Death is not worse pain than an empty life. -- Lun Tha

The heart of a man is known only to God, who made him and has known him from his mother's womb.

The actions of a man are observable, as is the fruit of a tree.  People are free to pick an apple off a tree and admire its color and texture and body.  People are supposed to take a look at it before taking a bite, to make sure it is truly sound and whole.  People are justified in, having cut the apple open or having taken a bite or in some other way testing it, to say of the apple:  That apple is messed up.  It's rotten. It's mushy.  Oh, look, there's a worm in it! Or half a worm! Ew!

But do they judge the tree by that apple? No.  The apple, though, is the fruit of a tree, and by our fruit we are judged by others.

"Don't judge me!" we hear everywhere...often by people who feel judged. It is my experience that those who are sensitive that they might be doing something contrary to what is expected or proper are those who are most likely to shout this out.

"You're not allowed to judge me!" we are told.  Why not?  Do we not judge a criminal based upon the evidence of his crime? Do we not say whether a person is guilty or not based upon what is seen and found? Are we not allowed to do so? Of course we are.

We are not allowed to say whether the person is whole or sane or proper in his heart, maybe, but his actions are out there TO BE JUDGED in a court of law.

Now, if I saw my elder son doing something wrong, and I called him on it, would I be judging him?  "Cyclone! Stop that! It's wrong!" 

Is that bad? No.  It's necessary. 

I am fortunate, I know. I was raised by a family that clearly delineated the concepts of I LOVE YOU from I HATE WHAT YOU ARE DOING. 

"I love you," Mums would say, "But I do not agree that what you're doing is right. I think you're wrong, here."  It could have been a boyfriend, a job situation, a friend situation. Whatever.   I knew Mums loved me, but that she found grave error in my action or attitude. 

When God says he loves us, it is the same. He loves us. Enough to DIE for us.  But he hates the sin that we do.  Did Jesus love "tax collectors and sinners?" You bet! He loves all of us.  But he did NOT condone what they did.  To the woman at the well, who had been married several times and was then living with a man not her husband, he did not say, "YOU'RE AN EVIL WOMAN AND I AM GOING TO SEND YOU TO ETERNAL TORMENT!"  No. He showed her he loved her shared the plan of God with her.  To the woman who had been caught in the act of adultery, he showed mercy. He did NOT say that what she was doing was okay.  He didn't allow her to be killed, but he told her to go and change her life.  To sin no more.

So what does that mean for me?

It means that I am not to judge the heart of another, or judge their soul. When they stand before God in heaven, they will have all their actions shown to them and they will understand God's judgment.  But I am to, in love, point out the errors I see in others of my faith, yes.  And to those who do not share my faith, I am allowed to say that the behavior they exhibit is wrong, if it is, and to show them a better way.  It's practically part of the job description.

Is that wrong? No. It is called correction. It is something we should do for one another, as gently as possible, with as much understanding as we can.

As for me, I cannot see the heart of another. Only my own. But I can and do find some things wrong. That's not judging a person...it is judging their actions.  I care about people, but I cannot, sometimes, abide what they do.  And that, ladies and gentlemen, is perfectly normal.