Is What We Believe Based On The Word Of God? (Part 5 of 7)
Continued from part 4, we move on to number 11:
11. We should never judge anyone’s behavior or judge issues, because the Bible tells us not to judge.
This is what’s killing us. Yes, Matt. 7:1 says this: - “Judge not, that you be not judged.”
That statement has become the great American open-mindedness slogan, when anyone has the courage to declare that someone else’s belief, actions or lifestyle is morally amiss.
The ones who are quoting this are some of the most mean-spirited judgmental souls you could ever meet. One minister, Mario Murillo, wrote a powerful article about this and tolerance awhile back. He said that he made the mistake of saying“MERRY CHRISTMAS “ to a waitress.
They want to judge & condemn our commitment to practice our Christian views. Also, they like to say, “that may be true for you, but it’s not true for me.” Your truth is not my truth.” We are both right. Two contradictory claims can not both be true. Black and white aren’t the same color.
Yet if you call their truth false, you are being intolerant and judgmental.’’ When Jesus said this, in Matt. 7:1, He wasn’t implying we should never make judgments about anyone.
A few verses later he calls people pigs and dogs and wolves in sheep’s clothing. What he condemns is a critical & judgmental spirit, a sense of superiority. (when we’re doing the same things ourselves) He tells us to examine ourselves first, andtake the beam out of our eye first.
Then we can remove the speck in another’s eye, which assumes that a problem exists & must be confronted.
Look at Matt. 7:1-5“Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, ( why do you point out his minor sins -but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? (your own sins, and especially those we will not admit, magnified by our selective blindness) 5 Hypocrite! (pointing out the sins of others while by pretense thinking of ourselves as above sin) First remove the plank from your own eye, (sincerely ask The Lord for forgiveness and learn and live the Truth & Light by His Word) and then you will see clearly (be in a righteous position) to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.( to judge & to help him out of his bondage to sin) Jesus uses the word hypocrite in this verse which means actor, stage player, dissembler, pretender. He’s correcting the Jews who are doingthe same things the gentiles who have converted do.
The Bible gives other examples of His desire for us to judge.
John 7:24 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”
There, Jesus tells us to judge, but to do so righteously.
Righteously means to use the Truth of The Word to discern sins and not by appearances only.
1 Cor. 6:2-3, 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3 Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?
Jesus authorizes us to judge (discern good from evil). Otherwise we could not discern good from bad, proper from improper, righteousness from evil. But we are to judge behaviour,
the deed not the doer, and try to lead them in the way of righteousness .
So while we must judge one’s behavior, we must try to separate the deed from the doer.
Then we are to be quick to restore people when they repent. Gal. 6:1-6 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. 5 For each one shall bear his own load.
Here are some good quotes from powerful men of God through the ages.
Phil Robertson said: “ Our society has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe and do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate.”
“What one generation tolerates, the next generation will embrace.”
― John Wesley
“Vice does not lose its character by becoming fashionable.”
― John Wesley
That very church which the world likes best is sure to be that which God abhors.”
― Charles H. Spurgeon
The chief danger of the Church today is that it is trying to get on the same side as the world, instead of turning the world upside down. Our Master expects us to accomplish results, even if they bring opposition and conflict. Anything is better than compromise, apathy, and paralysis. God, give to us an intense cry for the old-time power of the Gospel and the Holy Ghost!
Author: A.B. Simpson
We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.
Author: A.W. Tozer
Unfortunately, preachers who distort God's Word are all too common today. Sometimes this springs from a sincere desire to soften hard hearts, but hearts aren't changed by compromise.
Author: Alistair Begg
The reason why men do not look to the Church today is that she has destroyed her own influence by compromise.
Author: G. Campbell Morgan
There are hours when the Church must say NO to those who should ask communion with her, in the doing of her work, upon the basis of compromise.
Author: G. Campbell Morgan
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
Author: G.K. Chesterton
Discipline is difficult, painful, and often heartrending. It is not that we should not love the offenders, but that we should love Christ, His church, and His Word even more. Our love to the offenders is not to be sentimental tolerance but correcting love.
Author: John MacArthur
No one sets out to become an apostate - it's never the result of one abrupt, drastic turn away from the Lord. Instead, apostasy is most often the product of a pattern of sinful compromises that harden and gradually steer a professing believer away from the truth.
Author: John MacArthur
It's unpopular to take a strong stand on anything (these days) except tolerance.
Author: John Piper
Tolerance is often championed by people who nothing to stand for.
Author: Woodrow Kroll
Mixing the standards of the world with God’s standards is one of the major temptations we face today. Christians are becoming contaminated and losing their saltiness. The devil knows his time is short and is trying to destroy America’s spiritual heritage and influence. We have to understand satan’s plan of attack so we can properly prepare. God knows that compromising with the standards of the world will cause harmful contamination and weaken our ability to function as salt and light. That’s one of the reasons we have these scriptures:
James 4:4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
1 John 2:15-16 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. Bible= says we are tolive in the world but not to be of the world.
Spiritually , we are no longer citizens of the kingdom of this world, it isn’t our home. We’re citizens of the kingdom of God. We’re no longer part of the world’s spiritual family. Col. 1:13 - Living Bible 13 For he has rescued us out of the darkness and gloom of Satan’s kingdom and brought us into the Kingdom of his dear Son. That’s why the apostle Paul considered the things of this world dead to him and himself dead to this world.
Satan has successfully used his kingdom; the world, or society in America during this last generation as an attack vehicle to weaken our resolve and contaminate our spiritual commitment. He’s made us ineffective as salt & had a dimming effect on our light.
Deception is a terrible thing, One of the greatest warnings Jesus gave about the Last Days had to do with deception. He saidin Matt. 24:24 24 For false christs shall arise, and false prophets, and will do wonderful miracles so that if it were possible, even God’s chosen ones[a] would be deceived.
There is only one way to test deception; by inspecting the fruit produced & comparing it with the teachings in the Word of God. We have an urgency of the times upon us and don’t want to be lulled to sleep. We’re different, a peculiar people
What is tolerance? The dictionary defines it as : A fair, objective, and permissive attitude toward opinions and practices that differ from one’s own, a liberal, undogmaticviewpoint. We must be dogmatic if we have dogma. It is not our viewpoint, but God’s from His Holy Word. Do we not have to hold firm to what the Bible says?
Tolerance has become the most misused & abused word in the English language. We will not situationally redefine or conditionally apply His Word to suit political correctness, cultural tolerances, modern ethics and false religions. We cannot, even to avoid invading the comfort zone of Christians.
Jesus spent 3 days in hell so you and I would not have to spend one moment there! For too long, well-meaning clergy have fed the people with watered down Scriptures to avoid invading the comfort zone. We won’t do that. We love you too much to feed you lies or less-than -truths.
It is people who do, who pull people away from the Christ of Christianity. Practicing the Faith & what is expected of it is being very intolerant of sin, even our own sin, by His Word, by embracing the sinner but not embracing the sin, by helping the sinner, even ourselves, out of bondage to the sin by loving him/her enough to tell the truth. On judgment day, Jesus will send the un-forgiven into the fiery pits of hell. He won’t excuse any single sin after what He has done. He will forgive us all our sins, if we are humble enough to ask believing. But He will not excuse any sin.
Here’s how the world’s tolerance operates.I must tolerate them but they won’t us.
Many don’t even think we should judge the terrorists attacks on 911. They say we shouldn’t make any moral judgements. We’re living in a day when the Word of God is under attack as never before as the errant Church tries to straddle the fence between righteousness, and the evil of political correctness. We have been distanced from our religious roots. There is a new emphasis on tolerance that wants to redefine Christian America as an embarrassing term and offensive. We’re living in one of the difficult times that a Christian committed to Biblical standards has ever faced. Never in history has a world system had so much power to teach so many people its standard as our society does thru mass communication; tv, radio, movies, internet, books magazines, and secular education. It isavailable to everyone.
We’re being hit everywhere to compromise Biblical standards.Billy graham did a study that showed 90% of Christians are living defeated lives. We are no longer the salt of the earth. One place is in attacking every “thou shalt not” and calling itcondemnation, rather than receiving it as loving correction to turn one from error. It’s the assignment of every minister of the gospel to preach this message of repentance out of their love for Christ and the church
and not in fear of the scorners that are determined to protect their sin. If Americans don’t start to judge & punish evil, instead of accepting all ideas & beliefs as equal, we will become a nation that welcomes same-sex marriage, polygamy pedophilia, incest, and euthanasia. We must get comfortable withmaking intelligent judgments on moral issues because even if we don’t make them, God will hold our nation acceptable for what we allow.