Don't condemn people because of theological differences

You are reading my open letter to Rome, part: [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][[10][[11]][12][13][14][15][16]

My friends, I've already told you this, but let me reiterate because it's so critical: there's no need to be judgmental, especially of your brothers and sisters in Messiah. Why attack others for their faults when you've got your hands full with your own struggles?

There are some people who don't eat any meat, for example, while you may be convinced eating meat is entirely acceptable. Either way, don't judge the other guy -- God's accepted both vegetarians and meat-eaters; it's not your place to pass condemning judgment on them over differences like this.

Or maybe some of you celebrate certain holidays, while the rest of you treat all days as equal. Instead of condemning each other for doing and not doing, focus instead on strengthening each other.

Now, it's true that God has set some days as holy, and it's true there are some meats God told us to refrain from. I'm not canceling out those things. Rather, I'm telling you to live in the peace and love of Messiah, differences aside. You can hold strong opinions on those things and have strong theological stances on them, just be sure they take a back seat to love in Messiah. I keep coming back to this theme of love because it's so important: It's the whole purpose of the Law and the prophets, everything in Scripture! Loving each other and loving God fulfills it all. Keep that in mind before you condemn your brothers and sisters in Messiah over your theological differences.

It helps to remember where you're headed: kneeling in front of the Judge, our Master, Jesus the Messiah. Can you picture yourself saying, "But Master, surely you can pardon my wrongdoing, after all, I ate only vegetables!" Or will you proudly proclaim, "Lord, have mercy on me, for I condemned everyone who didn't celebrate the holidays!"? Such things aren't going to help you out when your time comes.

Now that I've put it in that context, I hope you see the trivial nature of these things.

So, if your brother is weakened by what you eat, stop eating it. If he stumbles because you drink wine, stop drinking wine. Love him and help him out -- after all, Messiah's life-giving sacrifice paid for both of you equally. Then you can settle your differences.

Standing up for what's right

Don't be confused, I'm not telling you to roll over and let your convictions fall by the wayside -- if you're convinced what you're doing is right before God, don't let others call it evil. You can and should stand up for what's right.

What I'm saying is this: love first. If you stand up for what you believe is right, do it in love and not out of condemnation.

And when you do make a stand for what's right, do it as if God's standing right next to you, listening to every word. Do it out of faith and love, not out of some selfish desire to be right while boosting your ego. Stand up for what's right using faith and love, and ultimately you'll be fulfilling the Law even if your theology is off.

Religious people: stop judging and condemning!

You are reading my open letter to Rome, part: [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][[10][[11]][12][13][14][15][16]

Those humanistic people I talked about are on a dark spiral downward. But if you think that leaves you on the high ground where you can point your finger at others, think again. Every time you criticize someone, you condemn yourself. It takes one to know one. Judgmental criticism of others is a well-known way of escaping detection in your own crimes and misdemeanors. But God isn't so easily diverted. He sees right through all such smoke screens and holds you to what you've done.

You didn't think, did you, that just by pointing your finger at others you would distract God from seeing all your misdoings and from coming down on you hard? Or did you think that because he's such a nice God, he'd let you off the hook? Better think this one through from the beginning. God is kind, but he's not soft. In kindness he takes us firmly by the hand and leads us into a radical life-change.

You're not getting by with anything. Every refusal and avoidance of God adds fuel to the fire. The day is coming when it's going to blaze hot and high, God's fiery and righteous judgment. Make no mistake: In the end you get what's coming to you-- Real Life for those who work on God's side, but to those who insist on getting their own way and take the path of least resistance, Fire!

God's way goes against the world's way

If you go against the grain, you get splinters, regardless of which neighborhood you're from, what your parents taught you, what schools you attended. But if you embrace the way God does things, there are wonderful payoffs, again without regard to where you are from or how you were brought up. Being a Jew won't give you an automatic stamp of approval. God pays no attention to what others say (or what you think) about you. He makes up his own mind.

God's rights and wrongs are ingrained into us

If you sin without knowing what you're doing, God takes that into account. But if you sin knowing full well what you're doing, that's a different story entirely. Merely hearing God's law is a waste of your time if you don't do what he commands. Doing, not hearing, is what makes the difference with God.

When outsiders who have never heard of God's law follow it more or less by instinct, they confirm its truth by their obedience. They show that God's law is not something alien, imposed on us from without, but woven into the very fabric of our creation. There is something deep within them that echoes God's yes and no, right and wrong. Their response to God's yes and no will become public knowledge on the day God makes his final decision about every man and woman. The Message from God that I proclaim through Jesus Christ takes into account all these differences.

Being religious doesn't mean you're following God!

If you're brought up Jewish, don't assume that you can lean back in the arms of your religion and take it easy, feeling smug because you're an insider to God's revelation, a connoisseur of the best things of God, informed on the latest doctrines! I have a special word of caution for you who are sure that you have it all together yourselves and, because you know God's revealed Word inside and out, feel qualified to guide others through their blind alleys and dark nights and confused emotions to God. While you are guiding others, who is going to guide you? I'm quite serious. While preaching "Don't steal!" are you going to rob people blind? Who would suspect you? The same with adultery. The same with idolatry. You can get by with almost anything if you front it with eloquent talk about God and his law. The line from Scripture, "It's because of you Jews that the outsiders are down on God," shows it's an old problem that isn't going to go away.

Circumcision, the surgical ritual that marks you as a Jew, is great if you live in accord with the Law. But if you don't, it's worse than not being circumcised. The reverse is also true: The uncircumcised who keep God's ways are as good as the circumcised-- in fact, better. Better to keep God's law uncircumcised than break it circumcised. Don't you see: It's not the cut of a knife that makes a Jew. You become a Jew by who you are. It's the mark of God on your heart, not of a knife on your skin, that makes a Jew. And recognition comes from God, not legalistic critics.