Judging Others? Stop It! Series

2. Remember You Are Accountable To GOD

The Bible says:

“Each one of us shall give account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this--not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother’s way.” Romans 14:12-13 (NASV)

You are not accountable to me in the ultimate sense of your life. But – remember you are accountable to God. When all is said and done - I am not accountable to you and you are not accountable to me. Both of us are accountable to God who is the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is the ultimate judge. He is the One that all of us will bow our knees before. You and I will be accountable for every action and every word that we have ever spoken - every good word and every bad word. Listen to what Jesus says in Matthew chapter twelve:

"And I say to you, that every careless word that men shall speak, they shall render account for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned." Matthew 12:36-37 (NASV)

How is God going to judge? He is going to judge honestly, fairly, and truthfully. His judgment will not be based on heresy, rumors, or gossip – it will be based on hard cold facts. He will judge impartially. He will judge with justice. And also:

3. Remember God Is Merciful To YOU

In James chapter two he said:

“Judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.” James 2:13 (NASV)

God is merciful. He gives forgiveness where there should be condemnation. Shouldn’t we act the same way? Do you remember the story that Jesus told in Matthew chapter eighteen? It goes something like this:

A man owed $50,000 to his boss. His boss was kind enough to forgive him of the debt. The man then went out and found a guy who owed him $5. He strangled the guy because he wouldn’t pay up. When the boss heard the news – He went to man who had owed him $50,000 and said, “Who do you think you are? I forgave you a huge amount. This other fellow only owed you a little bit – yet you would not forgive him. What’s up with that? Is that how you play the game? Don’t give out what you so richly have received? Remember you will be forgiven in the same manner you forgive.”

God has shown us mercy. God has shown us love. God has shown us forgiveness. How should we treat those who are around us? How should be behave?

This past week I read a poem called: “The Wrecking Crew” Let me read it for you now:

I stood on the street of a busy town,

Watching men tearing a building down.

With a ho heave ho and a lusty yell,

They swung a beam and a side wall fell.

I asked the foreman of the crew,

“Are those men as skilled in all they do?”

“Oh, no, no indeed.” The foreman said.

“That’s just Bob and that’s just Fred.”

“Just common laborers are all I need.

To tear a tear down a building – is a simple deed.

They can tear it down in a day or two.

What took a skilled man a year to build – new.

No skill is involved - no skill do they need,

You see - tearing things down is a simple deed."