By Arden Ratcliff
JOHN 7:14-36
About the middle of the festival Jesus went up into the
temple and began to teach. The Jews were astonished at it, saying, “How does this
man have such learning, when he has never been taught?” Then Jesus answered them, “My
teaching is not mine but his who sent me. Anyone who resolves to do the will of God will know
whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own. Those who speak on their own
seek their own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is
true, and there is nothing false in him.
“Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps
the law. Why are you looking for an opportunity to kill me?” The crowd answered, “You have
a demon! Who is trying to kill you?” Jesus answered them, “I performed one work, and all of
you are astonished. Moses gave you circumcision (it is, of course, not from
Moses, but from the patriarchs), and you circumcise a man on the sabbath. If a man receives
circumcision on the sabbath in order that the law of Moses may not be broken,
are you angry with me because I healed a man’s whole body on the sabbath? Do not judge by appearances,
but judge with right judgment.”
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“Do not judge by appearances,
but judge with right judgment.”
That was the line that jumped
out at me from the gospel reading above. Cause, man, do I have the
tendency to judge people by their appearance.
I see a girl walking down the
street wearing leggings instead of pants? I judge her for her bad fashion
choice. I see a guy smoking on the sidewalk? I judge him for his
unhealthy habit. I hear someone swear loudly in a restaurant full of
families and young children? I judge that person (and also probably glare at
them).
I know nothing about these
and yet I judge them based on a split-second glance in their direction. I
feel like we all are susceptible to this bad habit.
For me, it’s even worse about
matters surrounding faith and religious community. I hear that a church
down the street is doing something I wouldn’t enjoy? I turn my nose
up. I hear that our small group is doing better than their small
group? I feel superior. I judge others’ spiritual lives based on my
own and what works for me.
Jesus was constantly facing
religious judgments like these. The Pharisees were sure they knew exactly
how one was supposed to worship God, and then Jesus would walk in and do
something different. And they would sneer, and condemn, and question his
practices.
And what did he do?
Point out their own hypocrisy. “Oh, you think I shouldn’t heal someone on
the Sabbath? But how about when you circumcise men on the Sabbath?
How is that different?”
I shudder to think at what
Jesus would say to me. Because I know that plenty of people could
criticize my fashion choices. And I’m a person who sometimes eats cookies
for breakfast--- talk about an unhealthy decision!
When we judge someone based
on their appearance alone, we’re writing off their entire personality.
We’re discounting the millions of things that makes them uniquely their own
person, a child of God.
So before we judge that
church down the street for their praise band, maybe we should take the time to
actually get to know them, and try out their style of worship. Before we
judge someone on the street based on what they’re wearing, maybe we should try to
strike up a conversation, and really see them.
As I head out into this third
week of Lent, I’m going to strive not to judge others. I hope you’ll join
me.
