John 12:47-50
"As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say."
I really enjoyed the People's Sermon this Sunday on the story of the prodigal son. I heard a lot of different insights from the people of Grace Church that made me think about that passage differently. One of the thoughts that stood out to me was to be careful not to turn out like the older brother in the story - judgmental, angry, jealous. Because we were all at one time in the same position as the younger brother - desperate, sinful, helpless. Christians are often viewed by the world as being judgmental, intolerant, and self-righteous. We need to be careful not to put ourselves in a higher position than anyone else, because we are all hopeless without the love and grace of our Father.
"As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say."
I really enjoyed the People's Sermon this Sunday on the story of the prodigal son. I heard a lot of different insights from the people of Grace Church that made me think about that passage differently. One of the thoughts that stood out to me was to be careful not to turn out like the older brother in the story - judgmental, angry, jealous. Because we were all at one time in the same position as the younger brother - desperate, sinful, helpless. Christians are often viewed by the world as being judgmental, intolerant, and self-righteous. We need to be careful not to put ourselves in a higher position than anyone else, because we are all hopeless without the love and grace of our Father.
Reading today's passage further reinforced this same important idea. In John 12:47-50, Jesus said that His purpose is to save, not to judge. This doesn't mean that people who reject Him will not experience the consequences of their sin. It simply means that it is up to the Father to judge, not up to us. Our job is to love people and lead them to the truth of eternal life in Jesus. If they refuse to listen to the truth, should we then judge and criticize their sinfulness? Knowing full well that we ourselves are just as sinful and in need of God's forgiveness? Let's show the same love to people as Jesus did.
No comments:
Post a Comment