The Authority to Judge

... however, angels, who are greater in might and power, do not bring a slanderous charge against them before the Lord. - 2 Peter 2:11

In continuing to condemn the false teachers infiltrating the churches of his day, Peter added one more fault. They not only ignored God's "righteous" judgment, they also set themselves up as the righteous judge of everyone else.

To illustrate the ridiculous nature of their actions, Peter once again pointed to the angels. Even these strong and powerful servants of the Lord know that only God Himself has the authority to judge (Jude 9) another rightly. And, if this is true, "How could we possibly sit in judgment of others apart from God's righteous standard?" Obviously, we cannot. Like the angels, we have neither the wisdom, nor the right to act as the spiritual judge of another.

Why is it then that those who have the greatest faults most often set themselves up as the supreme authority over others? Or perhaps, why is it that we judge most strongly those faults we find in ourselves? Clearly, the only way for any of us to judge fairly is for us to first understand the righteous judgment of God.

It is well, when judging a friend, to remember that he is judging you with the same godlike and superior impartiality. - Arnold Bennett