Judging Others 

   “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; because the judgements you give are the judgements you will get, and the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given.” (Matt 7: 1 – 2) 

   Every now and then Facebook can be beneficial to our spiritual life.  I saw a post a few days ago that went something like this, “When you are finished pointing out all my sins please pray for me so that I can become perfect like you.”  How accurately this applies to some who can always see the splinter in another’s eye but never notice the log in in their own.

   When the prostitute was brought before Jesus to be stoned he told the crowd that whoever was without sin should throw the first stone. (John 8: 1 – 11).  They all quietly walked away.  Jesus did not condemn her, but instead cautioned her to sin no more.  There are some among us who are so self-righteous that they would have gladly thrown the first stone.

   This does not mean that we are to ignore sinfulness.  As Christians we must stand for truth and reject sin at every opportunity.  It is our duty to spread the gospel, and this includes recognizing the sinfulness in the world.  Our priests and our pastors are failing in their vocation if they do not warn us of the consequences of our sins.  We are failing if we do not protest the government sanctioning sinful acts and expecting us to approve and support them.  But it is the sin we must judge, not the sinner; that is the sole purview of God.

   I find that when I look in the mirror there are more than enough sins for me to judge within myself.  When I look at others it’s important to remember that none of us are free from sin, and yet God loves us and wants to call us home.