Are Christians judgmental & narrow minded? Should I judge someone else's actions or behavior? Didn't Jesus tell us not to judge others?
5-Jan-12
First off, it is critically important to define terms. The prominent word in the original New Testament language that’s translated as “judge” generally means to decide or determine the correctness of a matter. Right away, we run into the issue of whether we can actually know if something is correct or not, right or wrong, good or bad. You may or may not realize it, but this is something that our culture tells us we cannot know – this is part of the postmodern era we now live in. Its view of morality is called moral relativism which denies universal morality (same moral standard for all) & can be recognized by mentalities such as “keeping your spiritual beliefs private”, “what’s right for you, isn’t right for me” & an overall attitude of political correctness – never offending anyone by questioning what they do. Another aspect of this is known as situational ethics which claims that one’s morality depends on their situation or culture. In other words, a certain action may be acceptable in some situations, but not others. A great deal more could be said about this, but to keep this manageable we’ll stay on the topic of judging behavior. But you can see that if people believe in moral relativism or situational ethics, then not only would judging someone else seem impossible & meaningless, but people could also rationalize & accept pretty much any behavior.
As we read the Bible & try to understand how God intends for us to live, it is essential to look at ourselves & our culture through Scripture; not the other way around. For the Scriptures tell us that God is our Creator & has made us to be in relation to Himself & to one another. It goes on to explain – and our experience affirms this – that we can do things to harm these relationships. Since God is caring, compassionate & all-knowing (omniscient), He very kindly setup boundaries to guard these relationships because He greatly values them. These boundaries are God’s law (commands or decrees) & when we violate them, it is called sin (1 Jn 3.4, 1.8) which primarily is offensive towards God because it makes the rebellious statement “God, I know better than you” (1 Jn 1.10, Rom 8.7, Col 1.21).
Concerning God’s law, Jesus summarizes, “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Mt 22.37-40). Very simply – love God & love others. Because all people are uniquely made in His likeness having personhood, personality, passion, emotion, intelligence & moral consciousness, we actually respect God when we are respectful to others. The converse is true as well.
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? – Jas 3.9-11
However, we have a tendency to break God’s law because we are automatically more interested in doing what’s best for ourselves which has a way of either neglecting or interfering with what’s best for others. If this weren’t true, God would not have to tell us to love Him & love others. But as it stands, we are all inherently selfish & sinful (Eccl 7.20, Rom 3.10-12, 23). This has a way of blinding us to what is really right & wrong so that we end up justifying our actions in order to get what we want (Ps 36.2, Pr 16.2, Jer 17.9) or worse, redefining what God says is right & wrong. The latter is called idolatry – making a god of our own liking (Isa 44.9, Jer 14.14, Eph 5.5-6, Col 3.5).
Therefore, God is really the only one who has the capacity, authority & purity to define morality for us. And fortunately, He has disclosed to us what is right & wrong in His perfect Word (the Bible) to guard these relationships & spare us a lot of grief (Ps 119.165, Jas 2.12). It is not about being narrow minded, it's about being in line with God's truth. And contrary to popular belief, it is applicable to everyone because God is the Creator of all people (Num 15.29, Heb 4.12). Consequently, the Bible constantly implores us to have wisdom & knowledge of God’s truth & the ability to discern what is right from what is wrong.
My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight – Pr 3.21
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
For through me your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.
If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer. – Pr 9.10-12
Yet you are near, O LORD, and all your commands are true.
Long ago I learned from your statutes that you established them to last forever. – Ps 119.151-152
So our culture tells us we should never judge anyone’s behavior & then you can find people at the other extreme knit-picking everything everyone does. So let’s look at some of the passages people usually bring up regarding judging the behavior of others & try to understand what God really is telling us instead of us telling God what He means. Click on the Scripture references below to see the passages & further commentary.
As we read the Bible & try to understand how God intends for us to live, it is essential to look at ourselves & our culture through Scripture; not the other way around. For the Scriptures tell us that God is our Creator & has made us to be in relation to Himself & to one another. It goes on to explain – and our experience affirms this – that we can do things to harm these relationships. Since God is caring, compassionate & all-knowing (omniscient), He very kindly setup boundaries to guard these relationships because He greatly values them. These boundaries are God’s law (commands or decrees) & when we violate them, it is called sin (1 Jn 3.4, 1.8) which primarily is offensive towards God because it makes the rebellious statement “God, I know better than you” (1 Jn 1.10, Rom 8.7, Col 1.21).
Concerning God’s law, Jesus summarizes, “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Mt 22.37-40). Very simply – love God & love others. Because all people are uniquely made in His likeness having personhood, personality, passion, emotion, intelligence & moral consciousness, we actually respect God when we are respectful to others. The converse is true as well.
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? – Jas 3.9-11
However, we have a tendency to break God’s law because we are automatically more interested in doing what’s best for ourselves which has a way of either neglecting or interfering with what’s best for others. If this weren’t true, God would not have to tell us to love Him & love others. But as it stands, we are all inherently selfish & sinful (Eccl 7.20, Rom 3.10-12, 23). This has a way of blinding us to what is really right & wrong so that we end up justifying our actions in order to get what we want (Ps 36.2, Pr 16.2, Jer 17.9) or worse, redefining what God says is right & wrong. The latter is called idolatry – making a god of our own liking (Isa 44.9, Jer 14.14, Eph 5.5-6, Col 3.5).
Therefore, God is really the only one who has the capacity, authority & purity to define morality for us. And fortunately, He has disclosed to us what is right & wrong in His perfect Word (the Bible) to guard these relationships & spare us a lot of grief (Ps 119.165, Jas 2.12). It is not about being narrow minded, it's about being in line with God's truth. And contrary to popular belief, it is applicable to everyone because God is the Creator of all people (Num 15.29, Heb 4.12). Consequently, the Bible constantly implores us to have wisdom & knowledge of God’s truth & the ability to discern what is right from what is wrong.
My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight – Pr 3.21
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
For through me your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.
If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer. – Pr 9.10-12
Yet you are near, O LORD, and all your commands are true.
Long ago I learned from your statutes that you established them to last forever. – Ps 119.151-152
So our culture tells us we should never judge anyone’s behavior & then you can find people at the other extreme knit-picking everything everyone does. So let’s look at some of the passages people usually bring up regarding judging the behavior of others & try to understand what God really is telling us instead of us telling God what He means. Click on the Scripture references below to see the passages & further commentary.
_
It is good to grasp
the one and not let go of the other.
The man who fears God will avoid all extremes. – Eccl 7.18 |
Matthew 7:1-6 - "Judge Not"
Romans 2:1-4 - Whose Standard? Romans 14 - Disputable Matters 1 Corinthians 5 - Judging Inside & Outside the Church James 4:11-12 - Unlawful Attitude |
_ Right Judgment
From these passages, we see that judgment that is detached from God’s absolute moral standard (truth revealed in Scripture) is the wrong kind of judgment & will be selfishly motivated leading to hypocrisy, legalism & conflict. So what’s the right kind of judgment? Note that we are now making a judgment about judging – this is good! In fact, those who believe we should never judge others are actually making a judgment – a bad one. Furthermore, they are being hypocritical when they tell others they are wrong to judge other people’s behavior. Isn’t that a judgment – a determination about what is correct? Behold the contradiction that arises when God’s standard is displaced by man’s standard.
The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment – 1 Cor 2.14-15
The truth of the matter is that whether or not we make our judgments known, everyone makes them. We all make determinations about whether other people’s behavior is good, bad or that it does not matter. The problem arises when we get these determinations mixed up. So the question is not “should we judge?”, but what is the right way to do it! Just to reiterate, it must be based on God’s standard as He reveals in the Bible. But once we make a judgment, we must determine what we’re going to do with it.
Sometimes when people say or imply “don’t judge”, they mean you should keep your thoughts to yourself & certainly don’t ever act on any “personal” judgments about others. This stems from another piece of cultural baggage we need to screen out which holds that loving someone & confronting them about their behavior are incompatible. But God tells us that if we truly love someone, we will confront them if they are doing something sinful (Pr 27.5-6, 17, Rom 12.9, Gal 6.1). Let’s also clarify that confrontation in this sense should be considerate, compassionate, merciful & sincere (Jas 3.17-18, Jude 1.22-23) as opposed to being mean-spirited, arrogant, spiteful & vengeful. It should also be based on the truth of actual events, not mere speculation of motives. Nonetheless, people are generally offended whenever you question their behavior (Mt 15.3, 12-13, Jn 15.18-25, Acts 19.26-28). One time, after Jesus pointed out that people were not maintaining God’s law & thereby offending his hearers such that they hated Him (Jn 7.19), Jesus said:
“Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment” - Jn 7.24
But the mentality of conflict avoidance is really about us not wanting to leave our comfort zone, not wanting to do the hard thing & not wanting people to dislike us, which are all self-centered & not focused on the best interest of the other person. Of course, there are certainly some precautions to take when confronting someone & not surprisingly, the Bible addresses that.
Confrontation: Condemnation or Restoration?
There is another Greek word in the original New Testament language that is made up of the word we’ve looked at for “judgment”, but is modified by another word that means “against” or “opposed”. This compound word is translated as “condemn” & carries the idea of seeking a penalty. This attitude of condemning judgment is the type we should avoid. Click on the passages below that discuss times when Jesus encountered this.
From these passages, we see that judgment that is detached from God’s absolute moral standard (truth revealed in Scripture) is the wrong kind of judgment & will be selfishly motivated leading to hypocrisy, legalism & conflict. So what’s the right kind of judgment? Note that we are now making a judgment about judging – this is good! In fact, those who believe we should never judge others are actually making a judgment – a bad one. Furthermore, they are being hypocritical when they tell others they are wrong to judge other people’s behavior. Isn’t that a judgment – a determination about what is correct? Behold the contradiction that arises when God’s standard is displaced by man’s standard.
The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment – 1 Cor 2.14-15
The truth of the matter is that whether or not we make our judgments known, everyone makes them. We all make determinations about whether other people’s behavior is good, bad or that it does not matter. The problem arises when we get these determinations mixed up. So the question is not “should we judge?”, but what is the right way to do it! Just to reiterate, it must be based on God’s standard as He reveals in the Bible. But once we make a judgment, we must determine what we’re going to do with it.
Sometimes when people say or imply “don’t judge”, they mean you should keep your thoughts to yourself & certainly don’t ever act on any “personal” judgments about others. This stems from another piece of cultural baggage we need to screen out which holds that loving someone & confronting them about their behavior are incompatible. But God tells us that if we truly love someone, we will confront them if they are doing something sinful (Pr 27.5-6, 17, Rom 12.9, Gal 6.1). Let’s also clarify that confrontation in this sense should be considerate, compassionate, merciful & sincere (Jas 3.17-18, Jude 1.22-23) as opposed to being mean-spirited, arrogant, spiteful & vengeful. It should also be based on the truth of actual events, not mere speculation of motives. Nonetheless, people are generally offended whenever you question their behavior (Mt 15.3, 12-13, Jn 15.18-25, Acts 19.26-28). One time, after Jesus pointed out that people were not maintaining God’s law & thereby offending his hearers such that they hated Him (Jn 7.19), Jesus said:
“Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment” - Jn 7.24
But the mentality of conflict avoidance is really about us not wanting to leave our comfort zone, not wanting to do the hard thing & not wanting people to dislike us, which are all self-centered & not focused on the best interest of the other person. Of course, there are certainly some precautions to take when confronting someone & not surprisingly, the Bible addresses that.
Confrontation: Condemnation or Restoration?
There is another Greek word in the original New Testament language that is made up of the word we’ve looked at for “judgment”, but is modified by another word that means “against” or “opposed”. This compound word is translated as “condemn” & carries the idea of seeking a penalty. This attitude of condemning judgment is the type we should avoid. Click on the passages below that discuss times when Jesus encountered this.
Luke 5:27-32 - Bad Company
Luke 5:33-39 - Non-conformity Luke 7:36-50 - Turning the Tables John 8:1-11 - A Rocky Encounter |
_The point is that we are all guilty of violating some portion of God’s law & that by breaking any piece of it, we are guilty of breaking it all (Jas 2.10). And we will continue to do so until the day we die (hopefully with decreasing frequency). There is no room for a “holier than thou” attitude of arrogance which coincides with an attitude of condemnation & pits one “against” another. Instead, we should “hate the sin, not the sinner” (Ps 97.10, Pr 8.13, Rom 12.9), remembering that our “petty” sins are as horrific to a holy God as the “gross” sins of others. As we saw in the Matthew 7 passage, it is only from this humbled state that we can ever hope to help anyone else. It is not that we have to wait around on the impossibility of becoming sinless, but that we should be practicing the same & only solution to our sin that will help others – turning from our sin & turning to Jesus (1 Jn 1.8-9).
And helping others is the whole point of confronting their sin. Whether it’s confronting a culturally accepted sin that will be a destructive influence on many, or intervening in the affairs of a family member - sin destroys relationships. Still some might argue that they can privately behave in certain ways that don’t affect others & it’s no one else’s business. Again, we come back to the fact that sin is always primarily against God & one is in violation even if no other humans are involved or directly affected. This not only cuts them off from God (Isa 59.2, Pr 28.9), but leaves them prone to the natural & supernatural consequences God was lovingly protecting them from with His law (Pr 19.3, 29.6, Jer 44.8). However, “private” sin has a way of eventually hurting those around us as well, but such a person is usually too self-consumed to notice or care.
Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you – Dt 6.18a
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. – Gal 6.7-8
Here are some questions to ask yourself before judging someone else:
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. – Rom 12.9
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. – 1 Pet 4.7-8
We should definitely exercise great caution & humility when judging & confronting. Would you like it if someone went around pointing out every sin of yours? I think not. On a real life human level, love should cover a “multitude of sins” in that we shouldn’t pick on every single sin in a person’s life. Yet, it does not cover all sins in the sense that we should never confront or deal with anyone’s sin. And since the details of each situation & relationship vary quite a bit, every Christian should rely heavily on their own relationship with God – their own prayer life, their own leading by the Holy Spirit, their own direction from Scripture reading & the advice of Godly people that God has put in their life.
And helping others is the whole point of confronting their sin. Whether it’s confronting a culturally accepted sin that will be a destructive influence on many, or intervening in the affairs of a family member - sin destroys relationships. Still some might argue that they can privately behave in certain ways that don’t affect others & it’s no one else’s business. Again, we come back to the fact that sin is always primarily against God & one is in violation even if no other humans are involved or directly affected. This not only cuts them off from God (Isa 59.2, Pr 28.9), but leaves them prone to the natural & supernatural consequences God was lovingly protecting them from with His law (Pr 19.3, 29.6, Jer 44.8). However, “private” sin has a way of eventually hurting those around us as well, but such a person is usually too self-consumed to notice or care.
Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you – Dt 6.18a
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. – Gal 6.7-8
Here are some questions to ask yourself before judging someone else:
- Do I have sin I need to deal with?
- Have I prayed about the situation?
- Do I have accurate information or mere speculation?
- Is the behavior sinful as defined by the Bible or does it just violate my personal preference?
- Is it an issue of immaturity or irresponsibility?
- Have I sought the council of Godly people?
- Are there other witnesses who can vouch for the behavior?
- Am I biased for or against someone involved?
- What are my attitude & motives?
- Have I gossiped about or slandered this person?
- Is this something the Holy Spirit is leading me to take action on?
- Am I prepared to take the necessary actions to help the person?
- What are the consequences of confronting someone or not doing so?
- Who all will be affected by the sinful behavior?
- Do I really love this person enough to confront them?
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. – Rom 12.9
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. – 1 Pet 4.7-8
We should definitely exercise great caution & humility when judging & confronting. Would you like it if someone went around pointing out every sin of yours? I think not. On a real life human level, love should cover a “multitude of sins” in that we shouldn’t pick on every single sin in a person’s life. Yet, it does not cover all sins in the sense that we should never confront or deal with anyone’s sin. And since the details of each situation & relationship vary quite a bit, every Christian should rely heavily on their own relationship with God – their own prayer life, their own leading by the Holy Spirit, their own direction from Scripture reading & the advice of Godly people that God has put in their life.
_There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven… |
_
a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, |
_
a time to love and a time to hate a time for war and a time for peace. - Eccl 3.1, 7-8 |
Final Judgment
If none of the Bible were true, God didn’t exist, there were no life after death & Jesus was merely another man, then we could just live however we want. But that’s not the case. God, our Creator, does exist & we are accountable to Him. He tells us that one day there will be a final judgment of everyone who ever lived (Eccl 12.14, Heb 9.27, 1 Pt 4.5).
And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men… If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” – 1 Cor 15.17-19, 32b
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. – Heb 4.13
God will judge all people according to His standard of perfect righteousness. Furthermore, the Bible speaks of 2 kinds of books for 2 types of people that will be at the final judgment (Rev 20.12). One kind of book pertains to unbelievers & contains evidence of all sin - crimes against Deity (& humanity). This is not because God can’t remember, but to demonstrate His justice & annihilate any excuses (Rom 3.19-20). Seeing that all have violated God’s standard, we all default to this indefensible standing – guilty before a Holy God. This irrevocable verdict directs the defendant to an eternal hell.
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’
– Mt 25.41
By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. – 2 Pt 3.7
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. – Mt 12.36-37
However, there is another kind of book for another type of person. Only if your name is written in the “book of life” will you escape the everlasting torment of hell (Rev 20.12, 15). For if your name is in this book then your whole life’s sin record will be permanently blotted out of the other type of book & never used to condemn you – ever.
I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more. – Isa 43.25
To get your name in this “book of life”, there’s no need to worry about how much you’ve already sinned or if you’ll ever do enough good to outweigh the bad – that’s not how God works. In fact, once you’ve acknowledged your sin, the next step is realizing you can’t do anything to make up for it. Yet all sin must be punished, otherwise God’s justice isn’t upheld & He would be a liar. So in order to relieve you of your punishment, the price had to be paid another way – through Jesus.
God became a man – Christ Jesus – so that He could be punished & killed as payment for sin, though He Himself never sinned. He was & is perfect. For this reason, God tells us that if we trust that Jesus was punished in place of our own sin, He will qualify us for heaven purely based upon Jesus’s perfect record. There’s absolutely nothing that can be added to it & no sin can possibly undo it because it’s already fully covered. All we need do is turn from our sin & to Jesus as our Lord, trusting & believing in what He has done for our salvation. What a wondrous gift! Have you received it?
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. – Jn 3.16-18
God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. – 2 Cor 5.21
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. – Rom 8.1-4
If none of the Bible were true, God didn’t exist, there were no life after death & Jesus was merely another man, then we could just live however we want. But that’s not the case. God, our Creator, does exist & we are accountable to Him. He tells us that one day there will be a final judgment of everyone who ever lived (Eccl 12.14, Heb 9.27, 1 Pt 4.5).
And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men… If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” – 1 Cor 15.17-19, 32b
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. – Heb 4.13
God will judge all people according to His standard of perfect righteousness. Furthermore, the Bible speaks of 2 kinds of books for 2 types of people that will be at the final judgment (Rev 20.12). One kind of book pertains to unbelievers & contains evidence of all sin - crimes against Deity (& humanity). This is not because God can’t remember, but to demonstrate His justice & annihilate any excuses (Rom 3.19-20). Seeing that all have violated God’s standard, we all default to this indefensible standing – guilty before a Holy God. This irrevocable verdict directs the defendant to an eternal hell.
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’
– Mt 25.41
By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. – 2 Pt 3.7
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. – Mt 12.36-37
However, there is another kind of book for another type of person. Only if your name is written in the “book of life” will you escape the everlasting torment of hell (Rev 20.12, 15). For if your name is in this book then your whole life’s sin record will be permanently blotted out of the other type of book & never used to condemn you – ever.
I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more. – Isa 43.25
To get your name in this “book of life”, there’s no need to worry about how much you’ve already sinned or if you’ll ever do enough good to outweigh the bad – that’s not how God works. In fact, once you’ve acknowledged your sin, the next step is realizing you can’t do anything to make up for it. Yet all sin must be punished, otherwise God’s justice isn’t upheld & He would be a liar. So in order to relieve you of your punishment, the price had to be paid another way – through Jesus.
God became a man – Christ Jesus – so that He could be punished & killed as payment for sin, though He Himself never sinned. He was & is perfect. For this reason, God tells us that if we trust that Jesus was punished in place of our own sin, He will qualify us for heaven purely based upon Jesus’s perfect record. There’s absolutely nothing that can be added to it & no sin can possibly undo it because it’s already fully covered. All we need do is turn from our sin & to Jesus as our Lord, trusting & believing in what He has done for our salvation. What a wondrous gift! Have you received it?
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. – Jn 3.16-18
God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. – 2 Cor 5.21
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. – Rom 8.1-4