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Before your head hits the pillow

He Giveth More Grace

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I love researching the great hymns and gospel songs. One thing is very evident, the writers of these amazing songs are very diverse. Some were written by people of wealth, some by people riddled by poverty, some by men and others by women, some by the intellectually superior and others by just plain ordinary people. But most were written by people who had experienced God’s grace in their darkest hours.

Tonight I wanted to post about a song written by Annie Johnson Flint. Annie lost her mother at a very tender age of 3. Her father felt he could not care for his two young daughters so he left them in the care of a friend, which turned out to be a less than positive experience for Annie. But the Lord interceded for the two young girls and they were taken in by Mr. and Mrs. Flint. Mrs. Flint, known as Aunt Susie was a kind school teacher who took the two girls in and raised them as her own. Mr. and Mrs. Flint were true Christians and raised the girls accordingly.

Annie, although cheerful and optimistic, had some faults. She was prone to quick temper flare ups and lacked patience (don’t we all!).

Shortly after she finished high school she suffered another huge loss when both of her adoptive parents died within months of each other and shortly thereafter she was diagnosed with debilitating arthritis.

She was an amazing writer but struggled to write as she gripped her pen through bent and hobbled fingers. But this did not dissuade her faith or her writing.

She wrote the song featured tonight from that horrible arthritic state. It was inspired by three Bible verses;

James 4:6 – But he giveth more grace; from Isaiah 40:29 – He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength; and from Jude 1:2 – Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus

He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

Her song is an inspiration to each of us. We must KNOW that when the burdens grow greater, the Lord’s grace grows. The more we have to labor, the more strength He gives and when we are afflicted by disease, suffering or even death our Lord adds increased mercy!

God’s grace has NO limits. The bigger our struggles, the more His grace! Jesus just keeps giving and giving and giving again!

And then she continues with those amazing assurances of our Lord. When we are at the end of our rope, when we are exhausted and just finished with it all, when we have not even half finished the day and we have nothing left in us, our heavenly Father’s giving has only begun! God WANTS to share His love and His mercy, we need only to lean of His loving arms. He will carry us through.

I posted a meme some time ago that indicated that it is more important to KNOW what God can do than FEEL what God can do.

We must KNOW that He is sufficient for all of our needs before we can FEEL that He is sufficient for all of our needs!

His love has no limit; His grace has no measure. His power has no boundary known unto men. For out of His infinite riches in Jesus, He giveth, and giveth, and giveth AGAIN!

Before your head hits the pillow

Aborted Prayers

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

Aborted Prayers

The other day I read an interesting online article at tscpulpitseries.org by David Wilkerson.  It caught my eye because I remembered a book he wrote that was later made into a movie, The Cross and the Switchblade.  His topic was interesting so I thought I would share some of his points with you.

He said, “The devil’s final strategy in deceiving believers is to make them doubt the faithfulness of God in answering prayer. Satan would have us believe God has shut His ears to our cry and left us to work things out for ourselves.”  He continued, “It’s time we Christians took an honest look at the reasons why our prayers are aborted.  We can be guilty of charging God with neglect, when all along our own behavior is responsible.”

Wilkerson gave six, of many reasons, that our prayers are not answered.

  • Our prayers are aborted when they are not according to God’s will.  He says, “We are not at liberty to pray at random for whatever our selfish minds conceive.”  I John 5:14 says, “If we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us.”  We need to constantly look to God when we pray.  We must seek His face first and allow His will to be done in our lives.
  • Our prayers can be aborted when they are designed to fulfill and inner lust, dreams, or illusions. James 4:3 says, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”  Psalm 66:18 says, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.”
  • Our prayers can be denied when we show no diligence to assist God in the answer. Wilkerson says, “We expect our prayers to get God to working for us, while we sit idly by, thinking to ourselves, ‘He has all the power; I have none, so I will simply stand still and let Him do the work.’”  God told Joshua in Joshua 7:10-13 – “Stand up! What are you doing on your face?”  God commanded Joshua to consecrate the people for their sins.  We must not try to “make” things happen, but God may ask us to act in order to fulfill His will.  We can’t just sit back and expect Him to do everything while we are laying on our backs.
  • Our prayers can be aborted by a secret grudge lodged in the heart against another. He continues by saying, “Christ will not deal with anyone with a wrathful and unforgiving spirit.  We are commanded to ‘lay aside all malice, envy, and evil speaking, and as newborn babes, desire the sincere mild of the Word.’” I Peter 2:1-2
  • Our prayers can be aborted by not expecting much to come of them. Matthew17:20 says, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”  We must have faith that God can do what we are asking when we pray.  We serve an amazingly powerful God.  NOTHING is too big or too small for Him!
  • Our prayers may be aborted when we ourselves attempt to prescribe how God should answer. Wilkerson says, “The only person we lay down terms to is the one we don’t trust. Those we trust we leave to themselves to do what is right.  It all boils down to a lack of trust. The burdened soul, after he has unburdened his heart in prayer to the Lord, resigns himself to the faithfulness, goodness, and wisdom of God.  The true believer will leave the shaping of the answer to God’s mercy.  Whatever way God chooses to answer, the believer will welcome.”

Now, all that being said, it is God who determines how to deal with the request placed in prayer.  God may choose to fulfill the request of a person who is selfish.  He may determine to grant the request of the person who has little faith, because the full power in prayer is not in the one who prays but in the One to whom we pray.

But as we go into prayer it is important that we go to God with righteous motives, we must make sure that we have forgiven as Christ as forgiven us, we must have faith that God is capable to fulfill our petition, and we must be willing to participate in the fulfillment of our request if that is the way God is leading us.

Prayer is a powerful Christian asset.  Let’s make sure that we come before our Lord humbly and full of faith!

Before your head hits the pillow

What does it Mean to Wait on the Lord?

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

What does it Mean to Wait on the Lord?

People in today’s culture don’t really like to wait. We live in an instant society. We can pop a frozen dinner in the microwave and be eating in less than five minutes. We used to have to wait days or even a week or more for a letter to arrive, now we send an email and our friend or loved one can be reading it just minutes later. We no longer have to wait to see the photographs from our vacation. We can take them straight out of the camera, download them onto our computer and watch the slide show instantaneously.

It all so automatic, so the thought of waiting has become very foreign. But waiting is an important part of every Christian’s life. When the Bible says something more than once, you can believe that it is important.

Psalm 27:14 tells us, “Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD.”

And Psalm 37:7 says, “Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.”

“Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.” I Corinthians 4:5.

And Psalm 130:5 also speaks of waiting, “I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope.”

Many more passages tell us to wait upon the Lord. In the Old Testament we are primarily told to wait for his provisions and in the New Testament we are also told to wait for His return.

Waiting on God means that we trust Him. Waiting on God means that we know and understand that His ways, His will, and His timing is ever so much better than anything we could anticipate. When we pray and it doesn’t seem that God is answering our prayer, wait. Wait on God and trust Him.

When we are anxious and afraid, we must wait on God and know that He will protect us. In those anxious times we can wait if we believe in the promises of God. Be comforted by the words of Matthew 10:29-31, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

Or the wonderful promise in Psalm 91:11-12, “For He will give His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, That you do not strike your foot against a stone.”

If we believe these promises it should become easier to wait. God loves us and He cares for us. Just wait.

And when you despair over the condition of the world and ask the Lord to come quickly, remember, we must wait. We must wait, for we know that He will return to us at just the right time.

Waiting on the Lord is not just a suggestion, it is a command. God wants us to wait on Him. He wants us to trust in Him. The moment we begin to really understand what it means to wait on the Lord our lives our flooded with peace. When we understand that His timing is perfect and His love is incomprehensible we can be at rest. We can rest just as is spoken of in Psalm 23 – He makes me to lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul.

God is good. I will wait on Him!

Before your head hits the pillow

Is There Really Power in the Name of Jesus?

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

Is There Really Power in the Name of Jesus?

More than once today I heard a song by 7eventh Time Down called, “Just Say Jesus.” I heard it on my way to work and then again on my way home. As I listened to that song I began thinking about the importance of the name of Jesus.

Philippians 2:9-11 tells us, Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and game Him the name that is above every name, and that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

When this Jesus, our Savior, returns EVERY knee will bow. Those who have known Him and loved Him will bow a bow of awe and respect. We will be excited and joyful. But those who have mocked Him on this earth, those who have taken His name in vain or have laughed at the devotion of His followers will also bow. They will bow in fear. They will now know that all they have thought and believed about this Jesus has been wrong. They will finally acknowledge that He truly is the Son of God, a redeemer. But it will be too late. Their fear and their dread will be unfathomable!

But in that name of Jesus we are told there is power. There was power when He walked this earth and that same power now resides within us. John 14:13-14 says, “And whatever you ask in My [Jesus’] name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” We should not look at the name of Jesus like a genie in a bottle, say the word and poof things come true. No we must ask in the name of Jesus as if we are representing Him. We must ask in His name according to the will of the Father.

That name possesses the ability to do great signs and wonders. Acts 4:29-30 states, “And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give your servants great boldness in their preaching. Send you healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” The power that is given to us through the name of Jesus is a power meant to glorify God. If anything we are asking is not done to glorify God then we are calling on the power in the name of Jesus in a wrong headed way.

Healing can be found in the name of Jesus. In Acts 3:6 Peter says, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” Peter did not have wealth or money to give this poor lame man but He had something much greater. He had the power of Jesus residing in His very being, a power great enough to make a lame man walk! This man didn’t just walk, he started leaping and he praised God. Once again the name of Jesus was used to glorify God the Father!

Some people think that demonic possession and oppression no longer exists. I am not one of those people. I am buoyed by the knowledge that the name of Jesus can cast out evil spirits. In Acts 16:18 Paul cast a demon out of a young girl who had been annoying him, by saying, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” The girl’s masters were so angry that Jesus had cast out her fortune-telling demon that Paul and his preaching partner Silas were severely beaten and thrown into the innermost part of the dungeon so they could not escape. But as Paul and Silas were singing songs in praise to God their chains fell off and the dungeon doors flung open. But Paul and Silas didn’t leave and soon after the jailer and all his household came to know Jesus as their personal Savior. Once again, God was glorified!

But more important than answers to prayer, or the ability to do signs and wonders, or even to heal the sick or cast out demons, the name of Jesus has the ability to save! Acts 4:12 say, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Only by believing in Jesus, in professing His name as the name above all names, as our everlasting Savior can we be saved! And with that salvation we are united with God our Father. We are now adopted into the family of the Creator of the universe. We can call God our Father. We can call out to Him at any time. We can rest safely in His arms. We can speak with Him at any time, and in any circumstance. All because of the name of Jesus!

So yes, there is AMAZING power in the name of Jesus. Jesus’ power is amazingly potent, more powerful than we will ever fully understand. He still answers requests prayed in His name, He still heals, and He still shows His majesty in amazing signs and wonders. And yes, He still saves. There is power in the name of Jesus; There is hope, there is strength, and victory to claim. There is healing in His holy presence;
There is power in His name.

Before your head hits the pillow

Why is it important that God is unchangeable?

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

Why is it important that God is unchangeable?

Hebrews 13:8 – Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Numbers 23:19 – God is not man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not fulfill it?

James 1:17 – Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Yes, our God never changes. This is one of His attributes. He is immutable, that means He never changes. He is not better at one time and worse at another. But for us, as people of God, why should this matter?

The fact that God does not change is central to every other attribute we know of God. God is all knowing. He never knew less than He does today and He never knew more. His knowledge has ALWAYS been the same. God told the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” God didn’t only know Jeremiah before he was in the womb, He knew each of us. God’s knowledge of us and His plan for us has NEVER changed.

God is merciful and just. God’s mercy is the same today as it was thousands of years ago and His judgment is the same. As I read through the books of Chronicles and Kings I became amazed at the Kings who were evil. Each one of them must have seen God’s judgment on previous evil Kings but they still did evil. God’s justice is supreme justice. God will always deal with evil in His perfect unchanging way. Many of the kings of the Old Testament failed to learn about God’s unchanging justice but we have the Bible to read. We see what turmoil can befall us if we choose to turn our backs on a perfectly just God. But we can also see God’s mercy, His perfect and never changing mercy, on those who fall on their face, profess their sins, and work to fulfill God’s plan in our lives.

God is unchangeably holy. Nothing we can do can make him more or less holy. He is unchangeably righteous and unchangeably faithful.

God has promised His blessings and his faithfulness to those who follow Him. That doesn’t mean that our lives will always be easy, but they will always be blessed because that is God’s promise. His vows, promises and commitments will NEVER change.

The fact that God is unchangeable gives us the great assurance of our salvation. God tells us in Romans 10:9-10 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”

The fact that God does not change gives us the assurance that once we have truly accepted Jesus as our Savior nothing can undo the grace and mercy that God has given. This promise, this mercy, this grace is unchangeable. God’s commitment to you as one of His children is an eternal commitment. Because God is unchangeable, this CANNOT change!

Things in your life may change. You may go through struggles and trials. You may be tossed about by the waves of this world, but God’s love for you, His promise of your salvation, will NEVER change. That is why is why it is so important that we understand that God cannot change. God is our anchor in the wind tossed seas of our life. He will hold us fast. He will tether Himself to us. He will NEVER leave! Praise God! Praise Him for His unchanging love, His unchanging mercy, and yes, even His unchanging justice!

Before your head hits the pillow

The Parable of the Sower

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

The Parable of the Sower

So what is a parable and who uses them? When I was a child, I was told that a parable was an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. Now that I am older I think I would view them as extended metaphors. The story (parable) is a doorway to a greater truth, a larger reality. These parables were also understood by those with discernment, those who had ears to hear and eyes to see. (Matthew 13:10-17).

Parables or allegories were told in both the Old and New Testament. You will find parables in the Psalms, in Proverbs, and even in Ezekiel. Jesus told more than 30 parables during His lifetime. He told parables about the Kingdom of God, about service and obedience, about prayer, about neighbors, about humility, about wealth, about God’s love, about thankfulness, about Christ’s return, and about God’s values.

Tonight let’s talk about the Parable of the Sower. You can read this parable in Matthew 13:1-8 and in Luke 8:4-8. The Luke passage says, “While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, He told this parable, ‘A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.’”

The seed in this parable represents the word of God. You and I might consider ourselves the sowers. As Christians we are called to go into the world and make disciples. We don’t know where we will find these disciples, and whether the seeds we plant grow into productive crop is not up to us, that is in the Lord’s hands. It is our duty to plant seeds wherever we can. We may plant some seeds on the by-ways and some in the rocks and some may be sown where they can be choked out. But if we plant enough seeds some will be planted in fertile soil. C.H. Spurgeon once stated, “Our duty is not measured by the character of our hearers, but by the command of our God. We are bound to preach the gospel, whether men will hear, or whether they will forbear. It is ours to sow beside all waters.”

The seed that was sown by the way-side is like the Word that is spread to men with hardened hearts. God’s Word sits on the outside of this person’s heart but never penetrates it. It never sinks in so cannot grow.

The next seeds fall among rocks. The seed sprouts but because of lack of moisture it soon dies. The people who are like these seeds hear the Word, they may even become emotional about what they hear, but their professions are not true. It is based on emotion not on deep-seeded faith. These individuals never really accept the truth or act on its commands so they also die.

Then there were the seeds that were sown among thorns. These seeds are those individuals who hear the Word, they listen, they take the words home with them and may even make a profession of religion. They worship with believers; they may attend your services, and appear to be growing. But they have allowed the things of this world to grow side by side with the Word of God. They have chosen not to die to self. They don’t want to put aside the things of the world, and eventually those very things choke out the Words that they heard so that it never takes root. They never make a complete profession of their faith.

The last is the seed that falls on fertile soil. This seed represents the true Christian. This seed represents the Christian who gives his/her life totally to the Lord, grows in truth and knowledge, and then becomes capable of planting seeds themselves!

It is our responsibility to plant seeds. We must sow them everywhere! Some will fall on non-fertile land but some will fall on fertile soil. Others may come and water your seeds. Another believer may bring in the fertilizer. But that fertile soil plant would not have spouted had you not planted the seed. What a blessing it will be when one day the seeds that you sowed begin sowing seeds of their own!

Before your head hits the pillow

Tricking Jesus

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

Tricking Jesus

The Pharisees and Sadducees were constantly trying to trick and trap Jesus. The Pharisees were primarily business class individuals and were viewed in high esteem by the Jewish people. They believed that the Old Testament was the inspired word of God but they also ascribed to many other more traditional laws which were written in the Mishnah as passed on orally from one generation to the next.

The Sadducees were wealthy and more distant from the people. They believed that the Old Testament was inspired and did not believe that oral tradition had equal authority to scripture. The Sadducees didn’t believe in the spiritual realm of angels and demons or an afterlife but the Pharisees did.

But both groups saw Jesus as a threat to their authority and spent much time trying to determine a way to get rid of Him.

In Mark 12 the Pharisees tried to trick Jesus when they asked Him if it was all right to pay taxes to Rome. They believed that if He said no, the Roman government would arrest Him. If He merely said yes it would appear that He was a Roman sympathizer and the people would turn against Him. But Jesus was and is wise. What He told them was to look at the coin. The coin had on it the image of Caesar. He told them to pay to Caesar that which was Caesars and to God that which was Gods.

Later in the same chapter the Sadducees took their turn at trying to trick Jesus. They asked him a really ridiculous question considering they did not believe in the afterlife. They asked Him about a woman who was widowed 7 times. When she got to heaven, whose wife would she be? Jesus was again just too wise for them. He told them that she would be no man’s wife for there is no marriage in heaven. But He didn’t stop there. He then quoted Exodus 3:6 the scripture referencing the burning bush. It states, “I am the God of your ancestors – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Jesus told them that He wasn’t the God of the dead but the God of the living so Abraham, Isaac and Jacob MUST be alive for God to be their God AFTER they had died.

In John 10 the Pharisees were up to their trickery as well. Divorce was a tricky subject and Moses had given the people of Israel an out. They wanted to see if Jesus too would readily condone divorce. But Jesus in His wisdom schooled them once again. He let them know that Moses had written his instructions about divorce only to please the hard hearted wickedness of the people, but God ordained that marriage should be forever.

We have a very wise and powerful God. Jesus knows all and understands all. He knew when the Pharisees and Sadducees were trying to trick Him and he knows when we are trying to evade Him or control our own lives.

When we try to trick Jesus by bargaining with Him, he knows our hearts. When we bargain with Jesus saying, “If you will do this, then I will do this,” Jesus sees into our hearts and knows that with that bargain our hearts are not completely surrendered to Him.

Just as the Pharisees could not trick Jesus, we will never be able to trick God either. If we are living a life of faulty service and worship, He knows. If we attend church and go through all of the ritualistic motions of being a Christian but have never really accepted Him as our Savior and Lord, He knows.

If we have deep hidden sins, we must know they are not hidden from Him for He knows our hearts. There is nowhere that we can go to hide from God. There is nothing we can do to trick Him into believing that we are something that we are not.

Jeremiah 23:24 says, “Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the LORD. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the LORD.” And Psalm 139:7 tells us, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” And again in Hebrews 4:13 we read, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

God is all knowing and all powerful. The Sadducees and Pharisees couldn’t put one over on Jesus and neither can we. So if today we have unconfessed sins, let’s go before the Lord and confess them. If we have been living a spiritual life riddled with ritual but not filled with the Spirit of God, Let’s fall on our knees and confess Him as Lord. Let’s ask Him to mold us and make us into a new creature, one created to worship and glorify Him! No more hiding, no more bargaining, no more trickery, just sincere worship. That’s what God wants. Let’s give it to Him!

Before your head hits the pillow

What does it mean to judge, or what does the Bible say about judging?

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…Before your head hits the pillow…

What does it mean to judge, or what does the Bible say about judging?

The Bible speaks often about judging and in many cases the word judge has a different meaning.

Below are many passages that warn us against judging. I believe that Jesus warned so frequently against judging, for when we judge others we don’t take an introspective look at ourselves and our own spiritual deficiencies.

We can talk about Sue at the office and how often she gossips, or we can discuss how Larry has such terrible language, or how frustrated that Mr. and Mrs. Lewis never seem to volunteer for anything at church. When we do this, we don’t take the time to look at the plank in our own eye. When Jesus was speaking about this type of judgment he was telling us not to judge hypocritically.

Judging others seems to give us a reprieve, and that is not what the Lord would want. Here are the passages on this type of judging:

Matt. 7:1-3″Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.…

Luke 6:37″Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

Luke 6:41″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?

John 8:7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Romans 2:1 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

Romans 14:10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.

Romans 14:13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

1 Corinthians 4:5 Therefore 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.

So if we think it is okay to judge others’ sins or deficiencies we had better make sure that we have taken a good look at our own lives before we do. There may be time when spiritual discipline is in order, but we must be sure that we are the correct person to administer that discipline and we are doing so in love.

Now this doesn’t mean that we ignore sin, but it does mean that we must be careful before we judge someone else’s sin. We do however have a responsibility to assist another Christian who is sinning, to lovingly and respectfully let them understand their error. James 5:20 states: — let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. 2 Timothy 4:2 says – preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.

I think we often confuse discernment for judging. I do believe that it is valid to be discerning. It is appropriate for a parent to look at their teenage children’s friends and make a determination whether they believe those friends are appropriate for their child.

It is appropriate for us to discern that certain people are not good for us so we should not associate with them. That is discernment.

Understanding that something is not Godly, is not judging.

Many have cited the passage that indicates we will know them by the fruit on their tree. This passage, Matt. 7:15-20 is specifically speaking about false prophets and how important it is for us to be able to identify them.

Matthew 7:15-21″Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “So then, you will know them by their fruits. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.…

Matthew 7:16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?

Matthew 12:33 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.

Luke 6:44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thorn bushes, or grapes from briers.

As Christians we must be ever vigilant about from whom we are taking spiritual leadership. I think the most dangerous are those who speak some truth, but not all of the truth. They can sound good, they reference God and His power but they may also espouse Buddha or Confucius. If you find a spiritual leader like this RUN!!!

And lastly there is the judging of one’s eternal destination. I think we will all agree on this one. That is left entirely up to the Lord! We must NEVER judge someone’s salvation, for only God knows this!

So I guess the long and the short of it is: Look at yourself before you pass judgment on anyone else. If a fellow believer is sinning, approach them with love and respect and NEVER judge anyone’s salvation. That is entirely up to God!