Why You Should Judge Yourself
“But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged” 1 Corinthians 11: 31.
If we don’t sin when we’re tempted, we are judging ourselves. And we will suffer for it. And if we do sin, we will suffer for it in the form of the judgment. So, either way, we are not going to get out of suffering.
To read this passage for context, click here.
Sin Is an Illegitimate Attempt to Meet a Legitimate Need
Not sinning when we’re tempted causes suffering because the reason we’re tempted in the first place is to try to meet a need. Sin is always an illegitimate attempt to meet a legitimate need.
And if we don’t give in to the temptation, we’ll be left with an unmet need. And to have an unmet need is to suffer.
Or if we do give in to the temptation, we will suffer the consequences of our sin. We will reap what we sow if we don’t repent (Galatians 6: 7).
Having said that, let me hasten to add that the two kinds of suffering are not the same. The pain that comes from an unmet need, although painful is much more bearable than the pain of judgment for sin.
There is a measure of sweetness when you judge yourself and say no to sin.
And we have the peace and joy of the Holy Spirit to sustain us. We have peace and joy because we are believing God’s promise that He will meet our need. This faith produces hope which results in the fruit of the Spirit.
It’s painful to have an unmet need. But resisting temptation ushers in God’s presence anew and we are comforted. But the suffering that comes from reaping the destruction we’ve sown, can only be described as miserable.
At the very least, we are left with pain, shame, guilt, fear, turmoil and frustration in the wake of our sin. And the nature of the consequences will be determined by the character of our sin. But we can be assured, unless we repent in short order, we will reap what we sow.
You Are Transformed When You Judge Yourself
Furthermore, death to sin transforms us. It fills us in greater measure with the Holy Spirit. He gives His Spirit to those who obey Him (Acts 5: 32).
Death to sin eventually makes us “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” James 1: 4. And God withholds no good thing from the blameless (Psalm 84: 11).
But the suffering of consequences will also transform us to just the degree it’s painful. That is, if we yield to the Holy Spirit in it, if we’re obedient in it, and if we choose to become better and not bitter in it.
But this is also because of obedience. We get the Holy Spirit when we obey, whether we’re saying no to initial temptation or whether we’re continuing to choose to love God in spite of His judgment on our sin.
Getting back to the original point: if we don’t sin when we’re tempted, we’re going to suffer the pain of an unmet need. If we do sin when we’re tempted, we going to suffer the pain of consequences for that sin.
But in my opinion, it’s much sweeter and better to have God with us in our pain. And be transformed as a result of it.
To read another post related to Why You Should Judge Yourself, see The Narrow Road is Taxing but Temporary.