"Judging You": A conversation with a friend

"Do not judge!", people often say, (mis-)quoting passages like Matthew 7:1-5.

The dogma of the 21st century, as well as 21st century Christianity, is that of being "non-judgmental".

But who's judging whom?

Some time back, I was briefly explaining to a non-Christian friend that certain forms of birth control pills, like the "morning-after" pill, had the effect of inducing the abortion of an implanted foetus.

She immediately retorted, in a tone that was half serious and half in jest, "Judging you..."

She went on later to criticise me for being irrational, albeit in a relatively calm and civil manner.

Now, who is the judgmental one here? More importantly, which judgment is right?

That is some food for thought.

Planned Parenthood's claim that "abortion is not even mentioned in the Scriptures"

People who disagree with Christians on abortion often argue that "religion should be kept separate from politics", or that religious people should not "impose" their beliefs on others.

It is deeply ironic, then, that there are those "pro-choice" advocates who delve into questions of theology attempting to justify abortion through Scriptural exegesis.

Planned Parenthood is the largest abortion provider in the United States. Sometime back, it published a "Pastoral Letter to Patients" justifying abortion:

Pastoral Letter to Patients

Dear Friend:  

The decision to have an abortion is personal. Though your reasons may be complicated and private, you’re not alone. As religious leaders from a number of religious traditions, we’re here to support you in your decision. 

Many people wrongly assume that all religious leaders disapprove of abortion. The truth is that abortion is not even mentioned in the Scriptures—Jewish or Christian—and there are clergy and people of faith from all denominations who support women making this complex decision. The beliefs of each person are deserving of respect, and each person deserves care and compassion, No one should be allowed to force their faith teachings on anyone else. 

We believe this decision is yours, made with your doctor and anyone else you choose to bring into the conversation, such as a spouse, partner, parent, or clergy person. 

Our religious traditions have somewhat different opinions about abortion, but we share some basic understandings: 

• No one knows the circumstances of your life as well as you know them; no one knows what’s in your heart better than you. Allow yourself to be at peace with your decision. 

• God loves you and is with you no matter what you decide. You can find strength, understanding, and comfort in that love.

If you'd like to speak with a clergyperson, your local Planned Parenthood health center can refer you to someone who will be supportive of you and your decision. Your privacy will be protected and all conversations will be completely confidential.

Is this true?

The Bible on Abortion

Planned Parenthood is arguably correct on one level, since the word "abortion" cannot be found in the Bible. However, on that count, the Bible does not say anything "specifically" about a lot of things, including smoking, drugs, nuclear weapons, and a whole host of other morally controversial issues. We need to dig deeper.

There are two important questions we need to ask when approaching the topic of abortion. Philosopher and theologian William Lane Craig, who is one of the leading apologists of our time, phrased the two important questions as follows:

1. Do human beings possess intrinsic moral value?  
2. Is the developing foetus a human being?

The Bible makes it clear from the beginning that all human beings possess intrinsic moral value as bearers of the image of God (Imago Dei). All of humankind, both male and female, are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27; 9:6). This is the reason why God commanded, "You shall not murder" (Exodus 20:13).

There are numerous passages in the Bible which affirm the humanity of the developing foetus. One of the most powerful passages is King David's psalm, Psalm 139:

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
(Psalm 139:14-16)

Other passages include Genesis 25:22, Isaiah 49:1, Jeremiah 1:4-5 and Luke 1:44.

Therefore, the National Council of Churches of Singapore (NCCS) has condemned the practice of abortion, declaring that "[because] the embryo or fetus is a human being, made in the image of God, its destruction is tantamount to the killing of innocent lives." Hence, NCCS "cannot countenance the destruction of a fetus even in the context of legalised elective abortion".

Response of Alliance Defending Freedom

In light of Planned Parenthood's apparent agreement that the religious beliefs of many women their will be very relevant to their decision about whether to have an abortion, Casey Mattox, Senior Counsel of Alliance Defending Freedom, offered to place one free copy of the Bible for every Planned Parenthood facility in the United States.

Part of the open letter to Planned Parenthood reads:

... I would like to offer Planned Parenthood one free copy of the Bible for every Planned Parenthood facility in the country. Planned Parenthood could place these Bibles in their waiting rooms and permit women the opportunity to explore for themselves what the Jewish and Christian Scriptures have to say about abortion. There is no doubt that we are on opposite sides of this theological and moral question. But as we are in apparent agreement that Scripture and its teachings (or lack thereof in your view) on abortion would be relevant to many women’s abortion decisions, making these Bibles available to those women would certainly benefit your potential customers. 

To allay any concerns you might have, the Bibles Alliance Defending Freedom would provide to Planned Parenthood would be new unmarked copies. For instance, we would not highlight Psalm 127:3 (“Truly children are a gift from the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward”), Psalm 139:13 (“You knit me together in my mother’s womb…”), Psalm 22:10-11 (“You have been my guide since I was first formed . . . from my mother’s womb you are my God”) or Jeremiah 1:5 (“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart”). 

We would not dog-ear Exodus 20:13 (“You shall not kill”). Nor would we even place a bookmark at Luke 1:41, 44 (where the “baby [John the Baptist] … leapt for joy” in his mother’s womb when the baby Jesus was nearby in Mary’s womb). 

Rather, we would make these Bibles available, unedited and without emphasis of any kind, allowing those women visiting a Planned Parenthood facility to review them themselves.

Judgment as Vindication

"Do not judge! Don't be judgmental!"

Sometimes, when we speak to people in church about sin, we are often met with the retort, "Do not judge!"

 

But why are so many people who profess to be God-fearing Christians so afraid of judgment?

 

The Gospel message is unabashedly pointed in its presentation of the reality of sin and its consequences, but at the same time is unabashedly clear about the reality of justification in Christ Jesus. This is beautifully summed up in Romans 3:23-24:

[For] all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

 

In his First Epistle to the notorious Corinthian church, Paul did not hesitate to warn them about sin, even as he affirmed their sanctification and justification in Christ:

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

 

For those who are in Christ Jesus, there is no condemnation. Paul writes in Romans 8:1-2:

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

If we are in Christ Jesus, there is no reason to be afraid of judgment.

 

Rather, God's judgment would be a form of vindication for those in Christ Jesus.

 

To be "justified" is to be declared righteous, like in a court of law. Someone who is truly innocent has has no reason to fear the judgment of a righteous and holy God.

Like in the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, when Jesus returns at the Second Coming, the wicked are cast into eternal punishment, while the righteous are brought into eternal life (Matthew 25:31-46).

 

For the righteous, judgment is not to be feared as condemnation or punishment. Instead, it vindicates them. The Book of Revelation records the cries of the saints in heaven to God:

"How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" (Revelation 6:10)

The question, then, is this: Are you in Christ Jesus, or not? If you are, you would welcome judgment because you have nothing to fear. If not, it would be "a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31).

"I desire mercy, not sacrifice": Have we gotten church wrong?

"I desire mercy, not sacrifice," God spoke through the prophet Hosea as He pointed out the grievous sins that Israel and Judah had committed (Hosea 6:6).

"I desire mercy, not sacrifice," said Jesus when the Pharisees questioned Jesus' disciples as to why their Teacher was eating with tax collectors and "sinners" (Matthew 9:9-13).

"I desire mercy, not sacrifice," said Jesus again when the Pharisees rebuked Jesus and His disciples for picking some heads of grain and eating them on the Sabbath. Jesus then headed to the synagogue and healed a man with a shrivelled hand (Matthew 12:1-14).

Having been raised in a Christian home, and having attended church ever since I was born, "being Christian" has essentially meant attending church every Sunday, reading my Bible and praying every day, attending cell groups and Bible studies and living a good personal life. That was what I was taught about how to be a "good Christian".

On the other hand, failing to attend church and missing Bible studies were a big no-no; these were only pardonable if I had some legitimate reason.

But what does the Lord truly desire of us?

In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus illustrated the meaning of "mercy" by telling of the priest and the Levite who walked on without caring for the injured man, while on the other hand, the Samaritan went the extra mile to show concern for him and ensure that he was being cared for.
 

In the parable, Jesus seemed to care very little about the fact that the priest and the Levite were "religious" people, who were probably on their way to or from their religious duties. Instead, the hero of the story was a despised Samaritan who his neighbour and showed mercy.

Have we gotten church wrong? Where do our priorities lie?

Surely, salvation is by grace through faith alone (Romans 3:23-24), but likewise we are called to work out our salvation "with fear and trembling" (Philippians 2:12) and to express our faith in love (Galatians 5:6).

In our weekly Sunday rituals, have we forgotten the poor, sick, homeless, orphans, widows, aliens, unborn, or disabled? Have we forgotten those who are sexually broken and crying out for love and affection yet finding these in all the wrong places?

Will we be the people to whom the Lord will say "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me" (Matthew 25:35-36)? 

Or will the Lord say to us, "depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matthew 25:41)?

The spiritual Jerusalem has never been in ruins

A few days ago, I was reading the first chapter of the Book of Nehemiah. The chapter began with Nehemiah weeping about the condition of Jerusalem:

The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa, Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.  They said to me, "Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire."  When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.

As I read through the rest of the chapter, Nehemiah's prayer struck a chord in my heart. I began to think of the condition of Christianity today, of the church, and my own church, which I have attended since as far as I can remember.

I bowed my head in prayer and began to lament:

"Lord, the church – your spiritual Jerusalem – is in ruins..."

I had barely prayed that when God interrupted, saying:

"The spiritual Jerusalem has never been in ruins, because the Lord himself preserves it."

This is a comforting thought.

Even in a time of great rebellion and apostasy, as things stand right now, God reserves for Himself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal (1 Kings 19:18; Romans 11:4).

It is also a reminder that God draws the boundaries of His church quite differently from the way we humans do, for Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world." (John 18:36)

But there is something which is still in ruins, and it must be fixed.

What would characterise the beliefs and perspectives of a follower of Jesus Christ now?

In the media and in politics, we often find labels being used. Those who oppose abortion are called "pro-life", while those who support the legalisation of abortion call themselves "pro-choice". In Singapore, we hear terms like "pro-family" to refer to the Government's policies supporting marriage, parenthood and so on.

Terms like these may obscure the actual reasons or viewpoints and prevent discussion, but they sometimes serve to create an easy starting point for reference purposes. 

Early disciples of Jesus Christ did not call themselves "Christians", but instead referred to their faith as "the Way" (Acts 9:2). The Book of Acts then records that the disciples were called "Christians" first at Antioch (Acts 11:26), a term that probably held the same connotation as the term "Jesus freak" in our day.

It was a term which characterised their beliefs and perspectives in a way that others could easily understand.

Roman senator and historian Tacitus wrote the following in his Annals about Christians and Christ:

Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judæa, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular...

Early Christians were known for their refusal to worship Caesar and paid a heavy price for it.

They were also known for their opposition to gladiatorial fights. One Roman writer has criticised Christians, saying:

You do not go to our shows; you take no part in our processions... you shrink in horror from our sacred [gladiatorial] games.

Other ethical values which marked the early church included their treatment of slaves, opposition to abortion and infanticide, as well as sexual ethics which were radically different from those practiced by the people around them.

But in the 21st century AD, the meaning of the word "Christian" has largely faded in significance, especially in light of moral confusion even among churchgoers. 

What would characterise the beliefs and perspectives of a follower of Jesus Christ now?

The Language of Family in the Gospel

Christians have typically been very concerned about the role and meaning of family in society. For example, in light of the controversy regarding the Health Promotion Board's FAQs on Sexuality and the response by Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, the National Council of Churches wrote in a press statement:

We especially welcome the Minister’s assurance that there has been no shift in the government’s position: that the family is the basic build ing block of society, and that ‘family’ is taken to mean a man and a woman joined in marriage, and encouraged to build a stable nuclear or extended household.

There are many reasons why Christians should be concerned about the family, including Biblical teaching about marriage, children, as well as sexuality.

But there is another reason why the family plays such an important role in Christianity. It is because, as concisely summed up by Julia Shaw, "the language of Christianity is familial". The Gospels speak so much in familial terms that it is almost impossible to understand the Gospel without understanding the family.

Father, mother and child
Promise and identity in the Bible are fulfilled through the simple image of father, mother and child.

Already in the beginning, the Bible foretells of the "Seed" or "offspring" of the woman who will crush the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:15), and of the "Seed" of Abraham who will be the fulfilment of God's promise (Genesis 12:7; Galatians 3:16).

The promise of that "Seed", Jesus Christ, was not fulfilled in pompous fashion but through the humble circumstance of an unexpecting mother and loving adoptive father. The Gospels speak of the shock and submission of the virgin Mary when she found out that she was with child by the power of the Holy Spirit, and the dilemma faced by her betrothed Joseph. The scene of the Nativity is none other than that of a father, mother and child in a stable in Bethlehem. This is a family whose genealogy Matthew and Luke trace back through the the generations to David, the patriarchs, Adam, and finally to God.

The message of Jesus Christ is one of fatherhood. Early in Jesus' ministry, Jesus was already speaking going about "His Father's business" (Luke 2:49). He taught His disciples to address God as "Father", and taught that God is a loving Father who wishes to give good gifts to His children (Luke 11:13). In His parables, He likened God to a father with two wayward sons (Luke 15:11-32).

And Jesus, the son who learned obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5:8), ultimately paid the price so that we might be reconciled to God and called as His children. Paul teaches us that we "are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:26). God has made us His children and heirs:

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. (Romans 8:15-17)

Marriage
Another aspect of family in the Gospels is the marital covenant.

Marriage, as defined by Scripture, is an exclusive and permanent union between a man and a woman. In the New Testament, Jesus taught:

"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh' ? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate." (Matthew 19:4-6)

The sacrament of marriage parallels the spiritual relationship between Christ and His church. The relationship between Jesus Christ and His church is likened to that of a bridegroom and his bride, of a husband and wife. Paul makes this clear in Ephesians 5:22-33:

Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church-- for we are members of his body. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ is depicted as a wedding, where people are waiting in anticipation for the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13). The Book of Revelation ends with a wedding between Jesus Christ and His church. John writes about how he saw "the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband" (Revelation 21:2).

Brothers- and sisters-in-Christ

With God as Father, and with Jesus and the church as husband and wife, what would that make individual believers?

It is no surprise then, that Christians regarded one another as part of a larger spiritual family. In the Epistles, the apostles address their fellow believers as "brothers" and "sisters", and regarded some older women as "mothers". Paul instructed Timothy:

Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity. (1 Timothy 5:1-2)

Indeed, Jesus taught that "whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother" (Matthew 12:50).

The habit of the early church of addressing one another as brothers and sisters caused quite some misunderstanding to Roman observers! In about 200 AD, a pagan lawyer named Marcus Minucius Felix even wrote: 

They love one another before being acquainted, so to speak. Everywhere they practice a kind of religious cult of lust, calling one another “brother” and “sister” indiscriminately. Thus, under the cover of these hallowed names, ordinary fornication becomes incest.

The Language of Family in the Gospel
Family is at the centre of the Gospel.

So integral is the family to the Gospel that it becomes almost impossible to understand the Gospel without understanding the family. Mary Eberstadt writes in her book, How the West Really Lost God, which examined the decline of Christianity in the West:

The Christian story itself is a story told through the prism of the family. Take away the prism, and the story makes less sense.

It is a premise of this book that we Western men and women, whether inside the churches or not, are only at the beginning of understanding how the fracturing of the natural family has in turn helped to fracture Christianity. Evidence from all over suggests that understanding Christianity requires understanding the natural family - and a world where natural families are often weak is one in which the very language of Christian belief, literal and figurative, is destined to be less well understood than it was before.

She warns: family illiteracy breeds religious illiteracy.


Preaching the Gospel requires sound understanding of the family, and vice versa. A church which fails to teach about the family does a great disservice to the Gospel.