The Three Judgments

1 Corinthians 4:1  

"Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, 

and stewards of the mysteries of God." 

   Paul is come to the thought of judgment. The Corinthians, with their sects and their appropriation of the leaders of the Church as their masters, have exercised judgments on these leaders, preferring one to the other. So Paul speaks of three judgments that every man must face. 

   He must face the judgment of his fellow men. In this case Paul says that that is nothing to him. But there is a sense in which a man cannot disregard the judgment of his fellow men. The odd thing is that, in spite of its occasional radical mistakes, the judgment of our fellow men is often right. That is due to the fact that every man instinctively admires the basic qualities of honour, honesty, reliability, generosity, sacrifice and love. "There are only two people who can tell you the truth about yourself--an enemy who has lost his temper and a friend who loves you dearly."   

   He must face the judgment of himself. Once again Paul disregards that. He knew very well that a man's judgment of himself can be clouded by self-satisfaction, by pride and by conceit. But in a very real sense every man must face his own judgment, because if he loses his self-respect, life becomes an intolerable thing.

   He must face the judgment of God. This is the only real judgment. Only God knows all the circumstances. He knows the struggles a man has had; he knows the secrets that a man can tell to no one; he knows what a man might have sunk to and he also knows what he might have climbed to. Only God knows all the motives. "Man sees the deed but God sees the intention." Many a deed that looks noble may have been done from the most selfish motives. . 

   My Friends, We would do well to remember two things; first, even if we escape all other judgments or shut our eyes to them, we cannot escape the judgment of God; and, second, judgment belongs to God, and we are not the judge of any man. 

Amen! 

Reading: 1 Cor. 4:1-5

Ref: HG SB; DSB

May God Bless You

And Your Family

Minister Robert A. Lail Sr.

The Cross Life Ministry