The Measure for Which You are Judged

The Measure for Which You are Judged

What exactly did Jesus mean, when He said: “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven… For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:37-38)?

Judged

What is your standard of judgment?

Bill McCaughan, in the April, May, June, 2019 issue of Power For Today (© 2019 by 20th Century Christian Foundation) answers the question this way: “For me, this is one of the most disturbing statements Jesus ever made. Why? Because it says to me that if I do judge, I will be judged – by my own set of rules. If I do condemn, I will be condemned – by my own set of criteria. If I hold a grudge and fail to forgive – I won’t be forgiven, because I said – by my own actions – that I didn’t want forgiveness.” He is absolutely correct!

Every time we fail to give someone the benefit of the doubt; each time we hang onto all the hurtful little comments someone might’ve made (whether they intended them to be hurtful or not); every time we fail to let go of a wrong suffered (whether real or imagined, actual or only personally perceived in our own minds) we are giving God the exact standard by which we are telling Him we want to be judged. In other words, we are demanding of Him that on Judgment Day, He not give us any benefit of the doubt for anything. We are demanding that God hang onto and judge us for every hurtful little comment we may have ever made to anyone over the course of our life on earth – even if it was purely innocent and unintentional on our part! We are leaving God with no option whatsoever but to judge us just as harshly for every time we ever wronged anyone – or even if anyone ever perceived in their own hearts that we had somehow wronged them – even when we hadn’t! What a terribly scary thought to add to an already terrifying day! And yet, it is true (Matt. 6:12-15, 18:21-35; Lk. 6:37-38).

What is the answer then? As brother McCaughan concludes: “Love each other! Love covers a multitude of sins, of hurts, of perceived wrongs (1 Corinthians 13 [See also 1 Ptr. 4:8]). It covers them up – pulls the tarp right over them so they can’t see the light of day; so they can’t remind us to be upset or resentful… If a Jewish zealot (Simon) could love a Roman tax collector (Matthew), I, too, can love that person who bruised my ego. I can because Jesus and His love can fill me.”

What measure do you want God to use on you? You tell Him every day by the measure you use on others (See Ro. 2:17-24). This is why we must learn to forgive the offender, let go of the hurt we’ve been holding onto, and just live a life of love like we are commanded and empowered by God to do (Eph. 4:31-5:2; Col. 3:8-15), letting Him take care of everything else in the end (Ro. 12:14-21; Hebs. 10:28-31).

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The Folly of Life Without God

The Folly of Life Without God

“Thus says the Lord: ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength,whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,in an uninhabited salt land’” (Jeremiah 17:5-6).

trust

What do you trust in?

My grandfather worked as a truck driver emptying salt water from oil tanks in west Texas. The water was hauled off and disposed so that the land would not be destroyed. One time, we drove through an area of land that looked like it had been bleached. I asked, “What happened here?” The reply: “A salt water spill.” Sometimes the salt water would leak out of the oil tanks. It left a barren patch of dirt on which nothing would grow killing everything.

Jeremiah’s description of a person who trusts in mankind alone reminds me of these barren patches of land. The ultimate abode of a person who only trusts in the wisdom of man is isolation, loneliness, depression, and an empty life. It is when we trust in God first that life becomes a rich panorama of colorful seasons filled with fruit and gladness. God makes real fellowship with others possible. He is the basis upon which we have successful relationships with others. Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40). Let us be diligent to love God and to love our neighbor to reap the abundant life (John 10:10).

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Is it Wrong to Call Someone Good?

Is it Wrong to Call Someone Good?

Jesus said, “Why do you call me good?  No one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18).

Therefore, should Christians refrain from calling anyone “good,” as in “So-and-so is a good person”?

The Greek word translated in English as “good” in Jesus’ conversation with the rich young ruler is agathos, which is defined as “of good constitution or nature,” “useful, salutary,” “good, pleasant, agreeable, joyful, happy,” “excellent, distinguished,” and “upright, honourable.”

Jesus used this same Greek word when he talked of how his Father made his sun to rise on the evil “and on the good” (Matt. 5:45).  He used it when he said, “A good man out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things” (Matt. 12:35).  He used it in a parable when he talked of servants who “gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good” (Matt. 22:10), and in another parable when he told of the master who said to his servant, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21, 23).

Whats-Good

Are you good? Is someone else good? Is that allowed?

In like manner, Luke was inspired by the Holy Spirit of God (2 Pet. 1:19-21) to use this same Greek word to describe Joseph and Barnabas (Luke 23:50; Acts 11:24).  Paul also was inspired to use this same word when he wrote, “…though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die” (Rom. 5:7).

Therefore, it’s clear from how “good” is used repeatedly throughout Scripture to describe imperfect human beings that it is not sinful or erroneous to refer to certain of our fellow man as “good.”  So why did Jesus say to the rich young ruler, “Why do you call me good?  No one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18)?

First, remember that God is the ultimate epitome of goodness due to his sinless perfection and boundless love, patience, grace, and compassion.  While we imperfect human beings can justifiably and biblically be called “good” in certain ways and by various degrees as shown above, none of us can ever attain the degree of goodness possessed by Jehovah due to our sin (Rom. 3:23).

Secondly, Jesus IS God (John 1:1, 14; 10:30; 17:11, 22; 14:9; Phil. 2:6; 2 Cor. 4:4; Col. 1:15, 19).  This fact was brought up repeatedly by him during his preaching and by the miracles he wrought throughout his earthly ministry (cf. Mark 2:5-12).  Because of this, it is clear that when the rich young ruler initially addressed him as “Good Teacher” (Mark 10:17), Jesus immediately saw another opportunity to proclaim himself as Deity.  Thus, he replied, “Why do you call me good?  No one is good except God alone” (v. 18), a subtle but definite hint to the ruler, anyone else who was listening, and to us as readers today that the ruler was addressing Deity when he spoke to Jesus.

Thus, one should take “No one is good except God alone” not as an indictment of sin by Christ against referring to anyone other than God as “good.”  If that was the case, Christ himself as well as his inspired apostles and prophets would have violated his own edict by referring both generally and specifically to imperfect human beings as “good.”  Rather, one should interpret Jesus’ statement to the rich young ruler primarily as an implication of his Deity and secondarily as an indication that our own goodness can never compare to the goodness of God.

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Christian Nobles

Christian Nobles

Meekness does not mean weakness. Humility does not mean timidity. As Christians we need to remember that we have been adopted into a (the) royal family. We are children of the King. We are nobles!

nobles king

Are you living a life of nobility?

Every Christian should live in such a way that their nobility is evident to the entire world. Timothy was “well reported of by the brethren” (Acts 16:2). In Philippi Paul and Silas conducted themselves with nobility. The Bereans “were more noble” then those in Thessalonica. And Paul stood proudly upon Mars’ Hill and proclaimed to the Athenians the one true and living God.

Are we living lives of nobility? Are we conducting ourselves as children of the King? How do we live noble lives? Believe on the Lord Jesus (Acts 16:31) and on His word (Acts 16:32). Study the word (Acts 17:11) and stand boldly for the truth. Be good stewards of our lives and our blessings. Love the Lord, the kingdom, our neighbors, and our enemies. Teach others. Worship and fellow-ship. Be faithful and proud as a noble Christian!

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What is Essential?

What is Essential?

There are many today who will tell you that all you have to do is believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and you will be saved. While those two things are indeed absolutely essential to being saved (Romans 10:9-10), the all-important question is, are they indeed the only two essential requirements in order to be saved like so many claim? If you are someone who believes that they are, and your eternal destination is at all important to you, then please take the time to consider each of the following statements and the Scriptures which accompany them (Acts 17:11).

Essential

Flour is not all that is essential for pancakes. Belief is not all that is essential for salvation.

·       Satan believes in God, for he speaks of Him as existing (Genesis 3:1-5).

·       Satan also believes God is powerful – far more powerful than he is (Job 1:6-10).

·       Satan’s demonic servants believe in God as well – and tremble (James 2:19).

·       Satan’s demonic servants also believe, – yes KNOW – that God is all-powerful (Mark 5:1-13).

·       Satan’s demonic servants not only believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, but also confessed the same on numerous occasions (Matthew 8:28-29, Luke 4:33-35, 40-41).

While confessing with your mouth and believing in your heart that Jesus is Lord are both essential to being saved, they are certainly not the only two items that are essential to salvation as these Biblical examples undeniably prove. If they were, then both Satan and his demons would be headed for heaven for all eternity – which they are not (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10). We see this same Biblical pattern of those who confessed Jesus as Lord and obviously believed in their hearts, but still were not saved simply by those two essential elements alone, in several other Scriptures as well. For example:

  • The highly devout and zealously religious folks listed in Matthew 7:21-23 called Jesus “Lord.” They obviously believed – look at the list of good works they did in His name! But what did Jesus say to them in vs. 23? “I never knew you; depart from Me.” Why? Because even though they had believed in and confessed Him as Lord, they still hadn’t done the other things that were just as essential to their salvation as those two were (Vss. 21, 24-27).
  • Saul of Tarsus, on his way into Damascus, both called Jesus “Lord,” and showed his deeply heart-felt faith/belief by his very obediently following Jesus’ instructions (Acts 9:1-8; See Hebrews, chapter 11). If those two things alone were all that were necessary in order to be saved, then at that point he would have been. However; we know he wasn’t, because even after doing those two things – plus praying hard over the course of three days without food or drink (Vss. 9-11) – he was still in his sins (Acts 22:12-16), not yet being forgiven, or hence saved.
  • Even though King Agrippa knew all about Jesus and believed all that the prophets had written about Him, both the Apostle Paul as well as Agrippa himself knew that those things alone did not make him a Christian (Acts 26:1-28).

Belief and confession can be likened to an engine and a transmission. It is safe to say that he who has an engine and a transmission can drive his car to his intended destination. This is because without both an engine and a transmission, the car will certainly not get him where he intends to go. However, while those two items are absolutely essential to driving his car there, they are certainly not the only two essential elements that are. Tires, framework, and fuel are all just as necessary to his intended travel and destination arrival.

Yes, belief and confession are salvation-essential just as the Bible says (Romans 10:9-10). However, there are several other just as salvation-essential items which cannot be left out, neglected, or overlooked if one is to be truly saved, instead of tragically surprised, when they come before the Lord Jesus on Judgement Day (Matthew 7:21-23).

If you are serious about the safe arrival of your eternal soul to its intended heavenly destination on that day, then please come, and see, and study, and worship with us this coming Lord’s Day. Ask questions. Get full Biblical answers!

For a free and further Bible Study on this subject, please go to https://godswordistruth.org/bible-studies and click on the study entitled: “Complete List Of Biblical Components Necessary For Salvation” in the fourth set of studies in that section. Also, for much more information and Biblical insight, please listen to the full length audio sermon from which the above article was actually taken, at: https://soundcloud.com/user-640047687/044-is-satan-a-christian-4-28-19-am.

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