A Thought About Responding With Grace & Mercy

Why does it seem so easy for us to judge someone else's faults and imperfections? As Christians should we not love others in spite of all their shortcomings? Should not the church be the most forgiving of all? Has God not forgiven us?

Indeed, none of us have been treated as our sins would deserve. We have received mercy and compassion in place of punishment and condemnation. Why then is it so hard for us to forgive and show mercy? If we are honest, most often our initial reaction to the warts and flaws of others is judgement, gossip and even rejection, unless of course we have deliberately chosen to show mercy in certain cases.

But when we are judging others, are we not being just as sinful as the ones we are judging? Why is it so hard for us to see it that way; that the very act of judging is a sin?

God says in Matt 7:1-5  "Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.  "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?  How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." 

What possible good could come from judgement, rejection or gossip? Will it ever really help a person to change? No, it will only make things harder for them and will probably add bitterness to the mix. It's like a poison that spreads faster than fire. By grace we are forgiven and only through grace can a life truly change.

In the Christian life there is occasion for corrective admonishment but a response of love and forgiveness should always precede any discipline or correction. Maybe if we remember: "the measure we use to judge others will be the measure used to judge us" we will be a lot less quick to judge.

Gossip, rejection and judgement are dangerous for our souls. Each time we are tempted to stand in judgement of someone else we need to remember the price that our own sin cost and the debt we owe to the One who paid it. It is so natural for us to over look our own shortcomings or explain them away. Grace and forgiveness for ourselves seems somehow justified. We need to remember that God sees us with a huge plank in our eye as we judge the speck of dust in our brother's eye. He has forgiven us with great mercy. Let's strive to always do the same. That's all.