Thou Condemnest Thyself
By David J. Stewart
Romans 2:1, “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.”
The Bible plainly warns that anyone who condemns another person is
condemning them self. God hates gossip, which is nothing more than pure
condemnation of others. Most gossip is true. Some people think gossip is ok
if the allegations can be proven. It matters not, it is still commendation
of others. If a woman has divorced two husbands, it's none of anyone's
business. To bring up her past and throw such allegations in her face in an
attempt to discredit her is sinful hypocrisy. Everyone has a skeleton
closet.
The very name of Satan means “one who accuses.” We read in Revelation 12:10 concerning Satan... “for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.”
The Bible teaches in Romans 2:1-4...
Romans 2:1-4, “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?”
Notice what God said in verse 1... “for thou that judgest doest the same things.” Since all people commit sins, no one has a right to condemn another sinner, for to do so is to turn a blind eye to one's own sins (which is hypocrisy!). When we gossip about someone else, we are claiming that they are a bigger sinner than we are. Most people who gossip sincerely believe that by the way, that is, that they aren't as horrible as the person they are roasting with their gossiping tongue. When you gossip about a person, spreading information about them that is damaging to their name, you might as well put a gun to their head.
The Bible teaches that when we condemn another person, we are really condemning our self. God will hold us accountable for the damage done. Ecclesiastes 9:18, “Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good.” I know the Devil is going to mess things up, but I don't want to be the one that the Devil uses to do it! I want to think right, do right, and live right. Thankfully, by the blood of Jesus, I am right. Amen! God's grace is sufficient and He will help us to live for Him.
I love Philippians 2:13, “For it is God
which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” I
love that Scripture so much! God works in me both to WILL and to DO of His
good pleasure. You may not even realize that the place you just moved to was
put into your heart by God (for a divine purpose which only God knows). God
has given to man a freewill, but He guides those who obey Him, controlling
our will as we submit to Him (Proverbs 3:5-7). Since we have chosen to obey
God, then we are giving Him permission to control our will as well. God
takes the lemons in our life and makes lemonade. Romans 8:28, “And we
know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them
who are the called according to his purpose.”
RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT
The question naturally arises... so how do you discern between fulfilling one's Christian duty to refute all works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11) verses refraining from gossip? Where do you draw the line? The answer is simple...
Gossip seeks to assassinate a person's character to discredit them, hurt them, revenge, profit from it like the newsmedia does, or draw attention to the person's sins and mistakes. Much gossip is done in hatred of others, but most for cheap entertainment. In sharp contrast, Biblical preaching only concerns itself with exposing public wickedness, refuting things that are dangerous to society (such as false doctrines, the homosexual movement, abortion, feminism, the occult, worldly singers and musicians who are leading churches into the apostate Ecumenical Movement). Biblical preaching aims at being constructive; whereas gossip is always destructive in nature.
Granted, Biblical preaching makes the wicked angry, and so they accuse preachers of lacking love, promoting hatred, and of hypocrisy. The evil religious leaders in Jesus' time tried desperately to find fault in Him. They hated Him because He spoke the truth, and the world hates preaching Christians today as well. John 15:18-19 and 23, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. ... He that hateth me hateth my Father also.” The world will not bother a worldly believer who hides their candle under a bushel, never takes a stand for God, never shares the gospel, and never lifts a finger to do anything for God. The Bible teaches in 2nd Timothy 3:12 that they who live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution in this world. And so it is!
So don't be afraid to step on toes and take a stand for God. Just don't condemn anyone on a personal basis for the purpose of being mean, cruel or getting back at them because they hurt your feelings (or you simply don't like the person). That is a sin. If you do condemn them, then God has promised to condemn you too (Matthew 7:2-5). God knows our heart and our intents. Regardless of what we say, God KNOWS our innermost thoughts and motives, and will judge accordingly (Proverbs 24:12; Hebrews 4:12). God knows if we're sincerely trying to contend for the Christian faith, or if we just want to ruin somebody's reputation and ministry because we hate them. Proverbs 24:12, “If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works?”
Gossip is sinful, attacking the person instead of the sin. And my oh my how people deceive themselves when they gossip. They say such things phony as, “So-and-so is a good person, but...” or “We really need to pray for so-and-so because...” As a general rule, keep your mouth shut if the person being gossiping about wouldn't want others to hear what you're saying.
One woman filed for divorce, sinfully
abandoning her husband as he pled in tears for her not to leave. She was
cold-hearted, showing no mercy, no forgiveness. She was as much a sinner as
he, but she only focused on his sins, condemning him (and thus condemning
herself as Romans 2:1 warns). At prayer meetings at church, she weekly
brought up her husband to criticize him openly. The husband wasn't a member
of the church. In fact, it was the people at church who were instrumental in
causing the divorce. I'll, tell you, churches are becoming one of the most
dangerous places on earth to be these days.
THE SIN OF REJOICING OVER FALLEN ENEMIES
I love Proverbs Chapter 24. Here's some more awesome Scriptures in Proverbs 24:17-18, “Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.” We all, every one of us, feel some degree of gladness when our enemies get their just deserts; yet God says not to do that. We are to pray for our enemies and not to rejoice in their calamities. A divorced couple should NEVER rejoice in hearing of something horrible that has happened to each other. There is no hatred in the world like in divorce court. I heard an attorney say he'd rather handle murder cases than a divorce. There's more hatred in a divorce trial than there is from the victims of a murder victim in a murder trial.
Sadly, some of the most malicious and intense hatred I've witnessed is between Independent Fundamental Baptist preachers. This shouldn't be! They slander each other and hateful people post it all over the internet. It'll be a cold day in Hell before I put that garbage on the internet to shame the name of Christ. I never attack people on a personal level, for I am as big a sinner as anybody. In fact, I am the biggest sinner I know (and so are you if you're right with God). Only a self-righteous hypocrites goes around pointing out the sins of others. They are in fact condemning them self (Romans 2:1).
Jesus taught that to point a finger at others (trying to remove the sliver from their eye) is to have three fingers (a beam in your own eye) pointing back at you (Matthew 7:3-5). I condemn no one!
Romans 8:34 asks... WHO IS HE THAT CONDEMNETH? The implied answer is that NO ONE has the right! Christ paid the price for our sins and is now seated on the right-hand of the Father, interceding as our heavenly High Priest (Hebrews 4:15-16). The only opinion that matters is God's my friend, and if you have been washed in the blood of Jesus, you have nothing to worry about ever again. It doesn't matter what people say.
When David sinned (committing adultery and murder), his enemies would never allow him to live it down. Like little squabbling children, David's enemies came to him and said they saw what he did... Psalms 35:21, “Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, and said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it.” There never saw anything! What a bunch of liars! I'll tell you, people can really be jerks. David became frustrated because people condemned him left and right for what he had done. Although God had forgiven him, people wouldn't. Just remember friend, men can only condemn you to your grave; but God will condemn the wicked to Hell for all eternity.
David eventually came to realize that the
matter of his sins were between him and God alone... Psalms 51:4,
“Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight:
that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou
judgest.” David came to realize that sin is the breaking of God's Laws,
and when God forgives a person, no one else has a say in the matter. David
knew that people would never stop condemning him until the day he died; but
he had perfect peace in his heart in knowing that God had forgiven him.
ARE YOU SAVED?
2nd Thessalonians 1:8-9 plainly warns that God will pour out His vengeance upon the wicked for ever. For the time being, God is patient with the wicked and the unthankful (Luke 6:35); but God's merciful patience and longsuffering will suddenly end the very second your soul leaves this earthly body and enters into God's hands (Ecclesiastes 12:7; Hebrews 10:31). Your days of stubborn rebellion, idolatrous false religion, pompous pride, and the lusts of the flesh will have come to a crashing halt. Then you will find out what Hell is really like. The grave is merely a doorway to your future, whether it be glory or gory. You've never watched a horror movie in your life which can compare to the horrors awaiting all Christ-rejecters in Hell.
You'll beg for a single drop of water and be denied. You'll cry out in blood curdling screams of terror and agony, but no one will listen. Your name will rot. Proverb 10:7, “The memory of the just is blessed: but the name of the wicked shall rot.” You will be forgotten and overwhelmed with grief when you see others enjoying themselves in Heaven, while you're rotting in the torments of Hell. Luke 13:28, “There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.” You've been lied to by Satan all your life about the big party awaiting you in Hell. Yeah, good luck with that. The true party, happiness, and rejoicing will be in Heaven; but the only thing that will be occurring in the Lake of Fire is burning flesh, screaming agony, and excruciating inexplicable pain, where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched. It's your choice! It is YOUR CHOICE! You DO have a choice! God never choose who gets saved, never! It is totally up to you alone.
The most important decision you'll ever make is where you're going to spend eternity. The decisions is in fact yours alone to make. I've already made my choice by receiving Jesus Christ. How about you? John 1:12, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”
