As my studies have matured and deepened, I have thought more and more about how we in the present view those people in the past.We gather various clues, and from those clues we try to paint a picture of them. Often times, this picture looks very exotic and different from us. I mean our culture doesn't go around building pyramids, making mummies, worshipping animal deities, or any of that sort. That is something of the past! And we don't go around fighting to the death in sports arenas, like the Romans. Or building giant statues to god and godesses. Right?
Wrong!!!!
We are just like the ancients!
Examples:
This is a statue of America's First President, George Washington. He looks a lot like Zeus!!!
And this? It is another monument to George Washington:
If someone 2000 years in the future saw these things, then what do you think they would imagine? That Americans had a god named Washington, I am sure!!! Why else would they have statues and monuments of such a person?
And if future humans saw this:
Would they think it different from this:
????
Would they consider these guys:
Different from these:
Maybe. Maybe not. I often wonder whether or not we will be seen by the future humans in the same light as what we see when we look at the past.
But what am I getting at with this?? Well I think that maybe we Christians are like students of history. Sometimes we only get a portion of the story, and we try to make a whole picture out of it! For instance, a Christian might see a young girl who is pregnant, or just had a baby. A lot of times the Christian will think badly of her. "Oh here is a girl that must be a slut. She can't keep her legs closed, and now she has a baby." They made a story without knowing all the details. Maybe the girl was a virgin and saving herself, but got raped. And instead of aborting the baby, she wanted to keep it and raise it.
Or maybe we see a man on the street, begging for money. The thought might be that he is some bum who is too lazy to work, or did drugs and was put on the streets or something like this. But maybe he had a family. Maybe he had a home. Maybe he lost it all due to circumstances beyond his control.
And of course, the same is true for people who look good. We see the rich, young, beautiful couple in Church. They have a nice car, house, and good jobs. Obviously, they are good people, and God is blessing them with these things. Right? Perhaps! Or maybe the husband is cheating on his wife, who is only going to church to try and keep their marriage together.
We really don't know about any of these cases, minus the limited details we have briefly observed. This brings to me a few verses in the Bible. One is obviously Matthew 7:1: "Judge not, lest ye be judged." Pretty straight forward. We shouldn't go around passing judgements on people. Why? They can easily do the same towards us. Maybe people see me doing something, and assume me to be a bad man. I don't want that!
Another verse:
Titus 3:1-7
Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.
At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
I love this verse so much! Everytime I feel the urge to think negatively about a person (read: judge), I remember paraphrase this verse in my heart "you were once like them, but JESUS saved you by His Mercy!!!!" Essentially, I am just like the person I was wanting to judge. I am not any different than they are! I just have been saved by Grace, but not my works. Therefore, what grounds do I have to say this person is bad? Or another is good?
I wanted to write this as a reminder: Always be gentle with those in sin. Their sin is sin, no doubt. And we should warn them of the dangers of sin, as there are very real consequences to sin. But let us remember the sins in our life. Let us remember the bad things that have come our way. Let us remember all that, and show compassion to those who are trapped in this world and have not had the Gospel impact their lives.
Blessings,
Tom
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