James 4:11-12 Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?
At first glance, it appears James is telling Christians not to judge others and to ignore sin. That is not the case at all. It might be better to translate "judge" as "condemn." We know as followers of Christ, we are not to ignore sin nor let sin continue and grow, but we are to judge sin. Rather, what James is speaking about is slander or what we would call gossip. James is speaking about condemning others when God has forgiven us. The Greek word is "katalaleo" which means to talk down to "slander," or "speak evil against." James refers to a critical spirit that stems from a heart full of jealousy, envy, hatred, pride, and self-righteousness.
This pretentiousness gets back to James' previous point about the misuse of our tongues, and whether or not we use them as weapons against one another because of our sinful nature. This attitude stems from a heart focused not on the things of God, but a heart focused on the things of this world. A heart that has adopted the false wisdom of humankind and ignored the wisdom of God. This would indicate a heart in rebellion against God.
This behavior occurs when we as believers look to the world for wisdom rather than looking to God and His word for guidance. And when we as followers of Christ Jesus ignore the promptings and guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we place ourselves at enmity against God. Moreover, when we engage in this behavior, we are not only judging others incorrectly, but we are also violating scripture. When we condemn others, we ourselves are rebelling against God and setting ourselves up as false judges. And such actions not only negatively affect our Christian witness but open us up to the consequences of our actions.
James clarified that discourse against a Christian brother or sister reveals a judgmental position that is often discernable in an 'evil' way of communication that dishonors God. It demonstrates a critical and superior attitude that elevates self above others. It places 'self' in the role of a judge, a position of which God alone is worthy. James teaches that disparaging a fellow believer emanates from a spirit of negativity and unlawful condemnation.
This judgmental attitude will lead a follower and believer in Christ Jesus to fall from grace into a legalistic standing. It identifies a self-righteous attitude that is conceived in the scornful heart of a carnal Christian, who finds fault with others, in order to look good themselves. Not one of us is sin-free, which is why we lack the competency to judge other people. Because we are not void of sin, we cannot judge the motivations of other people with any impartiality. Consequently, we do not have the right to inflict judgment on others. God is the only power in the universe that has the right to save souls, thus He is the only true spiritual judge.
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