I found myself in conversation this week about judging (or not), based on Pastor Paul’s sermon and I realized there were so many good points in the sermon I forgot 60% of them. Now you might have more brain capacity than I have, but it seems this is such an important and county-changing lesson that it’s worth repeating.
As a reminder, it was all about the parable of the wheat and the tares (weeds) from Matthew 13. A few of us in the back giggled about the name of tares: the Bearded Darnel.
But let’s stay on track. Did anyone else become captivated when Pastor Paul talked about what Jesus said the two plants represented? The wheat, Jesus explained, are the people of the kingdom. The tares are the sons and daughters of satan. Sons and daughters of satan! Do you see that? There are only TWO options for what type of people are in the world. There’s no third option. As Pastor Paul described it, if you feel you’re on the fence and assume that’s a third type of person (seed) you must realize quickly that satan owns the fence and loves that you’re sitting on it as it keeps you from being a people of the kingdom. Fence dwellers are sons and daughters of satan. Friends: Jump off the fence and onto the people of the kingdom side!
That’s the first slap-in-the-face moment of the sermon.
The second, for me, came when Pastor Paul asked if we only loved certain types of people enough to share truth with them. Gulp! Have I put stipulations on who or where I’ll share God stories? Do I evangelize to some but not others based on my comfort level? Don’t I want ALL to come to Jesus like Jesus does?
Oof. Lord, help me!
The third brain-busting moment, which was the topic of conversation earlier in the week, was when Pastor Paul talked about 5 types of judging; basically how do we know when and who to judge? So here’s what he said:
1. Self judgement must take place first. Our own hearts, our position before God, our sin. (see this week’s mini-mission at the end of this article)
2. Eternal judgment. That’s something Jesus does. And my husband Eric will be preaching on that in a few weeks.
3. Evangelistic judgment. This one is judging whether we share the gospel with someone. And the basic take-away from this one was: take every shot you can! Every. Shot. You. Can.
4. Sanctifying judgment. This is the one I personally needed to hear most about. He said we must hold Christ-followers accountable to being Christ followers. We inspect their fruit. If the fruit is sinful then we should say something. If the fruit is good, then we should encourage them. But wait, Pastor Paul included this wisdom: this is best done in relationship. And this does not look like a critical spirit. This is a deeper level conversation where you point it out and then walk them through repentance.
5. The last judgment was discernment or connection. This is judging for the sake of what proximity you should be with the world. Who should your children and spouse hang out with? What movies or video games are beneficial for you and your family as Christ followers? How long should you be on said devices?
The key takeaway from Pastor Paul, which was filled with a lot of love, compassion and grace was this: Don’t judge for the sake of damning someone to hell, but judge for the sake of growth and salvation.
And so now we get to do the mini-mission below. Will you join me by scheduling this into your calendars on Saturday so you’re also sure to do it? It seems this will place us in a better position to rightly handle all of the judging we’re to do or not do.
Spend at least 10 minutes in the presence of our Father. Our Savior. Our Abba. Our Almighty God. Ask Him: how am I doing at this? Am I mean or harsh? Do I wish people would go to hell? Am I sharing the gospel without prejudice and with a sense of urgency? Am I too critical and excited to point out the faults in others? Am I a coward in not mentioning things that I could use to sanctify others in love? Am I allowing things near that You want far, or allowing things to stay away that should be near?
_Monica Schlange