Judge Not

Psalm 96:13b He (God) will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his faithfulness.

A few years back, I was subjected to a three year court battle over the terms of my divorce that I thought had been settled years earlier. Having little previous experience with family law, I was dumbfounded by what I witnessed with this extended look into our civil court system. What I found primarily were judges who didn't want to judge. Instead they wanted a clean docket of cases which had been settled not heard.

This morning I am reading Revelation 16. This chapter outlines seven bowls of judgment which God will allow to be poured out on the world in days to come. It is difficult for me to mesh these pronouncements of worldwide horror with the God of love who sacrificed His only Son to redeem a lost and dying world. However, even as the angels are tipping the bowls to initiate one of these disasters, they proclaim that God's judgments are true and just (Verses 5, 7).

I don't know exactly why the judges don't want to hear cases involving family law. I suspect it is at least in part because they know deep down they are not qualified to make those decisions. A handful of documents and a court appearance by adversarial former spouses could never give a truly accurate picture of the best interest of a child.

By sharp contrast, God is totally qualified to judge. He has the complete picture - past, present and future. He doesn't have to order a psychological profile to understand our minds. He doesn't need a home survey to assess our living conditions. He already knows what is best for us.

Jesus, You are the righteous Judge. You don't need my assistance in this matter. Today may I remember that You don't need me in Your court room. My job is not to judge. You have no openings for jurors. Today instead I'll be a bailiff of Your love.