A Place for Judgment

 3I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.

Thoughts: We do not think about judgment much today- even though we are much closer to judgment day than the early Christians were.  Most today only know, "Judge not lest ye be judged."  Then we use that as an excuse to avoid any kind of discernment whatsoever.  But Paul was quoting Jesus' words here that what is hidden will be revealed  (Lk. 8:17).  When Jesus is revealed, who we really are is also revealed- good and bad.  We do not need to worry about human judgments which are limited.  Rather, we need to remember that God will one day hold us accountable.  We  do not need to have the illusion that we can hide things- even our darkest sin from God.  God not only hears our words and sees our actions- He also sees our motives.
     There are some good things that happen because God holds us accountable.
1) We are responsible.  This is not a bad thing.  Our behavior here is not irrelevant but matters. That what we do and what we believe here matters means that life matters- that it has meaning.  Those who say there is no judgment are cut loose to do what they want, but they are also cut loose from any kind of meaning.
2) The Good wins.  This allows us to try to be good even if we face temporary pain for it.  I don't have to be washed around by every wave of fad or comfort trying to fit in with people.  What is most important is my doing what is right and good and loving in God's eyes.  This means that ultimately love is better than hate.  For those who do not believe in a judgment- the hateful and loving both have the same end.  We can set our minds not just on our instincts (what the flesh desires), but on the Spirit (Romans. 8:5).
3) We do not need to seek revenge.  We can leave getting things right to God.  This means we can trust God and turn the other cheek.  For the secular, who don't believe in ultimate judgment, turning the other cheek, sacrificing yourself for your family or neighbor makes no sense.
4) We believe the one judging us is Christ.  There is no condemnation for those who believe for He came to pay our judgment fee (Mk. 10:45).  Romans 8:34-39- Christ is our judge and He came to give us life, so we who believe are set free from worrying about being condemned.  We are free to be good, to love, to give ourselves away for the One who gave Himself for us.    

Prayer: Lord let me be transparent with you and with myself.  Give me grace to depend on you and trust on your accountability and mercy.  

Goats on the left, sheep on the right.
(Mt. 25)