"Judgment"

So...I decided during church today that I was going to start writing about the sermons every Sunday. You see, I tend to have problems paying attention in church because my mind wanders. I had to go to both services today because we did presentations on music camp at each. Because of that, I was able to listen to it two times and really concentrate on what the message was. We'll see if I keep this up, but I really would like to. I'm hoping to start a habit of taking notes in church so that the sermons 'click' with me.

Today's message was titled "Judgment". Scary, right? Like Pastor Benton said this morning, judgment is not one of those subjects that people tend to enjoy thinking about. May it be judging someone else, or judging ourselves; it's just not a feel good topic. The scripture today was from 1 Corinthians 4: 1--5:

"So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God."

Pastor Benton always does an outline for the message, and I'll just follow along with that.

1. Judgment of Others
A. Clouded by Prejudice- One thing that Pastor Benton mentioned in the service that kind of hit me between the eyes was that like it or not, we all have prejudices that we must deal with. The kicker is how we deal with them. It may be race, social class, hometown, hair color, whatever...but we all have them. I don't like to think of myself as a prejudice person, but if I think about it I can certainly think of several, can't you?

B. Clouded by the Past- Our past can and does influence how we look at and often time 'judge' others. One example the pastor used was about someone who comes from an abusive background. They may be more sensitive to that subject than most. I know one thing that I struggle with daily is putting things that people (including myself) have done in the past actually in the past where they belong, and starting them out with a clean slate just like Jesus does.

C. Clouded by Motives- We can also become clouded by why people do the things they do. I know I'll find myself wondering why someone did something nice for the longest time instead of actually being thankful that they did it.

2. Judgment of Self
A. Clouded by Self Doubt- I think I definitely fall into this category of being my self's harshest critic. Instead of just moving on after I've done something wrong, I tend to constantly beat myself up about what I did. We can often judge ourselves unworthy of God's love.

B. Clouded by Self Delusion- This is the polar opposite of self doubt. The example used was of the first episode on "American Idol" every season; where people who have no singing talent whatsoever audition in front of millions only to completely embarrass themselves. They think that they are absolutely fabulous, when in reality they just...aren't. Apparently they never had someone in their life to tell them that singing wasn't their gift. There are also people out there who think that they can do no wrong in life. They don't self-evaluate at all, even when it could actually do some good.

III. Judgment of God
A. A true assessment- Thus far it sounds like a pretty depressing sermon, right? Well the good news didn't come until the end. Most people have this warped idea of what the judgment of God will be like, and it apparently comes from a background in Greek mythology. Like God is just up there waiting for us to fall on our faces so that he can strike us with lightning. How blatantly wrong! Yes, God sees all off the bad in our lives...and there sure are an awful lot of ugly things that we probably wish we could hide from him. Though God does see the sin in our life more clearly than anyone else, he also sees every good thing as well. He is so just, and considers both sides. He sees all those times when we do something nice for someone and no one else sees it. He knows it all!

B. Infused with Grace- The last, and probably most important aspect of the message was that God's judgment is infused with grace. God doesn't wait for us to mess up; instead He is there to pick us up when we fall, and celebrates with us when things go well. He is loving...and wants the best for us. I was reading my assignment for Disciple class a little bit ago, and found the reading to be mysteriously appropriate. It was in Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." This was after God was so angry that Israel rebelled once again. I think that if he had mercy on Israel we might have a chance too. ;)

I hope that wasn't too boring to read though, but it really helps me to dig deeper into what God wants me to learn. I'm now going to take a nap so that I have plenty of energy to celebrate Rebecca's and Larry's send-off today at youth group!

Later!

Brit