We Are Not The Judge
Do not speak against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother is speaking against the law and judging the law. But if you judge the law, you are not one who does the law, but a judge. There is one lawgiver and judge. He is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? (James 4:11–12)
No one likes to be judged. We don’t like when others comment on something that we may already be insecure about or is a burden to our conscience. We don’t like when others point out our flaws or our mistakes. We don’t like being reminded that we are sinners who cannot do everything perfectly. Yet judging other people can be one of our favorite past times. We can sit for hours and scrutinize what someone else is doing wrong. We can gossip with our friends and neighbors about how they failed in this way or that.
James tells us that we should not judge others because by doing so, we speak against the law and we judge the law. When we judge others, we put ourselves above the law and say that we are better than the law. Remember how Jesus summed up the law: Love the Lord Your God and Love your neighbor as yourself. When we judge others and speak against them, we do not love our neighbors as ourselves and judge them in a manner that is only fitting for God to judge them.
But God has already judged them, as he has already judged us. Even though all of us deserve the judgment of “guilty” and to be sentenced to an eternity in hell, through Jesus all believers have been given a verdict of “not guilty.” We have not been judged as we deserve but have been saved by God’s grace and mercy. Therefore, we do not judge our brothers and sisters in the faith unless they are in danger of being destroyed. And then we do so with love and kindness to restore them in their faith. Amen.
The Song for today is “Love One Another” by Newsboys