When Jesus calls Himself “the Alpha and the Omega” in the opening chapter of Revelation, He is suggesting that all things begin and end with Him. John 1:1-18 and Colossians 1:15-23 show that the Word that later became flesh was creator as He executed the divine plan to prepare an abode for His creation. He not only created the playing field of life for human creation, but the crown of His creation was man, himself. When finished, the result was very good.
We, ourselves, have our beginning and end in Him. The end directs us to another role that has been given to Him — a judge. The outcome is the judgment of eternal separation or eternal rest. He is the “founder and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:1),” and has taken His rightful place as our judge. Human beings are very free in discussing God’s love and mercy, but are uncomfortable with the fact that the same God of love is a God of judgment. There are numerous examples in the Old Testament of God’s judgment on people and nations that would exhaust pages to enumerate. When reading from the New Testament, we learn of Ananias and Saphira who dropped dead when lying to God (Acts 5:1-11). The effect was given — great fear came upon them (cf. 1 Tim. 5:20). Only God can judge purely and righteously. While many fear the thought of death and of judgment, a Christian who has been faithful, can look forward to a crown of life (Revelation 2:10).
Nevertheless, human judgment is a difficult subject, and our willingness to try to play the role of judge could put the fruition of that promised crown in jeopardy for us. James tells us that there is only one lawgiver and judge (cf. James 2:12-13, 4:11-12). It is true that we must make judgments as we can see others’ actions and their fruit. But, remember that humans make judgments based upon appearances, but God judges the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7 is set in the context of the people’s judgment for a king and comparing Saul and David. It explains, “…for the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Unfortunately, in relation to outward appearance, the carnal mind is set on creating the kind of person we want others to think we are, even when we have to create our own narrative to do it. Whatever area of appearance can be distorted for truth will be used as long as it serves our purpose.
As a result of this universal truth of not knowing the heart, when we are on the receiving end of judgment from others, we are accustomed to giving justifications for our actions if they appear to be indicting. We are inept at offering excuses and covering up our imperfections because we know about human error and we might convince others from judging us, harshly. But, remember; God knows! You and I could see that we are wasting our time making excuses or seeking to provide an alternative to our true motives if we were more concerned about what God thinks of us. Keep our focus on Him, not on pleasing man.
When we are on the giving end of judgment, we must realize that our judgments are often clouded by our perspective, our experience, and our short-sightedness. But, be sure of this settled truth. God knows! This is why He is the perfect judge. “He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he”(Deut. 32:4). Psalm 96:10 reads, “Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns! Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved; He will judge the people with equity.”
Judging can be a difficult concept to grasp. As followers of God, we are to judge some things, but not others. First, look at Matthew 7: 1-5. This passage warns against the hyper-critical eye focused on others instead of ourselves because God will use the exact measurement against us that we use against others. If we want mercy from God, we had better show mercy to others. Give the benefit of the doubt by offering the best construction on their actions and motives. We should humble ourselves by allowing others to misrepresent the truth without any censorship from us. So, they pulled one over on us. Big deal! I would rather accept the lie of insignificance and be fooled than pass strict judgment on others and take a chance of missing it. When a claim appears “fishy” and you are led to think that you have “caught someone in a lie,” do not pass that judgment on them. You may miss it, terribly and risk the loss of the relationship as well as open yourself to stricter judgment from God. Just reiterate the fact by some statement that redirects a soft heart to the truth. Something like, “Well, there is only two who truly know — you and One above.” Then, drop it!
This is a real issue for so many people. They have been toying with others through manipulative tactics and strict measures of censorship to establish “their truth.” It’s not necessarily true, but it is what we want others to think is true. The motives for our conclusions on truth are often to protect ourselves because if we can place the blame on others, it may either justify our actions or re-direct the focus and attention on others to avoid looking bad. In politics, we hear a lot about “the narrative” in the context of establishing what is true simply by telling our deceptive story. The target is always on others in a negative way so we may look like we really care about what is true and right. All you have to do in that context is tell a blatant lie to those whose confidence you have gained, and they will believe it and support it.
What is gravely missing in all of this is one glaring fact. God knows the truth about us, our lies, and our narratives. He knows of our prideful claim that no one can pull one over on us because “we know” what was done and why it was done. He knows whether you and I are living to create our own truth and live hypocritical lives of deception. He knows whether you care more about what others think of you than you do about what He thinks. He knows whether you are humble and willing to confess your sins to God and others.
This should be a great comfort to us if we are sincerely seeking those things that are above. As much as we may want to be without offense and live so that God and others think well of us, we are not without sin. I want to be a better man than I am, today. God knows whether this is true or not and if we are focused on things above, that is all that matters. Any man may cast stones, ridicule, and pass their judgments on me to create their own narratives, but I know that God knows and I am so thankful that He is my judge. Consequently, we must not attempt to live in denial or hide anything from Him. Be transparent, acknowledge what He already knows of us and confess it, and our need for His forgiveness. This requires repentance, of course. Repentance is a change of mind about our course of action. The result when everyone lives accordingly is a two-fold transparent truth: (1) He alone is holy and righteous altogether. (2) We are sinful and must learn to humbly acknowledge our need for Him. Galatians 6 opens with Paul telling the spiritual man to restore a brother overtaken in a fault with meekness, considering himself lest he is tempted. He is not condemning him as Jesus warns against in Matthew 7, nor is he pretending to be something he is not — faultless. He gently comes alongside the brother realizing that the roles may easily be reversed and he’s the one needing restoration. We should know the enemy and his devices and the enemy should not be us. The “us” I refer to is not necessarily family members or church friends, but the spiritual men and women of God. Paul writes, “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish” (Gal. 5:17). When you apply that to human relationships, they, too, will be at odds with one another.
This explains the meaning of 1 Corinthians 5:12-13 which makes distinctions between judging a “brother” versus judging a carnal man of the world. That judgment must be made. John 7:24 speaks of righteous judgment and neither passage places us in the position of God. Two spiritually minded individuals will be benefited from each other’s mutual admonition and teaching. In this way, I am my brother’s keeper. Both will approach each other gently, realizing that the human mind makes judgments based on outward appearances. Once explored and questioned so that truth is acknowledged, each will gladly accept the other’s gentle, loving words of reproof. If not, the withdrawal of fellowship should cause the other to reflect on his or her condition on the outside of fellowship with God and man. On the other hand, leave the carnal mind who is on the outside of that fellowship alone.