4 November 2021

Why do you pass judgement on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgement seat of God. For it is written,
‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall give praise to God.’
So then, each of us will be accountable to God.

From Romans 14:7-12 , NRSV

Paul’s focus on this issue of judging others came from his awareness of the disagreements that existed between members of the Christian communities in Rome. In particular, there had been much disagreement over the issue of eating meat. For some, this was perhaps because of a fear that the meat they were offered was non-kosher or was meat that had been sacrificed to a pagan god. Others had no problem with eating meat. Although Paul did not himself object to the eating of meat, he understood that for some it was a matter of conscience. He hoped to draw a line under this and others areas of disagreement by insisting that judgement should be left to the Lord and that none should judge another.

• • How might human judgement differ from God’s?
  • What can we do to avoid the temptation to judge others?

Pray for those who suffer discrimination because of the unfair judgements of others.