Condemnation Vs Forgiveness
Luke 6:37 "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”
Have you ever met anyone with a "critical spirit"? No matter what you did, it was wrong? They had a "negative attitude"? They are never wrong in their own eyes. Man, what a downer! Jesus did not relieve us of the need for discerning between right and wrong, but he condemned unjust and critical judging of others. Don't judge someone for something that you are guilty of yourself!
The Pharisees in Jesus day were always trying to catch somebody doing something wrong. They were on the "lookout" for sin, you might say! That's why they were always criticizing Jesus. They had a standard they themselves couldn't follow, but buddy, if they caught YOU in a fault, watch out!
A judgmental or critical spirit is often a camouflage for hidden sin. Accusing, casting blame and placing guilt is a substitute for confessing and purging sin in one’s own life. I worked in welfare for a number of years and learned a lot about human behavior. One thing that I learned was that when someone is unjustly accusing you of something, that says a LOT about their own shortcomings!
Don't condemn, because there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus for those who believe in Him. How will the world accept this truth, if you are always measuring out condemnation? Most "sinners" know full well what they are doing wrong. What they DON'T know is how to do it right. If we are always condemning their wrong behavior, and making them feel worse, how will we ever introduce them to freedom in Jesus? BY LOVING them unconditionally.
Man, this is HARD! To ignore, put up with, overlook, and forgive when they are unkind or even abusive to you. We need more of God's grace than ever before. How do you deal with someone who is hard to get along with? That's something you need to pray about. Consider this, you might be the only one who will stick with them during these hard times, the only one through unconditional love who can get her to really get to know Jesus.
"Forgive and you will be forgiven". What if you don't forgive, what happens? YOU WILL NOT BE FORGIVEN PERIOD! OUCH you mean it isn't optional? Jesus said it wasn't. Do we ever need His love (agape) and grace to be able to forgive! If you do not forgive you are the one to suffer. Unforgiveness blocks out blessings.
How about those who can’t forgive themselves? That's tough, because for some it's a lot easier to forgive others than themselves. But as we get closer to the Lord and receive more of His love, self-acceptance and love do come - as we are able to handle it.
We try to categorize sin, don't we? That such and such is worse than another sin. ALL sin separates us from God, and all can and will be forgiven IF we confess them to God. However, if you harbor unforgiveness in your heart, YOU WILL DAMN YOUR SOUL. Sorry to be so blunt, but unforgiveness is a serious matter.
Now realize that the OTHER person won't always accept your forgiveness, or wants to put conditions on it or wants to demand it be done a certain way. You are NOT responsible for their reaction - all you are responsible for is forgiving them and leaving the results to God.
ANY sin will separate you from God if it's not confessed, but God does seem to hate some sins worse than others - some are called abominations, such as witchcraft and rebellion. Some sins tend to be harder to overcome, and open you more to satanic oppression and control, such as witchcraft.
Are we not all sinners? Until we receive Jesus, yes. Afterwards, no! A sinner is one who habitually disobeys God and does not have the ability NOT to sin. After we are born again, we have the ability NOT to sin if we yield to the Spirit and obey the Word. We may sin occasionally, but not habitually.
Just remember that if you sin, ask for forgiveness right away. If someone hurts or offends you, forgive them right away whether they apologize or not. That way, you keep yourself clean inside and free from bitterness. Don’t condemn, forgive!
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