Often we are accused of "judging" people. How many times have you had the phrase, "Doesn't the Bible say, don't judge people?" thrown into your face? Personally, more times than I can remember.
Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, that you be not judged.
Judging isn't evaluating someone's actions and examining them in the light of God's Word.
Jesus did that, and sometimes His actions were quite abrupt. (Tossing tables in the temple is one that comes to my mind.)
As I sit there in Starbucks, I can see a student to my left who is focused on some project with determination. Knowing that graduation is upon us, I think he's got to get this done or not walk the line.
At the counter is a young couple. They are definitely in love, but their body language says they are struggling to be accepted by others.
There is a middle-aged man over in the corner who is intensely surfing the internet. I suspect he needs to find a job and right now.
The team of baristas behind the counter is quite a dysfunctional bunch. They barely speak to each other, and even weirder, they refuse to look at each other in the eye.
Now I am probably wrong on most of this, but I know that someone is thinking right now - "Russ, you are some nosey person, you shouldn't do that."
Really?
Jesus would see people. He especially would see the poor and beggar, the sick, the rejected, and the lost. He would see people that society refused to look at. The ones that they ignored.
No matter where you are in life, Jesus sees you. He sees your need, He sees your hurts, and He sees your heart. He didn't judge them. He let their actions determine His response. If they accepted Him by faith, He embraced them just as they were. If they rejected Him, He let them know that they lack of faith was going to be their undoing.
Jesus would see people in His Fathers image. People created with a purpose to glorify and worship God with all their heart, soul and strength.
So what do I see? I see people in need of a Savior who will love them and change their lives. I see people who need forgiveness and hope. I see people who need God to intervene in their heart and life.
Look around you today - What do you see?
PRAY: Dear Jesus, help me to see people the way you see them. AMEN
Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, that you be not judged.
Judging isn't evaluating someone's actions and examining them in the light of God's Word.
Jesus did that, and sometimes His actions were quite abrupt. (Tossing tables in the temple is one that comes to my mind.)
As I sit there in Starbucks, I can see a student to my left who is focused on some project with determination. Knowing that graduation is upon us, I think he's got to get this done or not walk the line.
At the counter is a young couple. They are definitely in love, but their body language says they are struggling to be accepted by others.
There is a middle-aged man over in the corner who is intensely surfing the internet. I suspect he needs to find a job and right now.
The team of baristas behind the counter is quite a dysfunctional bunch. They barely speak to each other, and even weirder, they refuse to look at each other in the eye.
Now I am probably wrong on most of this, but I know that someone is thinking right now - "Russ, you are some nosey person, you shouldn't do that."
Really?
Jesus would see people. He especially would see the poor and beggar, the sick, the rejected, and the lost. He would see people that society refused to look at. The ones that they ignored.
No matter where you are in life, Jesus sees you. He sees your need, He sees your hurts, and He sees your heart. He didn't judge them. He let their actions determine His response. If they accepted Him by faith, He embraced them just as they were. If they rejected Him, He let them know that they lack of faith was going to be their undoing.
Jesus would see people in His Fathers image. People created with a purpose to glorify and worship God with all their heart, soul and strength.
So what do I see? I see people in need of a Savior who will love them and change their lives. I see people who need forgiveness and hope. I see people who need God to intervene in their heart and life.
Look around you today - What do you see?
PRAY: Dear Jesus, help me to see people the way you see them. AMEN
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