“I have a dream; my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character, and the desire to “transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.” “And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!” Dr. Martin Luthor King
As Dr. King wrote, we all judge people. How you judge people is important to the Lord as it defines your character and devotion to His principles. Do I fall short in how I judge people? Yes. What do you look for when you judge people?
1. Character. You cannot judge a person’s character by their appearance or race but by interaction with them over time. I judge a person’s character by their conviction in their beliefs, their word (or lack thereof) and their actions. If a person tells me that they are going to accept responsibility for a task, I expect them to do it. If a person gives me information that is not true or unverified, it reflects upon their character as much as idle gossip. If people would define themselves based on their character, we would not be a divided nation at the edge of a civil war.
2. Judgment. How people judge me obviously impacts how I judge them. A good example is the latest indictment by the other side that all white males are racist. Another example is how people judge others based on propaganda as we see in the reporting of the Covington School incident. The problem we face today is that the far right and the far left will not interact in discussions to find common ground. Since the far left controls the media, our side is portrayed as evil. Ask yourself why the two sides are not talking. The reason is that division without compromise is the goal of the political elite to maintain their power.
3. People vs Groups. I do not judge a person by their race but I do judge a person by their ideology. The problem is not judging a person but judging a group based on the actions of their leaders or spokespersons. As a snap judgment, anyone I meet who defines themself based on a political party is judged negatively. As are people who define themselves with identity politics. As are people who have no religious foundation.
4. Success. I do not judge people based on their success or lack of success in life. This eliminates the sins of jealousy and envy.
Anyone who would like to comment on Matthew 7:35 is welcome. Please also consider Proverbs 31:9. If anyone feels the need not to judge other people in these times, I strongly recommend that you do not turn your back on anyone from the other side. They will have no compunction throwing you headfirst into a wood chipper.
David DeGerolamo
