As a teacher, I was involved in judging competitions various times. I always thought that it was a good thing that I had a score sheet in front of me because sometimes my own prejudices for or against a student would have weighed heavily on my scoring. These days, I’m glad that I am not called on to judge. God is our final judge, so for me to go around judging others and their actions is just wrong in so many ways.

That is not to say that we don’t recognize sin for what it is and speak against it as the Holy Spirit leads us. But we have to be careful about treading into those waters. Sometimes in my zeal to point out the wrongdoing of others, I have offended them so grievously that their view of the Lord is totally skewed. You see, I have a tendency not to offer grace and mercy as He does. I just point out the sin. Then, one day, the Lord spoke clearly to me and told me that He did not mean for be to be the conscience of the world. I am a sinner saved by grace just like everyone else. For me to go around saying to people that what they are doing is a sin, when the Holy Spirit has not led me to do so, is in itself a sin because I am presuming that God cannot deal with that situation Himself. I must admit that sometimes it is hard not to point out obvious sins, like adultery or using the Lord’s Name in vain, but God has not called me to be the “Jiminy Cricket” of the world. He has called me to get my own life straight and He will take care of the rest of the people. That is hard to accept sometimes, especially when we see sin so rampant around us. And He will let me know if and when He wants me to call out people about their sin. We can still call sin what it is, like saying that homosexuality is a sin or abortion is murder. However, I think that approaching an individual about their sin must be preceded by much prayer and wisdom. We must make sure that we are not being offensive, showing the love that the Lord would have us show others. We cannot show others love by slamming them about their sin. Imagine if that is how God treated us. Every day, I would be tiptoeing around, just waiting for the Almighty to assault me. Not a nice visual image, huh? Well, neither is our approach to sinners sometimes. We were not appointed to be the judge. That is God’s job and I am thankful for that truth. I pray that He will help me to remember that in the future and to pray for the sinners and ask the Lord what, if anything, He would like me to say and whom I should approach, if anyone. Love the sinner, hate the sin, and speak nothing unless the Holy Spirit leads! Blessings for a day filled with His grace, wisdom and mercy!