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Judge Righteous Judgment #3
Fred R. Coulter—October 3, 2015
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Greetings, brethren! Welcome to day six of the Feast of Tabernacles!
As we have seen in the nation today, unrighteous judgment leads to more sin and more lawlessness. We have already covered that in sermons leading up to the Feast of Tabernacles, however, what we're going to cover today will be 17 keys on how to make righteous judgments! That's one of the reasons why we have the Word of God.
We have seen over and over again, when people leave God, reject the Word of God and throw it behind their backs, trouble comes! If there is no repentance then more trouble comes. Troubles will come like the waves of the sea. Every once in a while there is a freak wave, a tremendous wave that will come and cause a lot of destruction.
We're seeing that happen right now because of the way that the Supreme Court did this summer. Things will only get worse unless there is repentance. These are all object lessons for us:
- so we can learn the right way
- so we can learn the Truth of God
- so we can understand what we need to do
- how to make righteous judgments
- how to make right decisions
All of these have to be based on all the laws, statutes and principles of God. Let's begin and see what the 17 keys are for righteous judgment. The book of Proverbs tells us some very important things about judging righteous judgment and so forth.
We're going to find in Prov. 29 an absolute principle that applies across everything, not only for judges but for anyone who has to make decisions and for us because we re in training to rule the world.
Proverbs 29:4: "The king establishes the land by justice… [judgment] …but he who takes bribes tears it down." Remember, God is:
- a God of truth
- a God of righteousness
- a God of judgment
We read that in the book of Jeremiah.
Proverbs 20:8: "A king who sits in the throne of judgment scatters away all evil with his eyes." That's what it should be, rather than accumulate evil, make evil.
Proverbs 21:3: "To do righteousness and justice [judgment] is more pleasing to the LORD than sacrifice." What do you know about that; isn't that something? Think about how pleasing it is to God when we make right judgments, when we make right decisions, when we do what is right.
Verse 15 you could say is the key for the whole thing: "It is joy to the righteous to do justice, but ruinto the workers of iniquity."
If we applies that today, then things would be a whole lot different. But wrong judgments are the source of all lawlessness.
1. Remember, the Judgment is Not Yours, it is God's
2-Chronicles 19:6—Hezekiah told the judges: "…'Take heed what you do, for you do not judge for man, but for the LORD…" Isn't that what we're going to do during the Millennium? Judgment will be given to us! We will sit on thrones judging. That means to have the official capacity to judge and to rule.
2. Know Yourself and Get Sin out of Your Life
Here is the most important thing, because your thinking will be aligned with God's, and you will be able to make right decisions and righteous judgments.
The way we overcome our sins is to judge ourselves in our prayers before God asking forgiveness, guidance, correction, understanding, etc.
1-Corinthians 11:31: "Now, if we would examine [judge] ourselves, we would not be judged." Think about that! That's really important for us to understand. This means we have to actively be putting sin out of our lives. You can't live in sin and make righteous judgments. It won't happen. It's an impossibility.
Proverbs 16:10: "A Divine sentence is in the lips of the king; his mouth should not transgress in judgment…. [the next verse is also true] …A just weight and balance are the LORD'S; all the weights of the bag are His work" (vs 10-11).
God wants every thing right, everything correct, and these are the judgments that we are to make.
Verse 12: "It is an abomination for kings to commit wickedness, for the throne is established by righteousness." That's the only way; to have righteous judgment, you have to have righteous behavior, righteous thoughts and understand the Word of God.
Verse 13: "Righteous lips are the delight of kings, and they love him who speaks what is right." Apply this to everything you see going on in the government today, regardless of what level it is: local, county, state, country.
Let's see what Jesus said. This verifies that we have to overcome our sins and get sins out of our lives.
Matthew 7:3: "Now, why do you look at the sliver that is in your brother's eye, but you do not perceive the beam in your own eye? Or how will you say to your brother, 'Allow me to remove the sliver from your eye'; and behold, the beam is in your own eye? You hypocrite…" (vs 3-5). What happens? You become a hypocrite when you try to execute right judgment if there's great sin in your life.
"…first cast out the beam from your own eye, and then you shall see clearly to remove the sliver from your brother's eye" (v 5). You have to get sin out of your life!
3. In Every Case, Hear ALL the Facts
This is one of the most vital requests in righteous judgment. Without it, it's impossible to come to the knowledge of the Truth, or to make a right judgment because a righteous judgment is based upon truth.
If you don't have all the facts, and all the right facts, then you're going to have a flawed decision. You have to check the facts to make sure that they are correct. You may have to ask questions about someone. Sometimes you may even have to ask the 'unaskable' question so that you know what the problem really is.
That's the only way you can get to the heart of the matter, because you have to get at the heart of the matter so that you know what you are doing.
At the same time, this ties together with:
4. Always be Open Minded and Hear All Aspects of a Situation
This is part of getting all the facts. You must listen to it. Remember, people are always inclined to put themselves in the best light if something comes up and you have to make a decision.
Just like with your children, the first one comes and says, 'Johnny is doing this…' But then you need to get all the facts. You need to ask:
- Why is Johnny doing this?
- What is the reason behind it?
Here's a great Proverb; always remember this, and this is true. You can see how this works in politics. The first one to get the news and get his story out seems to be the one who is right.
Proverbs 18:17: "The one who is first in his own cause seems just, but his neighbor comes and searches him out."
When there are difficulties and other problems that come along, v 19: "A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city; and their disagreements are like the bars of a fortress."
Sometimes you get yourself into that situation. So, what you need to do is get all the facts, have an open mind and look at every aspect of the situation.
When someone comes first and it seems just, then you make up your mind and you're sure, absolutely sure that you're right, then here comes someone to bring you some more facts. What you need to do is realize that this becomes one of the most important thing in making righteous judgments:
5. Never Render a Judgment without Hearing the Entire Matter
Take the time to get the whole story.
Proverbs 18:13: "He who answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame to him." Think about how many bad judgments were made that way. You didn't hear the whole story.
Another thing, don't get yourself in the middle of it, where you're not looking at all of the facts. One man said, 'Sleep on it!' Then come back at it again.
6. Never Look Only at Circumstances and Outward Appearance
We covered that in part two when Samuel was sent to anoint David as king. Even the best are taken aback by outward appearance.
Isn't it always true that con-artists and liars always like to make themselves very presentable? Why is that? There is a quirk in human nature is that if a man is handsome then you assume he's right. Or a woman is beautiful, they wouldn't tell lies—would they? Is that the way con-artists work? Yes, indeed! So, never judge by outward appearances!
That's a command by Jesus, John 7:24: "Judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment." They were all amazed when He said that.
Another thing that is true, as we find in 2-Cor. 10, we're not to do things after a carnal or fleshly way. No we're not, because you can't intermix the ways of men with the way of God and expect it to come out right. Paul was telling the Corinthians in a very profound way that they were viewing things from the wrong point of view.
2-Corinthians 10:7: "Are you looking at things according to their appearance? If anyone is persuaded in his own mind that he is Christ's, let him reconsider this concerning himself; for exactly as he is Christ's, so also are we Christ's."
Paul did not have a good appearance, and people were saying, 'How can he be an apostle of God?' Here are all these false apostles coming as ministers of righteousness and saying that they are true ministers, but they weren't. So, don't look to the outward appearance. Don't look to the physical things because that is carnal-mindedness.
Let's look at it this way: If someone is angry, is it because they have a bad temper and it's a habit? or Is it because there is something to be angry about and getting a right judgment or correction to the situation that would help it? You need to determine that! That's essential:
- in childrearing!
- in us getting along with each other
- in us loving each other
- in us serving each other
That is essential in trying to help people come to reconciliation with their disputes.
7. Discern the Attitudes and Motives of Those Involved
Why? You need to realize that when you're dealing with problems, carnality will be involved. 'The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.' Therefore, when people come for advice or ask your opinion, you may think about why they're asking it. They may be asking for an entirely different purpose than it seems.
In order to discern that you have to let the Holy Spirit give you the gift of discernment. This is very important, especially for elders and ministers. When counseling people you have got to know, and it's very important that when it comes to settling a dispute you have to set aside:
- your feelings
- your emotions
- understand everything the way it actually is
Some people can come in a very hostile way or a very nice way, and in either case they may be trying to get their own way!
What is the attitude and motive that is involved? This is especially true and why God says, 'You shall not go up and down among your brethren as talebearers' or gossipers. Why?
Some of the churches we've been in are the result of having suffered a lot of these things within those churches. But remember the one who comes first? the little snitches that would go the ministers? Remember when there were those within the congregation that were actually spies for the minister?
Some might be coming to tell something so that they will look more important. Now you see why Jesus said, 'If you have a difficulty you go to the person you have the difficulty with first. And you do that alone! That is so that it can be solved at the lowest level possible. That's what God wants.
So, in all these cases remember the things concerning Matt. 18.
8. Never be a "Respecter of Persons"
- Don't play politics!
- Don't have favorites!
- NO!
Remember, it's not a matter of who the person is, what his position is, how much money he makes, or who his relatives are. Never show partiality! That's what's wrong with judging in the world today, especially in the courts. They are nothing but political. They have to be a respecter of those who put them in the office. That's really quite a thing to understand! Try that with your children and see how far you get. Likewise within a church. When the hierarchical church was reigning, you had
- the minister
- his assistants
- the spies
- the snitchers
- the tattletalers
All of that made for a terrible situation.
Let's see what God says about it in Exo. 23. That's why we need the Old Testament and the New Testament. That's why we need to have the laws and commandments of God, and the statutes, judgments and precepts so that we understand that God is covering the full range of human nature.
Exodus 23:1: "You shall not raise a false report…." No snitchers or tattletalers. What if they come and whisper in your ear, 'Did you know this….'? Look they right in the eye and say, 'Did you go to that person personally and talk about it first? Why would you come to me?'
"…Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness" (v 1)—or an unrighteous judge. That happens too often.
This tells us that the majority is not always right. In fact, much of the time it is completely wrong, v 2: "You shall not follow a multitude to do evil…." That's exactly what happened this summer with the same-sex marriage and the ObamaCare law by the Supreme Court.
"…Neither shall you testify in a cause in order to side with many so as to pervert judgment…. [Isn't that a good law? Yes!] … Neither shall you be partial to a poor man in his cause" (vs 2-3). You are not to respect persons: status, title, everything like that should go by the wayside.
What does the Bible tell us? Let's see a very, very important thing. This is certainly true.
Leviticus 19:15: "You shall do no unrighteousness in judgment. You shall not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty, but you shall judge your neighbor in righteousness. You shall not go as a slanderer among your people; you shall not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor. I am the LORD. You shall not hate your brother in your heart. You shall always admonish your neighbor, that you may not bear sin because of him" (vs 15-17). All of these things! Look at how it is, every problem solved at the lowest level possible.
One of the worst things that ever happened in one of the large Churches of God is that they decided that all divorce and re-marriage problems had to be solved by headquarters. Well, that was two or three steps removed from the local scene and it was always administered by a written report. You never knew how the report was written by the minister whether he was rendering a righteous judgment or a false judgment or whether he was partial or whatever. That was an absolute horrible thing to do; absolutely miserable thing to do. God does not want that!
9. Never Accept a Gift
I know that ordinations took place in that church because men were 'cuddling up' politically with the minister and doing things for him, giving him gifts, giving him privileges.
A minister should never accept a gift of anything that should be for a service or to take care of a decision to sway the opinion of the minister. We are never to allow ourselves to get into a position to be obligated to any man or woman in any way personally. This can come in the form of loans, gifts, food, clothing, meals, work or services.
This is why it's good that you go through and study all the statutes, laws and commandments of God, so that you will see that He is dealing in a lot of things that are practical, good and necessary.
Exodus 23:8: "And you shall take no bribe, for the bribe blinds the wise and perverts the words of the righteous."
Verse 7: "Keep far from a false matter, and do not kill the innocent and righteous; for I will not justify the wicked."
- How many of those thing occurred
- What did it do to the Church?
- How corrupt did it become?
Maybe this will help you understand why God had to get rid of it. Never accept a gift!
All of these things tell us very important aspects of making righteous judgments, right decisions! Of course, when we're trying to help settle disputes between people, these things come up. Every elder and minister needs to be aware to not get himself into a position where he is beholding to anyone.
You can see how these go step-by-step!
10. Always be Totally Fair and Impartial
That's what God is; He is no respecter of persons. It says that in the Old Testament and the New Testament. Everything that God does is based on truth.
Always remember that there is always the judgment first. 'The wages of sin is death.' That's the judgment. But upon true repentance then mercy is applied! Too many times people have it reversed. They give mercy before there's repentance. God does not give mercy until there is repentance!
If the crime, the sin, is bad enough like David with the affair with Bathsheba, God said that he would have trouble in his own house the rest of his life. Look what David tried to do. You sit down and analyze all the carnal things that David did:
- abusing the power as king
- thinking that he could take another man's wife
- thinking that he could get away with killing Uriah in the battle
What did that bring upon all of Israel? Trouble! Just like we see today in the nation that we have today. All around us is trouble! No one knows how to make righteous judgments or righteous decisions. They don't have the laws of God to run their lives, to have it written in their heart and mind so that this becomes a part of what they do.
Notice how it's impossible to always be fair and impartial in such an evil world!
Track 2 or Download
Number 10 continued: Always be fair and impartial, or just! Every righteous decision will be just. If you add together points 7-9 then you will always be fair and impartial. When righteous judgment is given and it's fair and impartial, then that brings about contentment and joy. But notice what else it does:
Proverbs 4:18: "But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shines more and more to the perfect day." Think about that in relationship to the New Testament and the perfect day will be the day of the resurrection. This means that we are growing in grace, knowledge and understanding unto "…the perfect day."
Think about how much trouble can be avoided in many different situation if people
and the judges, would know how to give righteous judgments. It's awfully hard for the judges who are appointed or elected by political parties to be fair or just. They have favors that they have to pay back, especially:
- if there are bribes involved
- if there's prestige involved
- if there is a chance to move to a higher court involved
Proverbs 10:6: "Blessings are upon the head of the just…" Blessings will come; God is the One Who blesses, God is the One Who judges and His judgment is just, righteous.
Think about this as we grow in grace and knowledge and how to educate ourselves. Many of us can see many different things that are wrong in this society. If you do try and figure out from God's way what would be right, just, fair and a righteous judgment. We can't enact them at this time because the Kingdom of God is not on the earth.
"…but violence covers the mouth of the wicked" (v 6). Isn't that what happens. Violence occurs and we're living in a terrible and violent time.
Verse 11: "The mouth of a righteous one is a well of life…" See how important that these Proverbs are for us to understand, so that we know what we need to do. These things are important for us to learn.
11. Educate Yourself on God's Laws, Statutes and Judgments
This is a key important thing for us. This is why we're here, why we have the Bible and why we need to draw close to God and study His Word.
In order to render a righteous judgment you have to thoroughly know the laws and statutes and judgments and so forth. This takes continual study. The Apostle Paul told Timothy, 'Diligently study to show yourself approved unto God.' A workman studying His work, doing the things that are right is work. Growing and overcoming is work.
That work is accomplished with the Spirit of God within us. This is why we do that. Granted, it takes time and effort. Let's see how God says…and He told Moses that he was to teach them these laws, commandments and judgments.
Tie that together with John 6:45: "…And they shall all be taught by God…." When we put this together and study the Word of God and know it's the Word of God and are taught of God, then this becomes a permanent part of our mind.
Deuteronomy 6:1: "Now, these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments which the LORD our God commanded to teach you… [that's why they're written here. That's why we have the whole Bible] …so that you might do them in the land where you go to possess it. That you might fear the LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you…" (vs 1-2)—and all those other things that come along with it.
Since we're going to be kings and priests, let's take a principle that is important for us to realize and apply in our lives: If we are going to be kings and priests, which is what we're going to be, then we ought to take the very lesson from the Word of God! The reason for it is clearly stated:
Deuteronomy 17:14: "When you come to the land, which the LORD your God gives you, and shall possess it and shall live in it and shall say, 'I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,' You shall surely set a king over you, whom the LORD your God shall choose. You shall set a king over you from among your brethren. You may not set a stranger over you who is not your brother. Only he shall not multiply horses to himself…" (vs 14-16).
- Wonder why so many of our Presidents are corrupt?
- Why they are so rich?
- How did they multiply all this money to themselves?
- How do they act?
- How do they behave?
- What are their judgments?
Evil!
- Evil comes out of the Supreme Court!
- Evil comes out of the White House!
- Evil comes out of the Congress!
- Evil comes out of the governors and so forth!
There are some who have some good principles and are trying to do right. But what happens? They always get voted out! Then what happens? The evil ones come in and things get worse! That's what we're experiencing here in the United States today!
"…nor cause the people to return to Egypt, so as to multiply horses because the LORD has said to you, 'You shall not return that way again.' Nor shall he multiply wives to himself, so that his heart does not turn away…." (vs 16-17). A prophecy of what happened to Solomon. Here's what he was to do and what [Solomon] left off doing.
"…Nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold to himself" (v 17). Makes you wonder: Hillary and Bill Clinton, how did you get that?
Verse 18—this is a command: "And it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book from that which is in the custody of the priests the Levites." He's to go down to the temple and have a priest bring him the scrolls and write his own copy of the Law, so he would have it with him.
Verse 19: "And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life… [that's why we study the Word of God] …so that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them"—and to exercise just judgment, righteous judgment.
Also what this is to do for him, v 20: "So that his heart may not be lifted up above his brethren, and that he does not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or the left, to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children, in the midst of Israel."
- What happened to the kings of Israel?
- How many kings actually did that? David did!
Solomon for a while, but even with all of his wisdom it didn't keep him from sinning and turning his back on God. God had to take away ten tribes of the kingdom and give them to one of Solomon's generals: Jeroboam. What did he do? He turned his back on God!
The Lord teaches us. Whenever you study the Bible, the Word of God, God is teaching you!
Psalm 25:4: "Show me Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your Truth and teach me…" (vs 4-5). This is the attitude that we need to have. Think about how much better off all the churches would be if not only the elders and ministers, but all the brethren, would do this.
Look at how much was lost because of the over lording, over bearing hierarchy! What happened? It bred an awful lot of sin! That's why we are to study:
- the Psalms
- the Old Testament
- the things of God.
Psalm 32:2: "Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity… [we have had our sins forgiven] …and in whose spirit there is no guile.
Verse 8: "You said, 'I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you, My eye shall be upon you.'"
Notice what else is here and this is very interesting. This is how we overcome human nature: forgiveness of sin and then letting God teach us!This fulfills John 6:45 that we will 'all be taught of God.'
Verse 9: "Be not like the horse, or like the mule, which have no understanding—which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you."
Here's what will happen, v 11:"Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous; and shout for joy, all you upright in heart."
If you're upright in heart, you're righteous and you're studying the righteous Word of God, guess what you will do:
- you will think rightly
- you will think correctly
- God will guide you
- God will direct you
- you will understand things
- you'll be able to give wise counsel
Notice how David prayed to God, Psalm 119:66: "Teach me good judgment and knowledge… [How does that come?]: …for I have believed Your commandments."
Notice what all of that does. A lot of people say that you keep the commandments, but I have faith. NO! If you don't keep the commandments you don't have any faith, because it takes faith to keep the commandments! In order to keep them you must believe God; He says, 'Keep My commandments.' So, you see how you can begin to understand the Word of God even more.
Verse 108: "Accept, I beseech You, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O LORD, and teach me Your ordinances"—that can also be judgments. An ordinance is an established judgment because of already having had understanding of the Law.
We have to teach and educate ourselves through the Word of God so that we can do the things that are pleasing to God and have the right judgments. Notice what this will do for us.
Josh. 1—this was the admonition of Moses and God to Joshua. Remember, the Word of God is 'the same yesterday, today and forever.' The Word of God is always true in all times everywhere and in all places.
God is telling Joshua to go in and conquer the land and that He would be with him and the people. But Joshua had to keep this in mind and in his life, just like we read in Deut. 17 for the king.
Joshua 1:5: "No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life…. [to go against Joshua] …As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not fail you nor forsake you."
Think about this: If you are not keeping the commandments of God, God is not there! You have forsaken Him, so He forsakes you, and you will not have the help in time of need.
Verse 6: "Be strong and of good courage, for you shall divide for an inheritance to this people the land, which I swore to their fathers to give it to them…. [notice what Joshua was to do]: …Only be strong and very courageous so that you may observe to do according to all the Law, which My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, so that you may prosper wherever you go" (vs 6-7).
Deut. 17 was already in effect when Joshua went into the land, v 8: "This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate therein day and night, so that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it, for then… [just like an if and then] …you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage. Do not be afraid, neither be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you in all places where you go" (vs 8-9).
Let's take that and use that for us today. Isn't that necessary for us today? Look at all the difficulties that we're going to be facing, all the problems that we'll be confronted with. That's why we need to be strong in the Lord. Isn't that what the Apostle Paul wrote to us: Be strong in the Lord!
12. In Difficult Cases Seek Wise Counsel
When you have a multitude of counsel without wisdom, you have folly. Doesn't that kind of look like what's going on in Washington, D.C. There are a lot of people telling them wise counsel, but the ones who need it don't have it.
There's an awful lot in the book of Proverbs concerning judgment and what to do, and how to do things right.
We have the Proverb series for youth where you take a chapter each day and you go through that chapter for a whole month. Then you come back and you repeat it again the next month. This helps program and give wisdom and knowledge to the youth so that they are able to make good decisions in their lives, rather than be carried away with emotion, fun, games and all of this sort of thing.
Proverbs 11:14: "Where there is no wisdom, the people fall…" That sure describes what's going on today. But we can't have God! No! No! No!
"…but in the multitude of wise counselors there is safety" (v 14)—so that things will be done right. This is what is lacking and why God has called us to take over the world. This is why we need to study, apply ourselves, all of those things.
Proverbs 15:22: "Without counsel purposes are frustrated, but in the multitude of counselors they are established." Judging righteous judgment is important. That's one of the most lacking things that there is in the world today. People do not have judgment; they do not have discernment.
13. Think of the Long Term Effects
That takes a lot of wisdom! Consider the end! You have to make sure that the decision or judgment will not cause more problems in the long run, which will need to be resolved, as well.
This sounds like a good thing for the bureaucrats and the politicians. We're the future bureaucrats. We're going to have think and plan things. We're going to have to figure out what the long-term consequences are.
Never do what is expedient in a judgment or decision. If you have a leaky hose in your car and you take some tape and tape it up until you can get it fixed, that's expedient. But you have to go get it fixed. You can't leave it that way permanently.
The moral of the story is that a 'bandaid' solution will not work because that is expedient and you need to have the cure, you need to have the healing. You need to think of the long-term effects. Sleep on it!
Let's see a tremendous principle that we all need to follow. This is why we have the Feast of Tabernacles, because it will accomplish what we are going to read right here:
Proverbs 29:18: "Where there is no vision, the people perish…" How true that is. God has given us the greatest goal, the greatest vision, the great thing of all: the Kingdom of God to rule and reign as spirit beings with Jesus Christ to bring peace to this world. Everything that we are doing right now—especially in these end-times—is prepare, prepare, prepare, and get ready spiritually and mentally so that we have the vision!"Where there is no vision, the people perish…" without proper and righteous judgment the people perish.
14. Always Make Your Decisions and Judgments Specific and Clear
That's where you're having to direct people. Don't give general and broad things, give them specific instructions so they can understand.
- Did God call the Ten Commandments the 'ten suggestions'? NO!
- Are they specific? Yes!
- Are they amplified? Yes!
That's why we need to study the statutes, judgments and precepts, because they amplify the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments are just like a foundation. If you're going to build a house you have to have a foundation. But the foundation is not the whole house. If you don't have a good foundation you're going to have a crummy house.
15. The Element of Timing in a Judgment
- What happens when you never know?
- What happens when you're never told?
It affects the attitude, and it causes people to lose hope.
Proverbs 13:12: "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when desire is fulfilled it is a tree of life." Always remember that timing is important.
Verse 23: "Much food is in the tillage of the poor, but there is that which is destroyed for lack of judgment"—lack of making the right decision; never doing it; never accomplishing it. It's kind of like a cottage in the field, it gets overgrown with weeds. We had that happen to a garden of ours in Idaho one time. We went on vacation and came back and it hadn't been weeded for two weeks and it was overgrown with 'morning glory' and it choked out the whole garden. We didn't get hardly anything out of it.
Ecclesiastes 8:6: "Because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore, the misery of man is great. For he does not know what shall be; for who can tell him when it shall be?" (vs 6-7). It has to be done in a timely and right manner.
16. The All-Important Element of Mercy and Judgment
Remember that mercy follows judgment upon repentance! It mitigates the judgment. In some cases there won't be any mitigation, because there is no repentance. There may be sorrow. It's like people standing at the edge of the Lake of Fire. They're going to be sorrowful, but Jesus said, 'There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' No mercy at that time; it won't stand.
We already covered what happened to David, because he sinned. His judgment was carried out and it effected the whole nation, his life and his family. And because of his sin the son that was born to Bathsheba died. Think what a calamity that would have been if he had lived. God spared David's life. That was the mercy in that judgment.
So, never give mercy before judgment! Maybe mercy has to come after a performance of certain tasks to be accomplished. Then mercy will come. Never let mercy replace judgment.
17. You Must be Filled with God's Spirit and have the Mind of Christ
This is very important for us because we need now to understand how we get righteous judgment. That is:
- just thinking
- right thinking
- lawful thinking
Remember what we saw about Jesus Christ: He has the spirit of judgment, but that comes from the Holy Spirit of God. We need to make sure that we have the right kind of understanding, wisdom, kindness, goodness and knowledge of God.
Let's see what wisdom tells us and how we are to apply ourselves to that so we can grow in grace and knowledge. Prov. 8 tells us about the wisdom of God and creation, but also wisdom in the Proverbs is personified. It's kind of like it's teaching us things in the way that gives us understanding.
Proverbs 8:13: "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil… [wisdom says]: …I hate pride, and arrogance, and the evil way, and the perverse mouth." That is the lack of judgment that equals lawlessness.
Verse 14: "Counsel and sound wisdom are mine [wisdom]; I am understanding; I have strength. By me kings reign and princes decree justice" (vs 14-15). You apply this to what we are going to be doing during the Millennium.
Verse 16: "Princes rule by me, and nobles, and all the judges of the earth." We are to have judgment committed to us. We will be the judges of the earth.
Verse 17: "I love those who love me; and those who seek me early shall find me." We need to apply this in our studies and being filled with the Spirit of God to grow in wisdom, knowledge and understanding.
Verse 18: "Riches and honor are with me; yea, enduring riches and righteousness." That sure applies to spirit beings in the Millennium.
Verse 19: "My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and what I give is better than choice silver. I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of justice [or judgment]" (vs 19-20).
Let's just understand what God did with the selection of the 70. We saw the selection of the leaders and early judges (Exo. 18). But now here is a council of 70 elders from the tribes of Israel.
Numbers 11:16: "And the LORD said to Moses, 'Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people, and the officers over them. And bring them to the tabernacle of the congregation so that they may stand there with you. And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take of the Spirit which is upon you, and will put it upon them…'" (vs 16-17). That's going to happen to us when we are resurrected.
- A spirit mind, is that not going to be the Spirit that comes from God? Yes, indeed!
- Spirit body? Yes, indeed!
- Understanding these things? Yes, indeed!
Let's see what we can do now and apply these things in our lives now. This tells us how we are to grow in grace and knowledge, what we need to do with the Spirit of God, and why this is important for us, as it truly, truly is.
2-Timothy 1:6: "For this reason, I admonish you to stir up the gift of God that is in you by the laying on of my hands." How do we stir up the spirit within us?
- through study
- through prayer
- through right thinking
- through making right decisions
- through righteous judgment
Verse 7: "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of sound-mindedness." This is what we need to grow into. Very, very necessary!
Let's see how we can apply all of this together and put it in our lives and be filled with the Holy Spirit of God so that we can do the things that God wants us to do and be ready with Christ's return.
Paul writes us in Ephesians 5:14: "Therefore, He says, 'You who are sleeping—wake up, and arise from the dead! And Christ shall shine upon you.' So then, take heed that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as those who are wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil" (vs 14-16). That's certainly something we need to do today.
Verse 17: "For this reason, do not be foolish, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit" (vs 17-18). This is how it's going to be accomplished with the mind of Christ.
Philippians 2:5: "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." We do that by:
- study
- prayer
- putting together the Word of God
We learn how make these right decisions and things based upon the Word of God. As you can see, all of these things are the result of what we've gone through in the various problems within the Church. There's another section that we have concerning righteous judgment.
After the Feast we're going to send this booklet: Judge Righteous Judgment. It will have everything that we have covered here plus even more. There's so much in here we couldn't cover it even in three parts. We are to be the righteous judges under Jesus Christ, and this is why we:
- study the Word of God
- pray to God
- grow and overcome
- prepare for the Kingdom of God
Judge righteous judgment!
Scriptural references:
- Proverbs 29:4
- Proverbs 20:8
- Proverbs 21:3, 15
- 2 Chronicles 19:6
- 1 Corinthians 11:31
- Proverbs 16:10-13
- Matthew 7:3-5
- Proverbs 18:17, 19, 13
- John 7:24
- 2 Corinthians 10:7
- Exodus 23:1-3
- Leviticus 19:15-17
- Exodus 23:8, 7
- Proverbs 4:18
- Proverbs 10:6, 11
- John 6:45
- Deuteronomy 6:1-2
- Deuteronomy 17:14-20
- Psalm 25:4-5
- Psalm 32:2, 8-9, 11
- Psalm 119:66, 108
- Joshua 1:5-9
- Proverbs 11:14
- Proverbs 15:22
- Proverbs 29:18
- Proverbs 13:12, 23
- Ecclesiastes 8:6-7
- Proverbs 8:13-20
- Numbers 11:16-17
- 2 Timothy 1:6-7
- Ephesians 5:14-18
- Philippians 2:5
Scripture referenced, not quoted:
- Matthew 18
- Exodus 18
Also referenced:
Booklet: Judge Righteous Judgment by Fred R. Coulter
Series: Proverbs for Youth (cbcg.org)
FRC:bo
Transcribed: 8/3/15
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