The Spirit By Which Many Choose to Live By
A critical and judgmental spirit will look at a situation with very limited information and pass their negative verdict. They will claim that they have all of the facts or all that is needed to sentence the person as guilty of whatever charge they can drum up. No amount of real and thorough facts will change their mind either. They will spread their toxic lies to whomever will lend an ear.
When we take a snapshot into someone's life, we will never truly know all of the facts. Even God does not give us all of the information when He uses us to help someone. "For we know in part, and we prophesy in part." 1 Corinthians 13:9
The same measure that we use against others will come back upon us. I don't think anyone would like someone walking in their house passing their opinion off as gospel or telling them that they are out of God's will for this or that reason. We must be careful because God does look at our heart, motives, and actions thoroughly. He will not let us get away with evil towards anyone else, and especially those who He has placed above us as leaders, guides, and mentors.
The Israelites complained and murmured against Moses, and even others close to Moses spoke ill of him. Miriam believed Moses was wrong for his choice in a wife, and God responded with giving her leprosy. Why? Because Moses was obeying God in what He was doing, despite how it looked to Miriam. Moses didn’t owe Miriam a conversation about it, telling her all of the details, before he obeyed God. God also didn’t say to Miriam, “It is okay, you didn’t know the whole story” either. No, God struck her down. And God would not change His mind when Moses asked Him to. God also killed many of the Israelites, and even told Moses that He was not going into the promise land with those people.
Numbers 12:12-8 12 Now [a]Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the[b]Cushite woman whom he had married 2 and they said, “Has the Lord really spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken also through us?” And the Lord heard it.3 ([c]Now the man Moses was very humble (gentle, kind, devoid of self-righteousness), more than any man who was on the face of the earth.)4 Suddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle).” And the three of them came out. 5 The Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the doorway of the tabernacle, and He called Aaron and Miriam, and they came forward. 6 And He said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord will make Myself known to him in a vision And I will speak to him in a dream. 7 “But it is not so with My servant Moses; He is entrusted and faithful in all My house. 8 “With him I speak mouth to mouth [directly], Clearly and openly and not in riddles; And he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?”
We need to pay attention to God's response to their words and heart. God said that He speaks mouth to mouth to Moses and not in riddles. God is pointing out here that He told Moses to do as he has done. There is no mystery for Moses to figure out. Moses met with God for hours at a time. They discussed every aspect of his life.
Many over look their current trials and tribulations as possibly God’s answer to what they do against other people. I am not saying everything we go through is because God is unhappy with us, but we also are not immune from God’s justice. We need to come before God with an open heart and mind, so we can clear ourselves first. It is far easier to deal with our own actions to see if we have a wrong to make right before God.
It is so easy to criticize when we do not know what someone has gone through and sacrificed to get to where they are in God’s plan and destiny for their life. Remember, God could have just had Moses become Pharaoh to free the people. He was in line for that job after all, despite the fact that he was Hebrew. God had a much bigger plan than just freeing His people. You don’t know what God has told someone to do or not do. Only God can say if He is pleased with someone or not. It is God’s job to course correct a person's life overall. If God really sent you, your heart would not or should not be walking in fleshly condemnation and emotions. There is a difference when God sends you to give a word to someone, and when you send yourself. Going on your own authority surely will get God’s attention.
God did not tell Moses that He needed to become more perfect so that the people would stop complaining. God never even said that any of their negative words were valid. But God did pass His own justice upon those that spoke against Moses. We are not exempt from the same response from God. We would have an eye opening experience if we had a book in the Bible about our own life. How many of us would look forward to reading that book? Many hold everyone else to standards and expectations that they would most certainly be guilty of violating if they were in the other person’s life as well.
There is no job in heaven or earth as God’s personal judge of shame, condemnation, and critic. Don’t play into the hands of the enemy for God is surely seeing all that we are up to. God loves each person equally. We break His heart when we attack the people that He loves.