Tag: disputes

16.a. “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

John 7:21  Jesus answered them, “I did one work, and you all marvel at it. Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man’s whole body well? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

Deuteronomy 1:16-17    And I charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him.  You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God’s. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.’

Proverbs 17:15    He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the LORD.

Isaiah 11:3-4    And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear,  but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

James 2:9     But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

Jesus had healed a cripple who had been an invalid for 38 years.  He did this on the Sabbath and the Jewish leaders immediately told the healed man that it was unlawful for him to carry the mat he had been laying on.  Jesus brings this up when the Jewish leadership was wondering how Jesus had learning when He had never studied.  He tells them that they marvel at this act and then proceeds to tell them that they are not seeing scripture with understanding.  It was man-made laws and traditions that resulted in them thinking that healing a cripple on the Sabbath was breaking the law.  “Judge with right judgment.”  We are all guilty of wrongly judging some on or something.  We judge by the action and not the intent.  We judge the guy or gal in the car that is going to slow or cuts us off and have no idea what might have distracted that person.  Did they just get a phone call with very bad news?  Are they heading to the hospital to see someone who is dying?  We just don’t know but we judge them guilty of intentionally doing this to us.  There are thousands of other examples of how we judge others and much of the time we are judging without the love of God in our hearts and mind.  We need to be mindful of how critically we look at others.  Maybe it would be good for us to look into the mirror and ask ourselves if we would like to be judged by others the way we judge them.  I wonder if we ever take the time to ask God to reveal our true heart to us and seek the Holy Spirit’s to lead us into this insight.  We stand before God through Jesus Christ alone.  We did nothing to deserve this grace and mercy.  And yet, we go about judging others as if we were deserving of redemption, salvation, and forgiveness. When you are humble in thoughts and actions you will find the spirit of Judging will find no place in your heart, mind, and soul

15.p. “I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.”

John 5:30   “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

John 14:10    Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

John 8:42     Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.

John 8:28     So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.

Psalms 40:7-8    Then I said, “Behold, I have come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me:  I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.”

John 4:34     Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.

Psalms 96:13    before the LORD, for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness.

Isaiah 11:3-4    And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear,  but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

Romans 2:5    But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

Jesus explained that He is qualified as a completely righteous judge because His power is in submission too and to do the will of God the Father.  How much of our day(s) do we do our will without a single thought too doing the will of God?  I am certain there are those who believe there is God or a god but give no thought to having a personal relationship with Him.  There are fewer who believe Jesus Christ was the Son of God and even of these there are many who give no thought to having a personal relationship with Him.  If we are to come to the Father we must come through Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  Here is the difference between these and those who have had a personal relationship with the Son and the Father. Those who believe trust in, cling too and rely on Jesus Christ.  They are aware of sin, their sin, and the Holiness of the Son, Jesus Christ, and the Father, God.  In this awareness, they seek to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.  In this awareness, they have an understanding that has been given to them by and through Jesus Christ.  In this awareness, they have intentionally chosen to seek this relationship and believed the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  In this awareness, they have sought forgiveness, repented of their sin, and believed in salvation and redemption through Jesus Christ.  There is more than just head knowledge.  The difference is that they personally know Jesus Christ rather than knowledge of Him.  They have made an intentional choice to surrender, serve, listen, follow, yield, trust, obey, honor, and glorify Jesus Christ.  They do not seek their own will but continually seek to do the will of Jesus Christ every day.  They do not seek to honor themselves.

Judgment is coming and the wrath of God is being stored up against all who reject Jesus Christ.  Today we are closer to this coming judgment than before.  The warning has been given that this judgment is coming.  The warning has been given that all who reject Jesus Christ will go to hell and be tormented forever and ever in eternity.  It is out of love that God sends these warnings.  “For God so loved the world that He sent His only Son, that whosoever believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”  “not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” “But because of your hard and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.”

Knowing of Jesus Christ will never result in repentance or trust.  Knowing Jesus Christ will.  Behold, He stands at the door of your heart, knocking.  Open that door and allow Him in.

10.y. “But we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.”

Mica 4:1   It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore; but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.

There is a time coming when all the foolishness, greed, power hunger, lies, and rejection of Jesus Christ will be no more.  Can you imagine what it will be like without murder, thievery, arrogance, disobedience, self-centeredness, and pride? People will choose to be living under the divine rule and authority of Jesus Christ. It is hard to imagine right now with all this stuff so rampant in our world today.  But a time is coming when this will be in the past and what we have been longing for and waiting for will be the reality.  When times are trying and the world is seemingly in chaos it is hard to think beyond this but this is actually what we are to keep in our hearts, minds, and souls.  This is why we have reason to live.  Our Savior is coming back.  He will cast away all those who have rejected salvation and will call His own to be with Him forevermore.  Some will say this belief is a weakness but to those of us who have awakened to sin, repentance, salvation, and forgiveness it is the power of not only life but eternal life.  We are certain as the sun rising and setting that Jesus Christ will return and set things right on earth.  Keep your eyes on the hope set before us and wait patiently looking for His return.