If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture,
“Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show
favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For
whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of
breaking all of it. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said,
“Do not commit murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit
murder, you have become a lawbreaker. Speak and act as those who are
going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without
mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over
judgment! (James 2:8-13, NIV)
Amazing how we judge
other’s sin. Yes, I'm guilty. I’ve judged other’s sin before.
There can be a sin in someone else’s life, but if we don’t understand the
struggle of that sin it can be so easy to judge it. Yet sin is sin.
These two are harsh, but yet let’s investigate them a little further.
You
adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred
toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an
enemy of God (James 4:4, NIV).
Opps, maybe not realizing
it right away, but there have been times I have had friendship with the
world.
“You have
heard that it was said to the people long ago, Do not murder, and anyone who
murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you that anyone who is
angry with his brother will be subject to judgment (Matthew 5:21-22, NIV).
Murders will be subject to
judgment, and anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to
judgment. So does that mean the judgment for anger toward someone can be equivalent
to the judgment of murder?
Dear Lord Father, Thank
you Father for mercy. The royal law in Scripture, love your neighbor as
yourself, by keeping it we are doing right. Lord, how do we judge
ourselves of sin? Many times we justify our own actions, or we have an
excuse for our sin. So often we expect others to be compassionate for us,
we expect them to forgive us immediately. But Lord when others
struggle with their sin (especially things we don't relate to), do we do the
same for them? Many times our flesh puts judgment on them, we think we'll
they shouldn't do that! Lord forgive us, that so often the favoritism we
show is to ourselves, yet our sin is sin and we are still lawbreakers. No
matter where we stumble, we are guilty. Lord help us never to excuse sin
in anyway, whether our own or someone else's, but keep us from being
judgmental, help us extend mercy to others around us; the mercy we want them to
extend to us; the mercy You show us. In Jesus Name, Amen.
