesus had effectively removed those who were judging her, “He said to her, Woman, where are your accusers? Has no man condemned you?”
**“**She answered, No one, Lord! And Jesus said, I do not condemn you either. Go on your way and from now on sin no more.”—John 8:10-11 (AMPC)
Jesus showed us in this encounter how to offer love and acceptance to a person without approving of their sinful lifestyle choices.
When we judge someone based on what we see and hear, we inevitably misjudge them because we are not able to see the true worth and value of the person. James teaches this to us:
“My fellow believers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of partiality [toward people—show no favoritism, no prejudice, no snobbery]. For if a man comes into your meeting place wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in, and you pay special attention to the one who wears the fine clothes, and say to him, ‘You sit here in this good seat,’ and you tell the poor man, ‘You stand over there, or sit down [on the floor] by my footstool,’ have you not discriminated among yourselves, and become judges with wrong motives? Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters: has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and [as believers to be] heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? But you [in contrast] have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress and exploit you, and personally drag you into the courts of law? Do they not blaspheme the precious name [of Christ] by which you are called?
“If, however, you are [really] fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, if you have an unselfish concern for others and do things for their benefit]’ you are doing well. But if you show partiality [prejudice, favoritism], you are committing sin and are convicted by the Law as offenders.”—James 2:1-6 (AMP)
