Not Judging, but Doing
93
Christ is the only true standard of character, and he who sets
himself up as a standard for others is putting himself in the place of
Christ. And since the Father “hath committed all judgment unto the
Son” (
John 5:22
), whoever presumes to judge the motives of others
[126]
is again usurping the prerogative of the Son of God. These would-
be judges and critics are placing themselves on the side of antichrist,
“who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that
is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing
himself that he is God.”
2 Thessalonians 2:4
.
The sin that leads to the most unhappy results is the cold, critical,
unforgiving spirit that characterizes Pharisaism. When the religious
experience is devoid of love, Jesus is not there; the sunshine of His
presence is not there. No busy activity or Christless zeal can supply the
lack. There may be a wonderful keenness of perception to discover the
defects of others; but to everyone who indulges this spirit, Jesus says,
“Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then
shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” He
who is guilty of wrong is the first to suspect wrong. By condemning
another he is trying to conceal or excuse the evil of his own heart. It
was through sin that men gained the knowledge of evil; no sooner had
the first pair sinned than they began to accuse each other; and this is
what human nature will inevitably do when uncontrolled by the grace
of Christ.
When men indulge this accusing spirit, they are not satisfied with
pointing out what they suppose to be a defect in their brother. If milder
means fail of making him do what they think ought to be done, they
will resort to compulsion. Just as far as lies in their power they will
force men to comply with their ideas of what is right. This is what the
Jews did in the days of Christ and what the church has done ever since
[127]
whenever she has lost the grace of Christ. Finding herself destitute
of the power of love, she has reached out for the strong arm of the
state to enforce her dogmas and execute her decrees. Here is the secret
of all religious laws that have ever been enacted, and the secret of all
persecution from the days of Abel to our own time.
Christ does not drive but draws men unto Him. The only compul-
sion which He employs is the constraint of love. When the church
begins to seek for the support of secular power, it is evident that she is
devoid of the power of Christ—the constraint of divine love.