Doubtful Disputations

If God loves variety that much and has created so many people through the ages, shouldn’t it be reasonable to believe and accept that God also allows for those differences in living a sanctified and holy life unto Him. No wonder He says that each of us is to work out our own salvation.

I cannot lay my personal convictions of what a sanctified life must be upon you and you can’t do that for me. The sanctified and holy life that you live before God is what God has placed upon your heart just as it is for mine.

Paul says that there is nothing evil within itself. To believe that certain types of meat are evil or that some days are more evil than others is to believe that the Creator gave us great stumbling-blocks to make us fall from grace. I can’t believe that my God, who is pure love and wants us to live with Him for eternity would create things just to trip cause us to fail.

It is not a question of which day is better than another. It is not a question of whether one food is better than another. It is not a question of which clothes are better, or which of anything is better than another. The whole problem is that we tend to judge righteousness by our standards rather by the standards of love, compassion and understanding that God uses. He looks upon the heart, not upon the outward appearances.

Please, do not misunderstand. I cannot and do not condone living any way we want to. There must be fruits meet for repentance. There must be a holy, sanctified life for without holiness, no man will see God.

Anyone who truly has a relationship with Jesus Christ will do everything in his or her power to be like Jesus. We will ever strive for perfection and to be made into His perfect image. Sin has no place in the life of a believer. But, it is not my place to condemn another brother because he does things differently or believes in some minor point of doctrine differently than I do.

Too many of us have an attitude like the one I have heard stated in some of the motivational speeches. I have heard it said that you could criticize anyone as long as you say “Bless Their Heart” before you spew out the venom of criticism and judgmental attitudes.

Well, I just want to say, “Bless their Heart”, those people who use their own self-righteousness, that is like filthy rags in the sight of God, to judge another, had better stop and do a check up on their own relationship with Jesus. Most of the time, the one who does the criticizing has real problems with condemnation, pride in his heart and a spirit of prejudice that is far more damaging than the one who he criticizes.

Paul’s words to the Roman church are simple. Quit judging other people by your own standards. Quit condemning those who believe or act different. While there are some things that are obviously sinful, not everything that you don’t like is sinful. Not everything that you consider sinful to yourself is sinful for others. It’s what in the heart that matters.

Whatever is in the heart will be made manifest in time! You can’t fake it forever. The real you will be revealed.