Sunday, February 17, 2019, Evident Grace Fellowship looked at Romans 2.1-4:

Romans 2:1 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2 Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3 So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? 4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

From those verses, we pursued this Big Idea and these three points:

Big Idea:  How to Talk to a non-Christian

Don’t Pass Judgement

Know that God Judges

Trust God’s Kindness

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Don’t Pass Judgment

Romans 2:1 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

Judging, from God’s perspective, is declaring someone’s guilt in light of His holiness.  Judging, from a human perspective, is declaring someone’s guilt despite their own guilt.  When the guilty condemn the guilty, that’s called judging.  Jesus explained how we should approach these things:

Luke 6:37-42 37″Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” 39He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher. 41″Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 42How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

How then should the Christian interact with the non-Christian?

Know that God Judges

2 Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3 So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?

God has a basis for judgement:  truth.  That truth is a representation of His character and that truth is found in the Bible.  The Christian has to trust that God is going to make all things right in this world.  So, we can’t stand in judgment of others because we are sinners as well.

What then should we do?  Instead of standing in front of people judging them for the very things that we are guilty of, we should stand beside them, sharing our sins and the hope that we have found in Jesus through God’s word.

Trust God’s Kindness

4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

When we judge, we show contempt on the way that God intends to bring people to repentance:  kindness.  We must be kind as a reflection of God’s kindness, and our kindness must have the same agenda of God’s:  leading people to repentance.

Big Idea:  How to Talk to a non-Christian

Don’t Pass Judgement

Know that God Judges

Trust God’s Kindness

Truth:  Speaking the truth in love, Christians are to call the world to the same repentance that they have experienced through God’s kindness. 

Application:  Live knowing that the kind and continual work of repentance in your life is intended to be transformative for you, the church, and those who do not profess faith in Christ.

Action:  Be kind to those who don’t know Christ with the expressed purpose of sharing how God’s kindness led you to repentance.