Saturday, September 12, 2015

Ready For This Bombshell . . .I Don't Think So!

Good Morning!! Hope you're having a great day.  I'm enjoying the cool front that has moved in for the next few hours.  I know I haven't been on here in a couple of weeks, but this time, it's because I've been deep into studying something, because I found something that . . . wellllll it's not going to go over well with some people.



I’m about to drop a bombshell . .. . . . ready for it?  I don’t think some, a lot really, are,  but here it comes anyway!

Guess What??????  Christians are NOT supposed to judge anyone who is outside of the faith!  Nope!  Not allowed to judge who is sinning, who isn’t, or who is worthy of salvation!!

We are ONLY ALLOWED to judge our fellow Christians!!!!!

Where do I get that?  That can’t be true!!  Right???  Wrong!  Paul said it when he wrote the church in Corinth condemning them for overlooking a fellow member of the church for living in sexual sin with his father’s wife in 1 Corinthians 5.

As it is written in verses 9 – 13 (taken from The Living Bible):
“When I wrote to you before I said not to mix with evil people.  But when I said that, I wasn’t talking about non-believers who live in sexual sin, or are greedy cheats and thieves and idol worshipers.  For you can’t live in this world without being with people like that.  What I meant was that you are NOT to keep company with anyone who claims to be a Christian but indulges in sexual sins, or is greedy, or is a swindler, or worships idols, or is a drunkard or abusive.  Don’t even eat lunch with such person.  
                It isn’t our job to judge outsiders (those outside faith).  But it is certainly our job to judge and deal strongly with those who are members of the church, who are sinning in these ways.
                God alone is the Judge of those on the outside of our faith.  But you yourselves must deal with this man and put him out of your church.”

Ouch!!! That stings a little doesn’t it?  When was the last time you heard that used in a sermon?  Probably Never!!!  Shoot! Just putting the gossipers alone out of the church would drop the attendance numbers to at least half!

Why is it we don’t hear that taught in church?  Because we Christians love to put ourselves on a pedestal up there with God, deeming ourselves equally as holy as God himself.  And we love to have other humans praising us for our “holiness” instead of praising God.
 
We love to rub our self-proclaimed “righteousness” in other people’s faces as we judge them for being sinners and unworthy of God while we worship our idols of money, power, social status, vanity, gossiping, possessions, TV, Internet, Sports stars, entertainment stars, authors, and even our own self-proclaimed holiness. 

The Bible, which is the voice of God, tells us that we are not allowed to judge unbelievers, only other Christians. 

So pull yourselves down off of those self-serving pedestals, get on your knees and ask God to forgive you.

And I’d do it quick!  Remember what happened to Lucifer when he deemed himself equal to God?  God created Hell just for Lucifer and then kicked him out of Heaven! 

Hmmm . . . I wonder if God has a personal hell waiting for each of us Christians who are sinning against God in this manner?