Insightful Musings on theScriptures
by
Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67
Greetings, dear ones.
We are in for a round of stone cooking today. I need to ignite the fire for the stone heating phase of the process about 9am. Our guests will all have something in common—a connection with little island nation of Vanuatu. That’s one reason for our cooking “island style.” And now that I have repaired our creekside deck, we will more safely dine there.
Stay cool. That’s really a silly things to say. How can one stay cool when the temperature reaches close to 100? Perhaps a better farewell could go like this: Stay relaxed and confident in your Biblical faith.
Love, Dad/Ray.
This matter of judging meets with a lot of misunderstanding and controversy. There are those who would like to make a blanket judgment by quoting, “Judge not that ye be not judged.” They are the ones who really don’t do enough of the right kind of judging, and overlook all manner of violations to Biblical ethics and morality within themselves and their ranks. They may have reason to love that quip because their internal guilt seeks all the insulation they can get from their violations being discovered. Then there are those who get fanatical about their developing a hard-line package of dogma which they use for judging others and impose all kinds of rigid standards for behavior on everyone, particularly those of their own group.
Let’s assume that Paul’s judgment is proper and right judgment as he reprimands the Corinthian church fellowship for being too accommodating of “sloppy agape” (love without boundaries) over a case of incest within their group. That which sets us apart from the world, Paul affirms, is the moral compass that God provides in the form of His Word—the Bible. So while we are required to heed that compass in order to stay on course and maintain a healthy relationship with our Lord, as well as to protect the integrity of our mission and message, we are not in a position to impose every form of Biblical morality upon the culture at large.
Consider this example: If a group makes up a new game that utilizes the court and equipment of tennis, but modifies the established rules, it may be a game with similarities to tennis—but it’s not really tennis. Tennis has a set of universally accepted rules. The only way to play REAL tennis is to play by those rules.
Make a commitment to play by the essential rules of the Kingdom—and be ready to make careful Biblical judgments regarding those who violate them—especially those who also claim to be members of the Kingdom—including you.