Judge Not

There are so many different viewpoints, value systems and ideologies in the world.

Just because someone is different from you, or disagrees with what you say, doesn’t give you or me the right to judge them.

I am a follower of Christ, I make no apology, I have not been appointed judge (thank God). I believe it is better to spend time to get to know people for who they are where they are.

If you judge people, you have no time to love them.

— Mother Teresa

Gospel of Matthew (new testament of the bible) says this regarding judging others

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.

A true follower of Jesus Christ will live the model that he lead. He spent time with the outcasts, the sick, the “sinners”, the prostitutes, the demonised, the lepers , people from other cultures. Did he condemn them? NO!

The example that Jesus gave was to accept and love everyone that came across His path (again thank God for that, he accepted me). The ones He spoke hardest against were the religious intolerant people of the day. I wonder if it would be any different today – I think not.

We should be prepared to love people regardless of the persons current lifestyle, even if their values are different from our own. It is not for you, me or anyone else to judge. We are called as Christians to be the hands of Jesus in the world today. Those hands in the past reached out to heal, forgive, share food, give sight to the blind, to love unconditionally.

We can’t do that and judge people too.

Paul S Allen