pramsay posted on July 13, 2006 02:31 545 views
How many times does it have to be said: "You can't judge a book by its cover." or "Things are rarely what they appear to be." These axioms are conventional wisdom. Everybody knows it is only common sense to gather all the facts before reaching a conclusion. If we all know it, then why do we jump to conclusions?
One day Jesus was under attack from the religious leaders for healing a man on the Sabbath. They pounced on Him for doing such a work on the day of rest. I am sure the man who was healed from head to toe (that's the thought in John 7:23) was not complaining about being healed on the Sabbath. Why? Because he was directly affected. Fine for all the religious leaders enjoying good health and agile and nimble bodies to condemn the miracle - they didn't have to live with the ailment.
It seems to me the Lord Jesus must have thought: "You dear men just don't get it. You've lost the point of it all. You wouldn't dare postpone the circumcision of a baby boy if the eighth day from birth happened to fall on the Sabbath - oh no! You would swing into high gear and go to work on the Sabbath day to perform the surgical procedure - just so you could be technically correct according to some detail of the Law. Yet a year and half ago when I did good on the Sabbath and completely healed that desperate man - you were all bent out of shape, angry and wanted to kill me, because you charged that I somehow violated the Sabbath day of rest. While you are all knotted up in dotting the i's and crossing the t's, you've lost sight of what it’s all about."
Then He said:
"Judge not according to the appearance,
but judge righteous judgment."
John 7:24
It might on the surface conflict with your thoughts of what is right and what is spiritual - but do NOT jump to conclusions. Don't go spouting off condemning something (or more often someONE) until you have done your homework. Make sure you have looked at it from multiple perspectives in light of the Scriptures. Remember you don’t know all the facts that led up to a person's choice. Don't forget that you have never 'walked a mile in their shoes.' While zeroing in on one line of the Bible to condemn something, don't overlook the rest of the Word of God and the principles of Scripture. Be balanced, fair and sound and always ere on the side of grace. What does that mean? It would be more Christ-like if your decision was marked by kindness and grace rather than harshness and rigid inflexibility.
Perhaps you are thinking: "Wow, I would love to be brave enough to send this Bible Bite to ______." You think he or she needs to hear this message? Hold on a second. Sounds like you are jumping to conclusions yourself. Isn’t that judging too? Maybe you have never walked a mile in her shoes or you have never experienced the complexities of life that he has, that helped shape and mould their perspectives on certain things. Maybe you need to step back and try to understand where other Christians are coming from.
If we could all apply the words of Christ above to our own lives - how different things would be.