Don’t Judge Me!

Some of my more recent blogs have addressed the growing trend of Christian leaders declaring that homosexuality is not sinful. So far, I have been accused of hate and fearmongering, and was once called a muckraker. Honestly, I had to look that one up.

I find it ironic that the folks who placed those labels on me believed I was “judging” others. Oftentimes, when we tell someone to stop judging us or others, we do so because we believe the action of calling out sin is itself a sin. However, if we’d take a minute to think through the logic of that definition of judging, every time we call someone out for being judgmental, we will actually be engaging in the sin of hypocrisy. Perhaps we've misunderstood Jesus.

In 1 Corinthians 5, the Apostle Paul rebukes the church at Corinth for not enforcing church discipline on a man who has been unrepentantly sleeping with his stepmother. He commands the Corinthians to expel the man from the assembly and not associate or even eat with anyone who calls themselves a Christian but is unrepentantly sexually immoral. Finally, he tells the church at Corinth that we are not to judge unbelievers, but we are to judge Christians.

So, does 1 Corinthians 5 reveal the Apostle Paul as a judgmental muckraker, who is clearly outside the will of God? If you read 1 Corinthians 5, you realize that Paul has the full backing of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself in this matter.

However, is a straightforward reading of these passages about Church discipline really how we should interpret Scripture? Take a moment to read four excerpts from a document written by one of the most well respected Church leaders of the third century.  

We must not rashly judge one another.

In the Gospel according to Luke: “Judge not, that you may not be judged: condemn not, that you may not be condemned.” Of this same subject to the Romans: … “Wherefore you art without excuse, O every man that judges: for in that in which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you do the same things which you judge. But do you hope, who judge those who do evil, and do the same, that you shall escape the judgment of God?” – Cyprian 250, ANF Volume 5, p. 957 [CD-ROM]

We must depart from him who lives irregularly and contrary to discipline.

Paul to the Thessalonians: “But we have commanded you, in the name of Jesus Christ, that you depart from all brethren who walk disorderly, and not according to the tradition which they have received from us.” – Cyprian 250, ANF Volume 5, p. 980 [CD-ROM]

The sinner must be publicly reproved.

In the first Epistle of Paul to Timothy: “Rebuke them (unrepentant Elders) that sin in the presence of all, that others also may be afraid.” – Cyprian 250, ANF Volume 5, p. 983 [CD-ROM]

We must not speak with heretics.

To Titus: “A man that is a heretic, after one rebuke avoid; knowing that one of such sort is perverted … and is self condemned.” Of this same thing in the Epistle of John: “They went out from among us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would doubtless have remained with us.” Also in the second to Timothy: “Their talk will spread like gangrene.” – Cyprian 250, ANF Volume 5, p. 983 [CD-ROM]

The early Christians knew how to navigate the tension of the full counsel of Scripture. They neither added to, nor took away from the text. And because of that simple approach, they kept themselves from being judgmental.

So, how can we confront sin in a God-honoring way? This story illustrates how we should begin thinking like holy defense attorneys.

About 17 years ago when I was 20, I got an M. I. P. (Minor in Possession) at a bar in College Station, TX. My brother and I had just finished playing a 3 hour set with our band, and the bar owner gave us a free pitcher of beer, which we gladly accepted. 

What couldn’t have been 15 minutes later, I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was the police, and though I wasn’t drunk, I was busted. A few weeks later my mom and I showed up at court. Yes, mom came with me, and thankfully, she hired an attorney for me. 

My defense attorney spent about 20 minutes counseling me before we went into court that morning. He knew the judge, and gave me really good advice about how to handle the situation. He instructed me that we should not try to fight the case, but that we should plead no contest. He also said that if the judge asked to speak with me, I should be respectful and remorseful. That was not a problem because I was scared out of my mind. 

There is a Koine Greek word, parakletos, that basically carries the idea of a truthful and helpful defense attorney. Though the word is often translated as “encourage”, parakletos is best understood by thinking about the various helpful ways that a good defense attorney interacts with a guilty client.

My MIP defense attorney beseeched me to never engage in underage drinking again. He noticed I was freaking out, so he comforted me with a pat on the back and told me it was going to be okay. He exhorted me to apply his strategies when I went into the courtroom. He admonished me to banish all pride from my attitude from this point further. And finally, he encouraged me by saying that he would help me get through this situation and back on track again.

Like caring defense attorneys, if we truly love our brothers and sisters in Christ who are in sin, we will practice parakletos while holding fast to the simple words of Christ and the rest of the New Testament. It will not be easy. Sometimes people will feel like we are being overly judgmental. But uncomfortable conversations that promote health in the body of Christ serve to make us even more effective in advancing the kingdom of God in the world.