Beloved, if this is your first time reading this blog I would suggest you start with the previous post on let the light in for a bit more context on the topics we will be covering the next few months or so.

I really want us to ponder daily on what we will be learning in this time. Not just today or tomorrow but we need to condition ourselves to run back to the Word of God everyday and weigh ourselves up against it to make sure we are living a life worthy of the Lord. Colossians 1:10. Our lifestyles should show that we are walking as Christ directs us to.

I pray that Holy Spirit will convict and minister to your heart as you read. I pray that you will really press in daily to change your mindset and to open up your gates for the King of Glory, Jesus Christ to enter and shine through you.

If you want to understand a scripture better you can google your scripture reference by adding commentary and read up on what the commentaries say about what the scripture really means and what the history behind the scripture is. This helps a lot if you don’t really understand or you want to make sure you understand correctly and don’t make your own assumptions.

So, here we go with part 1.

I want to start with the next scriptures. It is indirectly connected to the eye gate, but I feel it is necessary for us to start here!

Matthew 7:1-2“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. ² For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

Isn’t this the truth? How many of us, when we look at someone immediately make an assumption of who we think they are? We don’t know them or what pain they carry, but we will assume they are this way or that way by the way they dress, how many tattoos they have, or even what others say about them. We tend to look at someone with a critical eye and many times we believe the worst. Many of us have learnt a behavior of being suspicious of others and never giving them the benefit of the doubt. If we are constantly in a mode of finding fault with others our lives will become miserable and we will breed bitterness in our hearts that will lead to a heart without compassion.

Another behavior we have learnt is thinking that our ways are better than others, or we know better than others, making out that others are dumb and the list goes on. This is pride! If we can stop looking at other’s shortcomings and first look at ourselves and realize we all have flaws we will be able to dodge the trap of the enemy by falling into pride that God hates!

First Nugget

WATCH HOW YOU LOOK AT OTHERS!

Catch yourself out before you fall into sin and look for the potential in that person rather than looking at their short falls. Be careful of being critical, for you will be judged by others the same way you have judged! What you sow, you will reap.

Matthew 7:3-5

³ “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

We are many times quick to want to correct others for the things they do or say that are wrong. We need to first gauge ourselves to see if we have the right to correct them or not. Really testing our hearts to see if we are maybe not doing the same things.

This scripture is speaking about people that are quick to “sort others out” or quick to point out peoples inadequacies. It speaks about many of us that don’t even realize that we ourselves also do things that are out of line and therefore we should be careful of going around trying to correct others while we are guilty of doing the same things or worse. We are called hypocrites if we operate like this.

It would be much better if we change the way we correct others by identifying with them in their wrong doings, coming from a place of humility. By doing this it will help us to be mindful of our own conduct and stay clear of being called hypocrites. We would be much more effective in helping our brothers and sisters to be set free from their wrong doings and at the same time we will keep ourselves from not being deceived by thinking we don’t do wrong.

My Personal Experience

Many years ago when God started teaching me this principal of judgments coming back, I really didn’t understand the implications. I won’t go into details about what happened, but I will give you a summary.

There was a pastor that did great signs and wonders and He broadcasted over television for many years. I did not know him well, I only saw him a few times, I did not know anything about him. One of my friends loved this pastor and he went to a lot of his meetings. One day my friend told me something about this pastor and immediately I was offended and I made an assumption that this pastor was blasphemous. I didn’t hear it myself, I made an assumption by what I heard. A few weeks passed and two of my friends spoke about this pastor and the amazing work that he has been doing for God. The only thing I said to them was: “But you know there is something wrong there?” They didn’t really respond to what I said and we carried on with the conversation. (We must be very careful of judging, many times the person we are judging has something that we can learn from, but by making assumptions about them we immediately close our hearts to everything they say or do and we lose out on something that God wants to teach us). The very next day I couldn’t get out of bed, I had so much pain in my body. It was so intense that at one point I asked God, “Father what have I done, why am I in this state?” God answered immediately by telling me I have judged and slandered His servant. God told me that I did not know what He told this pastor in the secret place about what I was told by my friend.

So 2 things happened, it didn’t just end at judging, it spilled over to slander and gossip. By telling my friends about what I felt about this pastor I have defiled them with my judgments against Gods anointed. So, I immediately phoned them and repented. I then asked God to pls forgive me for what I have done. The next day I was completely healed.

Many years after this incident I went through a huge health ordeal and I couldn’t sleep at night. One of the things that brought me through was lying infront of the television while that same pastor’s program of healing the sick was on. That was the only place I could fall asleep at night over that period of time. If I didn’t sort my heart out years before I would’ve never watched that pastors program in that time and I would’ve probably suffered a whole lot more.

Nugget Two

If you can’t speak or think about others in a respectful way, even if you are sure there are things wrong, just STOP! Do not touch God’s anointed. Psalm 105:15. Do you know who Gods anointed are? Everyone who is a child of God is His anointed. We do not have the right to speak out about anyone even if they have issues or are doing wrong. Most of all, be careful of defiling your friends by talking disrespectfully about others. If you need to vent, speak to the Lord and allow Him to touch your heart.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE: When our first child was born I remember looking at my dads conduct and I would quietly in my heart say that I will never be like him – I will never shout at my children. That was a judgment and an inner vow. So, our baby got older and without realizing I started shouting at her until one day I heard God speaking loud and clear: “What are you doing? The very thing you didn’t want to do you are doing. You have judged your father with a heart full of pride and arrogance – the same measure you used to judge is measured to you.” I repented!!! I asked God to remove the judgments coming back on me by my judging my father.

Judging another is pride, by doing it we indirectly say that the other person is bad, they don’t know what they are doing and we know better, God hates pride. We cannot judge a persons character, who they are, what they do, what they look like or how they behave because it looks wrong to us. We judge the sin but never the character of a person, because that can break their spirit. It is Gods job to change people, if we think it is our place we are greatly mistaken. This means that we are taking Gods place as judge and we are sitting on His judgment seat. It is not our place! Something to surely repent of.

Beloveds, if we stop looking at others inadequacies and be aware of the fact that we also have many or more , we will start having more grace for others and we will become less critical. We are all falling short, none of us have the right to behave in a way where we think we are better than others because they do things a bit different than us or they look different from us.

Therefore let us stop our eyes from looking with judgment and train our eyes to look for the potential and good in others.

Let us pray:

Abba Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus Christ who died on the cross for my sins. I pray this prayer for my bloodline, myself and my seed line. Father I want to bring Matthew 7:1-5 before you where it states that I should not judge otherwise I will be judged; that when I judge, the same measure I use will be measured to me. Father I am guilty of doing this and for reaping exactly that which I have sown. I repent and ask that you will pls forgive me for judging _________________________________________(state all the names of the people you can remember that you have judged) I am guilty of finding fault with them, for thinking highly of myself, for thinking my ways are better, I repent of my pride and arrogance in Jesus name. Father I repent of taking Your place as judge. I repent for sitting on the judgment seat that is Yours. Please forgive me for not realizing what I was actually doing because I was deceived. Please wash me in Your blood and please take Your seat, I step down and I give it back to You in Jesus name. Father I also repent of every time I have defiled my friends by gossip and slander. I repent that I have influenced them to turn away from the people I have judged. I ask that You will forgive me and cleanse us all, by the blood of Jesus from this defilement in Jesus name. Father, these judgments have come back upon me and I have been judged by others for the same thing I have judged others with. If the judgments I have sown have not yet come back unto me I ask for mercy. It is a principal in Your Word which means it will come back on me some time or another. I repent and ask that you will please break every judgment I have made that will come back on me in Jesus name. Please remind me of every instance where and who I have judged so that I can repent effectively for it. Cleanse me in Your blood and pls remind me that I am also mere man and I make many mistakes. Father, pls forgive me for always trying to take the speck out of others eyes before I even look at myself or realizing that I have a log in my eyes. Therefore pls help me to have grace with others around me and to only find the good in them. Father, I bring my eye gate before You and I ask that You will cleanse the way I look at others by the blood of Jesus Christ. I ask for a new see and a new look in Jesus name. I rededicate my eyes to you in Jesus name and I ask that I will look through the eyes of Jesus when I look at others. Father, pls convict my heart every time I default back to the old ways of being judgmental in Jesus name. I choose to walk away from this behavior and I give my eyes to you so that You be glorified in how I look upon people, in the name of Jesus I pray. Amen and amen.

Don’t stop here! Let us everyday work at changing our behaviors and mindsets! Let us be mindful of how we look, think and behave towards others daily.