21st Day of Advent: Judge

"And He has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man.  Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice and come out--those how have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.  By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgement is just, for I seek not to please myself but Him who sent me." 

John 5:27-30

We have seen the duality of Jesus.  He is the Lion and the Lamb.  He is the High Priest and the Sacrifice.  Here, He is proclaiming Himself with the authority and power to judge others.  We normally think of Jesus as Love but He is also Judge.  God gave Him this responsibility. He is also referring to the final Judgement. In the Book of Revelation, John gives a glimpse into the throne room of God, as he sees it revealed to Him by Jesus. But lastly and most importantly, He states that His judgment is just.  Why? Because He is seeking to please His Father and not Himself.  He will reward the good and punish the bad according to their deeds. (Revelation 4-5). 

In John 8, the Pharisees bring an adulterous woman to Jesus to try and trap Him in His answer to how to deal with her. He shocks them all by responding that whoever is sinless can throw the first stone at her. Everyone walks away, starting with the older Pharisees. They all knew they were not without sin and can't condemn this woman just because she was caught in the act and it was public (John 8). It's the same with us. I ask myself the question when I read this: Who am I throwing stones at when I deserve the stones to be thrown at me?

Why do we think that we can do a better job at judging than Jesus?  Why do I judge a person's character based on their appearance?  I can't answer those questions.  I do know that when I find myself judging others, gossiping about their actions in a condescending tone, or thinking harsh thoughts about them, I can turn to God.  I can pray for help to stop those actions.  I can pray for the self-control to hold my tongue and cleanse my thoughts.  I need to hand the role of Judge back over to Jesus.  Oh how I need this truth!!

In His Love,

A