The passage I read
was Matthew 7:1-12
You can find that passage here:
The verse that most
stood out to me:
12 So
in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums
up the Law and the Prophets.
As I reflect:
I was a bit shocked
to find this passage for a one day study.
This passage is huge to do just one meditation on. I find that one could easily take one to two
sentences at a time and make a complete days reflection just on that. There is a great deal of material covered in
this passage.
Firstly, it deals
with judgment. I’ve said it before and I
will say it again, this is one of the most misquoted and misunderstood passages
in the Bible. God is not here saying
that we are not to judge. That is taking
this directly out of context. He is
saying don’t pass hypocritical judgment.
Many people when a Christian says something of their sin will say that
we are passing judgment. This is not the
case. We are commanded by God to beware
of evildoers, false prophets, and to avoid those who practice all kinds of
evil. How are we to be aware of and
avoid them if we don’t make a judgment of them at some point? We must accept and understand that we are not
to judge in an unrighteous manner or in a hateful way, but to do so righteously
and lovingly is a commandment to us. In John
7:24 we are told, “Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge
correctly.” This states that there is a
correct way to judge. In Matthew we are
given one of the correct ways to do so.
This defines how we are to judge a believer… even unto the point of no
longer considering them a believer if they refuse or rebuke the judgment.
Matthew 18:15-17
15 “If
your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just
between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.16 But
if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter
may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 If
they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to
listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
We are to correct,
rebuke, and encourage as we preach the Word in and out of Season (2 Timothy
4:2) in hopes of bringing others to repentance (James 5:20). It is in fact our duty to do so. So when Christ says do not judge or you too
will be judged, know that I will in fact be judged and it will be done to me in
a righteous and loving manner just as I judge others in a righteous and loving
manner. Too many people don’t go on to
read the rest of what is said. We will
be judged in the same measure (manner) as we judge others. It doesn’t mean don’t judge. It means do it right and for the right
reasons. By all means judge me in this
way. If you see me in sin, help me. Don’t keep your mouth shut as to not be caught
judging someone. Tell me so that I may
be corrected. I will also tell you.
Ok, so wow. Here we are almost a page of writing later
and I have only barely touched on the surface of one of several topics
discussed in this passage. Told you it
was a lot to cover. Lol. I’ll try to be
more brief in the remaining verses.
Verse 6 is a truth
that I have found in life long before I knew it was from God. Have you ever tried to help someone that didn’t
want or realize that they needed help? It’s
like getting your hand bitten while trying to feed an emaciated dog. Kinda bitter sweet in that you gave the truth
that was needed to be given, but hurtful that you were so attacked for having
done so. It’s rough, but with
discernment, prayer, consistency in your witness, you may win them over
still. But be careful you don’t walk
into a den of wolves with steak attached to your jacket. Witness with wisdom and discernment. When someone has repeatedly turned from the
Gospel truth and has communicated repeatedly their hate for you and for your
God, continue to pray for them and be a shining light, but push them not
further from that light by forcing knowledge to those who chose ignorance. Pray for their release from the scales satan
has grown over their eyes. But do not
quarrel with them or attempt to force God down their throat. You will get bitten.
Verses 7-11 deal
with the giving nature of God. These too
have many times been taken out of context and with only literal interpretation have
lead to many a person’s misunderstanding and frustration. Jesus isn’t saying if you ask for a Lamborghini
it will be given to you and if you seek for a million dollars you will find
it. He is talking about asking, seeking,
knocking within the will and motivation of doing the Lord’s will here on
Earth. You see this advice is not for
the lost, but for the found. And the
found, those who follow Christ, ask, “how can I serve you” and He answers. We seek, “How may I please you”, and we find
those in need. The comparison to a child
asking a father for bread is a perfect comparison. Even if my child came to me and asked me for
a million dollars and even if I had a million dollars to give him, I wouldn’t. He is young and foolish and I know that the
money would be squandered and lead to his destruction for a love of money. And so instead when he ask for money, I lead
him to chores that he may earn and understand what it is to earn an
income. I don’t do this out of cruelty,
but love. I know what is best for my
child. If however he comes to me and
ask, “Father, what may I do to help you today?”, then my response will offer us
closeness in bonding and I will guide him in helping me complete whatever
project I could use the help on. This
approach will much greater build him up into the man we both want him to
be. So it is with our Heavenly
Father. We must first seek His kingdom
and all else will follow.
Verse 12 sums it up
nicely, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for
this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
My response to the
Lord:
It’s a lot to take in Lord, but that is my prayer to
you. I pray that you would write your
word on my heart and let me not forget a single mark. But by your Holy Spirit working mightily,
teach me to apply these things to every moment of my existence. When judgment comes up in me in unrighteous
anger, help me to release it to you.
When however I am called to judge and to share in love a truth with
someone faltering, then give me courage and discernment to approach wisely the
topic and send your Spirit ahead of me to prepare their heart. When I pray and as I live Lord, may I always
seek your will ahead of my own. Nay, I
pray instead Father that my will be your own.
Change me so that I see through your eyes and walk where you want me to
and do as you wish and speak how you spoke as you through your Son walked this
earth. May I love boldly by your great
work in me. Help me my Lord to remember
this “golden rule” of doing unto others as I would have them do unto me. Give me grace to serve your infinitely better
than I have. In Jesus’ name.
No comments:
Post a Comment