A Recap

How deep the Father's love for us, How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His chosen Son, to make a wretch His treasure.

Our sermon series the past four weeks has been, "Judgment Call," by Andy Stanley and I have learned several things lately about what the Bible actually says regarding judging others and being judged by others. As Christians, we go either one of two ways: we tend to think, "I can't judge because I'm a Christian," or we feel that we are the ultimate judges because we are Christians.

In Andy's first talk, he addressed the fact that as Christians, when we see something another person is doing that bothers us, we are to first look in the mirror and assess what it is that God is trying to address in our own lives. After that, we may be in a position to judge another, but only another believer. It is really unfair to try and judge a secular person by a standard that they do not subscribe to. Without addressing my own sin first, I have no leverage to help address the sins of others. He also talked about how when we sincerely have our hearts broken over something a friend is involved in, that is when it is time to approach others and confront them.

I think about this often. It seems that I am perpetually juggling the ball labeled "other people's problems" and I'll be honest, it stresses me out a great deal at times. How can my heart be breaking over so many people at once, and yet I'm supposed to balance my job, my friends, my family, and my many other responsibilities? This is still somewhat of a mystery to me.

Andy concluded the series by talking about awkward situations, those talks that nobody really wants to have, but those which are necessary for growth and ultimately, restoration. He also addressed our response to being the one who is having judgment passed on you unfairly. In that position, my responsibility is to forgive the person who has misjudged me and pray for them. Andy says that we either give our enemies power or we forgive them.

I thought of this from a psychological standpoint, and it really makes a lot of sense. When we begin to believe the lies that people speak into our lives, whether or not we admit it, we actually are giving power over to those people. For example, if someone has been told all their life that they are dumb, eventually they may begin to believe that they are. That person then, has in essence, given power to all those who have called her dumb by allowing them to create who she is. This strategy is something that we work to rewire in my school often. We try to uncreate the wrong messages parents have sent their children while we can still intervene. It's hard work! But how much more does God desire to restore our hearts from past judgments? Far more! He is so amazing and so forgiving. And that is what we must work toward...realizing that sometimes judging at the right moment is a loving thing to do and at other times, receiving judgment is necessary. And we must recognize that God wants us to forgive those in our past who have misjudged us and move on. Easier said than done for sure!