Despising and Judging

"Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. ² For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. ³ Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him."

Romans 14:1-3

The Bible contains wisdom and insight concerning God and men.  After Adam's rebellion against God, sin and death passed to all men.  Adam passed to his progeny his genetic code and also spiritually a constant, consuming, malicious sinfulness.  The Bible aids us in fleshing out what sin looks like, and these verses provide a perfect example.  We can dispute over even the most doubtful things.

Do you find it interesting how bothered and offended we can be over things other people do, say, or believe?  It is most remarkable how the beliefs of a person can enrage someone else.  This is a natural tendency of all people.  If a person does or believes something and we disagree, it can create a wedge which can destroy friendships, families, and marriages.  There is nothing easier than finding fault in others, and we can become preoccupied and obsessed with how wrong other people are.  And we can't seem to let it go.  This is a product of our natural self which is corrupted with sin.  As these verse tell us, hatred and condemnation are common reactions in all men.  The fact this passage was written reveals this tendency is the natural bent of the flesh of even those who are born again.

Say a man named Bill eats meat, but Ted does not because he is a vegan.  Ted cites reasons for choosing a vegetarian lifestyle, and Bill also has his reasons for eating all varieties of meat.  Despite diet being a small factor in the scope of our lives, verse 3 suggests Bill's tendency would be to despise (hate, think less of) Ted for his choice not to eat meat, and Ted's tendency would be to judge (condemn, call into question) Bill for eating meat.  They might be quite civil with one another when interacting, but each of their hearts can be set against the other over what they do or don't do.  In the scope of this universe and eternity the food a person eats is a small thing indeed.  If you do not agree, that is alright too!  The point is, the hearts of human beings can seize on the smallest of things and hate and judge others for what they do, don't do, say, or believe.

Once we are born again followers of Jesus Christ, no longer are we a slave to our sinful heart's natural inclinations to hate, despise, judge, and condemn others.  We are free from this burden, this necessity to critically size people up and look down on them for what they do or don't do.  We have been freely received by Christ despite our sins:  shouldn't we choose to love and accept others God has received?  You can accept people without agreeing with their choices.  God will receive all sinners who come to Him in faith and humble repentance.  If God has received a person in spite of their flaws or convictions, is it right for me to condemn them?  Those who exercise a liberty are commanded not to hate those who abstain, and those who abstain aren't to judge those who do that things they have strong convictions about.  Then we will walk in unity and experience the fellowship of the Holy Spirit who indwells all believers.

Hatred and being judgmental towards others does not protect us or the church from evil but actually injects the sin of self-righteousness into our souls which will eventually poison many.  Even if what a person is doing is wrong, we should not hate or judge them.  God is the righteous Judge and His Word has already spoken on the matter.  Our call is to meekly come alongside of believers overtaken with faults and to aid them in being restored to righteous living (Galatians 6:1).  We are commanded by Christ to love our enemies:  should we love less those God has received in the Body of Christ as His own beloved possession?

Loving the Law at Midnight

Have you ever suffered from insomnia?  It's lousy to feel exhausted and at the same time being unable to fall asleep in bed.  I had one of those nights recently.  I fell asleep almost immediately after prayer, but then I woke up in the middle of the night and trying to go back to sleep seemed a complete waste of effort and time.  I have a comfortable bed but there seemed no way to find comfort.  Ultimately I did drift off but not before hours were spent shifting from side to side without sleep.

During last night's evening reading of Psalm 119 I came across a passage which grabbed my attention in verse 62:  "At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You, because of Your righteous judgments."  The Psalmist was not afflicted by insomnia but intentionally rose at midnight to thank and praise God for His righteous judgments.  Now when was the last time any of us did this?  Few if any think there would be value in setting an alarm to rise at midnight to thank God for anything!  A casual reading of this chapter reveals the writer of this Psalm deeply loved God and things which are quite out of fashion for most today:  God's law, precepts, judgments, statutes, and testimonies.  Psalm 119, the longest single chapter in the Bible, is completely given over to praising God for His judgments and professing delight in His law.  I wonder if we love God's Law like this, to thank God with such profusion day and night?  I suppose my tossing and turning without rising to thank God suggests I don't love as I should.

Here is just a small sampling from this amazing chapter:

• "I hate the double-minded, but I love Your law." (Psalm 119:113)
• "Therefore I love Your commandments more than gold, yes, than fine gold!" (Psalm 119:127)
• "I opened my mouth and panted, for I longed for Your commandments." (Psalm 119:131)
• "I rejoice at Your word as one who finds great treasure." (Psalm 119:162)
• "My soul keeps Your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly." (Psalm 119:167)

Jesus did not come to destroy the Law but to fulfill it.  That means He completed it, finished it.  No longer are born again Christians under the yoke of the letter of the Law Jesus has lifted.  As yoke-fellows of Jesus we are to love one another as He loves us and thus we too can fulfill God's Law.  This is something God calls us to do.  I read just this morning in Romans 13:8-10, "Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. ⁹ For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." ¹⁰ Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law."  We have received Christ's righteousness by faith and our entire lives are in debt of God's grace, mercy, and love.  We owe love to others, for in loving others we will obey Christ's commands when He said, "It has been written...but I say unto you."  There are many "one another" commands in the New Testament, and not one of them can be performed in isolation.  The greatest of Christ's commands is found in John 13:34:  "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another."

If we love Jesus, we will keep His commandments.  You who claim to love Christ, do you obey Him?  Do you love His commandments as an extension of Himself, having sprung from His righteous character, goodness, and grace?  If the Psalmist saw fit to rise at midnight with the express purpose to thank God for His Law, so should we.  Here is a biblical approach for insomnia:  embrace being alive and rejoice to offer God a sacrifice of praise.  Forget sleeping!  Do you rejoice at God's Word and pant for Christ's commandments at midnight?  Love is the law of Christ's kingdom.  It is written of Jesus in John 1:16-17, "And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. ¹⁷ For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."  Jesus did for us internally what the Law of Moses could not do externally.  Faith in Jesus makes us new creations through whom His love flows to this world and brings light into the darkness.  Let us rise day and night to thank God for His goodness and grace unto men!

Clean Candy

The world which denies God also infinitely reduces the value God has placed upon human life.  This is revealed in the way we speak.  Saying someone is a "product of their environment" is not true of a person created in the image of God.  It minimises the power of God to transform people by the Holy Spirit.  Many today see humans as primarily sexual beings, but God created men and women to be defined by something far more profound than passing carnal appetites.  The Bible reveals human beings to be primarily spiritual beings who live in a human body for a short period of time on earth.  Since man has been created in the image of God we possess eternal souls which are of great importance to God and men as well.

Genesis 1:27-28 reads, "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. ²⁸ Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."  Because God maintains dominion over all things He has the authority and power to delegate authority over the earth and creatures He has created to men.  God has blessed mankind abundantly, providing us a habitable planet which suits our every need.  For the most part men have not praised God according to the blessing He has graciously provided.  We have abused our privilege, neglected to acknowledge or thank God, and have praised the works of our hands.  We have valued the gifts over the Giver.  We have defined ourselves according to our will and desires rather than according to God's righteous designs.

A friend of mine told me a story about the kids at the school where he teaches scripture.  He had brought back bags of candy from the United States to bless the kids in his class.  Upon arriving at the school after a break, he was surprised to find wrappers and candy still in plastic around the campus.  He went to the classroom and discovered all the candy he had brought to bless others was missing.  Someone had stolen the treasured candy and wasted it.  It cost them nothing.  Stolen bread is sweet, and sweeter still are Jolly Ranchers.  Candy meant for students in the classroom had been stolen, wasted, and was gone for good, eaten and thrown around by people who did not value it as they should have.  Sweet candy had become dirty and thus good for nothing.

This story made me sad.  But it also made me think about how God has blessed humans with many pleasures we can enjoy:  eating, drinking, sport, and sex are just a few of them.  Sex in this world has become like those sweet candies.  The Jolly Ranchers were meant for the classroom and sexual activity was intended by God to be enjoyed within the context of marriage God ordained between one man and one woman.  Yet man has chosen to feed greedily upon this gift without God's approval and it has become an idol for many.  Clean candy was wasted on the ground because of theft, and people rob themselves of God's blessing through fornication in the vain pursuit of satisfying their lusts.  My friend had no idea who stole or ate the candy he supplied, but God knows the hearts and actions of all.  God is the Judge who will see justice carried out for sins even carried out in secret.  If you think no one is hurt through infidelity or fornication, think again.  The one who does this works to destroy himself (1 Corinthians 6:18).  God created sex to be clean and pure in the correct context.

Whether you are married or single, hear the wisdom of God concerning sexual purity written in Proverbs 5:15-23:  "Drink water from your own cistern, and running water from your own well. ¹⁶ Should your fountains be dispersed abroad, streams of water in the streets? ¹⁷ Let them be only your own, and not for strangers with you. ¹⁸ Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth. ¹⁹ As a loving deer and a graceful doe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times; and always be enraptured with her love. ²⁰ For why should you, my son, be enraptured by an immoral woman, and be embraced in the arms of a seductress? ²¹ For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He ponders all his paths. ²² His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin. ²³ He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray."  Only Jesus can break the bonds of sin.  He is the One who gives us new beginnings and a fresh clean start.  Hebrews 13:4 tells us, "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge."    Praise the LORD for His good gifts and for supplying all our needs.  We don't need candy to survive, and we don't need sex for a fulfilling or complete life either.  But praise God for the good clean gifts He gives!

Scrolling? Be Praying!

I've started reading Britt Merrick's book Godspeed and am enjoying it.  He speaks to the heart of God, one of a mission to reach people with His love and salvation.  God desires to work in and through the lives of His followers to engage people with the gospel wherever they are.  The first few chapters in particular are a needful reminder for Christians to serve God faithfully and embrace God's mission right now where they are.  Merrick writes:

In order to live at Godspeed, the disciples abandoned everything hindering them from living on mission with Christ.  What is Christ calling you to forsake?  What is hindering His mission from going forward through your life?  It's a mistake to think you calling is going to look just like Peter's, because the call of every person is distinct.  For most of us, Jesus isn't calling us to leave.  Instead He's calling us to stay and be faithful.  Even still, faithfulness often requires us to leave something behind.  Whether it's relinquishing a sin, a relationship, a consuming passion, or a selfish comfort, Jesus' call will radically affect our lives.  We the church are a sent people.  You and I are called by God to be on mission with Jesus within our current contexts.  Going on mission doesn't mean buying a plane ticket.  It means going where Christ has already sent us and being faithful to Him there.  Stop reading for a moment, and look around.  Your mission assignment is to this time, to this place, and to the people you interact with along the way. (Merrick, Britt, and Allison Trowbridge. Godspeed: Making Christ's Mission Your Own. Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2012. 53. Print.)

As Christians, being faithful to pray is a massive part in us accomplishing God's mission to this world.  The capacity to pray according to God's will through the Holy Spirit to the God who loves, hears, and will answer us is a great gift provided us by God's grace.  I was convicted recently that I can scroll through the news - much of it awful - and continue scrolling without praying to God about what grieves my soul.  What if social media, instead of being a platform for personal expression, became a personal invitation to intercede for others?  How about if news reports became our new list of prayer requests - not praying for what we think needs to happen, but asking God how we might pray and what we might do to make a difference for God's glory and the good of others?

The mission of Jesus to seek and save the lost ought to be ours, as well as encouraging and edifying the body of Christ.  The ministry of Jesus was packed with prayer and He engaged daily with all sorts of people.  Being led by the Holy Spirit Jesus was never enslaved to programs or the expectations of any man or group.  He always did what pleased the Father, and through faith and obedience to God's Word we can do the same.  Instead of quickly scrolling to the next news story to satisfy our curiosity, let's take the time to seek the LORD in prayer.  When we wait on the LORD and prayerfully follow His lead, we will be a viable, fruitful member of the Body of Christ.