“Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment” (John 7:24).
Judgment is not well-received in our day. If someone points to an activity or desire, calling it morally wrong, then many people will likely take offense at such a “bigoted” judgment. It sometimes appears that passing moral judgment is the only thing someone in Western culture can condemn as morally wicked.
Jesus was not against making moral judgments. In fact, He advocated and even commanded that people judge. However, Jesus’ great emphasis was on making right judgments as opposed to superficial ones. Jesus seems to agree with mom… a book should not be judged by its cover. But Jesus did command us to judge a book by its content.
The first judgment one should make pertains to Jesus Himself. He is God; He is Savior; He is the highest and truest of all appraisers. After one rightly understands who Jesus is, then all other judgments should be based on Jesus’ verdict.
May God help us to judge rightly… first, understanding Jesus as highest and truest, and then judging all things according to Christ’s own judgments.
Holding the Line 