“..When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. But when grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil and do not regard the majesty of the Lord.” (~Isaiah 26:9-10/NIV)
Upon reading these verses, I felt a little sad. Sad, because I realize that even in my own life, there have been times when I received a measure of God’s uncomfortable discipline, rather than His pleasant grace. I understood the truth of the matter; that sometimes we as human beings can be stubborn, prideful, and self-absorbed, wanting our own way in all things. However, God always has a plan to lead us along the correct paths as we submit to His direction and discipline. His ways are always better than our own, and we simply don’t always live our lives honoring them.
Oxford defines discipline as “the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behavior, using punishment to correct disobedience,” while it defines judgment as “a misfortune or calamity viewed as a divine punishment.”
For the believer, I equated this topic to the correction of a toddler or puppy. Sometimes, a favorite treat or toy won’t bring about the good behavior we want in a situation, though occasionally it may. Learning the right conduct often may require some measure of discipline instead. Of course, it doesn’t mean we don’t love our toddlers or puppies, but we want them to avoid trouble and have the best existence possible. So, we teach them with all the healthy and effective methods of wisdom, knowledge, and correction we can provide.
Hebrews 12:11 teaches us that “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.” Yet we can find comfort in the fact that “Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
For those who may not yet have accepted Christ, they lack the Holy Spirit’s power to be successful in living for the Lord as He wills. Thus, consistently being open to spiritual attacks on their lives and painful judgment. However, we who choose to believe can rest assured that when we sin, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9/NIV).
It’s interesting how with all the wisdom the Bible provides regarding trusting the Lord for protection, it instructs us in the practical ways to live safely.
There’s a passage in Proverbs 2 that teaches us that wise choices will watch over us and understanding will keep us safe. This means we should seriously consider and pray about our options regarding any decisions we make in life. What might be the outcome and what are the related costs? Having a good understanding of all of the elements involved and their effect on our lives, along with seeking God’s will in each case, will provide protection from unnecessary, future distress.
This passage also teaches us that wisdom will save us from people who don’t mean us well and who use words that are unhealthy or distorted. Further, it indicates that these people turned from a right path onto a wrong one which leads to darkness and corruption. These are people who enjoy doing wrong and the perverted ways of wickedness. These are people who only bring problems to your life and should be avoided.
In this new year, we should make it our aim to gain wisdom and understanding for making godly choices in all areas of our lives. The Bible has more than enough information to help us gain all the wisdom and understanding we need. We just need to apply ourselves by taking some time during the day to read and pray. This needn’t be a lengthy amount of time, but just a consistency of time, so that we are successful in acclimating ourselves to God’s character and principles.
In this age of information technology, there are so many convenient resources available to us. Not to mention the traditional ways of learning via counsel from people personally, or through books or other forms of media.
Doesn’t it feel good to know you can be safe, avoiding unnecessary trouble and deception through wise decision-making? I’m so glad God has given us His very own word for assistance.
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Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. Wisdom will save you from evil people, from those whose words are twisted. These men turn from the right way to walk down dark paths. They take pleasure in doing wrong, and they enjoy the twisted ways of evil. ~Proverbs 2:11-14/NLT
There’s a phrase that we’ve all heard and may have even said at some point in our lives: “Don’t judge me.” It suggests we should not form a conclusion about a person with condemnation. Perhaps it’s even more than just examining the fruit of a person’s life, but passing a judgment where we don’t have the information about the person that God would have. Or the event we may not have the authority to judge.
Practically, every day in various ways we navigate through life with decision-making. We make determinations about what actions to take next on matters as well as who we seek for guidance, support, or friendship. But how might this relate to communicating with or evaluating another person? Or should we even assess people? Might we just pray about them and see if the Lord approves?
The Greek word for “judge” in the Bible is krino, which means to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong. Other definitions include to condemn, sentence, or levy a punishment. The scriptures are pretty clear in their references to judging. First, we’re told: “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 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? Hypocrite! First, remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:1-5/NKJV).
Hence, though we are told not to judge, it appears in Matthew 7:5 that we are allowed to move forward to help our brother when we’re able to see clearly to remove a speck from his eye when we’ve removed the plank from our own. In doing this we are taught in Galatians 6:1/NIV “… if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” So, we are shown in what Spirit we are to restore a person.
We are careful when we remember John 5: 22-23, “Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. …” In addition, James 4:12/NIV, “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?”
At the same time, Matthew 18:15-17/NIV tells us how to deal with sin in the church: “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.”
Further, we’re reminded in 1 Corinthians 6:1-5/NLT, “When one of you has a dispute with another believer, how dare you file a lawsuit and ask a secular court to decide the matter instead of taking it to other believers! Don’t you realize that someday we believers will judge the world? And since you are going to judge the world, can’t you decide even these little things among yourselves? Don’t you realize that we will judge angels? So you should surely be able to resolve ordinary disputes in this life. If you have legal disputes about such matters, why go to outside judges who are not respected by the church? I am saying this to shame you. Isn’t there anyone in all the church who is wise enough to decide these issues? “
Another reference to judging is found in John 7:24/NKJV where Jesus says, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment,” another definition of “judgment” that would be valid. The Lord does not want us to be like the Pharisees whom he considered hypocritical in that they condemned others for the same sins they were committing.
Therefore, I’ve concluded we must look at all of the Bible’s references to judging to be able to accurately understand when and how to judge. We must remember the authority of the Bible in that, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17/NIV). We know there are certainly times when encountering a problem and teaching the scripture as the solution is necessary.
There is much to be learned in the Bible about how we are to treat one another, all provided by the Scriptures, along with the Holy Spirit available to help us succeed. This is why we need to read the Bible daily and walk by the Spirit so that we can be obedient to God’s commands regarding judgment. Through consistent time spent with the Lord in prayer and study of the scriptures for knowledge and understanding, we prepare ourselves for the challenges we are certain to face in relationships.
Thinking about your most recent conversations, would you say that they involved talking about other people and their lives? Or, do you find yourself desiring to read information about other people and what is happening to date? Do you believe the people you receive from are reliable sources of truth and is the information edifying or inspirational to your life?
In this day and age of social media and other forms of communication, there are so many opinions, and more comments than ever on other people’s lives, many times with truth being embellished or exaggerated. A safeguard is needed to discourage gossip and avoid furthering possible erroneous information about others.
What exactly is gossip? Oxford Learner’s Dictionary describes it as, 1) informal talk or stories about other people’s private lives, that may be unkind or not true; 2) a conversation about other people and their private lives; and 3) a person who enjoys talking about other people’s private lives. Sadly, these definitions would most likely apply to all of us at one time or another.
The Bible teaches that, “A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret” (Proverbs 11:13). Further, “A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends” (Proverbs 16:28). It reminds us that, “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless” (James 1:26). It also condemns gossip as being inappropriate for Christians and a consequence of a depraved mind (Romans 1:29; 2 Corinthians 12:20).
If there’s one thing we hopefully know, is that sometimes, people will lie about others for any number of reasons, which might often include sensationalism, especially for media purposes.
It’s important to realize it’s best not to repeat anything about someone else that doesn’t come straight from that person’s mouth for public knowledge. Moreover, it makes good sense not to believe everything one hears about a person as factual, without personal knowledge of the information as being true.
Two scriptures, one in the Old Testament and the other in the New Testament, teach us about the importance of witnesses in a matter:
2 Corinthians 13:1 … “By the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word shall be established.”
Deuteronomy 9:15 “One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established.”
It may take some time to break oneself from a habit of gossiping, but it is possible as we remind ourselves of what God thinks of the matter and pray for His grace to help us to place a “tight rein on our tongues.” Or, perhaps I should add keyboards.
Ms. Rita's Minute 