Lawyers and Judges

Whilst I don't like the fact, it is true that sometimes I make mistakes – errors of judgement, things said or done instinctively – that I later live to regret. But then, the same is doubtless true of you because we all make mistakes, amen?! And here's how we play it. When we make a mistake, we either try to ignore it or rationalise it away by making some excuse to let ourselves off the hook. But woe and betide that someone else should make a mistake that impacts our lives or even just slightly inconveniences us. Then we react! Then we let loose – either verbally or by hardening our hearts toward them. As someone once said, we seem to be very good lawyers for our own mistakes but very harsh judges when it comes to the mistakes of others. Why is that? Why is it that when others do something wrong we don't remember that they're human too, that they have "stuff" going on in their lives too, that they have hurts and pressures and scars and flaws that impact their behaviour too? Why exactly is that?! Jesus gave the many people listening to His famed Sermon on the Mount a pretty strong wakeup call on this very thing: Matthew 7:1-2 Don't judge others, and God will not judge you. If you judge others, you will be judged the same way you judge them. God will treat you the same way you treat others. Would you please note the sting in the tail to His stern warning. God will treat you the same way you treat others. Stop judging them so harshly. That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.