Latest / Reformed Thinking / Love That Refuses to Condemn | Jonathan Edwards

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Love That Refuses to Condemn | Jonathan Edwards · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to Reformed Thinking. This is a deep dive into some
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really fascinating source material today.
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Yeah, I am really looking forward to this one.
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It hits close to home. It really does.
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So I want to start by asking you, the listener, a pretty
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direct question. Have you ever found yourself
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just quietly analyzing someone else's motives?
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Oh, we all do it. Right, like you are utterly
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convinced you see their secret flaws.
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You are sitting there, piercing together their actions, their
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words. Maybe even just, you know, a
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passing look they gave you across the room.
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And you construct this entire narrative about who they are.
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Yes, you build this watertight case in your mind.
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You basically become the detectives, the prosecutor, and
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the judge all at once. And you are so sure you were
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right. But then a week later, or maybe
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a month later, a new piece of information comes to light and
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suddenly that entire House of Cards just completely collapses.
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It is a terrible feeling. It is so humiliating you were
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left standing there, realizing the villain you constructed in
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your head was, well, entirely a product of your own uncharitable
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imagination. I mean, it is a wildly pervasive
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human experience. It is, and today we are taking a
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thorough look at a text that dissects this specific
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phenomenon. We are pulling apart the
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writings of the 18th century theologian Jonathan Edwards.
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Yeah, specifically his exposition on 1st Corinthians
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chapter 13, verse 5. Right where the text says
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Charity thinketh no evil. This analysis comes from his
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larger series of sermons published as Charity and Its
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Fruits. Which is such a brilliant
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diagnostic tool. So our mission today is to
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scrutinize what Edwards calls a censorious spirit.
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We want to understand why this mindset stands in direct
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opposition to Christian love. And more practically, you know
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how to spot this destructive habit taking root in our own
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minds before it does actual damage.
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That is the goal. So when we look at this text,
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Edwards is doing something very specific with his definition.
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Right, he really is. He defines charity not as a
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simple favorable opinion of someone, and certainly not as
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our modern concept of just tossing money at a
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philanthropic. 'Cause right, it is not just
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writing a check. No, He defines it as divine
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Christian love. It is the very spirit of
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Christianity, an active, outward facing grace.
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And what is fascinating about his approach in this specific
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section is the negative definition.
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Yeah, he shows us what charity is by illustrating in
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painstaking detail what it is not.
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He sets up the spirit of charitable judging as the
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necessary fruit of divine love, and then he contrasts it with
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this censoriousness. Right, which he defines as a
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disposition to uncharitably judge or censure others.
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It really forces us to look at the silent assumptions we make
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about the people around us every single day.
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It absolutely does. So I want to figure out how this
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tool actually works in practice. Where do we start looking for
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this? Well, Edwards categorizes this
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judgmental habit into three main areas.
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OK, how we judge someone's spiritual state, how we judge
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their everyday qualities, and how we judge their actions.
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Let's start with that first area, he says.
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The censorious spirit appears in a forward Ness to judge evil of
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the state of others. He is talking about the state of
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their soul, right? They're standing for God.
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Yeah, he warns against passing censure on people who are
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professing Christians like determining that they are
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hypocrites or that they have no actual grace in their hearts.
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He points out that some people are very positive based on very
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little evidence that someone is godly.
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While others are just so quick to condemn people as having no
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vital religion, again based on almost nothing.
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And he says this kind of positiveness is without warrant
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from the word of God. It is a severe warning against
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playing the role of the Almighty isn't.
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It absolutely Edwards is quite clear here.
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God has reserved the positive determination of men's spiritual
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state to Himself. Because it is a matter kept in
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His own hands, He is the great and only searcher of the hearts
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of the children of men. Right.
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So when we attempt to make these definitive rulings on whether
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someone is truly a believer or a hypocrite, we are stepping way
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outside our jurisdiction. We are usurping a role that
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belongs exclusively to the sovereign God.
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I mean, think about it, the human heart is a maze of
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competing desires, fears and hidden motives.
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We cannot even fully understand our own hearts half the time.
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Exactly, let alone read the spiritual pulse of the person
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sitting next to us in the Pew. Edwards then details the
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specific ways we air in this area.
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We are guilty of censoriousness when we condemn someone based on
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things that are not actual evidence of a bad spiritual
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estate. He gives several examples of
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this. Yeah, one that stands out
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immediately is judging someone because of God's providential
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dealings with them. I love that he brings that up.
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I want to pause on that phrase providential dealings.
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In modern terms, we are talking about the random everyday
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circumstances of someone's life, right?
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The highs and lows. Yeah, the things that just
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happened to us. He brings up the example of
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Job's three friends in the Old Testament.
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Right. They looked at Job's uncommon
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and severe afflictions. The man lost his wealth, his
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children, his health, all in rapid succession.
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And his friends concluded he must be a secret hypocrite.
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They assumed God was punishing him for some hidden wickedness.
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It is a terrifying thought. It really is looking at someone
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going through immense suffering. Maybe they get a terminal
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diagnosis or their business goes under and concluding that God
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must be against them because of some secret sin.
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The Book of Job is the perfect illustration of this error,
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isn't it? It is Joe's Friends operated on
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a fundamentally flawed theological premise.
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They believed visible suffering always correlates to hidden sin.
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They looked at the Providence of God as a direct, readable map of
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a person's spiritual standing. And Edwards uses this to show
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how a censorious merit misinterprets reality.
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God's Providence is mysterious. Sometimes the righteous suffer
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terribly in this life, and sometimes the wicked prosper.
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You cannot look at a person's bank account or their medical
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chart and deduce their justification before God.
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But Edwards does not stop at Providence.
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He also mentions that we condemn others for failings that are
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actually common to God's children.
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Oh, this one is so convicting. We might see a failing in a
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fellow believer, maybe a moment of anger, a lapse in judgement,
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or a period of spiritual dryness.
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And we immediately question their salvation.
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Meanwhile, we have the exact same failings, or perhaps even
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greater ones, yet we continue to think very well of ourselves as
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Christians. OK, I have to offer a bit of
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pushback here, or at least a clarifying question because I
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struggle with this balance. Sure.
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What is the tension? If we are supposed to be
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discerning about who we associate with, if we are
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instructed to recognize false teaching or notice when someone
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is living in unrepentant sin, isn't there a biblical warrant
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for evaluating where someone stands spiritually?
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That is a fairpoint. Doesn't the Bible tell us that
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we will know a tree by its fruits?
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If we see someone constantly producing bad fruit, are we
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supposed to just ignore it and assume they are a glowing
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example of faith? Right.
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Where is the line between healthy discernment and the
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censorious spirit? Yeah, exactly.
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That is a natural question to ask, and it is a crucial
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distinction to make. Edwards is not arguing for a
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willful blindness. OK, so he's not saying we just
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act naive. Not at all.
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The issue is the forwardness to judge.
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It is the eagerness, the hasty rush to slap a label of
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hypocrite or unconverted on someone based on insufficient
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evidence or non fundamental issues.
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Oh, so is about the speed and the attitude?
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Yes, discernment is observing fruit over time.
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Censoriousness is chopping down the tree because you found one
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bruised apple. That is a great way to put it.
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Edwards specifically notes that people often condemn others as
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carnal men simply because they differ in opinion on points that
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are not fundamental to the faith.
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Or they fail to make do allowances for a person's
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natural temperament, like their lack of education or the
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peculiar disadvantages under which they labor.
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We fail to recognize that someone might be fighting a
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tremendous internal battle with a difficult natural disposition.
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Right. The grace in their life, while
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real, might look very different than the grace in some of the
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naturally mild, compliant temperament that.
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Point about making allowances hits hard it.
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Really does. It requires so much grace to
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look at someone who is rough around the edges.
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Maybe they grew up in a very harsh environment where survival
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was the only rule. And.
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To recognize that the Holy Spirit is working in them, even
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if it does not look pretty yet, right?
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They might not use the Polish theological vocabulary we
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prefer. They might still have a short
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fuse, but the. Progress they have made from
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where they started is which? Leads right into one of the most
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striking analogies Edwards uses in this section.
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He talks about people rejecting others as irreligious because
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their experiences do not perfectly line up with their
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own. Oh, the stature analogy.
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This is classic Edwards. He.
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Says people set up their own experience as the standard and
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rule for all others. They're entirely blind to the
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vast variety and liberty the Spirit of God uses in his saving
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work. He.
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Takes this high theological concept and grounds it in
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something incredibly visceral. How so?
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He says that demanding everyone's spiritual experience
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match your own is as unreasonable as not allowing
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anyone to be considered a human being unless they have your
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precise physical stature. Wait, like.
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Your exact height and weight, yeah.
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The same physical strength, the exact same bodily temperament,
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and the very same facial features that.
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Is such a vivid picture. Think about the breathtaking
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arrogance of the censorious mind in this context.
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Right. The censorious person looks at
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their own conversion. Maybe it was highly emotional,
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filled with tears and a dramatic altar call, or.
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Maybe it was very intellectual, a slow, quiet realization over
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years of reading scripture. Whatever it was, they declared
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that their specific experience is the universal template if.
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God does not work in someone else's heart.
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In the exact sequence and with the exact emotional tenor, as He
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did in theirs, they dismissed that person's faith as false.
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Imagine walking into a room and saying none of you are actually
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human unless you are 5 foot 10, have a mild astigmatism and
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happen to be double jointed in your left thumb.
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We. Would call that absolute
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madness. Yet we do this spiritually all
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the time. We.
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Really. Do we say unless you had a
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tearful breakdown at a youth camp, your conversion isn't real
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or. Conversely, we might say, unless
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you can articulate justification by faith alone using 16th
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century terminology, you must not really know the Lord we.
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Fail to see how mysterious and inscrutable God's ways often are
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when he makes men new creatures. We want to force God to validate
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our own experience by making everyone else match it it.
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Is a failure to appreciate the absolute sovereignty of the Holy
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Spirit the. Spirit blows where he wishes and
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he deals with human beings as individuals.
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A censorious spirit shrinks God down to the size of personal
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experience it. Takes the subjective and
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elevates it to the level of objective law.
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And when we do this, we are not just judging our neighbor
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unjustly. We are attempting to put the
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Holy Spirit in a box of our own design.
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We are. Dictating terms to God about how
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he's allowed to save people, which.
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Brings a question directly to you, the listener.
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Have you ever dismissed A fellow believers sincerity simply
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because their background or their theological vocabulary
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look different from yours? That.
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Is a heavy question have you ever heard someone share their
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testimony and thought to yourself that didn't sound very
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convincing simply because they didn't hit the specific
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emotional or doctrinal checkpoints you personally value
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we. Have to examine our own hearts
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here and see if we are demanding that everyone match our
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spiritual facial features. We have to ask if our idea of
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grace is too small. That is a really convicting
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thought to sit with. So, moving from the judgement of
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a person's eternal state, Edwards looks at the second
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major area of censoriousness. Right.
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We do not only judge people's souls, we also judge their
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everyday characteristics. Edwards points out that a
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censorious spirit appears in a forwardness to judge evil of the
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qualities of others. This.
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Manifests as a disposition to overlook their good qualities,
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or to think they are completely destitute of such qualities when
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they are not, or to make very little of them.
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Conversely, it magnifies their I'll qualities, making more of
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them than is just, or it even charges them with I'll qualities
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they do not possess at all. This.
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Is where the rubber meets the road for our daily lives.
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We're talking about how prejudice acts like a distorting
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lens. Edwards describes people
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charging others with ignorance, folly or contemptible traits
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when they do not deserve it in the slightest.
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He. Talks about people entertaining
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a very low and despicable opinion of others and then
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representing them that way to their associates and friends.
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You. Can see how destructive this is
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to any community, whether it is a church, a workplace or a
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family instead. Of acknowledging the good, the
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spirit zeroes in on the bad and broadcasts it on a megaphone.
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The. Psychology of prejudice that
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Edwards outlines here is just fascinating.
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He uses the phrase deep prejudice they have imbibed.
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When a person imbibes A prejudice, it is like drinking a
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poison that alters their vision. They.
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Become convinced that a neighbor is a great deal more proud,
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selfish, spiteful, or malicious than they really are.
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Through this contracted prejudice they conceive that the
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person has all manner of bad qualities and 0 good ones they
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look. At someone who might appear
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perfectly fine and decent to the rest of the world, and they see
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only an exceedingly proud or covetous individual, the.
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Prejudice writes a fictional script, and the censorious
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person believes it as absolute truth.
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Edwards uses the word palliations in this section for
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anyone not reading 18th century dictionaries.
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Everyday palliations basically mean mitigating factors or
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understandable excuses. Right, the context that makes a
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flaw understandable, he says. Others might see this person's
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many good qualities, and they might see the palliations for
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the qualities that are not so good.
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But the censorious person is totally blind to reality.
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They see only the evil. They speak only that which is
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unjust and disparaging. Let's.
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Think about how this plays out in a modern workplace scenario.
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Imagine you have a prior grievance with a coworker.
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OK. Setting the scene maybe?
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They took credit for a project a year ago.
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Or maybe they just have a blunt communication style that rubs
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you the wrong way once. That prejudice is contracted.
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You filter every single treat they have through that
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grievance. Yes.
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If they are quiet in a meeting, you assume they are plotting
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something. If they are talkative, you
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assume they are arrogant and trying to dominate the room.
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If. They bring doughnuts for the
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office. You assume they're trying to
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bribe the boss. You literally cannot see them
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accurately anymore that. Scenario captures the dynamic
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perfectly. A charitable disposition, as
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Edwards points out, would act entirely differently in that
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exact same meeting A. Charitable mind would frankly
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own the good things in an adversary.
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It would let those good qualities balance, or even more
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than balance, the scales against the perceived evil.
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A person governed by Christian love is willing to say, yes, we
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have a disagreement, and yes, this person has flaws, but they
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are also incredibly hardworking, they are devoted to their
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family, and they are generally confident.
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Charity refuses to reduce a human being to their worst
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traits. Censoriousness, on the other
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hand, hides the good in a dark corner and trumpets the bad from
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the rooftops. It insists on A1 dimensional
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caricature of a human being. It is a form of character
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assassination that happens entirely inside our own heads
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before it ever reaches our lips and.
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If you assume someone has bad qualities, if you are convinced
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they are inherently selfish or proud, you will naturally assume
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their actions are malicious, which.
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Links directly to the third area Edwards identifies a forwardness
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to judge evil of the actions of others he.
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Defines actions here as all the external voluntary acts of men,
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whether consisting in words or deeds and.
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He says this discovers itself in two main things.
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The first is judging them to be guilty of evil actions without
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any evidence that constrains them to such a judgement.
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This is the suspicious spirit Edwards describes people who are
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jealous of others, ready to suspect them of committing evil
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things in secret, away from the eyes of men they.
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Concoct these elaborate scenarios where someone is doing
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or saying terrible things in their private circles, keeping
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it hidden from everyone else. Edwards rightly points out that
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the suspicious spirit is completely contrary to
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Christianity. These.
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Are the people chargeable with the evil surmisings that the
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apostle Paul condemns in First Timothy chapter 6 verse 4 Paul?
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Connects those evil surmisings directly with envy, strife, and
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railings. It is a toxic brew of suspicion
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that constantly assumes the worst is happening behind closed
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doors. This.
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Suspicion feeds voraciously on rumors.
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This is where Edwards gives us some of the most visceral,
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unforgettable imagery in the entire text.
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Oh, I know exactly what part you were talking about.
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He. Talks about how this
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uncharitable spirit shows itself by being forward to take up
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uncirculate evil, reports he. Notes that we live in a
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thoughtless and lying world and merely hearing a flying rumor is
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far from sufficient evidence against anyone he actually.
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References the devil here, calling him the God of this
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world and the father of lies, noting that too many of his
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children are like him when they speak falsehoods The.
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Imagery he uses next is meant to provoke a reaction.
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He says that when people hear a rumor, they conclude it is true
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without making any further inquiry.
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Even though nothing is more uncertain than the mutterings of
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common fame, but. Then he takes it a step further.
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He says some are so ready to catch up an I'll report that it
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seems pleasing to them to hear evil of others their.
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Spirit seems greedy, for it is food to the hunger of their
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depraved hearts and. They feed on it, as carrion
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birds do on the worst of flesh carrion.
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Birds. That image makes my stomach, but
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it is so incredibly accurate. A.
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Carrion Bird, like a vulture, circles around waiting for
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something to die so it can swoop down and feast on the rotting
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roadkill. Edwards.
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Is saying that when we eagerly consume gossip and rumors about
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someone else's moral failure or supposed secret sins, we are
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acting like vultures? We.
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Are feasting on the worst possible things.
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We are finding our sustenance, our entertainment, our daily
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adrenaline rush in the destruction of another person's
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reputation. Think about.
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Social media algorithms. Today, they're essentially
18:18
carrion bird machines. Oh.
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Absolutely. They feed us the worst moments
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of people's lives. The outrage, the scandals, the
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rumors. Because the platforms.
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No human nature has an appetite for the grotesque.
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We. Click.
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We share, we devour it without ever verifying if it is true it.
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Is a stark contrast to the standard set in Psalm 15.
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Edwards cites the psalmist who describes the person who dwells
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in God's Tabernacle and abides in his holy hill as one who
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taketh not up a reproach against his neighbor.
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This. Censorious person feeding on
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rumors like a carrying bird proves their entirely contrary
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in character to the citizen of Zion they.
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Are instead like the wicked doer described in Proverbs 17 who
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gives heed to false lips, and the liar who gives ear to a
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naughty tongue, They. Take the rumor in easily and
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greedily without any examination.
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They do not want context, they just want the rotting flesh of
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the scandal so that. Covers judging evil actions
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based on rumors and suspicion. Yeah, but what happens when
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someone does something objectively good?
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Good. Question.
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What about? A public act of generosity or
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someone doing their civic duty or stepping up to help in the
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community. How does a censorious spirit
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handle actions that seem, by all accounts, to be positive and
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helpful? This.
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Brings us to the second way. A censorious spirit judges
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actions by putting the worst constructions on them.
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Edwards explains that the moving design and end in an action is
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often secret, confined to the recesses of the actor's own
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bosom. We.
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Cannot see the motive, yet the censorious person is prone to
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put a bad construction on actions when they would just as
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well and perhaps better admit of a good construction when.
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Men are prejudice. They look at seemingly good
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words or deeds and declines them to be performed in sheer
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hypocrisy. He.
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Specifically mentions public offices and affairs here he.
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Says if anything is said or done showing concern for the public
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good, the good of a neighbor, the honor of God, or the
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interest of religion, Some will always say it is all hypocrisy.
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They will. Claim the real design is only to
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promote their own interest to advance themselves, and that
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they are only flattering and deluding others.
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Now, keeping things completely impartial here, we see this
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constantly in our modern political and social landscape.
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It happens across all divides, left, right and center.
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Oh. Without a doubt, one side
20:36
proposes a policy or performs an action that looks beneficial on
20:40
paper, and the opposing side immediately assumes the absolute
20:44
worst motive they. Declare they don't actually care
20:46
about the community, they just want power.
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Or they're just doing this for a tax break.
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Or they are just virtue signaling for their base we.
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Assume that anyone we agree with is physically incapable of a
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genuinely good motive. This.
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Assumption of universal bad faith is the hallmark of a
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censorious age. Edwards recognized it in his
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time, and it is rampant in ours. The uncharitable mind cannot
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tolerate the idea that an adversary might do something
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noble. Therefore, they must reconstruct
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the narrative they. Must assign a selfish delusion
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or a hidden agenda to the act by doing this, they protect their
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prejudice if the. Action is genuinely good, the
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prejudice ascend, so the motive must be declared corrupt to
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maintain the contracted hatred. It is a defense mechanism for
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our own cynicism. It is an exhaustingly cynical
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way to live. You are constantly interrogating
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everyone's motives. It really.
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Is. But this raises a major question
21:41
I can. Hear the listener thinking this
21:42
right now, anticipating a potential objection, which is.
21:46
Does. Christian love require us to
21:48
turn off our brains. Does charity mean we have to
21:51
ignore obvious wickedness or pretend that a corrupt
21:54
politician is a St. or act like a wolf in sheep's clothing is
21:58
just a misunderstood sheep I. Struggle with this too if
22:00
someone. Constantly lies to me or
22:02
embezzles money from charity. If you feels less like
22:05
censoriousness and more like basic self preservation to
22:08
assume they have a bad character, where are the lines
22:11
drawn? Edwards anticipates this exact
22:14
inquiry. He asks wherein lies the evil of
22:17
judging I'll of others. Since it is not true that all
22:20
judging I'll of others is unlawful, he.
22:22
Provides clear exceptions to show that charity is not
22:25
gullibility first. He addresses those who hold
22:28
official capacities. There are persons appointed on
22:30
purpose to be judges in civil societies and in churches.
22:34
Their duty is to impartially judge others who fall under
22:37
their cognizance to pass sentence according to the
22:40
evidence and the nature of the act and.
22:42
To approve the good and condemn the bad according to the law,
22:46
civil magistrates and church discipline are necessary, lawful
22:49
and ordained by God. OK.
22:51
So judges have to judge. That makes sense.
22:54
We need courts and we need elders, but what about us, the
22:57
private individuals just trying to live our lives for private?
23:00
Individuals, Edwards is equally clear.
23:02
We are not obliged to divest ourselves of reason.
23:05
He. Writes a brilliant sentence
23:06
here. Christian charity is not a thing
23:08
founded on the ruins of reason, but there is the most sweet
23:11
harmony between reason and charity.
23:13
I. Love that phrase.
23:14
Founded in the ruins of reason. Reason is a gift from God.
23:17
We. Are not forbidden to judge
23:19
persons when there is plain and clear evidence that they are
23:23
justly chargeable with evil when.
23:25
Sins are flagrant when they are, as the Apostle Paul says, going
23:29
before to judgement. We're not to blame if we
23:31
identify that wicked action. If someone's actions give clear
23:35
evidence of evil intentions, it is not an uncharitable guessing
23:39
game to recognize their designs as wicked.
23:42
That is a relief to hear we do not have to build charity on the
23:45
ruins of reason if. Someone is embezzling money.
23:48
We do not have to say, well, maybe they're just trying to
23:51
redistribute wealth creatively, right?
23:52
If someone is abusive, we do not say, well, I'm sure their heart
23:55
is in the right place. We are.
23:57
Allowed to see facts, we are allowed to protect ourselves and
23:59
others. But.
24:00
Then where is the line? If reason allows us to see the
24:03
evil, where does discerning judgement stop and evil
24:07
censoriousness begin? The.
24:09
Line is drawn at the disposition of the heart, specifically in
24:12
two areas, the. 1st is when we judge evil when the evidence
24:16
does not oblige us to it or when the case very well allows for
24:19
thinking well of them it. Is when we are hasty and rash,
24:22
rushing to censure someone before we have heard what they
24:25
have to say in their defense. Edwards quotes Proverbs 1813.
24:30
He that answereth the matter before he heareth it, It is
24:33
folly and shame unto him. But the second area is the true
24:36
acid test. The evil of censoriousness lies
24:40
in a well pleasedness in judging I'll of others.
24:43
How? Well, pleasedness.
24:45
Unpack that for us. What does that actually look
24:47
like to? Explain it.
24:48
Edwards uses the analogy of a tender parent.
24:51
Picture a mother or a father when a tender parent hears of
24:55
some great crime committed by their child, and the evidence is
24:58
so overwhelming and clear that they cannot deny it, they
25:01
believe it. Reason forces them to accept the
25:04
truth, but they do so with immense grief it.
25:07
Breaks their heart to judge their child is guilty it causes
25:10
them pain to admit the flaw the. Censorious person is the exact
25:13
opposite. They are well pleased in passing
25:15
the judgment they. Are forward to judge evil on
25:17
slight evidence they carry their judgment to extremes because
25:20
their inclination is in it they actually love to think the worst
25:23
of others let's. Really feel the weight of that
25:25
analogy. The tender parent versus the
25:28
gleeful gossip the. Parent is crushed under the
25:30
weight of the truth. They weep over it, the.
25:32
Censorious person is thrilled to pass sentence they get a hit of
25:37
dopamine they. Manifest this well pleasedness
25:39
by being forward to declare their judgment, speaking evil
25:42
with ridicule, an air of contempt, or malicious
25:45
bitterness. They find manifest pleasure in
25:48
the deficiencies or errors of others.
25:51
Think about the last time someone you disagreed with
25:53
politically or theologically had a massive moral failing.
25:56
When? The news broke.
25:57
What was your initial reaction? Was it grief or was it
26:01
excitement? Did you?
26:02
Feel a little rush of adrenaline because you got to say I always
26:04
knew they were hypocrite if we. Find ourselves excited to share
26:07
the news of someone's downfall. That is the glaring warning sign
26:10
that we are operating in censoriousness, not charity.
26:13
Precisely. When judging I'll is against a
26:16
person's inclination, they are cautious.
26:19
They go no further than the evidence absolutely obliges
26:22
them. They.
26:23
Put the best possible construction on words and
26:25
actions, and if they must think evil, they are backward to speak
26:29
of it to anyone, doing so only when a strict sense of duty
26:32
requires it. They.
26:33
Do not broadcast it for entertainment.
26:36
Having defined what the Spirit looks like and establishing the
26:39
boundaries of reasonable judgment, we have to ask the
26:42
natural follow up question. Why do we do this?
26:46
What drives this cynical pleasure?
26:48
Why do we default to the worst construction of our neighbors?
26:51
We. Are all born with this default
26:53
setting, but what is the mechanism behind it It comes?
26:56
Down to a fundamental lack of love for our neighbor, driven by
26:59
a profound, well, a blinding love of ourselves.
27:02
Edwards observes that people are very backward to judge evil of
27:06
themselves. We are always ready to think the
27:08
best of our own qualifications and our own state.
27:11
If we see a tiny spark of something resembling grace in
27:14
ourselves, we are exceedingly apartment to think our state is
27:17
good. We.
27:18
Justify our own bad moods, our own harsh words, our own selfish
27:22
decisions. We give ourselves every
27:23
conceivable benefit of the doubt.
27:25
We. Act as brilliant, highly paid
27:27
defense attorneys for ourselves, but we act as ruthless,
27:31
unforgiving prosecutors for everyone else.
27:34
I. Think that hits the nail on the
27:35
head. Edwards argues that if we truly
27:37
loved our neighbors as ourselves, that love would have
27:40
the exact same tendency toward them we would.
27:42
Be just as eager to find mitigating circumstances for
27:44
their feelings as we are for our own.
27:46
Furthermore, we see this backwardness to judge and how
27:49
people treat their close personal friends or their
27:51
children. They are slow to believe evil
27:54
reports about those they love. Why?
27:57
Because love hopes all things Conversely, where hatred and
28:01
I'll will prevail, there a censorious spirit thrives when.
28:05
People fall out and prejudice arises.
28:07
They are instantly forward to judge the worst, to entertain
28:10
jealousies, and to believe every evil word.
28:13
The. Root cause is a deficiency of
28:15
Christian love, and tied to that lack of love is a staggering
28:19
amount of pride. A.
28:20
Forwardness to censure others shows a proud disposition.
28:24
The censorious person acts as though they are entirely free
28:26
from such faults and blemishes. They.
28:28
Feel completely justified in being busy and bitter and
28:31
charging others this. Brings in the scriptural backing
28:34
Edwards leans on, specifically the words of Christ in Matthew
28:37
Chapter 7. Judge not that you be not
28:40
judged, and why beholdest thou the mote that is in my brother's
28:44
eye? But consider it's not the beam
28:46
that is in thine own eye that. Text cuts to the heart of the
28:49
arrogance. We are ignoring a massive plank
28:52
of wood in our own vision while trying to perform delicate eye
28:55
surgery on our brother to remove a tiny speck of sawdust.
28:58
Edwards also points to Romans chapter 2, verse one.
29:02
Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that
29:05
judgest. For wherein thou judgest
29:07
another, thou condemnest thyself.
29:10
For thou that judges do us the same things if.
29:12
We were humbly sensible of our own failings.
29:14
If we understood the depth of our own depravity, we would not
29:17
be so pleased to judge others. The.
29:19
Corruption in one man's heart is the same kind of corruption in
29:22
another's if the busy center would just look within, they
29:25
would see the very same dispositions they're condemning.
29:28
But the. Pride goes even further than
29:29
just hypocrisy. It actually reaches a level of
29:32
cosmic rebellion. Let's.
29:33
Look at what Edward says about James chapter 4 verse 11.
29:37
By judging A fellow servant, you cease to be a doer of the law
29:40
and set yourself up as the sovereign judge.
29:42
Yes. The apostle James says, He that
29:45
speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother,
29:48
speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law.
29:51
But if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a
29:55
judge. Edwards explains that when you
29:57
do this, you do not act as a fellow servant under the same
30:01
law. You are setting yourself up as
30:03
the giver of the law and the judge whose province it is to
30:06
pass sentence and. James immediately adds There is
30:09
one law giver who is able to save and to destroy.
30:12
Who art thou that judges another?
30:15
God alone is Lord of the conscience it.
30:17
Should be a terrifying thought for any believer.
30:19
We are taking the gavel out of God's hand.
30:21
We. Are acting as a rival to the one
30:23
true law giver the thought. Of God's sovereignty and
30:25
dominion should completely hold us back from daring to judge our
30:28
fellow beings like this. We are setting up a little
30:31
tribunal in our minds, calling witnesses, weighing evidence and
30:34
passing eternal sentences, all while the actual judge of the
30:38
universe is watching us usurp his authority to.
30:43
Cement the danger of this arrogant mindset, Edward shifts
30:46
to providing biblical case studies he.
30:48
Wants to show us historically from Scripture, how often
30:52
initial, uncharitable judgments turn out to be completely and
30:56
utterly false, he points. Out that when the truth comes
30:58
fully out, things often appear far better than we at first.
31:02
We're ready to judge. Let's.
31:03
Walk through these case studies because they read like gripping
31:06
campfire stories and they provide such a weighty warning.
31:09
The 1st. One he mentions is the altar of
31:11
Reuben and Gad from Joshua chapter 22.
31:13
When he set the scene here, the. Tribes of Israel have conquered
31:16
the Promised Land and the Eastern.
31:18
Tribes Reuben, Gad and the half tribe Manasseh are heading back
31:22
across the Jordan River to their own territory before.
31:25
They cross. They build this massive imposing
31:28
altar by the river. The other.
31:30
Tribes hear about it and they instantly conclude the absolute
31:33
worst. They assume the eastern tribes
31:35
have turned away from the Lord and are setting up a rival
31:38
idolatrous worship center. They.
31:40
Actually gather their entire army and are preparing to go to
31:43
war against their own brothers. They are ready to slaughter them
31:46
over an assumption, but. Before they attack, they send a
31:49
delegation to confront them, and what do they find out?
31:53
They find out that the altar was never intended for sacrifices,
31:56
it was a replica built for a good end.
31:59
It was erected to be a monument, a physical witness between the
32:03
tribes on both sides of the river that they all worship the
32:06
same God. The.
32:07
Eastern tribes were actually afraid that future generations
32:09
of the western tribes might cut them off from the worship of
32:12
Yahweh, saying you live across the river, you have no part in
32:16
the Lord. So they built it out of
32:18
devotion, not rebellion. The hasty, censorious judgement
32:23
of the western tribes almost resulted in a catastrophic civil
32:27
war. They.
32:28
Presumed the worst possible motive for the action without
32:31
waiting for the truth it. Is such a stark warning against
32:34
jumping to conclusions? The second case study is Eli and
32:37
Hannah from First Samuel Chapter 1.
32:39
Eli. Is the high priest.
32:41
He is the highest religious authority in the land.
32:43
He is sitting by the doorpost of the temple and he sees Hannah
32:46
praying. She is in deep distress, weeping
32:50
bitterly, praying in her heart. Her.
32:52
Lips are moving, but her voice is not heard.
32:54
What is Eli's immediate judgement?
32:57
He. Looks at her and uncharitably
32:59
concludes that she is drunk. He even rebukes her, telling her
33:02
to put away her wine here. You have a man who should have
33:05
been filled with pastoral care looking at a woman pouring out
33:09
her soul in grief before God. And he filters her actions
33:12
through a lens of suspicion. He assumes a wicked state, but.
33:15
When the truth comes to light, when Hannah explains that she is
33:18
a woman of sorrowful spirit pouring out her soul to the
33:21
Lord, Eli realizes his terrible error and blesses her the.
33:25
Reality was far better than his initial judgment then.
33:27
Edwards brings up David and Mephibosheth.
33:30
David is fleeing from his son Absalom, who is trying to steal
33:33
the throne. David is vulnerable.
33:36
Zeba, the servant of Mephibosheth, comes out to meet
33:39
David with supplies. David asks where Mephibosheth
33:42
is, and Zeba slanders his master.
33:44
He. Tells David a lie, claiming that
33:46
Mephibosheth stayed in Jerusalem, hoping the Kingdom
33:49
would be restored to him during the chaos.
33:51
David, acting on this evil report, this flying rumor, makes
33:55
a censorious judgment in the heat of the moment.
33:58
He. Strips Mephibosheth of his land
34:00
and gives it all to Zeba. He assumes treason.
34:03
Yes, David acts without sufficient evidence.
34:06
He listens to a self-serving report and puts the worst
34:09
construction on Mephibosheth's absence later.
34:12
When the truth appears, David sees it was quite otherwise.
34:15
Mephibosheth had been deceived and abandoned by Zeba and had
34:18
been mourning for the king the entire time.
34:20
Again, the uncharitable assumption was entirely false,
34:23
planted by a liar taking advantage of a stressful
34:25
situation. The.
34:26
Final case study Edwards uses is Elijah's despair.
34:29
Elijah has just had this massive victory on Mount Carmel, calling
34:33
down fire from heaven, but then he flees from Queen Jezebel into
34:36
the wilderness. He is.
34:37
Sitting in a cave exhausted and he tells God I even I only am
34:43
left and they seek my life to take it away.
34:46
He. Has judged the spiritual state
34:48
of the entire nation of Israel and concluded that every single
34:51
person except for himself is an apostate who has abandoned the
34:55
true worship of God. It is the ultimate censorious
34:58
conclusion, drawn from depression and limited
35:00
perspective. Elijah assumes the absolute
35:03
worst about his fellow Israelites.
35:05
He. Thinks he's the only faithful
35:07
one left, but God corrects him with the truth.
35:09
God. Reveals that there are 7000 in
35:12
Israel who have not bowed the knee to bail.
35:14
The situation was 7000 times better than Elijah's hasty
35:17
judgement assumed. Edwards synthesizes these
35:20
stories to make a vital theological point.
35:22
There are always two sides to every story.
35:24
It is generally wise, safe and charitable to take the best view
35:28
there. Is probably no one way in which
35:30
persons are so liable to be wrong, as in presuming the worst
35:33
is true, without waiting till all the truth is known.
35:36
I. Want to prompt you, the
35:37
listener, to pause and consider this in your own life.
35:39
Think back over the years. How?
35:41
Many times were your own initial suspicions proven completely
35:45
wrong by time and facts. How?
35:47
Many times were you certain someone was slighting you, only
35:50
to find out they were dealing with a massive personal crisis,
35:52
a sick parent, a failing marriage and simply forgot to
35:56
return an e-mail. How?
35:57
Many times were you ready to go to war over an altar only to
36:01
find out it was a monument of unity.
36:03
If. Biblical figures like Joshua,
36:05
Eli, David and Elijah could get it so wrong by rushing to
36:09
judgement. We are certainly not immune our.
36:12
Instincts are broken by sin. We need the grace of charity to
36:15
correct our vision having. Demonstrated the historical
36:18
folly of the spirit, Edwards moves to his final sobering
36:22
application if. The biblical examples are not
36:25
enough to curb this mindset. The direct threats from God
36:28
should be He. Begins this section by pointing
36:31
out that we need to mind our own business, leaning on 1st
36:33
Corinthians chapter 4, verse 5, therefore.
36:36
Judge nothing before the time until the Lord come, who both
36:39
will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will
36:41
make manifest the counsels of the hearts.
36:44
Judge nothing before the time that puts it all in perspective.
36:47
Edwards makes a very logical argument here.
36:50
We. Actually have very little
36:51
occasion to pass sentence on others regarding their spiritual
36:54
state, their internal qualifications, or the hidden
36:57
motives of their actions. These.
36:59
Things simply do not concern us in the way we think they do.
37:02
Our primary overwhelming concern must be our own standing before
37:06
God. It is of infinite consequence to
37:09
us that we have a good estate before God, that we possess good
37:12
principles, and that our own aims and ends are right.
37:15
We. Spend so much energy evaluating
37:17
the speck in our neighbors eye that we ignore the massive
37:21
structural damage in our own soul spot.
37:23
On Edward says, it is a minor matter to us how it is with
37:27
others. Even if our censure were
37:29
deserved, we cannot be sure of it, because the business of
37:31
judging motives and souls is in the hands of God.
37:34
He. Is infinitely more fit to see to
37:36
it than we can ever be. God has appointed a day for his
37:39
decision. When we assume to judge others,
37:41
we are not only taking upon ourselves a work that does not
37:43
belong to us, but we are doing it before the appointed time we.
37:46
Are impatiently trying to force the revelation of hidden things
37:50
before the Lord returns. We are trying to rush the
37:53
eschaton and. This brings us to the final
37:55
warning, the most severe aspect of Edward's exposition.
37:58
He. Returns to the words of Jesus in
38:00
Matthew 7 verse one, and Paul in Romans 2, verse 3.
38:04
Judge. Not that you be not judged, for
38:07
with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged, and.
38:11
Paul asks. Think it's thou this O man, that
38:14
judges them, which do such things and do us the same, that
38:17
thou shalt escape the judgement of God.
38:20
This is where the theological rubber meets the road.
38:22
Edwards calls these awful threatenings from the lips of
38:25
the great being we must. Remember that this great being
38:28
is the one who is to be our judge at the final day.
38:31
It infinitely concerns us to be acquitted by him.
38:34
A. Sentence of condemnation from
38:36
God will be speakably dreadful if we sink forever under it.
38:39
The. Logic is terrifyingly simple.
38:41
God has threatened that if we are found censoriously judging
38:45
and condemning others, we shall be condemned ourselves.
38:47
The. Measure we use against our
38:48
neighbors will be the exact measure used against us at the
38:52
tribunal of God. Therefore, as we would not
38:54
ourselves receive condemnation from him, we must not mete out
38:59
such measure to others. That is an incredibly sobering
39:02
reality. If we demand a standard of
39:04
absolute perfection and unmixed motives from everyone around us
39:09
while gleefully magnifying their flaws, we are setting the
39:12
standard for our own trial. We.
39:14
Are asking God to scrutinize us with the same unyielding,
39:18
uncharitable severity to. Synthesize the main takeaways
39:21
from edward's rigorous exposition charity requires us
39:24
to leave the judgement of souls entirely to God it requires.
39:27
Us to actively resist the contracted prejudice that
39:30
invents flaws in our neighbors it.
39:32
Requires us to refuse the feast of rumors, refusing to be
39:35
carrying birds, feeding on the downfall of others and.
39:37
Crucially, it requires us to grieve like a tender parent
39:41
rather than rejoice when we are forced by reason to acknowledge
39:44
another person's sin it. Is a comprehensive overhaul of
39:47
how we view our fellow human beings it replaces suspicion
39:51
with hope, prejudice with grace, and arrogance with humility it.
39:54
Recognizes that we are fellow servants under the same law
39:57
giver awaiting the same final day of judgement.
40:00
We. Are all desperate for grace and
40:02
charity is the act of extending that grace horizontally I.
40:06
Want to leave you, the listener, with a final thought to ponder
40:09
as we close this deep dive into the source material it.
40:12
Is something of the Mull over on your own that builds on
40:15
everything we have discussed. Imagine for a moment that God
40:18
were to take your inner monologue from this past week
40:21
and broadcast it over a loudspeaker for everyone you
40:24
know to hear. Every.
40:25
Hasty assumption you made, every silent judgment you cast, every
40:29
worst case motive you assign to a Co worker, a family member or
40:33
a stranger on the Internet if. That broadcast were played out
40:36
loud. Would the people listening
40:37
recognize the fruit of the Spirit, the divine Christian
40:40
love that things no evil or. Would that broadcast sound like
40:43
the exact kind of merciless tribunal you pray God never
40:47
holds against you? Thank you for joining us on this
40:49
deep dive.