You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things. Romans 2:1 NLT
In the last verses of Romans 1, a letter from Paul to the Christians in Rome, Paul appears to deliver a blistering list of sins and flaws in the world around him. He sounds like a stereotypical old-time preacher, lambasting the evil world around him to the hearty “Amens” and “Help them Lords” from an enthusiastic and supportive congregation.
But in the next breath he takes a quick turn that had to have left them with their heads spinning. He says, “Yeah, you are quick to condemn these people, but you are just as bad as they are and YOU, you ‘Christians,’ you who know Jesus, have no excuse. When you condemn them, have the integrity to realize you are condemning yourself because you do the same things.” What are these terrible things and is there even a chance we do them too? Well, while he does mention two things we would consider “big ticket” and justifiable reasons for avoiding and condemning people (murder and hating God), the rest of these sins are garden variety too often growing in our own back yards. Check it out: greed, hate, envy, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, gossip, backstabbing, insolent, proud, boastful. “They disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy.”
Honesty check. In your circle of friends, in your own family, are there those who sometimes fit those descriptions? How about you? Yes, of course you do. But here’s how we talk about our problems: “Yes, I guess to be truthful I struggle with stretching the truth sometimes. I do struggle with talking too much and not always kindly with my friends when I am upset, but it’s about my kids.” WE ‘struggle with it.’ There’s always a justifiable or understandable reason for it. But when the same behavior applies to someone in our “difficult person” group, they receive little mercy from us. They are “liars, hateful, gossipers, promise breakers.”
Paul is not saying any of that is just all right and should be no cause for concern, but he is calling on followers of Jesus to realize our behavior is to be better than those without Christ. Instead of pointing fingers, we must examine our own hearts through God’s eyes. This knowledge should foster compassion, not superiority and rejection, as we are all only worthy through grace and mercy.
- Jesus, I am who I am because of You. Whatever good is in me is a trophy of Your grace and mercy. Help me be willing to show that kind of love to people who are not natural matches for me or even naturally easy. Love for all of us wasn’t easy for You, and You were sinless. It was very costly. Love always is. Help me.