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Flip Wilson was a comedian who coined the phrase "Here come de judge." It was part of a skit which he did on his TV show. He would come into the court room singing "Da court's in session, da court's in session, now here come de judge, here come de judge…" It was great and would bring the house down. Sometimes I feel that way about Christians. (I wonder if non-believers see us that way too?) It doesn't seem to matter what side of an issue we are on, we seem to need to judge those on the other side. Am I judging now? Even those of us who claim not to judge others probably do it without thinking. How would it look if we could discuss issues without judging? What would that look like to those on the outside, looking in? What would it be like if folks from the "institutional church" and folks from the "house church/simple church" could come together and celebrate what we have in Jesus? How great it would be if we could all be grateful for the gift of salvation. Imagine how it would be if we would allow each other the grace that God has shown to us. Wouldn't it be awesome if all believers could come together in the unity of the Spirit? We could do away with denominations and the fighting among ourselves. We could spend our time fighting Satan and the injustice we see around us. We could spend our time caring for the poor and needy. We could spend our time working for the kingdom instead of tearing each other down. Wouldn't it be great if we could all realize that those who are for Christ are not the enemy? "'Master,' said John, 'we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.' 'Do not stop him,' Jesus said, 'for whoever is not against you is for you.'" (Luke 9:49-50) Besides creating division when we judge each other, Jesus said that when we judge we set the standard by which we will be judged. "Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged." (Matthew 7:1-2)
The apostle Paul asked "Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand." (Romans 14:4) The apostle James said "There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor?" (James 4:12) When Flip Wilson did the judging, it was funny. When we do it, we destroy the unity that Jesus prayed for. Yes, there is room for discernment and study and discussion. But, even discipline within the church is to be done in love, not judgment. Love lifts others up to Jesus. Judgment drags them down so we can lift ourselves up. "And this is the way to have eternal life-to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth…I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one-as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me."
(John 17:3, 20-21)
Keep the Faith
Original content at: http://becauseofyeshua.org/?p=80.
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Scott Bartchy is a radical. He believes in a subversive system that embraces those on the fringes of our society and seeks to establish a new way of life that goes against the status quo.