“I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. There is another that beareth witness of me; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth of me is true.”

Just as Jesus, while in a physical body, could do nothing of Himself; neither can we. His doing nothing, is in reference to the work of the Father. We are quite capable of doing some things, but, doing the things of God requires His involvement.

“as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.”

We all know the seriousness of “judgments”. This applies to civil, criminal, medical, and personal judgments. The civil and criminal judgments are handled by our government appointed judges who render their decisions based on the information presented to them, and the precedents set by higher courts. Medical judgments are pretty much in the hands of experts who have a wealth of prior knowledge and experience. Personal judgments are those with which Jesus, and, we, are intimately involved. If we compare the time and effort put into making civil, criminal, and medical judgments; and, the time and effort we spend to insure our personal judgments are “just” or “right”; I’m afraid we fall far short.

How often a hasty judgment proves unjust, or, just plain wrong! Yet, we do it time and time again; resulting in apologies (?) and forgiveness (?) required of everyone involved. Jesus is telling us, “Listen! Listen to what God has to say about the circumstances. God said, “I would have justice and mercy, and not sacrifice.”

How often do we “sacrifice” someone’s name, reputation, and/or character for expediency’s sake? How often do we take the time to “hear” what the other person has to say; much less, God? How often do we suspend judgment to seek God’s will before committing our opinion to God’s court? And, every opinion we express shall be heard by The Judge!

Thank God that those whom we judge have recourse to our "Appellate Court"! It’s much better to have the "Supreme Court’s" opinion in heart when we make our decisions. When we do, God will bear witness to our judgments. If not, we are “as tinkling brass and sounding cymbals.” And, whether we do, or not, God’s approval or disapproval will surely be true.

So often, we present ourselves as “knowing the right thing to do”, and end up doing or saying the wrong thing. Yeah, we’re just human. But, let’s

“take time to be holy, the world rushes on…

take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord;

take time to be holy, let Him by thy Guide;

take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul,

each thought and each motive beneath His control;

Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love,

thou soon shalt be fitted for service above (here).”

You can be sure that every judgment we can justly make must be made on the basis of God’s love, longsuffering, and mercy. Otherwise, how can we expect these things from God on our behalf; to say nothing of His blessings?

“Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved. He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light. But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me. And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me.”