MAN'S JUDGMENT IS BIASED GOD IS ALWAYS JUST

PROCLAMATION

“The commander ordered that Paul … be flogged and interrogated … As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said, ‘Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?’ ”  Acts 22:24-25 (NIV)

 

EXPLANATION

These words were written by Luke, the physician, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Here Luke recorded that after Paul was arrested, he spoke to the crowd in their native language. (Acts 22:1-2)  He told them his story including that he was born a Jew, educated by Greek scholars, and that he was a zealous persecutor of the followers of Christ until his conversion on the road to Damascus. (Acts 22:3-20)  Things were going well until he said that The Lord had sent him to preach to the Gentiles.  When he said that the crowd turned on him. (Acts 22:21-24)  As the soldiers were about to flog him, Paul told them that he was a Roman citizen.  They were alarmed and concerned because they knew that Roman citizens were to be treated differently as prisoners than other people. (Acts 22:25-29)

 

APPLICATION

With The Lord God there is no respect of persons. (Acts 10:34, Romans 2:11, and Ephesians 6:9)  He does not play favorites.  A person’s position, title, rank, or riches does not matter to God, for He sees the heart of man. (Jeremiah 11:20 and 20:12)  We tend to judge people by what they have.  Today, the law appears to be applied differently to the rich and famous than it is to the average person and the poor people.  As believers we are to love all of our brothers and sisters, (John 13:34, 15:12, and 15:17) and our enemies, (Matthew 5:44, Luke 6:27, and Luke 6:35) and we are not to judge anyone. (Matthew 7:1 and Luke 6:37)  We are not to use a double standard for how we treat people.  We should speak to, treat, and respect the CEO and the janitor, the rich and the poor, in the same manner.