Who Are You to Judge Another?

Please turn in your Bibles to the book of James in chapter 4. Before I read the text. I wanted to thank you for your prayers and support as I traveled to Ohio over the last several days and attended the funeral of a friend of mine who was a minister and his two children and.

There's a lot of hard things in relationship to not just the death. But the relationship between him and and the CPC and other things. And it was a good time and pray for a continued reconciliation and that we'd be able to minister to the family in the future and that Relationships that are hard in town there would also there be reconciliation there.

I really thank you for your prayers and support in that James chapter 4. I'm gonna begin reading in verse 1. Where do wars and fights come from among you. Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members you lust and do not have.

You murder and covet and cannot obtain you fight in war yet. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask amiss that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulterous is do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?

Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the scripture says in vain the spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously? But he gives more grace.

Therefore he says God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Therefore submit to God resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands you sinners and purify your hearts you double-minded.

Lament and mourn and weep let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he will lift you up. And now our text for today. Do not speak evil of one another brethren.

He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one lawgiver who is able to save and to destroy.

Who are you to judge? Another. This is God's holy and infallible word. Please pray with me now. Oh Lord, we are a people of unclean lips. We run our mouths improperly we we talk too much. Lord we condemn with our words those for whom you have died and we.

We seek to take the place of you as the righteous judge. No Lord. I pray that you would bring conviction upon us that would lead to Repentance and greater faithfulness and joy and Thanksgiving as a result and we ask this all in Jesus name.

Amen.

Please be seated. I'm also happy to report that my grandson Callan is Here today for his first worship service. I'm so happy to see Jacob and Veda and Callan what a great blessing to have you here today.

The Sin of Speaking Evil Against One Another

Who are you? To judge another today the Message really hinges on verse 11 the the command that's given there Do not speak evil of one another brethren. James has already it seems exhaustively so talked about the tongue and Bridling it and the dangers of misusing it.

Here he continues another illustration another example about how the people of God can misuse their words in such a way to do harm to other real brethren and If you ever have spent any time on the internet or gone to a conference or gathered around with a group of Christians We speak evil of one another regularly.

We speak evil of those for whom Christ has died and we need to repent and to stop doing that. So today there are two kind of sections that I like us to consider first the command and the implications of it Do not speak evil of One another and second the consequences that would happen if we violate it.

Let's look at verse 11 again Do not speak.

Evil.

The word that is most commonly associated with this term for us is probably slander and To slander is to defame to injure by maliciously uttering a false report. But it also entails uttering a true report.

That goes outside the definition of what we think of a slander but that could be evil speaking that makes sense.

We.

Can tarnish or impair the reputation of another by false tales or true tales maliciously told or propagated. To speak evil is to speak against to backbite To speak down in a hostile Deriding way to mock and even as we prayed to revile It is a malice of speech that's directed against one's neighbor.

And.

Positively as was prayed in our prayers of the people when Christ was reviled He did not revile in return. Why do we speak evil of one another. Why is this true for us who have Tasted and seen that the Lord is good that they have been the recipients and beneficiaries of his grace and mercy.

Christ does not speak evil of us. The father in the spirit. Do not speak evil of us because we have been united to Christ in faith, and we have been washed. The righteous judge doesn't speak evil of his people.

Why do his people speak evil of? his people. There's another element to this. I'd like you to consider. There are two sections Lord willing next week will consider. The section that begins in verse 13 and and both of these still deal with the tongue.

This is a Condemnation in our section in verses 11 and 12. But in verse 13, there's also the boasting. So we see these are two sides of a similar problem and has been the case in James. What we realize is our speaking evil of another is rooted in our pride.

When I can point out your deficiencies I can elevate my superiority. You could say you're doing it because of Orthodoxy, but in reality, you're probably not doing it for that reason. You're probably doing it because of your pride.

We are Particularly people who care about the culture and the things. We are Grieved by the sins of the world.

In.

Fact we hate the sins of our wives and our husbands and our children and our extended family. We hate our sin. And she's we hate their sins. But but the real question for us is and this is really at the heart of a true revival of religion in a person's life and heart and in the church and A denomination in a region in the nation in the world is do we hate our sin?

We hate the homosexuality we hate the transgenderism. We don't hate the pride in us. We can tell you all the things that are wrong out there, but we don't look inwardly and say what's wrong in here. Let's build the kingdom of God.

We might say but but can we build the kingdom of God without addressing? That resident problem within the Christian Needs to speak the truth about sin and this is not to say that we can never say that a person is doing something wrong, but I fear too often.

Our speaking evil is filled with malice. There's another element That I'd like us to consider here and one of the things that's hard about this particular Section is it doesn't seem to be properly tied as it has been recently with other parts of the immediate preceding context upon first glance but but it does have to ask the question if God resists the proud and Speaking evil of one another is a symbol and sign of pride.

Then it follows that in order to not be one who is resisted by God is proud. We cannot speak evil of one another so I see a very strong connection ultimately to the previous context if the devil is the diabolical one the slanderer.

It would follow and it would seem that in order for me to resist the devil. I would not need to Follow his ways. If I speak evil of the brethren, I am acting like the great slanderer himself. There's a Qualification list for elders and deacons and first Timothy 3.

I don't want you to turn there under the list of the diaconate requirements is Something along these lines. It says and of course because the lesser office includes this this would be true of the office of the elder as well.

It says first Timothy 3 11. Likewise their wives must be reverent. Not slanderers Temperate faithful in all things. In Proverbs chapter 6 there are six things that the Lord hates seven that are an abomination to him a.

Proud look a.

Lying tongue Hands that shed innocent blood a heart that devises wicked plans feet that are swift and running to evil. A false witness who speaks lies in One who sows discord among brethren. Three of the seven Abominations in the sight of God are speaking evil.

This should cause us to.

Be very cautious with our words. You might say I Can speak evil of the pagans. You can't really even speak evil of them because they are made in the image of God. They may be numbered among the elect for whom Christ has died.

You can't even speak evil of them. Oh.

Lord.

Bridle the tongues of us your people. Who run our mouths and and deride and tear down and destroy with our lips? Oh Lord humble us in your sight and do not allow us To speak evil. It's another element to this.

It's important. The next level of discussion here it says he who this is the second half of verse 11 he who speaks evil of a brother and Judges his brother Speaks evil of the law and judges the law. To judge is to come to a decision to separate.

But here this isn't necessarily just dealing with right and wrong this is Judging someone in such a way to subject them to censure. Those are minions. They don't know the gospel. Those are minions may have their doctrine of soteriology wrong, but if they're trusting the Lord Jesus Christ Can't speak evil of them.

This applies across all of the different disciplines that we consider important. To be a judge in this case is to be those who act the part of Arbiters and and pass judgment on the deeds and words of others.

This is the Judging of motives. We see someone do something we say that guy is always doing this. He's. He's that way. We don't know that that man has not repented. And that was part of his former conduct.

We are those in our judgment who judge severely and unfairly. Finding fault with this or that and others and of course this language in our section the grammar and The tenses the moods all the things that contribute to this.

This is equivalent in this idea of judging to condemning. So to speak evil of a brother is to condemn him. It is to sit in judgment over him and Doing this. James says that we are actually speaking evil of the law.

And I believe the original audience like us and them more. So they highly esteem the law of God. In order to pass judgment on our brother to condemn him. We are in fact are speaking evil of God's holy law and We are sitting in judgment of the law.

Do we do that? The law sits in judgment over us. It's God's Codified instrument to say this is right and this is wrong. And James says when we go outside of that we become usurpers of the authority of God.

We're gonna be resisted because that is a proud and haughty man and woman and child. Who sits in judgment of the law of God and speaks evil and judges? His neighbor. Ecclesiastes 7 says a good name is better than precious ointment.

Proverbs 22 says a good name is to be chosen rather than great riches and Favor is better than Silver or gold. To bear false witness is a violation of the Ninth Commandment. And we think this is just merely lying in court if we pronounce Condemnation upon a man who woman or child who's redeemed in Christ.

We are violating the Ninth Commandment. Thomas Watson says so eloquently. The scorpion carries his poison in his tail. The slanderer carries his poison in his tongue. Paul the Apostle was even slandered.

They said men might do evil that God may make some good come out of it. Let us do evil that good may come. They said it was slanderously reported that Paul was teaching this. He wasn't Christ. The Most Holy One was called a glutton and a drunkard.

John the Baptist a holy man was said of him that he had a demon. To speak evil is to strike wounding blows with the tongue to harm our brother our sister in Christ to sit in judgment of them. When I speak evil of a brother, I lie about God's grace in their life.

I Also deny that God is sanctifying them now or could in the future. Why do we discard people? How many Preachers have you thrown away John Piper discarded now? Why do older preachers get liberal? I don't know they do.

John Piper really loves Jesus. Because we've got errors. We can't discard John Piper. We tear down people. We dismiss people. We diminish people. We despise people. We look down upon them. We Think so highly of ourselves.

And this has already been mentioned under the guise of defending Orthodox doctrine. We wound those For whom Christ is died. Truth telling is magnified.

If I.

See my brother sinning. I have a lot of remedies to help him. I can go to my brother according to Matthew 18 particularly if I have been sinned against. I can come to him with the idea of Galatians 6 to to bear his burden and fulfill the law of Christ.

I Can take Paul's example from Ephesians and put away all evil speaking and let all bitterness wrath and anger To be put away from us with all malice. Why do we pronounce judgment. Why do we subject our brother to censure?

Why do we pass judgment on? The holy righteous law Of God as I've said many times in our study in James that there is a close connection To James's teaching and the Sermon on the Mount. I'm not going to have you turn many times.

I'm going to ask you now to turn to Matthew in chapter 7. Remember 20 plus years ago now that the most popular Bible verse in the culture had been supplanted John 3 16 and the verse that replaced it was Matthew 7 1 and only 7 1 no context no other verses.

You're not allowed to judge. It's not what it teaches. We are to judge righteously. But in our judgment, we're seeking the glory of God the purity and peace and unity of his church and the good of our brother.

None of it is entails us Dragging them through the mud. None of this entails us Disparaging them all of it is for their good. We come to them. We confront them we Deal with them there. Maybe we as those who love we we cover their sins the multitude of their sins with our love for them see if you can see a connection between Matthew 7 in our text.

Judge not. That you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge you will be judged.

And.

With the measure you use it will be measured. Back to you. That's a little frightening if I'm a reviler. Covenantally, I've invited reviling into my life. If I have a critical spirit against my brother or sister I am inviting the critical nature of sinful man into my life.

We reap what we sow. Now the critical part. My brother doesn't have his doctrine and or there are things that I like and care about that he doesn't have and so I Speak derisively of him. Why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye?

But do not consider the plank in your own eye. Or how can you say to your brother? Let me remove the speck from your eye. And look a plank is in your own eye. This passage speaks to the world in which I live.

I Can see the speck in my brother's eye. And there's a plank sticking out of mine. Is that true for you? These things ought not to be and today we are being warned by the Lord and we've been confronted with this.

We have to amend our behavior. This is fresh to us now. Verse 5 it says hypocrite first remove the plank from your own eye. And you will see clearly to remove the speck from Your brother's eye. Augustine has said the wounds of the tongue.

No physician can heal. One time I was asked to preach very the early days of me being called into ministry. My brother-in-law was ill or something was somewhat short notice and I had to preach. Day of no previous notice.

There was a guy there as a visitor. He wasn't the best guy. He was a little bit of a troublemaker and He told me to not quit my day job. Now I Don't have the gifts that other men have but I believe the Lord called me to preach.

That stung for a young preacher. As 20s trying to be a faithful servant. How many times have we done that? Offhanded remarks. Little digs. Little jabs. It's so cowardly and What we also do is where we're passive-aggressive to them in person we don't really say what we think about them, but we talk bad about them behind their backs and slander their good name.

Three of the great abominations. The things that the Lord hates. This is something that the church now has to To look at. I don't think you're any worse. You're probably better than the average church, but I think this is a real issue for the time in which we live.

We speak evil of one another and it's easy. I think we kind of in our flesh. I think we like it. It's fun to run some people down who aren't like us. It makes us feel good. It's all selfish and it's all Very unsavory.

Turn back to James now. David in Psalm 140 Was crying out to God.

For.

Deliverance from wicked men. And this language comes up in the words of Jesus and also John the Baptist and Paul. They sharpen their tongues like a serpent and The poison of asps is under their lips. Think about that great serpent in the garden.

What was his weapon? What was the warfare?

His words.

Ecclesiastes 10 says the words of a wise man. And wise man's mouth are gracious but the lips of the fool shall swallow him up. Those who are thinking of a law righteousness and rejecting grace and the salvation that is in Christ alone Paul says their throat is an open tomb.

With their tongues they have practiced deceit. The poison of ass is under Their lips. He who speaks evil of a brother and Judges a brother speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law You see the cruel irony here we.

We do not judge the law. The law judges us. You are not a doer of the law but a judge. You have circumvented the holy process. You have made yourself the judge. You are not a law keeper. You are not upholding the royal law of love of James chapter 2.

You're not loving your neighbor as yourself in order to fulfill the royal law according to Scripture. You're being prideful Self-interested when you violate this principle of Scripture. And now verse 12 the commandment has some very terrifying consequences.

There is Chastening and correction. For those who violate this principle I pray the Lord will enable us to stop speaking against The brethren and other genuine Christians that we would have true unity in Christ.

It says there is one lawgiver. Jesus Christ is the lawgiver. And the Sermon on the Mount is the amplification of the Ten Commandments. There is a external way to obey the Ten Commandments a conformity from without that looks righteous and Jesus shatters that notion in the Sermon on the Mount and says these are matters deep within the hearts of the people.

In order to obey the law I can't have the outward performance. I have to have the inward reality the substance of it.

Thankfully.

James 4 6 is still in play. He gives more grace. There's a lawgiver. His name is Christ and the lawgiver has amplified and expounded upon The Word of God to give us the full understanding of what the law is.

He alone is the one who is able to save and to destroy. He's the one who sits in condemnation. He's the one who strikes the gavel. Who are you? to judge another. Well, it's not all bad news. There's some good news.

The lawgiver the law expounder. The law teacher is Also the law keeper. This sounds like you're studying this morning a bit. And if I in faith have been united to Christ I have been reconciled to the law.

I Have been reconciled to God's holiness on the cross. Justice and mercy have kissed and It has fallen in sweet places to you who know Christ. I think that's why James is so adamant. How could we go back against that?

He has kept the law in our stead. We have been vitally united to him. We are alive in him. We have the the punishments and penalties of the law have been removed because of the grace of God in Christ.

I'm so glad he's the righteous judge and we are not. How could you? judge another brethren. James has been very concerned that we have a genuine Christian faith a faith that Because it is so pure and true and it's singular devotion and trust in Christ it of necessity and by implication Manifests itself and living a certain way.

You and I today Have to stop speaking evil of one another. We still need to cry out against sin in ourselves and in the church. But but we cannot condemn those for whom Christ has died. I've talked about this many times and I'm in my Old age.

I'm getting known for being gentle. I have not always Been gentle and I can tell you with great certainty if you come against my bride or my children.

I.

Will.

Probably respond with great ferocity Toward you how much more so the righteous indignation of Christ Would respond to those who speak treacherously and condemning of his bride and his children. That that's why it's so nonsensical for James that that we could participate in such a thing.

It goes against our very new nature in.

Him.

Wanted to.

I've told my children this a number of times. There are a lot of things That we focus on and care about. My friend is a very ambitious man very Vision mission oriented guy. He had a lot of plans. He's doing ministry in Honduras and ministry in Myanmar and Feeding homeless people and witnessing.

I mean just unbelievable. He made a lot of plans. Last Sunday, he he preached the word and led his church in worship. He went to bed on Monday night and woke up to his house on fire. He started getting his wife and his kids out and he and he ran upstairs to get the last two boys out and They didn't make it out.

He didn't make it out. We need to cut through all of it. Distracts us there. There's one pressing and urgent need of the moment. The most important thing in the world is that you be united to Christ? Everything else is a far second today.

The only thing that matters for the Robinettes is do they know Christ? And on the day of your death the only thing that will matter. Are you united to Christ? Everyone here I Know I suspect believe you're Christians.

But this is the most important thing. This is the chief business of our lives because If the day of our death is to be sweeter than the day of our birth we have to know Christ and Since we know Christ and we've professed our Devotion and love for him and and we're going to be united to him again in this very tangible way in the sacrament.

It follows that that we ought to live as those who are united to Christ. Not taking stock in our performance. But drawing from the great love with which he has loved us and saved us Brethren. We're supposed to be known for our love.

I wonder if some of the impotency of the gospel in our time is. The culture doesn't say like they did and acts. Oh, look how they love one another. They see us and they say oh look how they hate.

One another.

Repentance is required for me and you and our church and every church. We need to continue to fight and to strive to have pure doctrine, but we can't ever Condemn those for whom Christ has died. Amen.

Let's pray together. Oh Lord we We confess and I pray that you will bring to remembrance the ways in which we do this. We sit in judgment. We're so haughty. We're so Idolatrous we think so highly of ourselves.

Oh God. Help us now to repent of speaking evil of your precious ones. Help us to see the the hubris. The delusion that we would be sitting in judgment and usurping the ruling of our Great judge the one and only lawgiver.

No, Lord, Jesus. I thank you that you've you've accepted us. We who are slanderers and backbiters. Who sit in judgment of those whom we ought not and Lord you? Because of your great love and mercy and grace you have saved even us.

Pray that you would draw out the source of venom in us. That we might show the love and honor that is due your name by loving and serving our brethren. And Lord, we thank you that you have reconciled us to yourself.

And I pray that our time and communion will be sweeter today when we consider this great work. You've done we ask this in Jesus name.