I have been away from blogger for a while because I was in the hospital and when I came out, was trying to further recover. I thank The Most High God for restoring my health. I have an inflammatory intestinal disease - Crohns Disease. It is assumed that I have had this since a child but at that time, there was no name for it. It sat dormant for many years. However, it re-emerged a decade ago, which was when I was diagnosed. For more information about this disease, click this link: http://www.crohnsonline.com/what-is-crohns-disease/default.aspx
I want to discuss the topic of discernment. I find this to be very important because it is often misunderstood and mistaken for judgment. However, the bible tells us to exercise discernment because it is an effective method of ridding ourselves of Satan, his demons & the people they work through to destroy our spirit.
Now, a commonly quoted scripture by many (even those that have no idea where it is & have just heard it) is this: "Judge not, that ye may be judged" - Matt 7:1
This is a favorite of those that feel rebuked for their wrongdoing and in attempt to divert the attention from their ungodly behavior, they quickly quote this, in belief that it will stop a TRUE follower of Christ - that is offering correction - from further discussing their transgressions.
But I believe it is imperative to always read more than a single scripture when trying to understand what God is saying to us. Matthew 7 is a passage that teaches how to differentiate judgement & discernment. Christ condemns judgment and encourages discernment. However, He knew that people would use them interchangeably and that can cause a problem. So he explained the difference. What an awesome God we serve, yes?!
MATT 7
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
Times,'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: x-large;">5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
These scriptures are still concerning the matter of judgment but they also teach us about discernment. The definition of discern is: to see or understand the difference; to come to know or recognize mentally; to detect with senses other than vision.
This is very important because we now see that in order to discern is to differentiate....
1. This means to discern well, we must know that it is NOT the same as judgment.
2. We must use our God given mind to effectively observe and identify someone or something
3. We also must use OTHER senses besides sight... This means we are not to rely on the appearance of someone or something to effectively understand what is TRULY is!
The above scriptures tell us that before we notice the transgression of someone else, work on our own. Discern when we could be doing better in a given area of our lives instead of judging someone else on that same area.
But notice verse 6:
6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
THIS scripture tells us that discernment is definitely needed to do as God commands us! In the bible, swine and dogs are often referred to as unclean (Deut 14:8, Matt 8:31-32, Exodus 22:31, Judges 7:5, Proverbs 26:11)
Christ is telling us that we must use senses other than sight to realize what to engage in & who to be around... If we do not DISCERN these things, people that have the character of dogs and swine (spiritually unclean) will attack you, mess over you and ultimately destroy you! Is this judging? NO! It is protecting oneself from wickedness & exercising the spiritual sobriety that Christ gives when you follow Him!
Another important study about discernment is Matt 7:15-20. These scriptures tell us about people and the works they do, what those works produce (wickedness or righteousness) and that through this, we can determine what type of people they are. We can DISCERN effectively! Why is THIS important? Because, Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy and how will we ever be able to avoid his snare if we can not effectively notice it? We can't! SO we CLEARLY need to discern in order to avoid being tricked!
The following scriptures will also aid in this study:
(Deut 18:21-22, 2Corinth 7:4, Isaiah 8:20, Phil 3:16, 2Tim 3:16, Gal 1:6-9, Hebrew 4:12, Eze 44:23) and SO many more!
I pray this will help you in understanding the difference between judging and discerning and that you rightfully exercise your right and duty to discern!
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