There is now therefore; no condemnation in Christ........
There are all sorts of way to measure things, especially in our society. In a given day, how many times do you make a judgment...of anything? I can tell you, hundreds of times. Now I am especially concerned with the judgments we make of one another and of strangers. The words above, from Paul's letter in the New Testament concern the Law of Sin and Death. Doing the things we do not want to do but do anyway, and doing the things we want but do not. I think this can be stretched to our judgment of others as well. For God does not look at man as a man does to man on the surface, but looks intently and deeply into the heart. It is for this reason we are forgiven, all of us, there is no impartiality. (Apprehending this forgiveness is a whole other story.) In other words if we have been, as I have been, on the receiving end of some one's unjust judgment and categorically "pigeonholed" say, as someone undeserving of love, of respect, of anything kind at all, then we (and I) miss the mark and (Sin).
When in the course of our daily lives we go about our business and perhaps whether inadvertently or on purpose involve ourselves outside our "normal sphere" of activity we may become closer to those we judge to be "different." Whether it be those outside societal norms, such as the homeless, or even the rich, or just those who are not daily in the sphere we normally travel in we easily judge. And in doing so we may find our hearts callous. We just might overlook common dignity, respect, love and measure incorrectly.
And so As Christians, we must know not to submit to that and rise above the tendency and not condemn ourselves and fall into that trap as well. We always will fall short. And because we now have Christ's righteousness as our own, and not our own, we can walk with heads a little higher, a little less bent over and carry empathy instead.
