And all these things are from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:18

If there is one thing that makes us totally united as Christians it’s that we all fall short of God’s glory (Rom 2:23). We’re all sinners who need a Savior. Even at our best, our good deeds are so tainted God compares them to rags (Is 64:6). Whether you or I are seen by others as pillars of the faith or barely Christian, our total dependence on Jesus is the great equalizer.

I know Paul told a church in one case to remove a sinner from their midst, but that was someone who was bragging about their sin—in fact the whole church was bragging about it. To use that to justify judgment of others or a judgmental attitude is to misuse the Bible. It’s plain falseness.

The truth is that we are equal in Jesus. Every time we think less of someone else, we forget that we are also sinners. That truth is easier to superficially acknowledge than it is to fully consistently live out in our hearts and attitudes. Only the humble can walk this one out in our daily lives.

Only the meek and contrite heart can fathom just how far Jesus went to rescue each of us. Humility like that has only one source: Jesus. As we draw near to Him, as we lift Him up, as our heart’s fixation is on Him, we’re too overwhelmed with who He is and what He has done for us to be caught up in judging another. There is a reason why people in the Bible who got a glimpse of God’s glory fell on their faces confessing their own sinfulness (e.g. Is 6:1-6).

So what we do with our own judgmental heart is to fix our eyes on Jesus instead of the people around us (Heb 12:2). Being caught up in Him gives us a truthful picture of ourselves and others.

But how do we handle those who judge those around us? Or maybe they judge us? That can be both bothersome and challenging. We’ll look at that next time.