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Faith

Judge Not

A popular perception of Christians – justified in many cases – is that they are judgmental people. If you look at the teachings of Jesus and compare them with how Christians are commonly viewed, and how a lot of people claiming to be Christians actually behave, you can be amazed by the disparity. Jesus taught a radical and innovative message about love and forgiveness and mercy and self-sacrifice. How is it that Christians have come to be perceived as conservative, reactionary, angry, unforgiving, unmerciful and self-righteous?

When you visit churches you often see people looking very serious and severe. If you’re not wearing the right clothes or speaking the right language, you may feel unwelcome. As a result, many people get the mistaken idea that Jesus taught his followers to obey a strict set of rules, live a conservative and strict lifestyle, and look down on or avoid people who do not meet the same high standards.

In Chapter 5 of his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul told the Christians that it was none of their business to judge people who are outside the church. Whilst it is important to encourage people inside the church to behave in a manner which maintains the integrity of the church, that does not give Christians a right to judge or look down on outsiders. So if you want to be a true follower of Jesus, you need to start practising non-judgmentalism.