Today's Scripture Reading:
For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God. Let us therefore, not judge one another any more: but rather judge this, that no man a stumbling block or an occasion to fall in his brothers way. Romans 14:11-13
If you have been with me for a long time, you will know that years ago I was in a church whose teachings were...somewhat extreme. My dad used to call it a "borderline cult." And after I finally left it, I came to agree with that.
When I left, it was after some things had happened within the church itself that I found questionable, but leaders refused to speak of or explain, and did not want their people to discuss them. And we wee told not to and if we tried to, members were to dissociate with them. But for awhile, I questioned myself that having left, did I also lose my salvation. Which is a typical teaching in a churches or groups of people that in cults. They didn't really allude to it in this particular church, (at least not the I can remember) but, that I even wrestled with it in my mind, was plain crazy because I had been saved as a child, grew up and got away from the Lord at the time, and came back to him and knew with out a doubt that I loved him, he loved me and I was trying to do what he wanted me to do.
But there were those questions still.And that went on for a few months. But every morning in my devotions, I would read what God's word had to say to me. And one day, I opened it to Romans 14. And the whole thing stood out to me. As if you read up into the scripture before these, you will find that Paul, was writing to the early Christians, about the subject of judging their fellow Christians. That was going on in the church I was in, and it came right down to doing that to me, as well.
It came to me, that according to those scriptures, they had no right to judge me or anyone else. They had no clue to what I was going through at the time. And I have written before on some of that, so I won't go back to that this time. But my life had been a mess and I was struggling just to get through everyday. They knew of some of it, and just knowing what they did, they should have been ready to give me help with some counseling or whatever else they might have been appropriate. But, instead, I was alone and hurting. God was the only one I could really depend on and I know the one I should have only needed. But, I could have used someone that just could have said, "We are here for you." And I didn't get that.
When I read that in verses 11-13, it was what freed me from the stuff that tied me to that church. The Holy Spirit had used it to show me that I wasn't lost. He still had me. And I had him. Praise the Lord!
But it hasn't ended there with me. I have learned in later years, how we should not judge anyone. Sometimes I forget, and complain. But it always comes back that I do not have that right because I do not know what most people have been through. Even in my own family. On them, I can take a good guess in most. Because I went through some of the same things with them in my youth. But as our lives went different ways, what had they continued to go through in their life, and what new things things had been added along that I cannot understand. And so, likewise with myself.
We cannot fully know anyone circumstances, nor their heart. And so, we are not to judge them. And one reason along with the fact that we don't know what they have been through, is that Mathew 7:1-2 tells us not to judge because however we judge, we will be judged as well.
So I do try to not judge others, and instead, offer my ear to listen, or advice (which is rare) or any help that I can give, that they may need.
And it frees me up to not having to think about the negative things that I would have, if I am always judging them. How about you? It is something to think about.
Thanks for coming by Friends. God bless your day!
