Free to Judge – The Law of Liberty (14)

Free to Judge

The Law of Liberty (14)

Readers will gain a better perspective on the main teaching of this series by reading The Ground for Christian Ethics, by T. M. Go to www.MyParuchia.com, click Publications, then click Waxed Tablet, and scroll down until you see this little volume.

“If you hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God is giving you to dwell there, that certain worthless fellows have gone out among you and have drawn away the inhabitants of their city… then you shall inquire and make search and ask diligently.” Deuteronomy 13:12, 14

Contemporary Christians have begun to worship at the altar of tolerance in matters of doctrine and practice. Convinced that it is wrong to judge others, we are allowing false teaching and compromised practices to find their way into the household of faith. Consequently, many churches and believers have lost sight of our mission and abandoned the call to pursue holiness in the fear of God (2 Cor. 7:1).

In his book, In Praise of Prejudice, Theodore Dalrymple (Anthony Daniels) exposes the danger of believing that all judgments are equal. They aren’t. Everyone has prejudices, and not all prejudices (pre-judgments) are evil. Some, indeed, are utterly essential to survival.

For example, I have a prejudice against driving on the wrong side of the road. I think everybody who does that is a danger to society and themselves. They should be arrested, deprived of their licenses, if only for a time, and made to view horrible videos about reckless drivers and their victims. Do you find me judgmental and intolerant? I doubt it.

Jesus commanded His followers to “judge righteous judgment” (John 7:29). That is, we must be able to recognize unrighteousness and to follow courses of action which resist it and move us along the path of Truth. But we must be able to inquire and make search and ask diligently which views and practices are to be considered as unrighteous. Where shall we look to learn this? To the Law of God, of course. The holy and righteous and good Law of God frees us to judge with righteous judgment and, thus, to promote the cause of goodness, beauty, and Truth in all we do.

Daily meditation in the Law of God helps us along the path of holiness, righteousness, and goodness (Rom. 7:12). Order your copy of The Law of God, a compilation of the Mosaic Law for contemporary believers, by going to www.MyParuchia.com, point your browser to “Publications,” then click on the drop-down option, “Waxed Tablet Publications.”

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore.

T.M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.