Man Is Not Qualified To Set The Standard

Romans 2:1-11

Several years ago, I listened to a pastor talk about how evil it was that people used Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” After all, I Corinthians 6:2 said we were qualified to judge the world. “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?” John 7:24 told us to “judge righteous judgment.” It was our responsibility to judge! Had he checked out the rest of the passages, he would have found that none of them supported his conclusion.

I Corinthians 6:1-8 is talking about resolving conflicts between Christians, not about identifying sin among others. In John 7:24 Jesus is talking about properly applying judgment, rather than jumping to a conclusion without considering the circumstances, but that will only be seen by reading John 7:22-24.

Matthew 7:1-5 Talks about the danger of sin in our own life distorting our judgment, resulting in doing more harm than the sin they may have done. Titus 1:15-16 Describes the effect. “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.”

We hear that we should follow our heart, or our conscience today, but Titus tells us that a sinful attitude corrupts our standards so much we can’t depend on either the conscience or the mind. Jeremiah 17:9 describes the heart. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” It cannot be trusted. Romans 1:28-32 described the attitudes that control man’s thinking as a result of his rejection of God. They are corrupt. Man is not qualified to judge others because his standards are rotten.

“Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?” (Romans 2:1-4)

Standards distorted by our own sinful attitudes cause us to condemn actions that were proper, and excuse ones that were wrong. They cause us to assume others acted on the same motivation we would have, judging others harshly, because we know what we would have done. Often we accuse others like a little child, in hopes that others will be blamed and we’ll get by with it. We forget that Galatians 6:7 tells us, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” We don’t fool him.

God allows man to experience the consequences of rejecting him and the resulting attitudes in hopes that man will choose to change his attitude and accept God’s authority. II Peter 3:9 is very clear about this. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

By accusing and condemning others and excusing ourselves, and not repenting, we treasure our sin. We’re like the person with emphysema, who refuses to stop smoking. His smoking is more important to him than his life. He has chosen to die that way.

“But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Who will render to every man according to his deeds: To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: For there is no respect of persons with God.” (Romans 2:5-11)

There will be no miscarriage of justice with God. Nahum 1:3 warns, “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked:” We are fooling ourselves to think we can get by with our sin. Galatians 6:7-8 tells us, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.”

Colossians 3:24-25 states that judgment and rewards will not be affected by favoritism or predjudice. “Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.” Psalm 9:17 stresses that all will suffer the same fate who do evil. “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.”