Our Responsibility To Make Judgment Calls Series

Our Responsibility to Make Judgment Calls

(I Thessalonians 5:14)

1. A New Barna report came out this week (Sept 07):

"The new study shows that only 3% of 16 - to 29-year-old non-Christians express favorable views of evangelicals…

"… Among young non-Christians, nine out of the top 12 perceptions were negative. Common negative perceptions include that present-day Christianity is judgmental (87%), hypocritical (85%), old-fashioned (78%), and too involved in politics (75%)"

[source: www.barna.org]

2. We have never been on the "what’s hot" list, but we evangelicals are viewed with more contempt than ever.

3. But the article continues:

"Even among young Christians, many of the negative images generated significant traction. Half of young churchgoers said they perceive Christianity to be judgmental, hypocritical, and too political. One-third said it was old-fashioned and out of touch with reality." [source: www.barna.org]

4. I asked myself those questions. Are some of these perceptions based on reality?

|5. The answer, I think, is often yes and no. There is no doubt that the church needs significant improvement.

6. But some of these criticisms reflect a difference of view about absolute truth. We have moved into the Post-Modern era, yet God’s Word is Supra-modern -- always beyond and ahead of the time.

7. Whereas the Golden Rule of Postmodernism is to never judge others, Biblical Christianity mandates that we make tentative judgments about others for the purpose of helping them. Indeed, the quality of wisdom is about making good judgments. That’s why Post-modern strikes many of us as less than wise.

We understand Jesus to condemn judging by a double standard, not judging in particular.

Matthew 7:1-2, "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

John 7:24: "Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment." Christ here encourages us to judge, and to do so rightly.

1 Corinthians 2:15 says, "The spiritual man makes judgments about all things..."

Paul goes on to scold the Corinthians for refusing to make necessary judgments in 1 Corinthians 6:22, "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?"

8. We cannot tell exactly where the line is, but we can detect when one is way across the line is where we must look, and we must search things out beyond the obvious.

• Some believers are weak when it comes to people skills. They are not comfortable with being human themselves and they tend to be unrealistic about others.

• Some people feel too responsible for the behavior of others.

• Cain’s attitude toward his brother is the attitude some Christians take.

• And it is up to us to try to figure out what we can do to help others as they go through life with the Lord. We may not be our brother’s keeper, but we are to be our brother’s helper.

• Note that this urging in verse 14 is given to "brothers," not just leaders.

Main Idea: Although we do not need to verbally label people, we need to understand where different people are at in their lives and thinking if we are to significantly help them. We need to develop our people skills and direct them toward growth.

I. Sometimes Brothers and Sisters Need to Be WARNED (14a)

warn = ??u????? = noutheteo = admonish, warn advise

Romans 15:14 uses this word, "And concerning you, my brethren, I myself also am convinced that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able also to admonish one another."

When we admonish, we have to care about those we admonish and help our brothers or sisters find realistic alternatives…

A. The LAZY

1. Some people are lazy when it comes to work

2. The fear of work

A man told his doctor that he wasn’t able to do all the things around the house that he used to do.

When the exam was complete, he said, "Now, Doc, I can take it. Tell me in plain English what is wrong with me."

"Well, in plain English," the doctor said, "you’re just lazy."

"Okay," said the man. "Now give me the medical term so I can tell my wife."

3. Well, sometimes things are not that simple. According to Medterms.com:

"Fear of work: An abnormal and persistent fear of work. Sufferers of this fear experience undue anxiety about the workplace environment even though they realize their fear is irrational. Their fear may actually be a combination of fears, such fear of failing at assigned tasks, fear of speaking before groups at work, or fear of socializing with co-workers.

"Fear of work is termed "ergophobia," a word derived from the Greek "ergon" (work) and "phobos" (fear)."