ONE THING!

"One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that 1 may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple" (Psalm 27:4).

David was a man who seemed to have "one thing" on his mind. He seems to be ransacking the Hebrew language for nouns to describe this desire: to dwell in the house of the Lord; to inquire in his temple; and this desire spoken in these ways is centered in one thing, the main thing: to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, the incomparable, transcendent, all­ satisfying, awe-inspiring beauty of God.

David's resolution reminds me of a scene in the 1991 movie City Slickers. Mitch, played by Billy Crystal and his two friends from New York City are middle-aged, middle-class guys trying to rediscover the purpose of their mundane lives. Curley, played by Jack Palance, is a tough-as-leather trail boss who is not particularly reflective or philosophical. In one scene, Curley, the old crusty cow boy, is talking with the city folk about life. They are confused and have made a mess of their lives. They ask Curley for some advice on life. Curley: “You city folks. -- You spend 50 weeks a year getting knots in your rope and you think two weeks here will work them all out. You just don't get it.” Curley holds up one dirty, black-gloved finger to them. With a squint in his weathered old face and a cigarette dangling from his lips, he says to them, "Life is about one thing." "It’s this," Palance says, holding up a single finger. "The secret of life is your finger?" asks Crystal. "It’s one thing," Palance replies. Mitch: “What thing?” Curley: “That's what you have to figure out.”

Psalm 27 is not the only place where we see David's "One thing" passion. Listen to and catch his “One thing” passion in other Psalms.


Psalm 16:2,11, "I say to the LORD, "You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you....You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
Psalm 42:1-2, As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God."
Psalm 63:1-3, "O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory…Your steadfast love is better than life.”
Psalm 84:10, For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness."



Only God would satisfy a heart like David’s and David was a man after one thing God’s heart. This is what we were created and redeemed for! This is the essence of loving God –being satisfied in him. Jonathan Edwards understood about the one thing. He once wrote: “God’s is glorified not only in His glory being seen, but by in His glory being rejoiced in.” God’s beauty is meant to satisfy the heart with joy and delight.

What happens when we desire the one thing? First, the beauty of the Lord satisfies the heart with joy and delight. Secondly, beauty transforms the soul. The encounter of the human soul with divine beauty, is more than merely enjoyable, it is profoundly transforming. There is within it the power to persuade and to convince the inquiring mind of truth. This may well be the Spirit's greatest catalyst for change. Paul alluded to this in 2 Corinthians 3:18 when he said, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” The point is what we see is what we be! We do not simply behold beauty: beauty takes hold of us and challenges the allegiance of our hearts. Beauty calls us to reshape our lives and exposes the shabbiness of our conduct. It awakens us to the reality of a transcendent Being to whose likeness of beauty we are being called and conformed by his gracious initiative. Beauty has the power to dislodge from our hearts the grip of moral and spiritual ugliness. The soul's engagement with beauty elicits love and forges new affection that no earthly power can overcome.

The best way I can describe this is with an illustrate I have heard from Sam Storms from Greek Mythology of two men, Ulysses and Jason) Most of you will remember the story from Greek mythology of Odysseus, also known as Ulysses. After the Trojan War on the return voyage to his home Ithaca Ulysses and his crew approached the deadly island of the Sirens. Countless were the unwit­ting sailors who, on passing by their island, succumbed to the outward beauty of the Sirens and their seductively irresistible songs. Once lured close to shore, their boats crashed on the hidden rocks lurking beneath the surface of the sea. The demonic cannibals whose alluring disguise and mesmerizing melodies had drawn them close wasted little time in savagely consuming their flesh. Ulysses had been duly warned about the sirens and their lethal hypocrisy. Upon reaching their island, he ordered his crew to put wax in their ears lest they be lured to their ultimate demise. “Look neither to the left nor right," he commanded them. “And row for your lives.” Ulysses had other plans for himself. He instructed his crew to strap him to the mast of the ship, leaving his ears unplugged. "I want to hear their song," said the curious, but foolish. leader. "No matter what I say or do, don't untie me until we are safely at a distance from the island." Ulysses was utterly seduced by the songs of the Sirens. Were not for the ropes that held him fast to the mast, Ulysses would succumbed to their invitation.

But then there was Jason. Jason, like Ulysses, was himself a character of ancient mythology. Again, like Ulysses, he faced the temptation posed by the sonorous tones of the Sirens. But his solution was of a different order. Jason brought with him a certain Orpheus, the son of Oeager. Orpheus was a musician of incomparable talent, especially on the lyre and flute. When it came time, Jason declined to plug the ears of his crew. Neither did he strap himself to the mast to restrain his otherwise lustful yearning for whatever pleasures the Sirens might sing. Instead, he ordered Orpheus to play his most beautiful, most alluring songs. The Sirens didn't stand a chance! Notwithstanding their collective allure, Jason and his men paid no heed to the Sirens.

They were not in the least inclined to succumb. Why? Because they were captivated by a transcendent sound. The music of Orpheus was of a different order. Jason and his men rebuffed the sounds of the Sirens because they had heard some­thing far sweeter, far nobler, and far more soothing.


Which one of the men are you like: Ulysses drawn by the deadly and seductive sound of the Sirens, struggling within, outwardly held back at best by the ropes of will, fear, duty, obligation, or discipline, deceived by the ugliness of sin because we haven't gazed at the beauty of Christ. Or are you like Jason, so attracted to the beautiful music of the master musician that to see His beauty and to know Him and to be in His presence is the soul’s final feast! There is nothing beyond this. Nothing more urgent. Nothing more important. Nothing more satisfying.


Another time Jonathan Edwards wrote: “The pleasures of loving and obeying, loving and adoring, blessing and praising the infinite being, the best of Beings, the Eternal Jehovah, the pleasures in trusting Jesus Christ, in contemplating His beauties, excellencies, and glories, in contemplating His love to mankind and to us, in contemplating His infinite goodness and astounding loving kindness…these are the pleasures that are worthy so noble a creature as a man is.”

Do you have a desire for that one thing? Here is what I mean by having a desire for the one thing. Here is what God had in mind when He created and redeemed you. Here is what God had in mind when He created and fashioned your heart and stamped His indelible image upon it. you, we, were made to be enchanted, enamored, and engrossed with God; enthralled, enraptured, and entranced with God; enravished, excited, and enticed by God; astonished, amazed, and awed by God; astounded, absorbed, and agog with God; beguiled and bedazzled, startled and staggered, smitten and stunned; stupefied and spellbound; charmed and consumed; thrilled and thunderstruck; obsessed and preoccu­pied; intrigued and impassioned; overwhelmed and overwrought; gripped and rapt; enthused and electrified; tantalized, mesmerized, and monopolized, fascinated, captivated, and exhilarated by God; intoxicated and infatuated with God!

Does that sound like your life? Do you want it to'? Or do you still love the music of the worldly sirens? Do you find yourself desiring those “fruitless pleasures” of the world? “The One Thing” is what God made you for. Kierkegaard said it well, “Purity in heart is to will the one thing”. May we join David and from our hearts desire to see God’s beauty. Amen!

Father in heaven! What is a man without You! What is all that he knows, vast accumulation though it be, but a chipped fragment if he does not know You! What is all his striving, could it even encompass a world, but a half-finished work if he does not know You: You the One, who are one thing and who are all! So may You give to the intellect, wisdom to comprehend that one thing; to the heart, sincerity to this understanding; to the will, purity that wills only one thing. In prosperity may You grant perseverance to will one thing; amid distractions, collectedness to will one thing; in suffering, patience to will one thing. Oh, You that give both the beginning and the completion, may You early, at the dawn of day, give to the young man the resolution to will one thing. As the day wanes, may You give to the old man a renewed remembrance of his first resolution, that the first may be like the last, the last like the first, in possession of a life that has willed only one thing' '
Soren Kierkegaard

Longing for the "one thing",

Pastor Bill

A GLIMPSE FROM JESUS AT ONE PURPOSE OF GOD FOR OUR SUFFERING

"As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:1-3

One of the hardest things in life is suffering that we both experience and see in those we love both in terms of intensity and duration. I am asked frequently about this issue. Why is this happening to me or why is this person suffering?

How do I answer this deep question? What would I do as a pastor if I had to face these things with a Bible that said nothing about it? What if all I could do is think up ideas on my own about suffering and disability? What if all I had was human opinions? I thank God that this is not our condition. The Bible is permeated with suffering and sorrow. This is one of the reason why I love the bible so much and what makes it so believable and applicable to my daily life. The bible is filled with things that God has said and done to shed light on suffering and sorrows.

In John 9 Jesus sees a man who had been blind from birth. His disciples ask about the cause of the blindness. They say in verse 2, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" In other words, what is the cause of this blindness? The man’s sin? Or the parents’ sin? Is this blindness a punishment for the parents’ sin or a punishment for his own sin, some kind of inherited sinfulness already in the womb?

The disciples assume a direct correlation between a specific sin and the man’s disability. Either he sinned in the womb of his mother, or his parents sinned. The disciples have reduced his suffering to two possible options. In logic we call it a false dilemma, an either /or proposition Those are the two explanations the disciples can think of. The notion that sin is the cause of suffering has been perpetuated through the years in many segments of the church. Even if this is not taught directly by the church, those who suffer often feel it is projected upon them by other Christians who delight in identifying the cause of their affliction. And even if we don’t hear this view from others it is a perspective that we hear continually from within ourselves. This kind of thinking is not unlike the way Job’s three friends thought about suffering.

Jesus rejects both of them. So Jesus answers their question, but the answer he gives is not about the human who the blindness came from, but what it is leading to. Jesus turns the question around and says, in effect, human causes are not decisive in explaining things that are happening to us. The purpose of God is what really matters.. Verse 3, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents [human causes], but that the works of God might be displayed in him [God’s purpose].”

The reason past causes are not the ultimate explanation for suffering is because God is not ultimately a responder to suffering but ultimately a planner in suffering. I do not understand all of this and I know that it raises many questions. As Deuteronomy 29:29 says, "The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever". But it seems to me that Jesus is saying that God is not ultimately responding to human causes for suffering. He is ultimately planning a purpose.

The implication of this for your life is profound. No matter what mess you’re in or what pain you’re in, the causes of that mess and that pain are not decisive in explaining it. What is decisive in explaining it is God’s purpose. If God foresaw and permitted a conception that he knew would produce blindness, then He must have reasons for this permission and those reasons are called His purposes, His designs, His plans.Exodus 4:11 and Psalm 139:13 say, “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?’” “You formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.” Job 42:2 says, "I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted". Psalm 138:8, "The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me." Proverbs 19:21, "Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand". Isaiah 14:27, "For the LORD of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?".

God never has met a child from whom he had no plan. There are no accidents in God’s mind or hands. Now I am not saying that there are not causes to to our suffering. We know some of the things that happen are our fault and some of them not. Ultimately, suffering came into the world because of sin. That’s plain from Genesis 3 and Romans 5:12-14; 8:18–25. If there never had been sin, there never would have been suffering. But... it seems to me that Jesus is saying that those causes are not decisive in determining the meaning of whatever suffering is going on in your life. “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him” (verse 3).

God’s purpose for your mess and your pain will be for a good purpose. It will be worth everything you must endure. We know this is true because God says so. Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

When Jesus says, the purpose of this blindness is “that the works of God might be displayed in him,” He assumes the manifestation of the works of God, has a value that outweighed for the man who Jesus healed, years and years of blindness; both for the man and his parents. That truth is that suffering can only have ultimate meaning in relation to God. Jesus says that the purpose of the blindness is to put the work of God on display. This means that for our suffering to have ultimate meaning, God must be supremely valuable to us. More valuable than health and life.

Many things in the Bible make no sense until God becomes your supreme treasure. For Jesus, blindness from birth is sufficiently explained by saying: God intends to display some of his glory through this blindness. In this case, it happens to be healing, the glory of God’s power to heal. But there is nothing that says that it always has to be healing. When Paul cried out three times for his thorn in the flesh to be healed, Jesus said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). I will put my power on display, not by healing you, but by sustaining you. In other words, healing grace displays the works of God in John 9, and sustaining grace displays the works of God in 2 Corinthians 12. What is common in the two cases is the supreme value of the glory of God. The blindness is for the glory of God; the thorn in the flesh is for the glory of God. The healing is for his glory, and the non-healing is for his glory

In order to embrace that, we have to believe in our hearts and minds that the manifestation of the works and glory of God is of more value than in the case of the man who suffered blindness, we value seeing. Indeed, more than we value life itself.Psalm 63:3 says, “Your steadfast love is better than life.” And Jesus said to the prisoners in Smyrna, “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). Being loved by God, and being with God forever, is better than having eyes and better than being alive in this world. If we don’t believe that, then saying that God has wise and good purposes in all our losses, will be an empty and meaningless truth and not be much comfort in our present suffering. But if we do believe it, not only will God’s purposes comfort us and strengthen us, but they will make us able to patiently, and gently help others through their times of darkness.

I pray you will ponder this deeply, reverently, and prayerfully so that you will be a living manifestation of the works and glory of God as you endure suffering and trials.

Pastor Bill

WHY WE MUST PREACH CHRIST WITH NOT JUST DEEDS BUT WORDS

I love good quotes! am always reading quotes, hearing quotes, and using quotes myself. I regularly post some pithy quote on my Facebook page. I use them in my teachings regularly. But sometimes what we quote has no basis in fact and in fact can do a grave disservice to the gospel.

How often do we hear these days, with enthusiasm, passion and approval this quote that is regularly bantered in church circles. I will see this posted occasionally on Facebook with many comments and "likes".

Preach Christ at all times. If necessary, use words.

I must confess that this quote has often irritated me because I believe it creates a useless dichotomy between speech and action. It is always attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan Order, and is intended to say that proclaiming the Gospel by example is much more virtuous than actually proclaiming with our voice. It stresses how important it is for Christians to "preach the gospel" with their actions. Let the gospel be seen rather than spoken, it's implied. Words may occasionally serve a useful backup role, but our actions must take center stage if we are to make a difference in the world.

At first thought, this sounds right. Except that it isn't. Not to mention in my opinion, the attitude behind it can be more than a little arrogant, intimating that those who "practice the Gospel" are much more faithful, spiritual, and effective to the faith than those who preach it. Also, Church history testifies that in fact, Francis never said such a thing. But more important, this statement represents a significant error. It's simply impossible to preach the gospel without words. The gospel is inherently verbal, and preaching the gospel is inherently verbal behavior.

Now that does not negate the importance of God honoring God magnifying, gospel living lives (Matthew 5:14-16; 1 Corinthians 10:31; Philippians 1:21; James 2:14-26). We know that there is a significant non-verbal aspect to our being "witnesses" and incarnating Jesus in the world. Jesus says that the world will know that we are His disciples if we "love one another" (John 13:34). Francis Schaeffer calls it the mark of the Christian before the watching world. However important our actions may be (and they are very important indeed), and whatever else they may be doing (they serve a range of crucial functions), they are not "preaching the gospel." The gospel is inherently verbal, and preaching it is inherently verbal behavior. If the gospel is to be communicated at all, it must be put into words.

In 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, the apostle Paul offers a brief summary of the gospel he had announced to his readers. He had communicated to them "as of first importance, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me."

This summary of the gospel is impossible to communicate nonverbally. The biblical gospel is inherently verbal, and by definition, communicating it requires putting it into words. I am saying this strongly, not because I do not wish to diminish the importance of the nonverbal dimensions of our calling (deeds/works/glorying Jesus), but because it is all-important that we keep the respective roles of our verbal and nonverbal witness clear.

How you talk about evangelism in terms verbal word witness verses non verbal deed witness reflects how you think about them, and how you think about them in turn shapes how you live. Obscuring or mistaking the respective roles of word and deed can have serious consequences.

First, it can make disappear of our verbal witness. People from all religions as well as many non Christians do nice, virtuous, kind, generous, and loving deeds. Christians do not have the market on these things. What disapproval do we find in our world for feeding the poor, loving our enemies, helping the homeless, clothing the orphans, healing the sick, being generous, and doing deeds of kindness? Honestly, are many non christians offended by this? We are vulnerable to gravitate towards these aspects of behavior in the world while shying away from the parts of evangelism that are controversial, offensive, and cause us great difficulty from the world. For example, the proclamation of sin, judgment, wrath, hell, the cross, repentance, belief, Jesus the only way, etc.

The apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:18-25, "For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom,3 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God."

Notice that Paul empathises verbal proclamation (the word of the cross...what we preach...we preach Christ crucified) and the response to verbal proclamation(folly to those perishing...the power of God to those who are being saved...a stumbling block to the Jews and folly to the Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God)

Paul asks the Church at Rome in Romans 10:14,"How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?" Again, he emphasizes the absolute necessity of verbal proclamation.

Second, it can deceive us into thinking the power of the gospel lies within us. It is the idea that gospel effectiveness rests in the lives and witness of the messengers and not the message. But Paul said. "The verbal gospel, the "word of the Cross," the Good News of Jesus Christ proclaimed—is "the power of God for salvation" to everyone who believes (Romans 1:16). So strong was Paul's confidence in the gospel's inherent Spirit-infused power that he could rejoice even when it was being preached, not merely in the absence of "embodied action," but out of overtly sinful motives (Philippians 1:12-18).

Who would deny the exceeding importance of incarnating the life and love and spirit of Jesus in order to have the best platform for our verbal witness. I also believe that people will be much more inclined to give us a hearing if we are living it out. I can testify this from my own experience. Deeds are crucial to be sure! But this does not permit us to hold the gospel hostage to our shortcomings. When has the church ever been all it should be? When, short of glory, will the church ever be all that God wills for it? The church has always fallen far short of living out the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Yet despite our failures, the gospel itself remains marvelously potent, the very "power of God unto salvation" to those who believe" (Romans 1:16)

The power of the gospel does not rise and fall on the basis of the strengths or weaknesses of its messengers. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:7, " But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us."".

I find this truth immensely liberating. In the end, even my failures in my own faithfulness in living it out do not nullify the gospel's power. As John piper says, "the faithfulness of God (and I might add the power of His word) triumphs over the flaws of men. " The potency of the word potency is due to the working of God's Spirit. Even when we are at our best, the gospel is powerful in spite of us, not because of us. Isn't that awesome?

Third, it can put us out of step with God's way of doing things in the world.

In 1 Corinthians 1:21, Paul says, "For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe." Paul is referring here to what we have been calling the verbal witness of the gospel. This is God's chosen modus operandi, Paul says, "so that no human being might boast in the presence of God" (verse 29).

Jesus said that "as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life" (John 3:14-15). Later, he claimed that when he was "lifted up from the earth" he would "draw all people to [himself]" (John 12:32). As John explained, "He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die" (12:33), lifted up as a public spectacle on the cross, drawing to himself all who were willing to look upon him in faith for healing. Our verbal witness to Jesus continues that process of lifting Jesus up. "It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified," Paul says of his preaching to the Galatians (3:1). Similarly, by our verbal witness we lift up the crucified, risen Christ, displaying him for all to see, so that he, by his Spirit, might continue to draw men and women to himself. Failing to appreciate this unique role of the verbal gospel places us out of step with God's chosen way of operating in the world.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is a verbal thing, and communicating it requires putting it into words. This verbal witness is hardly the whole of our calling, but neither is it dispensable. Nothing can replace it. Without it people simply will not get saved!

Let us celebrate the reality that the power of the gospel resides not in us but in the Spirit's application of the message we proclaim, the message that declares a crucified Lord and Savior. Let us rejoice in the truth that in Christ "God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them" (2 Corinthian 5:19). This is relevant to the deepest and most profound need of every human heart. May we never lose heart in giving word to it.

My conclusion:

PREACH CHRIST AT ALL TIMES BECAUSE IT IS NECESSARY TO USE WORDS!

Pastor Bill

LEARNING TO JUDGE CHARITABLY

“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7).

I have thought much about my life and the way that I have lived the past thirty eight years; especially in my relationships with others.. Recently I saw a few people who knew me and pretended that they did not recognize me. I have also many times felt the disapproval and rejection from certain people since my divorce. The rejection that I have felt has hurt me and caused me to ask hard questions of my self and the way that I have been towards others who I come in contact with. What is their experience of me? Do they feel loved by God by the way I treat them? Do they feel my disapproval and disdain? Is my general disposition towards others one of love, mercy, grace, and kindness? How do I evaluate others? Do I give others the benefit of the doubt when people speak ill of others to me? Do I think the best of others?

In 1 Corinthians 13, the famous love chapter of the bible, the apostle Paul gives a beautiful description of what a life looks like when God's love is operating within a soul in verses 4-7.

"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."

Oh how God desires His love to master us in order for His love to minister through us to others! One of the facets of love Paul speaks about has been called "the judgement of charity". Paul says,


"Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (Verse 7)


The judgement of charity is the evaluation of others tempered with love. It is simply a judgment of love. It’s where in grace, mercy, and love we begin to make allowances for the weaknesses and ignorance of others and takes the kindest perspective towards them whenever possible because God is that way to you.


When God's love masters us, we love to make allowances for the weaknesses of others. Why? Because we know how often we stand having allowance made for ourselves by both God and man.


Jesus says:
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, `Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.” (Matthew 7:1-6)



As this passage teaches, when we evaluate and judge other people, our natural inclination is to ignore our own faults and to make critical judgments of others. Jesus is not forbidding critical thinking in the positive sense, which is evaluating others’ words and actions carefully so we can discriminate between truth and error, right and wrong (see Matthew 7:15-16).


What he is warning us about is our inclination to make critical judgments in the negative sense, which involves looking for others’ faults and, without valid and sufficient reason, forming unfavorable opinions of their qualities, words, actions, or motives. In simple terms, it means looking for the worst in others.


The New Testament portrays this pattern of making critical judgments.


When Jesus was doing miracles and healing the blind, the Pharisees stubbornly closed their eyes to the good he was doing and interpreted his actions in the worst possible way, saying that he was actually serving the devil. (Matthew 12:22-24)


In Acts 21:26-29, we see that Paul meticulously followed all of the Jewish customs as he prepared to come into the temple. Even so, the Jews assumed the worst, jumping to the conclusion that he had defiled the temple and should be stoned.


As 1 Corinthians 10-11 reveals, the Apostle Paul repeatedly was condemned falsely, not only by the Jews, but also by people from within the Christian community. Like many church leaders today, he learned the hard lesson that servants of the Lord are often misunderstood, criticized, and judged by the very people they are trying to serve.


But we don’t need to look back thousands of years to see people making critical judgments of others. Just think how easily we ourselves believe the worst about others’ motives or actions.



If someone delays answering a letter or fulfilling a commitment, we assume too easily that he is avoiding us or evading his responsibilities. Could it be that he’s been in the hospital recovering from a serious accident? Could he be overwhelmed by other responsibilities?



If someone at church seems unfriendly, we assume she is proud or aloof. Could it be that she feels awkward and unsure of herself, and is hoping someone will reach out to her?


If you hear a bad report about someone, you immediately believe what you have been told about the person. Is it possible the person that told you is a gossip, a slanderer, malicious, vengeful,or desiring to hurt the person's reputation?

The elders or pastor do not accept a proposal we make, we may conclude that they are narrow-minded and do not understand or appreciate our opinions or needs. Could it be that God is leading them to give priority to a different ministry?


If church members raise questions about policies or new programs, church leaders may conclude that the members are stubbornly unwilling to consider new ideas or stretch themselves to grow. They may even be labeled as rebellious troublemakers. Could it be that they have legitimate insights and concerns that deserve a careful hearing?


Charles Simeon once said, “let us sit on the seat of love instead of judgment.” Judging charitably is the golden rule with skin on it.


“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them" (Matthew 7:12)


How do you want others to judge you? Do you want them to believe good about you instead of evil? To interpret your actions in the best possible way? To really try to understand your side of the story before drawing conclusions or talking to others about you? If so, Jesus commands that you do the same for others.


The judgment of charity gives the benefit of doubt while fleeing the temptation toward heartless and cruel denunciation. Making a charitable judgment means that out of love for God, you strive to believe the best about others until you have facts to prove otherwise. In other words, if you can reasonably interpret facts in two possible ways, God calls you to embrace the positive interpretation over the negative, or at least to postpone making any judgment at all until you can acquire conclusive facts.


I love the phrase "habitual tenderness" made by John Newton to describe the way a believer should live. In writing to a friend he describes the believer's life:"He believes and feels his own weakness and unworthiness, and lives upon the grace and pardoning love of his Lord. This gives him a habitual tenderness and gentleness of spirit. The effect of this amazement is tenderness toward others…Humble under a sense of much forgiveness to himself; he finds it easy to forgive others."


Another time Newton wrote,“Whoever has tasted of the love Christ, and has known, by his own experience, the need and the worth of redemption, is enabled, yes, he is constrained, to love his fellow creatures. He loves them at first sight.”


Believing the best about others is not simply a nice thing to do; it is not optional behavior. It is a way to imitate God and to show our that we have experienced His love, forgiveness, mercy, and grace in way he treats us. God knows everything and judges accurately. He has the final say in criticism (and in commendation). Yet he judges charitably, even mercifully, passing over and putting up with many wrongs. He is kind to ungrateful and evil people (Luke 6:35).


As we seek to make charitable judgments, we should become alert to three ways that we judge critically.


First, we think negatively of the qualities of others. When we develop a critical attitude toward others, we start a subtle but steady process of selective data gathering. We easily overlook or minimize others’ good qualities, while at the same time we search for and magnify any unfavorable qualities. As we find faults that reinforce opinions we have already formed, we seize them eagerly, saying to ourselves (and sometimes others), “See, I told you so!” One critical judgment looks for and feeds on another, and the person’s character is steadily diminished and ultimately destroyed in our minds.

The second way we judge others wrongly is to think the worst of their words and actions. We hear rumors of conversations or observe fragments of an opponent’s behavior. Instead of searching for a favorable interpretation of their actions, or giving them a chance to explain what happened (Prov. 18:13), we prefer to put the worst construction on what they have done. We overlook things that are in the person’s favor and focus on the things that seem to be against him. To top it off, we fill in the gaps with assumptions and finally judge the person to have done wrong.


The third and most insidious type of critical judgment is to assume the worst about others’ motives. Some people are habitually cynical (distrustful or suspicious of others’ nature or motives); others assume the worst only in certain people. In either case, the effect is the same: they are quick to attribute others’ actions to an unworthy motive, such as pride, greed, selfishness, control, rebellion, stubbornness, or favoritism.

When doing this, they think or say things like, “All he cares about is money.” "He is selfish." “She likes to go first so she can impress everyone.” “They are too proud to listen to advice.” “She is just too stubborn to admit she is wrong.” Although these appraisals may be true on some occasions, in many cases they will be false.


Oh Christian your relationships with others and your patience, faithfulness, obedience, and effectiveness is directly tied to the cross and the ongoing experience of His love being poured out on you (Romans 5:5; 2 Thessalonians 3:5). We are saved by the grace of the cross of Christ, we live by the grace from the cross of Christ, and we therefore, must give to others the grace that comes from the cross of Christ. This means, God has forgiven me, so I can forgive others. God has been patient with me, so I can be patient with others. God’s grace is changing me, so I can trust that He will change others. God has been lovingly patient with me, so I can be more patient with my brothers and sister.


We are all struggling with life's problems. And isn't love, mercy, patience, and grace that what we all want from others?


Again, this is the rule our Lord Jesus gave us: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" (Matthew 7:12). I would take it even deeper in light of the cross: Do unto others as Christ has done to us! Every one of us needs and longs for the patience of others. Probably all of us should have a big sign hanging around our neck that reads, “Be patient with me; God’s not finished with me yet.” C.H. Spurgeon said, "If you are tempted to lose patience with your fellowmen, stop and think how patient God has been with you."

"Oh, that my tongue might so possess The accent of His tenderness That every word I breathe should bless others. For those who mourn, a word of cheer; A word of hope for those who fear; And love to all men, far and near. Oh, that is might be said of me, "Surely their speech betrayeth thee as friend of Christ of Galilee!" George Elliot

A PRAYER:

Lord, help me to judge others as I want them to judge me: Charitably, not critically,Privately, not publicly,Gently, not harshly,In humility, not pride.Help me to believe the best about others,until facts prove otherwise— To assume nothing,to seek all sides of the story,And to judge no one until I’ve removed the log from my own eye.May I never bring only the Law,to find fault and condemn.Help me always to bring the Gospel,to give hope and deliverance, As you, my Judge and Friend,have so graciously done for me. In jesus most nerciful name. AMEN!


Pastor Bill