We condemn and sentence other people to their deaths (both literally and figuratively speaking) with our judgment based on what the crowd says is right and just. Yet we never really care to find out the truth. We dare not speak to the one accused. We dare not delve deeper into the heart. We love pointing fingers–the blame game. We love proving others wrong. Then, we wash our hands clean and make ourselves believe that we have done the right thing.
Jesus was innocent, yet the world, blinded by its standards of righteousness, saw Him as a co-worker of the devil. Now, I further understand the difference between Jesus and the Pharisees.
Jesus convicts and corrects with love. He convicts personally, spends time talking with people who need His grace and understands their hearts and motives. Pharisees love to condemn and shame people. They ask, but they never truly listen.
Jesus has the right to judge but He does not use this power to prove His superiority. Pharisees didn’t have the right to judge but they did to impose inferiority.
Jesus confronts people with compassion and grace. Pharisees approach people with self-righteousness.
Jesus always makes sure the person He confronts is restored. Pharisees always make sure their judgment leaves the person more miserable than ever.
No wonder many people don’t want to believe in God. The Jesus in us, they can’t see. Only the Pharisee.
