We all have heard it used. It’s something that is said when a person who believes in The Lord doesn’t agree with someone who is of the world. It’s probably one of the most quoted parts of scripture….. “Judge no least you be judged” yet it’s totally taken out of context.

Last week when the opening ceremony for the Olympics aired, so much disgrace surrounded it. It showed things that should make us, as believers, just so heartbroken over the hearts of the lost. Should we as believers be surprised or even shocked that the world is doing what it wants? No. The world is so lost and so broken. It’s dark and far away from Christ but when it comes to not agreeing with what was shown, the famous “Judge not…” was throw around. It happens often and is often the go to when a conservative Christian doesn’t support sin. When we make a stance on something that goes against what the Bible says, people like to throw one little verse back in our face. But what also gets me..what makes me stop and think is why do people who outwardly live lives that aren’t Christ centered use scripture to throw a punch at believers? If you don’t believe there is a God, then why are you taking one small verse from the Bible to make yourself feel like “Now I’ve shown them. They don’t agree with my life style and show I am going to tell them not to judge because it’s what the Bible says.” Are you saying that what is written in the Bible is true? If you believe that verse and you believe that what was written is truth, then you need to take the Bible as a whole and not just take one tiny verse out of it.

We often pick and choose things we want to obey. Christ says “Abstain from this” yet we do the opposite and indulge. Christ tells us to “Respect those in leadership” yet we become angry and refuse to obey those He has put in authority over us. Our human bodies are filled with sin. Our biggest addiction in our lives is pleasing ourselves. If we got down to the heart of every single person, we would see that we want to do what we want to do. We have this desire to be our ultimate authority and don’t want to be told what to do. If you have children, look at their lives. They are willing to push the boundaries and give no regard as to what you tell them. When you get to the root of their heart, at the base, it stems from wanting to please themselves. I see it everyday in my own life. Allowing frustrations to get in the way. I see the way I can respond to the children when they do something that causes me to have to stop what I am doing and correct them. ‘Really’ I think to myself ‘can’t you see that I am busy and don’t have time for this?’ I then respond in a way that is out of anger because they caused me to be inconvenienced instead of looking at the heart of the issue and pointing them to Christ.

This world is not our home. If we put our hope in it, we will be left feeling empty and keep searching for something to fill us. We will search for it in our job. In our marriage. In our children. In a vacation. In living a certain lifestyle…but we will never find it this side of eternity. The world needs Christ. They need to see their need for a Savior. There isn’t going to be any change until that happens but sadly the majority of people want to live to please themselves. They don’t want to be told what to do and often times mock those who are submitting to the will of God. They throw out of context verses at people who are Christ followers when they don’t agree with the lifestyle they are living and belittle those who profess Christ. You can’t take one small part of scripture and use it if you’re not willing to take it as a whole. That would be like going to look at a house that is for sale, buying it and then when it comes to closing you sign the contract then say you are only going to pay for the front door. That you don’t like the house but you like the door. The contract said the house and its entirety is for sale but you are only willing to pay for the door. You can’t just pick and choose what you want out of the house just like you can’t pick and choose what you want out of the Bible. You have to take it all or nothing at all.