"Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him." Romans 14:3 (NKJV)

i read Pastor's Revealed by the Spirit devotions on Romans, and it kind of got me thinking.

it made me think of all the Christians that have marred the name of Christ over the centuries, that have judged others with legalistic, I-am-better-than-thou attitudes, brandished the Bible like a sword meant to hurt. there are those Christians whom i honestly feel should take a good look in the mirror and ask themselves again what it meant for Christ to have died for them and remember that it is not their place to judge.

on the other hand, i do agree that yes, the Bible does say that you should rebuke when the time calls for it, just as Paul instructed Timothy to do-

"Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction." 2 Timothy 4:2 (NIV)

but sometimes in our zeal to 'do the right thing' we end up offending people unintentionally. we all have different standards. more often than not we struggle with issues that fall into grey areas rather than black and white. yes, we shd rebuke fellow Christians when they are doing something that perhaps doesnt quite accord with God's view of things. but how we go about doing that is so important! Paul didnt just tell Timothy to 'rebuke'. He said 'ENCOURAGE' as well. He also said to do all that with 'GREAT PATIENCE' and 'CAREFUL INSTRUCTION'.

i admit that i may have unknowingly done this in the first few years of my walk as a baby Christian. there was faith and passion, but there was also a serious lack of wisdom. and because of that, someone may have decided that Christ is not worth seeking because of the manner in which we reflect His glory. the best of intentions? perhaps. but what others see is a completely different matter. humans are fragile and so are their emotions -- so please, think before you speak.

i guess over the years as ive grown in wisdom, as ive learnt more from the Word of the Lord, as i draw from the wealth of experience of the older ones in my spiritual family, ive perhaps come to the conclusion that oftentimes its not my place to say anything. the best way to deal with it when you see someone straying? PRAY. pray without ceasing. and if the situation truly calls for something to be said, pray first, and then do it with love and in gentleness.

i must admit that that is not an easy thing for me to do. i am, by nature, not a very gentle person (hurhur. wipe that smirk off your face.) and nowadays i sometimes still unknowingly commit all of the above that i have warned you against. but in those moments i pray that i realise, i pray that i am more aware and i pray that He reveal to me and grant me the wisdom i need to undo whatever damage i have caused.

cos the fact remains that i am a sinner, just the same as everyone else. no sin is worse than another. for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God - i am in no position to pass judgment on an issue. if anything, i am only charged with the responsibility of knowing the Word and living by it that others may see. and if i do feel the need to say something, to ensure that my heart is not judging but that i exercise much love and discernment in all that i do.

and to remember the crux of the message - it is not our position to judge, because "...God has received him." Romans 14:3 and if the Almighty doesnt judge, how can we?

its not the letter of the law ('rules', ten commandments, what not..) - its the spirit of the law. what underlies all of that? i was particularly struck by another message that i read-

“Therefore you shall keep every commandment which I command you today, that you may be strong, and go in to possess the land which you cross over to possess”
- Deuteronomy 11:8

1. Keeping the Word

* If we want to be strong, we must seek to keep the word of God. There are no two ways about it.

“Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul… You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up.”
- Deuteronomy 11:18-19

2. Letting the Word affect the soul

* Often we would listen with just our hearts. The challenge is for us to go beyond and let the Word of God affect our very souls. We must bind it to our hands and let them be frontlets between our eyes. Then we can teach them to others.
* Once the Word of God has deeply affected our souls, we will be able to teach. Whether we walk in the way, lie down or rise up, we can teach these things.
* Therefore let us seek to go beyond just allowing the word of God to move our hearts. Let’s place the Word in both our heart and our soul. Once it is in the soul, it becomes a part of us.

i guess as we grow in faith, knowledge and prayer, the Spirit begins to reveal things to us. and it is precisely this work of the Spirit in our lives that will bring about change. that will reach to the innermost depths of your being, that will pull at your heartstrings and remind you to choose the path that is right. without that, no amount of rebuke or encouragement or scolding is going to have any effect.. and so i guess this year that im away from home, while i miss everyone, i want to let His Word affect my soul, from the inside out. so no matter how "unhappening" my life is here, it will be one of my best years, cos i learnt a lesson that i could not have learnt any other way.