By Ken Fletcher
“It’s interesting that those who judge others are themselves being judged. It’s interesting that religion relies on other’s performance–how good or bad they are doing, but blind to their own sins. Pride is subtile. Yes, it is!
Who sets one person over another to determine if they are accepted by God? Religious people! I am so glad that God sees the real because He looks at the total intentions of the heart. The absolute true of a person! How can another person see and know that? They can’t! But, somehow, some people think that they can and do.
I say, let God be God in each life. Since we all are at different levels of growth with God, how can we look down at anybody when they miss it? Because, if we do, we just missed it ourselves when we act like that! Sin is sin. What we call a little sin is as huge to God as what we call a big sin. It’s all sin!
So, why don’t these people get real with themselves and recognize they have a plank in their religious eye, trying to focus on the splinter in their brother’s eye? Pride blinds! Sometimes, though it sounds funny, religious folks are proud to be humble!
I remember a funny song I heard years ago. The chorus said: Oh Lord. it’s hard to be humble, when your perfect in every way, each time when I look in the mirror, I get better looking each day, To know me is to love me, I declare I’m a heck of a man, Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble, but I’m doing the best that I can.
Because, look, we are all blind to stuff in some degree if we are honest. But, I do not think that religion is honest! Not at all. So, if we find ourselves saturated with religion, we are going to look at others in a wrong way. In a performance way. Lets stay humble before the Master. Real humility, not false. Since The Righteous One, Jesus, has become our substitute, it’s not how good we can perform, and it’s not about what we think others should or shouldn’t do. It’s about truth and transparency before the Lord.
It bothers me when I see one minister, a brother in the Lord, speak negatively about another minister, a brother in the Lord. Calling their name out publicly and casting doubt upon their ministry. I think it bothers the Lord much more than me. I think that a minister that does that sort of thing will find themselves in a bad place. I believe they have opened the door to the enemy when they do that!
And, the devils are more than glad to take advantage of the opportunity to do their thing. What is it that causes that in a minister? Religion! God does not look at people like that! He looks straight into the heart off hearts of the person.
Besides, why would a minister think they have the right to put down another minister when that other minister works for Jesus? They are not responsible to them! They are responsible to Jesus! But, the religious minister is so certain that they are right to put the other minister down. It’s very sad. So, I pray about it.
Religion is regimental. You have to fall in line or you are cast out! Religion makes people fear. Dogma. Creed. Tradition. All works based. A lot of todays Christian religions are a hodge-podge mix of the Old Covenant blended with the New Covenant. So, believers end up trying to measure up all the time. Growth is about coming into an awakening of who we really are in Christ. What He has already done in us! Not forcing behavior on the outside.
Obviously, we could not fulfill the Old Covenant or the New Covenant would not have been necessary. In reality, the New Covenant completely fulfilled the Old Covenant. The Old Covenant is completed and satisfied in the New Covenant. We are in Christ who is the Author of the New Covenant. It’s an eternal, everlasting and unbreakable Blood Covenant between God and Jesus. It’s forever in force!
Now, we know that some people are going to judge others. But, that’s up to them. I want to be careful of what I say about another person or ministry. I may disagree with what they may be saying, and I may speak against the thing I am against, but for me to belittle them personally and call their name out or the name of their ministry in particular, I believe that is very wrong! We can speak against the wrong things without singling out or putting down an individual person or ministry. We want to walk in love. And, that’s what love does.
The Holy Spirit is plenty big enough to deal with another minister or ministry all by Himself without my help to personally correct them. I was always impressed with Kenneth E. Hagin, who for many years, was called out, attacked and ridiculed personally by many different ministers over many years. I saw it! But, he never spoke anything negative about any person or minister no matter what they said. He just wouldn’t! He left it with God.
He would just pray for them if he believed they were off in some way. On a few isolated occasions, Kenneth was prompted by the Lord to go speak privately with a certain minister about something the Lord was trying to get to them. But, that was very rare. And, Kenneth never did it publicly. But, he did it privately–one on one. Out of love. Now that is what is right before the Lord. That is honor in operation!
Those who would attack or counter attack fall into a trap. Opening themselves up to the enemy. Plus, it is not walking in love to hurt another ministry in any way. Some have the excuse that they believe the other ministry is preaching lies that will send people to hell. So they think they are justified by God.
Do you hear that? Because of someone’s interpretation of the Bible, they believe they are the executioners of proclaiming the real truth. That’s religion and that’s pride masquerading as humility. Very subtile but very real. And, it’s too bad folks are in such denial. And, have so little faith in our Lord to make His corrections in the lives of His servants in His own church. Which He does all the time!
But, that is the deception of pride. Thinking that we HAVE to call someone out personally. That WE are the ones who are right–so that means we should call them out on it publicly. That is sad, really. How small they must think God is. That God needs them to correct and shame another minister in a negative and public manner.
Well, if He did need them to do that, He would have them go or contact the minister in private somehow like brother Hagin did. That is dealing with it right. In private. In secret. Person to person. So not to cause harm. Sometimes, I wonder the motive of someone who publicly ridicules another minister. But, we should know that Satan is the originator of divide and conquer. To ridicule another minister is to weaken the body of Christ. Jesus is not about weakening His body.
I believe in unity in the body of Christ. Since everybody can have Jesus, no matter who they are and where they’re from, and God has accepted them, who am I to look down on them for something? If they are for us, they are not against us. If they are God’s then He can deal with them just fine. Our part is to pray for them and encourage them in the faith. In different levels, we are all growing and maturing in the truth.
What I believed in the past is where I was with God at the time. I believed some wrong things that God had to steer me around and show me the real truth. Was I sincere? Yes! But I was sincerely wrong! But, it’s okay. I was His, and He knew that later on I would see some things and adjust my beliefs to what He showed me. I am so thankful that He is patient! Friends, Jesus has been enormously patient with me!
What if Jesus was like so many judgmental folks are? Well, I for one would be burnt toast! But, I’m so thankful that Jesus is all about our good. He is all about love. He is all about faith. And, He sees ahead and knows where we are headed!
True sight is keeping our eyes focused on Jesus. He sees ahead to what we need to do. What adjustments we need to make. He guides us in our understanding. I ask Father for wisdom a lot. Because, the more I go along, and the more that I learn, the more I realize how much I need His wisdom in my life every day!
The more I understand, the more I realize how little I know! But, God is so great. And, He knows my way before me. And, I trust Him. And, that settles it! Another’s will is not the final say with me. What God says is what I want to know. Because, it is He that has all of me. And, I just want to do His will.
A great problem in judging another believer is that we become blind to the reality of ourselves! Jesus talks about the log in our eye. It prevents us from seeing others correctly. Because, we don’t see ourselves correctly!
Lets honor the Lord and live before Him with openness and transparency. Lets allow Him to correct us in His own way and time. Lets be correctable children. Learning from our Father.–Who does not condemn us.
Can we love someone and at the same time be doing or saying unlovely things about them? No. We can’t. Can we be honorable people when we do dishonorable things to someone? No. Of course not. Let us beware to stay away from any divisions in the body of Christ. We do not all have to agree! Jesus is able to correct His own! If we’re in Christ, we all ARE the Lord’s! And, that is what really matters!” KF KenFletcher.org
