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Particulars
of Christianity:
312
The Church Ethic
Part 2:
The Bible Instructs Us to Judge
Forgiving and Forgiveness
Part 1: Biblical Limitations on Judging
Part 2: The Bible Instructs Us to
Judge
Verses
Which Instruct Us to Judge
Since there are so many verses that will be covered in this
next section (on instructions for Christians to judge) we
will group them according the protocols that they establish.
(In some cases we have included Strong's Reference #'s in
case the reader wishes to look up the Greek word used and
see how it relates to judging.)
In order to conserve space we have not quoted the passages
themselves, but have only provided the rule regarding judging
followed by the verse references, which establish that rule.
As always, we encourage the reader to look up each of these
passages and examine them for themselves.
Judging in general
1. We can know or identify (judge) whether a person is godly
or not (their character) by their fruit (words and actions)
which we can identify/judge as good or bad - (Matthew 7:15-20,
Matthew 12:33, Luke 6:43)
2. We can judge what is right or wrong - Luke 12:57
3. We are to judge rightly, justly, (1342) according to the
judgments of God, not according to man's wisdom or the outward
appearance (3799) - (John 8:26, 1 Corinthians 2:10-16, 2 Corinthians
10:6)
4. As spiritual men, we judge, examine, investigate, estimate
(350) all things - (1 Corinthians 2:15)
5. We are to judge in small matters - (1 Corinthians 6:2)
6. We are to judge things that pertain to this life - (1 Corinthians
6:3-4, 1 Corinthians 7:25,40, 1 Corinthians 11:13)
7. We are to judge and evaluate our own thoughts - (2 Corinthians
10:5)
8. Our love should abound in knowledge and judgment - (Philippians
1:9)
9. We are to use the scripture to learn and understand doctrine,
to instruct, to reprove, to correct - (2 Timothy 3:16)
10. We are to be able to discern both good and evil - (Hebrews
5:14)
Judging ourselves
1. We must judge and examine ourselves (first, before
we judge others) - (Matthew 7:5, Luke 6:32, 1 Corinthians
11:31, 2 Corinthians 13:5)
2. We must examine and check (3985) ourselves to see if we
are in the faith - (2 Corinthians 13:5)
3. We are to examine ourselves before we partake of communion
- (1 Corinthians 11:28)
4. We are to prove examine, scrutinize, test our own work
(1381) - (Galatians 6:4)
Judging other Christians
1. We can identify when a Christian has sinned against us
and refute/rebuke them for it - (Matthew 18:15-17)
b. First go privately to such a person, if they don't respond,
then
c. Second, we can tell one or two others about it and go to
the one who has wronged us, taking these others with us, if
they still don't respond, then
d. Third, we can bring them before the church, if they still
don't respond, then
e. Fourth, we excommunicate them.
2. We can identify and make judgments about how to help each
other with problems if we first examine ourselves thoroughly
and are do not also struggle with the same problems ourselves
- (Matthew 7:3-5, Luke 6:41-42)
3. We can assess each other's faithfulness to the Lord - (Acts
16:15)
4. We are to admonish and warn (3560) one another - (Romans
15:14)
5. We can identify and judge those in the church
6. We can identify, judge (2919), and reprove (1651) those
in the church as fornicators (4205), covetous (4123, those
greedy to gain, eager to have more, esp. of belongings of
other persons), idolators (1496, used of any one, even Christian,
who participates in any way in the worship of the heathen),
railers (3060), drunkards (3183), and/or extortioners (727)
- we cannot fellowship with such people, but must excommunicate
them - (1 Corinthians 5:9-13, Ephesians 5:3-7,10-11)
7. We are to judge disputes between other Christians - (1
Corinthians 6:5)
8. Church leaders should admonish and warn those in their
congregations who they are discipling (1 Thessalonians 5:12)
9. We are to warn and admonish the unruly or deviating from
the prescribed order (813)- (1 Thessalonians 5:14, Romans
16:17)
10. We are to identify and not fellowship with those who do
not obey the Word of God, but to admonish (3560) them - (2
Thessalonians 3:14-15, Romans 16:17)
11. Judgment must begin in/at/from the house of God first-
(1 Peter 4:17)
Judging Church leadership
1. We can judge whether a person is a false prophet by their
actions and deeds - ( Matthew 7:15-20)
2. We are to judge what our leaders say - (1 Corinthians 10:15)
3. We are to judge what those who claim to be prophets say
- (1 Corinthians 14:29)
4. We are to judge if a man is qualified to be a leader in
the church - (1 Timothy 3:1-12)
5. We are to rebuke church leaders who have been accused by
two or three witnesses before the congregation so others may
learn - (1 Timothy 5:19-20)
6. We are to test those who claim to be apostles - (Revelation
2:2)
Judging in the Church in general
1. We are to speak the same thing, have no divisions, and
be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same
judgment - (1 Corinthians 1:10)
Judging those who are not part of the Church
1. We can affirm the condemnation of those who reject us and
the Gospel we hold to - (Matthew 10:14-15, Mark 6:11, Luke
9:5, Luke 10:10-11)
Judging doctrines and beliefs
1. We are to search, examine and look critically at (350)
the scripture to see if what church leaders are teaching us
is true and right - (Acts 17:11)
2. We are to examine, scrutinize, and verify (1381) what
God's will is - (Romans 12:2)
3. We are to judge what our leaders say - (1 Corinthians 10:15)
4. We are to be able to identify and distinguish between heresies
and approved doctrine - (1 Corinthians 11:19)
5. We are to judge the words of those who claim to be prophets
- (1 Corinthians 14:29)
6. We are to judge ideas and everything that exalts itself
against the knowledge of God - (2 Corinthians 10:5)
7. We must examine, check (1381) ourselves to see if we are
in the faith - (2 Corinthians 13:5)
8. We are to prove, examine, test what is acceptable to God
- (Ephesians 5:10-11)
9. We are to examine, test, prove all things - (1 Thessalonians
5:21)
10. We are to hold to the faithful word as it was taught from
the beginning, which was imparted by those who penned the
New Testament - (1 Thessalonians 5:21, 2 Timothy 1:13, Titus
1:9)
11. We are to study to show ourselves approved unto God, rightly
dividing the word of truth - (2 Timothy 2:15)
12. We are to use the scripture to learn and understand doctrine,
to instruct, to reprove, to correct - (2 Timothy 3:16)
13. We are to reprove, rebuke, and exhort with patience, sound
doctrine and all authority- (2 Timothy 4:2, Titus 1:9, Titus
2:15)
14. The word of God is able to discern thoughts and intentions
of the heart - (Hebrews 4:12, Ephesians 6:17)
15. Believe not every spirit, but try/test the spirits to
see if they are of God - (1 John 4:1) 16. We are not to receive
in our house/church those who don't hold to sound doctrine,
nor are we to bid them Godspeed or we are partaking in their
evil deeds - (2 John 1:10)
17. We are to earnestly contend for the faith that was once
and for all delivered unto the saints *(orthodoxy given intact,
complete, understood at the onset, not developed or discovered
over time) - (Jude 1:3)
18. Command that no other doctrine be taught than that given
by the apostles - (1 Timothy 1:3)
Judging spirits
1. Discerning of spirits - a gift of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians
12:10)
2. We are to try/test the spirits to see if they are of God
- (1 John 4:1)
Study Conclusions
At the beginning of this study we stated that the challenge
for Christians is to discern which aspects of worldly culture
are the result of our godly influence upon our ungodly society
and which aspects of church culture are the result of the
influence of ungodly culture upon us (the church). Only by
doing this, we said, can we sort out what is Biblically correct
behavior and model it without accidentally implementing an
ungodly, worldly virtue as if it is Biblically compatible
or mandated when, in fact, it is not or is even contrary to
the Bible.
The above study embarked on an examination of God's Word to
see whether or not the tolerance that is prohibitive of judging
is a product of ungodly culture or of God. The specific purpose
of our examination was to determine if Christians should model
the popular tolerance of our day and not judge others or if
we should instead reject this notion as unbiblical. To do
this we sought to answer the following two questions.
Is the modern Church convinced of the prohibition of judging
others because of a strong conviction based on a Biblical
understanding of this topic? Or are we simply reflecting the
influence of a culture, which seeks to abolish absolute standards
of right and wrong as well as to eliminate any accountability
to such standards?
We have now answered these questions through our examination
of the scripture. What we found was that any compulsion that
the modern Church or modern Christians have to prohibit judging
cannot be said to be based on God's Word or a solid understanding
of the scriptural perspective on this topic. Instead, far
from prohibiting judging, the Bible instructs us how to judge
and what to judge. This being the case it must be that Christians
who prohibit judging are merely reflecting the influence of
the ungodly culture around us.
In completing our Biblical survey on judging we have found
that there are approximately 70 passages in the New Testament
that address the issue. Of these only a small fraction (less
than a dozen) actually contain any language limiting judging
in any manner. The remaining 60 plus passages provide an overwhelming
and unavoidable message from God's word that, contrary to
the wishes of our culture, Christians are to judge both people
as well as behaviors and beliefs with the only following exceptions:
1. We are not to be angry without cause.
2. We are not to judge one another for whether or not we continue
to practice Jewish feasts or Jewish dietary laws.
3. We are not to place final judgment on someone - in terms
of salvation or damnation/condemnation.
4. We are not to judge who will be rewarded with a greater
position in the kingdom of God.
5. We are not to judge those outside the church, except to
judge them as outside the church.
6. We are not to judge hastily, improperly, or presumptuously,
and without first examining ourselves.
7. We are not to judge according to appearance, but according
to God's standard of righteousness.
Therefore since the scripture does in fact require us to judge
others in regard to character, behavior, and beliefs/doctrines,
we have no choice but to reject the popular notion of our
culture and many in the modern Church who uphold that we can't
and shouldn't judge others. We must discard this unbiblical
axiom from our beliefs and practices and instead become familiar
with God's Word so that we can judge as God expects us to.
And should any "Brother Hezekiahs" try to tell us that "the
Bible is against judging," we can confidently tell them "uh,
no it isn't, you should read it sometime."
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