Don’t speak evil against each other, dear brothers and sisters. If you criticize and judge each other, then you are criticizing and judging God’s law. ~ James 4:11 (NLT)
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Sheesh -- now God's really meddling in my business! Don't I have a right to an opinion? Don't I have a right to express myself, my 1st amendment right, and all that? People bug me sometimes, and I don't care who I let know!
Does that sound like you? Does that sound like me? Even if we don't speak or think those exact words, I think we often have the mindset that if people irritate us, we have the right to let them know--to give 'em what for! And even if the offending person never gets a piece of your mind, you slander them in your mind and drum up all kinds of evil in your spirit against them for being such a rotten person, a bad driver, or a poor dresser! It's true, and we know it. We judge people left and right for such piddly things, it's pathetic!
Look at what that woman is wearing...boy, does she need an extreme makeover!...
Gee, just look at that car with all those bumper stickers---how trashy can you get?! They really know how to bring down a neighborhood...
Can you believe Janey in Accounting is dating Phil in Circulation?! What could she be thinking with a dork like that?!...
This is a pretty big issue for me. I consider myself a kind person, who's courteous and helpful to others, who desires to be Christ-like in how I treat people. And my actions usually bear this out. But, boy, my heart and mind judge people somethin' fierce more times than I want to admit! The insidiousness of it all is that often my judgment never comes out of my mouth -- it just rattles around inside, stirring up evil in my spirit. And, sometimes I spread it around, sharing my negative thoughts with a friend, hoping for some comradeship, desiring real vindication over these "stupid, idiotic, crazy, good-for-nothin' jerks that fill up this stupid earth and think they have a right to breathe air like the rest of us!" (see how being judgmental fills us with all sorts of kind and loving thoughts, whereby we love others as Jesus loves us? ..insert sarcasm.. :-\)
Paul says that when we judge others, we're judging God's law, instead of doing our job, which is obeying it. Jesus gave us the law of love, which overarches the Mosaic Law. Love your neighbor as yourself...love one another as I have loved you. Oops -- I guess jokes that cut people down because of their race, gender, or physical appearance don't quite fit that mould, do they? You realize that most jokes are really veiled judgment, don't you? Just think about it the next time you tell or listen in on a "fat" joke -- what enters your mind, then, when you walk behind an obese person? Compassion for their plight? Or ridicule for their size?
Oh, Lord, forgive us when we've put ourselves in the judge's seat and bashed people for who they are or how they act. Lord, please remove this evil from our hearts and minds. Fill us with true love and compassion for people, desiring to see the inside of a person, instead of judging their exteriors. May we see people the way You do, and may our thoughts and words be kind and loving, reflecting You. Amen...
Love,
Joelene
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