One of my biggest struggles has been my critical attitude toward others. So, when I heard Pastor Dee Duke give his sermon, “Do Not Judge One Another,” I felt very blessed and inspired. This would be the first 25 point sermon I’ve ever heard.
To aid in comprehension, I regrouped some of these points, paraphrased in some cases, and directly quoted most points.
Human nature-the way things are
· We’re continually evaluating other people’s behavior, character and motives.
· The longer we have been a Christian, the stronger the urge to judge others.
· Another cause of a judgmental attitude as we age is our pride in our growth.
· Judging has a spirit of criticalness, meanness, pride, contempt, arrogance and judgment.
· Very few practices cause more problems and division in families, groups and churches than judging others does.
God’s Perspective
· The Pharisees’ big sin was judging others. Luke 7:36-39
· Jesus spoke against judging others more than any other sin. Luke 15:25-30
· We are all in various stages of growth. Accepting others is trusting God to grow and change others at His own pace. Romans 15:7, Matthew 18:10
· A judgmental attitude is particularly odious to God as He observes our life. Isaiah 65:5-7; 2 Samuel 6:23
· God is judge and that is a job that He is not going to share with us. James 4:11-12, 1 Corinthians 4:5, Romans 14:10-13
· God gives great mercy to those who resist the urge to judge others. Matthew 7:1, Luke 6:36-38
Judging-Implications for Our Lives
· When we judge others in our heart and mind, we will despise them, gossip about them, and treat them with contempt. Example: Michael judging David’s dancing. 2 Samuel 6:14-16, 20
· The more we judge others, the less we will grow in holiness. James 4:11-12
· Very few practices by Christians are more alienating to non-Christians than our proneness to judge others.
· We never pray for those we gossip about, and we never gossip about those we pray for. [taken from a separate sermon, but equally applicable]
Changing our Behavior
· A major key to breaking the bad habit of judging others is to pray for their sins, character flaws and weaknesses.
· We can evaluate other people’s behavior, character and motives for the purpose of encouraging them, praying for them, and gently motivating them. Ephesians 6:18, Hebrews 10:24, Galatians 6:1
Implications That Mercy Has On Our Lives
· As we pray for others instead of judging them, our understanding for them grows.
· As we pray for others instead of judging them, our wisdom in how to help and encourage them grows.
· We can be disciplining ourselves to thank the Lord constantly for all His mercy and grace, which will stir us to practice the same mercy and grace to others.
· The more mercy we give to others, the more mercy God will give to us at the “Judgment Seat of Christ” Romans 14:10-13, 2 Corinthians 5:10, Colossians 3:24-25
To aid in comprehension, I regrouped some of these points, paraphrased in some cases, and directly quoted most points.
Human nature-the way things are
· We’re continually evaluating other people’s behavior, character and motives.
· The longer we have been a Christian, the stronger the urge to judge others.
· Another cause of a judgmental attitude as we age is our pride in our growth.
· Judging has a spirit of criticalness, meanness, pride, contempt, arrogance and judgment.
· Very few practices cause more problems and division in families, groups and churches than judging others does.
God’s Perspective
· The Pharisees’ big sin was judging others. Luke 7:36-39
· Jesus spoke against judging others more than any other sin. Luke 15:25-30
· We are all in various stages of growth. Accepting others is trusting God to grow and change others at His own pace. Romans 15:7, Matthew 18:10
· A judgmental attitude is particularly odious to God as He observes our life. Isaiah 65:5-7; 2 Samuel 6:23
· God is judge and that is a job that He is not going to share with us. James 4:11-12, 1 Corinthians 4:5, Romans 14:10-13
· God gives great mercy to those who resist the urge to judge others. Matthew 7:1, Luke 6:36-38
Judging-Implications for Our Lives
· When we judge others in our heart and mind, we will despise them, gossip about them, and treat them with contempt. Example: Michael judging David’s dancing. 2 Samuel 6:14-16, 20
· The more we judge others, the less we will grow in holiness. James 4:11-12
· Very few practices by Christians are more alienating to non-Christians than our proneness to judge others.
· We never pray for those we gossip about, and we never gossip about those we pray for. [taken from a separate sermon, but equally applicable]
Changing our Behavior
· A major key to breaking the bad habit of judging others is to pray for their sins, character flaws and weaknesses.
· We can evaluate other people’s behavior, character and motives for the purpose of encouraging them, praying for them, and gently motivating them. Ephesians 6:18, Hebrews 10:24, Galatians 6:1
Implications That Mercy Has On Our Lives
· As we pray for others instead of judging them, our understanding for them grows.
· As we pray for others instead of judging them, our wisdom in how to help and encourage them grows.
· We can be disciplining ourselves to thank the Lord constantly for all His mercy and grace, which will stir us to practice the same mercy and grace to others.
· The more mercy we give to others, the more mercy God will give to us at the “Judgment Seat of Christ” Romans 14:10-13, 2 Corinthians 5:10, Colossians 3:24-25
2 comments:
Great post. As someone who has struggled with judging others (and still do), I have really found that prayer is the only thing that works. When I pray for someone I dislike or judge, I begin to empathize and care about their welfare and/or salvation.
So true. With non-christians, we should be much more worried about their salvation than anything else. With Christians on the other hand, there is a fine line between judging each other and addressing sin so it doesn't spread.
--K@
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