Being unduly critical of others
is a behavior pattern that not only destroys our relationships but also blinds
us to our own weaknesses.
Much torment comes to people's
lives because of judgmental attitudes, criticism and suspicion. Multitudes of
relationships are destroyed by these enemies.
In the area of judgment, the mind
is the battlefield. Thoughts-just "I think"-can be the tool the devil
uses to keep a person lonely. People do not enjoy being around someone who
needs to voice an opinion about everything.
Being judgmental, opinionated and
critical are three sure ways to see relationships dissolve. Satan, of course,
wants you and me to be lonely and rejected, so he attacks our minds in these
areas.
"Judging" Defined
According to Vine's Expository
Dictionary of New Testament Words, one of the Greek words translated judge is
partially defined as "to form an opinion" and is cross-referenced to
the word sentence. God is the only one who has the right to condemn or
sentence; therefore, when we pass judgment on another, we are, in a certain
sense, setting ourselves up as God in his life. That puts a little "godly
fear" in me. I have a lot of nerve, but I am not interested in trying to
be God!
These areas were once a major
problem in my personality. I was critical because I always seemed to see what
was wrong instead of what was right.
Some personalities are more given
to this fault than others. Some of the more jovial personality types do not
want to see anything but the "happy" or "fun" things in
life, so they really don't pay much attention to the things that could spoil
their enjoyment.
The more melancholy personality
or the controlling personality often sees what is wrong first; generally,
people with this type of personality are generous in sharing their negative
opinions and outlook with others.
Thousands of things we encounter
every day are neither right nor wrong but are simply personal choices-choices
people have a right to make on their own without outside interference.
My husband and I are extremely
different in our approach to many things. How to decorate a house would be one
of those things. If we go out to shop for household things together, it seems
Dave always likes one thing, and I like something else. His opinion is just as
good as mine, and mine is just as good as his; they are simply different.
It took me years to understand
that there wasn't something wrong with Dave just because he did not agree with
me. Of course, I usually let him know that I thought there was something wrong
with him. Obviously, my attitude caused much friction between us and hurt our
relationship.
The Problem Is Pride
Judgment and criticism are
actually the fruit of a deeper problem - pride. The Bible repeatedly warns us
about being high-minded (see, for example, Romans 12:3).
Whenever we excel in an area, it
is only because God has given us a gift of grace for it. If we have an
exaggerated opinion of ourselves, it causes us to look down on others and value
them as "less than" we are.
This type of attitude or thinking
is detestable to the Lord, and it opens many doors for the enemy in our lives.
We must have a holy fear of pride and be very careful of judging others or of
being critical of them (Gal. 6:1-3).
Each of us belongs to God, and even
if we have weaknesses, He is able to make us stand and to justify us. We answer
to God, not to each other; therefore, we are not to judge one another in a
critical way (Rom. 14:4).
The devil stays very busy
assigning demons to place judgmental, critical thoughts in people's minds. I
can remember when it was entertaining for me to sit in the park or the shopping
mall and simply watch all the people go by as I formed a mental opinion of each
of them - their clothing, hairstyles, companions and so on.
We cannot always prevent
ourselves from having opinions, but we do not have to express them. I believe
we can even grow to the point where we do not have so many opinions, and those
we do have are not of a critical nature.
I frequently tell myself,
"Joyce, it's none of your business." A major problem is brewing in
your mind when you ponder your opinion until it becomes a judgment.
The problem grows bigger the more
you think about it until you begin to express it to others or even to the one
you're judging. It has then become explosive and has the ability to do a great
deal of harm in the realm of relationship as well as in the spiritual realm.
You may be able to save yourself future problems by simply learning to say,
"This is none of my business."
Judgment and criticism were
rampant in my family, so I "grew up with them," so to speak. I wanted
to do things God's way, but I couldn't. It took many years of misery before I
learned about the strongholds in my mind that had to be dealt with before my behavior
could change.
Matthew 7:1-5 are some of the
classic Scriptures on the subject of judgment and criticism. When you are
having trouble with your mind in this area, use these Scriptures and others as
weapons against the devil who is attempting to build a stronghold in your mind.
He may be operating out of a stronghold that has already been there for many
years.
Sowing and Reaping
The Scriptures plainly tell us
that we will reap what we sow (Matt. 7:1-2; Gal. 6:7). This also applies to the
mental realm.
We can sow and reap an attitude
as well as a crop or an investment. Many times we are reaping in our lives what
we have previously sown into the life of another.
The devil loves to keep us busy,
mentally judging the faults of others. That way, we never see or deal with what
is wrong with us!
We cannot change others; only God
can. We cannot change ourselves either, but we can cooperate with the Holy
Spirit and allow Him to do the work.
When we have our thoughts and
conversation on what is wrong with everyone else, we are usually being deceived
about our own conduct. Therefore, Jesus commanded that we not concern ourselves
with what is wrong with others when we have so much wrong with ourselves (Matt.
7:3-5). Allow God to deal with you first, and then you will learn the
scriptural way of helping your brother grow in his Christian walk.
Besides reaping judgment
ourselves when we criticize others, the Scriptures tell us that we ourselves do
the same things for which we criticize others (Rom. 2:1). The Lord gave me a
good example once to help me understand this principle.
I was pondering why we would do
something ourselves and think it was perfectly all right but judge someone else
who does it. The Lord said, "Joyce, you look at yourself through
rose-colored glasses, but you look at everyone else through a magnifying
glass."
We make excuses for our own
behavior, but when someone else does the same thing we do, we are often
merciless. Doing unto others as we want them to do to us (Matt. 7:12) is a good
life principle that will prevent a lot of judgment and criticism, if followed.
A judgmental mind is an offshoot
of a negative mind-thinking about what is wrong with an individual instead of
what is right. Being positive and not negative will benefit others, but you
will benefit more than anyone.
Be Suspicious of Suspicion
First Corinthians 13:7 reads, "Love bears up under anything and everything that
comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person" (AMP).
I can honestly say that obedience
to this Scripture has always been a challenge for me. I was brought up to be
suspicious and to distrust everyone. In addition, I had several very
disappointing experiences with people, not only before I became an active
Christian but afterward as well. Meditating on the components of love and
realizing that love always believes the best has helped me greatly to develop a
new mind-set.
When your mind has been poisoned
or when Satan has gained strongholds in your mind, it has to be renewed
according to God's Word. You renew it by learning the Word and meditating on it
- pondering, muttering to yourself and thinking on it.
We have the wonderful Holy Spirit
in us to remind us when our thoughts are going in the wrong direction. God does
this for me when I am having suspicious thoughts instead of loving thoughts.
The natural man thinks, "If
I trust people, I'll be taken advantage of." Perhaps, but the benefits
will far outweigh any negative experiences.
Trust and faith bring joy to life
and help relationships grow to their maximum potential. Suspicion cripples a
relationship and usually destroys it.
God condemns judgment, criticism
and suspicion, and so should we. Love what God loves, and hate what He hates.
Allow what He allows, and disallow what He disallows.
A balanced attitude is always the
best policy. That doesn't mean we are not to use wisdom and discernment in our
dealings with others. We don't have to throw open our lives to everyone we
meet, giving every person we encounter a chance to crush us. On the other hand,
we don't have to look at everyone with a negative, suspicious eye, always
expecting to be taken advantage of by others.
One time after I had been
involved in a disappointing church situation, God brought John 2:23-25 to my
attention. It speaks of Jesus' relationship with His disciples.
It plainly says that Jesus did
not trust Himself to them. It does not say that He was suspicious of them or
that He had no trust in them; it explains that because He understood human
nature, He did not trust Himself to them in an unbalanced way.
I had been hurt badly in the
situation at church because I had become too involved with a group of ladies
and had gotten out of balance. I had been leaning on the ladies in this group
and placing in them a trust that belongs only to God.
We can go only so far in any
human relationship. If we go beyond wisdom, trouble will brew, and we will be
hurt.
Some people think they have
discernment when actually they are just suspicious. Suspicion comes out of the
unrenewed mind; discernment comes out of the renewed spirit.
True spiritual discernment will
provoke prayer, not gossip. If a genuine problem is being discerned by a
genuine gift, it will follow the scriptural pattern for dealing with it, not
fleshly ways that only spread and compound the problem.
Pleasant Words Are Sweet
"The
mind of the wise instructs his mouth, and adds learning and persuasiveness to
his lips. Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the mind and healing to
the body" (Prov. 16:23-24).
Words and thoughts are like bone
and marrow - so close, it is hard to divide them (Heb. 4:12).
Our thoughts are silent words
that only we and the Lord hear, but those words affect our inner man, our
health, our joy and our attitude. The things we think on often come out of our
mouths and sometimes make us look foolish.
Judgment, criticism and suspicion
never bring joy. Jesus said that He came in order that we might have and enjoy
life (John 10:10). Begin to operate in the mind of Christ, and you will step
into a whole new realm of living.
Joyce Meyer
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