Invitation: Matthew 7:1-2

The Churches of Christ Throughout the Years…

Have Made Several Names for Ourselves

Some Good Names

But Many Bad Names

One Thing that We’ve Become Known for is:

Knowing More about What We’re Against Than What We’re For

Knowing More about What We Don’t Believe Than What We Do Believe

We Rally Around Why We Don’t Believe/Do What “They” Believe/Do…

When We Should Rally Around What We Believe/Do…

Regardless of What “They” Believe/Do

We can Talk to You for Hours…

About What We Don’t Believe about the Holy Spirit

But We’d Struggle to have a 5 Minute Conversation…

About What We Do Believe About Him

The Same can Be Said for a Number of Scriptural Topics

I’ve Been Listening to a COC Lectureship from a Few Years Ago

There are about 15+ Speakers on this Lectureship…

And They All Came with the Same Basic Message:

“I Don’t Believe the Doctrine of _______…”

“And Those Who Do are Worldly, Wicked, Stupid, or All the Above…”

“And They are Headed Straight for Hell!”

And it’s Sad to Say it…

But that’s What You’ll Hear in Many Churches of Christ

We’re Often So Quick to Judge/Condemn Doctrines that We Don’t Believe…

Without Taking the Time to Examine Them Against the Scriptures with an Open Mind

And Not Only Do We Recklessly Judge the Doctrines of Others…

But We Also Judge Their Motives for Why They Believe What They Believe

This is an Incredibly Dangerous Game to Play

Matthew 7:1–2 (NET)

1 “Do not judge so that you will not be judged.2 For by the standard you judge you will be judged, and the measure you use will be the measure you receive.

Jesus Said, Judging Others will Lead to Our Own Judgment

Here’s the Scary Part:

The Standard You Use to Judge Others…

Is the Standard God will Use to Judge You

The Amount of Judgment You Place Upon Others…

Is the Amount of Judgment God will Place Upon You

That Means, if You Condemn Someone to Hell…

For Believing a Different Doctrine than You…

Then You Need to Be Prepared to Suffer the Same Fate if You’re Wrong

God is Going to Use the Same Standard & Measure that We Use on Others

If All We have to Offer to Those Who Disagree with Us…

Is Angry/Wrathful Condemnation…

Then that’s Exactly What We’ll Receive From God…

If it Turns Out We were Wrong

Here’s 3 Positive Lessons for You:

Approach All Doctrine (True or False) with an Open Mind

Reject it if You Find it to Be False

But Be Willing to Change Your Mind and Accept it…

If You Find it to Be True

Be Merciful, Not Judgmental

If Someone Believes Something You Believe is False…

Show Mercy Before You Judge

Don’t Assume They have Bad Motives for Believing Something Different

Be Merciful and Give Them the Benefit of the Doubt

James 2:13 (NASB95)

13 For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.

If it Happens to Be the Case that You’re the One that’s Wrong…

Then You can at Least have the Assurance that God will Be Merciful with You…

Since You were Merciful with Them

Stop Treating Every Issue as a Heaven or Hell Issue

There are Salvation Issues that We Must All Agree Upon

But that List is Far Shorter Than We Like to Make it

If Others have to Agree with You on 95% of Doctrinal Issues…

Or You Refuse to Consider Them a Child of God…

Then You Better Hope that You’re Right on 95% of Doctrinal Issues

Because if You’re Wrong, You’ve Chosen for Yourself…

The Kind of Judgment You’ll Receive

Approach All Doctrine with an Open Mind

Be Merciful, Not Judgmental

Stop Treating Every Issue as a Heaven or Hell Issue