James 4:11-12
My friends, don’t say cruel things about others! If you do, or if you condemn others, you are condemning God’s Law. And if you condemn the Law, you put yourself above the Law and refuse to obey either it or God who gave it. God is our judge, and he can save or destroy us. What right do you have to condemn anyone?
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
If ever there was a season where we need these two verses… this is it! Criticisms and condemnations are flying from people in every political camp. And I get it… the temptation is surely there to rail against my candidates’ opponents in many cases… to call some of them names like “liar, idiot, or loser.” But this would be wrong on many levels… beginning with others’ entitlement to their own opinion and the right to free speech. Additionally, none of us likes it when the other guy is critical or judgmental of us or our candidates. So I have tried very hard to keep my opinions to myself… and hopefully no one has been offended by anything I have said or done.
What I had not fully considered is that judging and saying cruel or condescending things about others condemns God’s Law… and essentially puts us above the Law – and God! So we must be very careful what we say about others… how we react to their words and actions… and any impression we might give that we are condemning one another.
“But wait!” you may say… “What about terrorists? What about tyrants and dictators? Shouldn’t we condemn them?” If I read what James is telling us correctly, we must be careful that what we condemn is the behavior… the comment - or action – not the person who delivered it. So to say that the activities of a terrorist are wrong is one thing… but to say cruel things about him/her is another. For instance, when Osama bin Laden was captured and killed, few would disagree that he committed heinous atrocities towards thousands of people. But for late night comedians to joke about his death was cruel and unGodly.
When we know that someone has done reprehensible things… or spoken hatefully of another, we must not call that person names or publicly condemn the individual. This makes us no better or different than that person. But to say, “I don’t agree with his/her comments or actions,” or “I am praying that he/she has a change of heart” seems to be more in line with God’s Law. We are leaving the actual judging and consequences in His hands, rather than inserting ourselves into this mix.
As I said, I think these are incredibly important scripture verses for all of us to study and incorporate… not just for the next few weeks, but forever. We need to make this a habit… to trust God to handle these things… and to demonstrate His love, grace, mercy and forgiveness by keeping OUR opinions to ourselves… and carefully monitoring our own words and actions. When you feel the urge to say something cruel or judgmental about another person… stop and ask myself… “Would Jesus do this? How would He (who has every right to criticize and condemn) treat this person if they stood face to face?”
Let’s remember… we are all God’s children. He loves that person you have labeled a “liar, idiot or loser” just as much as He loves you. Our responsibility as Christians is to behave in a way that honors God and shows Him due respect. He can – and will – handle the rest. Are you ready to let Him?
©2012 Debbie Robus
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