Here Comes the Judge!

Does anyone else out there recall that statement from television ages ago? If you Google it, both Sammy Davis Jr. and Flip Wilson come up as comedic actors from the 1960s and 70s with that line in a stand-up routine. Back then it was funny, but today it seems everyone wants to be a judge and if you fail to measure up to judgment you are a criminal or a perpetrator or worse!

When did we get so shockingly penetrated into the business of others? It was a social grace “back in the day” to not talk politics nor religion in a social setting. My father always used to say that. As a youngster, I was not sure what he meant, but I get it now! Whatever happened to the concept of “agreeing to disagree?”

Times are tough! “If you are not like me, I want to hate you, ” seems to be the modern message.

What a sad society we have become! It’s especially interesting that we might be inclined to judge others, but we don’t want to be judged, do we?

I have several little devotional books with varied wisdom from different perspectives of Christianity and the one I read today was an anthology called EVERYDAY INSPIRATION FROM GOD’S WORD. There is no single author attributed to the book, rather it is publication simply attributed to Barbour Publishing.

The page opened with this statement: “Immerse yourself in radical thinking!”

The page went on to describe how certain people rub us the wrong way. And when someone rubs us the wrong way it stirs negative thinking, judging thoughts and sometimes our worst part of self emerges. The radical thinking referred to is this…when I feel like ditching someone, instead I am to love them. It is not our business to understand them and/ or change them, instead we are to simply love.

²⁷ “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (According to Luke)

I pray for this ability! My human nature is counterintuitive to this, but my Christianity tells me I can do better.

May it be so!