“DON’T JUDGE!” Satan's Tool to Shut You Up!
Mt. 7:1
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Did you hear about the Redneck who called Butterball’s Thanksgiving Turkey Talk-Line to tell the operator he’d cut his turkey in half with a chain saw and wanted to know if the oil from the chain would adversely affect the turkey.
2. A disappointed woman called Butterball’s Thanksgiving Turkey Talk-Line wondering why her turkey had no breast meat. After a conversation with an operator, it became apparent that the woman’s turkey was lying on the table upside down.
3. A toll booth operator answered the phone one Thanksgiving Day. The woman on the line wanted to know the road conditions on the turnpike. After the operator said everything was A-okay, she told him that a friend was coming for dinner. Then came the stumper. “If my friend just left from exit twelve,” she asked, “what time should I put the turkey in?” (Turkey Timer!)
4. “Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie.”—Jim Davis.
B. TEXT & THESIS
1. I want to talk about the subject of “Judging” this morning. The issue of Gay Marriage has become a focal point of controversy in America and Christians have attempted to join the national conversation by expressing their beliefs.
2. The LGBT response to Christians has been an unusual one: quoting Scripture!
3. The Bible DOES say we’re not supposed to judge:
a. "Do not judge, or you too will be judged" Matt. 7:1.
b. "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another" Rom. 14:13.
c. "But you -- who are you to judge your neighbor?" James 4:12.
4. So it looks like Christians are really out of step when they speak out on culturally sensitive points.
5. So we’re going to look at: a. Our Culture’s Perception, b. What the Bible says about Judging, and c. Publicly Speaking Your Beliefs.
6. The title of this morning’s message is, “Don’t Judge?”
I. OUR CULTURE’S PERCEPTION OF GAY MARRIAGE
Everybody from Hollywood to Washington D.C. have expressed their support for gay marriage. The Supreme Court’s sidestepped it, the President’s endorsed it, and state laws are thrown out every week. 61% of Republicans under age 30 favor it. Even people with Christian backgrounds bristle at any opposing comment. Case in point:
A. IGNORING THE WORD
1. Dan Haseltine, lead singer for Jars of Clay, said in a Tweet, "I don't particularly care about Scripture’s stance on what is 'wrong.' I care more about how it says we should treat people." he said. “[Resistance to gays marrying] feels akin to women's suffrage. I don't think scripture "clearly" states much of anything regarding morality.”
2. THE REAL ISSUE HERE IS THE AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE!
a. Either the Bible IS the Word of God, the unchanging standard by Almighty God whom we’re to fear and obey, or it’s not. If it’s NOT the Word of God, then let’s jettison this whole religious aspect of our lives and live for pleasure and for ourselves.
b. But if the Bible IS the Word of God, then there’s a heaven and a hell, there’s a Judgment Day coming where we’ll all stand before God and be judged by God’s Word. If that’s true, we must pay careful attention to what it says!
3. The Bible does speak to the issue of Homosexuality:
a. Under the Law of Moses, the practice of it received the death penalty (Lev. 18:22; 20:13). It’s called “indecent” and a “perversion” in Rom. 1:26-27. It’s called “wicked” & “detestable” in Gen. 19:4-7.
b. Paul In 1 Cor. 6:9 says, “Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” The Greek word used here, “arsenokoitai,” has no other meaning than “homosexual.” So Homosexuality is specified as a sexual behavior that will exclude one from heaven. Used again in 1 Tim. 1:9-10.
4. The only legitimate sexual relationship is of one man and one woman committed to each other for a lifetime. Jesus said, “Haven’t you read that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female…and the two will become one flesh’?” Matthew 19:4-5.
5. ADAM & EVE -- HUMOR
a. Q. At what time of day was Adam created?
A. A little before Eve.
b. Q: Why was Adam created first?
A: To give him a chance to say something.
c. Q. What excuse did Adam give to his children as to why he no longer lived in Eden?
A. Your mother ate us out of house and home.
B. GENDER CONFUSION
1. There’s a lot of gender confusion today, but there doesn’t have to be. If God made you a male, then be a male. If God made you a female, then be a female.
2. It is God’s will that you be what God made you to be! Our culture wrongly is blurring the lines.
3. Some say, “But I was born Gay.” There’s NO evidence that people are genetically born gay.
4. American Society of Human Genetics, meeting in San Francisco Nov. 6-10, 2012, confirmed that there were no loci associated with sexual orientation, including Xq28 on the X chromosome. “People Are Not Born Gay,” confirmed the Royal College of Psychiatrists (May 27, 2014) in England, a reversal of its previous stance.
5. I do believe that people are born with tendencies/ leanings. Children of alcoholics often become alcoholics. The children of convicts often become convicts. The sins of the fathers are passed down to the children.
6. I was born with a fallen nature; I loved to sin. Did that mean that it was God’s will for me to continue sinning? No! God wanted my nature to change through Christ and for me to live a godly life.
7. Likewise, a person with homosexual tendencies should put that lifestyle off and let Christ give them a new life.
II. WHAT EXACTLY IS JUDGING?
A. IS JUDGING A SIN?
1. Dolly Parton, who has 7 Grammys, said on October 24, 2014: “But as far as the Christians, if people want to pass judgment [on gays], they're already sinning. The sin of judging is just as bad as any other sin they might say somebody else is committing.”
2. So is all judging a sin? No!
B. WE’RE TOLD TO JUDGE
1. NECESSITY OF PRIVATE, UNOFFICIAL JUDGMENT
a. Jesus did command us to examine other's fruits ("By their fruits you shall know them,” Mt. 7:6) and thus form judgments about their character. This can’t be a violation of the previous command (7:1) not to judge, since He said it within the same passage.
b. The California Department of Food and Agriculture has put up checkpoints throughout the state to stop invasive bug species. They want to inspect people’s fruit! What they meet are a lot of nuts!
b. Unger's Bible Dictionary (621) says, “We must constantly form estimates of the conduct and character of others for our own guidance and safety."
2. WE WILL JUDGE THE WORLD, ANGELS, BELIEVERS
“Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels?....Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers?” 1 Cor. 6:2-5.
3. CHRISTIAN LEADERS -- JUDGE WITHIN THE CHURCH
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside” 1 Cor. 5:12-13. So anybody who claims to be a Christian IS open to scrutiny.
C. JUDGING WE CAN’T DO
1. We can’t usurp God's place as Judge (1 Sam. 24:15).
2. We can’t pass judgment on people because we’re sinners and no better.
3. We also can’t judge people because we have inadequate information. Only God really knows people’s hearts.
D. DO WE LOOK LIKE A CHRISTIAN?
1. A little old Jewish lady was flying out of New York City on her way to Miami Beach.
2. She looked at the businessman sitting next to her and asked him, "Excuse me sir, but are you Jewish?" The man responded politely, "No, ma'am, I'm not Jewish."
3. After a little while she again queried him. "You're really Jewish, aren't you?" Again he responded, "No, ma'am, I am not Jewish."
4. Barely 10 minutes later, the little old lady asked him once more, "Are you sure you're not Jewish?" To which, in exasperation and in a final effort to shut her up, he replies,
"OK. Yes, ma'am, I am Jewish."
5. "Funny," she said, looking puzzled. "You don't look Jewish!"
6. Makes me wonder. If anyone approached us and asked us, "Are you a Christian?" and we answered, "Yes", would they be inclined to say, "Funny, you don't look like a Christian?”
7. So where does this leave us about publicly speaking out about right & wrong? Are we muzzled? No!
III. PUBLICLY SPEAKING YOUR BELIEFS
A. OUR OBLIGATION TO WARN PEOPLE
1. TRUTH: NOBODY IN SIN WANTS TO BE TOLD THEY’RE IN SIN. THEY WANT THE PROPHET TO SHUT UP!
2. In Sodom, when Lot rebuked their lifestyle, they pulled the “Judgment Card.” “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge!” Gen. 19:9.
3. WHEN WE SAY WHAT GOD SAYS, WE’RE NOT JUDGING ANYBODY, WE’RE WARNING THEM.
a. We’re commanded, “Declare to Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin” Micah 3:8.
b. “I have made you a watchman for the people, so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. [If] you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.” Ezekiel 3:17-18. [See also Ezek. 33:6-7]
c. In the N.T., Paul quoted Ezekiel 3 as applying to him; “Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the
blood of all men. For I have not shunned (hesitated) to declare to you the whole counsel of God” Acts 20:26-27.
4. So we have the responsibility, as we have personal contact with people not obeying God, to tell them what God has said. We’re not judging, we’re just saying what God says.
5. Jesus told the woman caught in adultery, “Neither do I condemn you; GO AND SIN NO MORE!” He didn’t condemn her, but he counseled her to sin no more!
B. OUR ATTITUDE MATTERS
1. Peter said, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” 1 Pet. 3:15-16.
2. God loves the sinner but hates the sin. He reaches out to them while there’s still time, so must we.
3. We can't introduce Gay people to Jesus Christ if we're calling them names and driving them away. They must be welcomed into our churches and made to feel accepted and appreciated.
4. At the same time, we must oppose their agenda, which is harmful to society, to families, and ultimately to homosexuals themselves.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: JUDGING CHRISTIANS BY A WRONG STANDARD
1. When visiting a remote neighborhood, a pastor stopped at a house and asked the man who lived there to visit his church the next Sunday, mentioning at the same time that the man's neighbor went to that church.
2. On hearing this, the man said he would never go to that church because he wanted nothing to do with a religion that his neighbor would follow. He said that his neighbor was the worst one he'd ever seen.
3. The pastor, seeing that the man had a piano, asked the man's little girl to play a piece by Beethoven that was lying on the piano.
4. The man said that Beethoven's music was far too advanced for his daughter. But the pastor insisted, and the little girl gave it a try. Needless to say, she almost destroyed the piece.
5. After the little girl was finished, the pastor said, "Boy, that Beethoven's sure wasn't much of a composer, was he?"
6. On hearing this, the man suddenly realized that he, the too, had been judging the music of Christian living by the player rather than by the composer.
7. If there’s anyone here who’s been offended by an over-zealous Christian, remember, look to Jesus, not His followers. They often have flaws! Jesus loves you and is reaching out to you!
B. THE CALL
1. This Thanksgiving, does your family need special prayer? Would you like to come forward and allow us to pray that God touch your family and do something special?
2. Have you been judging people and need more love for people that are messed up and off-track?
3. How many need boldness to say what God is saying, to be unashamed to stand up for the Bible truth regardless of whether people like it or not?
4. Have you been away from God and want to come home to him today?
5. Stand and let’s pray together.
