Leave Judging to the Judge

Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. 1 Corinthians 4:5a

Recommended Reading Matthew 7:1-6

In a 1993 Christianity Today article (April 5, p. 17), Stephen Brown recalled the words of the British preacher F. B. Meyer concerning judging others. Meyer pointed out that when we see a brother or sister in sin, there are two things we do not know: First, we don't know how hard he or she tried not to sin; second, we don't know the strength of the force that assailed him or her. Brown added a third unknown: We don't know what we would have done in the same situation.

To those three wise observations, we can add a fourth from the apostle Paul: The true Judge, Jesus Christ, is coming and He will bring to light everything that is now hidden to the eyes and heart of man. Therefore, since the true Judge is coming, we should "judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes."When we judge another, we usurp the role given by God to Christ alone (John 5:22). Next time you're tempted to judge another, remember these four reasons not to judge - especially the last one.

The only person we are qualified and authorized to judge is ourself (1 Corinthians 11:31).