Recently, at a Christian meeting here in Nigeria, where the brethren meet after the sermon to discus the topic preached, one brother started judging another by saying he knew why he was making certain statements, accusing him of pride of knowledge. He quoted 1 Corinthians chapter two verse 15 which says in the NIV, "the spiritual man makes judgment about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment." This was what the brother quoted to justify himself in judging his brother.
But does the bible say we should judge others like this? Did Jesus not say we should not judge? It is useful to look at the whole of 1 Corinthians chapter two to see why the bother was wrong in judging his brother. The Bible, the word of God, does not say we should judge. The Bible does not say we should judge other people's intentions. We might be able to judge and say he did so and so, but we might not be able to judge why he did so. Only God can see the hearts of men and the word of God can reveal it by God's Son, Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians Chapter 2
1: And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
2: For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
3: And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
4: And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
5: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
6: Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:
7: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
8: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
9: But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
10: But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11: For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12: Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13: Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14: But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15: But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
16: For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
There are some things we can can judge. There are some things we have been given by God even before the foundation of the world. I come from a a tribe in Nigeria. I find that I do not get along well with certain other tribes within my tribe. Also from the tribes in Nigeria, I only get on well with certain of them. These tribes I get on with are the I have been given by God before the creation of the world and these tribes are also the one which belong to Christ, I also being a Christian.
So the things the Bible says a Christian can judge are "those things he has been freely given in Christ." All the things he has been "freely given" in Christ through the wisdom of God. He is able to know his friends in Christ, his wife that is his, his East, his West, his South and his North. His East is essential for a man to know how he can return back to "his Eden." However, there are usually problems in the East. Remember, when God planted a garden east in Eden, Adam was able to find his wife, the tree of life was situated there, but also the serpent was lurking close by.
