One of the great questions in life is which path to follow—mercy or judgment?
The writer of Hebrews puts it this way. Should we go to Mt. Sinai, where the law was given to Moses, terrifying in its fire and brimstone? Or Mt. Zion, where Jesus Christ made peace for us on the cross?
Fire and brimstone—or peace? Which will we choose?
The thing is we love judging others. We know it’s true. We love comparing ourselves with others, and the greatest standard of comparison is God’s law, the Ten Commandments.
We love judging because we crave identity. We deeply want to justify ourselves and make ourselves stand out from the crowd. And one way to do that is to judge others and tear them down in order to lift ourselves up.
But over time we begin to realize that judging others does not bring us the happiness we are looking for. Oh, it may bring some momentary satisfaction. It feels good to justify ourselves at someone else’s expense, put them in their place.
But Jesus said, “Judge not, lest you be judged.” The happiness of judging others is fake. It does not last because we are sinners too. By the perfect and holy law of God, we are all under judgment. “No one is holy; no, not one.”
And therefore when we judge others we also judge ourselves. We will be measured by the same measure we use on our poor fellow beings.
Jesus explains it this way. The commandment says “do not murder,” but anyone who is even angry with his brother for no reason is liable to judgment. Dear brothers and sisters, this is a standard no one can meet—except Jesus himself.
And another commandment says “do not commit adultery”—but anyone who even lusts after someone has already committed adultery in his heart. Therefore: Do not judge.
The point he was making in these examples is that true happiness cannot be found in judging others. It can only be found in mercy—in being merciful to them just as God has been merciful to us and sent his Son to die for our sins.
So which mountain will we choose in our interactions with others—mercy, or judgment? Only one can bring us peace. Only one can give us true happiness and a more abundant life.
