Give me a double portion, please

I saw a post in my social media feed this week which simply read: "Don't look down on anyone. Only God sits that high." There is much wisdom in this advice, my friends! We sometimes try to sit in God's place, don't we? The throne of judgment is reserved seating --- and none of us has what it takes to sit in that seat! Seriously, how many times do we maybe think in our heads (and hearts), "Sheesh, I'd never do something a ridiculous as that?" I know I find myself thinking this other person should "know better" or "have more sense" or "pick another hobby". They are just not doing very well and it is pretty evident, but do I need to be the one to point it out? Probably not.

God is light, and in him there is no darkness. 6 So if we say that we share in life with God, but we continue living in darkness, we are liars, who don’t follow the truth. 7 We should live in the light, where God is. If we live in the light, we have fellowship with each other, and the blood sacrifice of Jesus, God’s Son, washes away every sin and makes us clean. (I John 1:5-7 ERV)

The idea of us all dealing with some measure of darkness in our lives means we might just be cut out of the same cloth! None of us escapes the darkness entirely - we are born into it, live among it, hear about it, observe it, and even engage in it on occasion! We find "darkness" comes in many different sizes and shapes, at various times of the day and night, in ways we don't always recognize, and with such subtlety that it is likely we may not even know it is there until it has fully enveloped us. The reason we cannot sit on that seat of judgment is that we aren't light - God is! He is the one who has "perfect view" of all the facts.

It is the same blood sacrifice we ALL need. It is the same measure of this sacrifice we ALL require in order to remove all evidence of darkness from our lives. This truth is the equalizing force for all of us. None of us is aware of just where the darkness lives within our lives - at least not entirely. We make judgments about our own lives and then suppose it is also "okay" to begin to do the same with the lives of others. The fellowship we "attain" is the one we "maintain" and that isn't going to happen very well as long as we see the measure of grace WE need as different than what others need.

My dear children, I write this letter to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone sins, we have Jesus Christ to help us. He always did what was right, so he is able to defend us before God the Father. Jesus is the way our sins are taken away. And he is the way all people can have their sins taken away too. (I John 2:1-2 ERV) 

What we need more of is this reliance upon Jesus to help us where WE need help - focusing squarely on the truth we ALL need to "better our acts". More of Jesus in us means less of US looking down on others for their mistakes, bumblings, and whatever it is they are "lacking" in their lives. He is the only one capable of defending us against all manner of judgment - because more of him equates to less of us! Just sayin!