TO JUDGE OR DISCERN

In The Gospel of John chapter three verses sixteen and seventeen it tells us two things God did. In sixteen it says ‘For God so loved the world’ in seventeen it says, ‘For God did not send His Son into the world to judge the world...’but to save’. We love to quote the sixteenth verse and talk about God’s Love. However we live judging instead of loving. We judge people by their dress, speech, zip code, vocation, looks, attitude, words, cologne or perfume, gender, hair style/color, politics, religion, you get the point. We also judge ourselves.

We read in the scripture in the Old Testament about God using measuring lines or plumb lines. These measuring tools God uses are to create an image for us of perfect straight lines that are judgement lines based on the perfection of God and God’s standard. God’s standard is manifest in Jesus. Jesus is the Standard.

If God so loved, and chose in this generation to show grace and mercy instead of judgement then, WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE, OH HUMAN?

In countless places in the scripture God calls us to show love, mercy, forgiveness, compassion and leave the measuring to the One that is perfect.

Don’t be fooled into corruption, God will not be mocked, He will judge all things, however they will be judged according to the standard of how Jesus walked on this earth. Anything that is not to the standard of Jesus will be condemned. Nevertheless in this generation we are to love, be merciful, show compassion so that the world may be saved.

Now this is not to say we are to be ignorant and vulnerable to wolves, serpents and deceivers. God is no fool. He sent His Holy Spirit ( His Spirit) to be God in us. He has given to born again believers His Spirit of discernment. Among other gifts the Spirit of discernment gives us the understanding of the spirit of a person, the age in which we live and understanding of ourselves. How it works: we have God’s Spirit so we can know the mind of God. Therefore discernment is knowing things as God knows them. So it’s not that we love, have mercy and compassion blindly. We discern all things through the Holy Spirit by the mind of God. Therefore we can freely love, show mercy and compassion while we leave judging to God.

Discernment comes from God with no limits, judging comes from our very limited ability to know any one or anything including ourselves. Holy Spirit discernment puts our troubled hearts at rest.

Precious one, read and reread 1 Corinthians 1 and 2. Perfection belongs to Jesus and only He can perfect us. We love because God loves us, leave the judging for the end of the age when Jesus says it’s time. Until then pray for the Infilling of the Holy Spirit...you will know it like the One that is in you...pray.