"Do not Judge before the Time"

Solon, the great ancient Greek philosopher opined that no one should be called good when he is still alive. This means one's life has to be judged when one passes away and has completed one's life on earth. Even then for Christians, we should not judge before the time as the Lord is the judge of all and He knows the hearts of men, whether good or bad (John 2:25). While living on earth, often the one motivation that drives people is "honour" and this honour is man's honour, that is honour given by his peers or fellow human beings. There is nothing wrong in that if done right, though as the weakness of the fallen human nature should remind us to be wary lest as Jesus warned that the Pharisees sought honour/glory from one another, but not the honour/glory that came from God (John 5:44). Exactly a chapter before (John 4:44), Jesus says that, "a prophet has no honour in his own country".

A prophet is not honoured by his peers, but at the end, he is honoured by God if he stays faithful for the rest of his life. When I reflect on this, I realise how prevalent this kind of honour-seeking dominates even Christian circles. Some Christians leaders love to be honoured by their peers and honoured by those around them. What motivates their actions or lack thereof is due to the perceived honour coming from others. How many truly seek after God's honour? Once a person has some institutional authority or position, he is likely to defend his institution or his position within it with all his might, despite whether it is right or otherwise. Religious establishment - the chief priests, the scribes and the Pharisees handed Jesus over to his death. Why? In Matthew's Gospel, Pontius Pilate knew that it was out of envy/jealousy that Jesus was handed over by the religious leaders (Matt 27:18). 

By the grace of God, I take pride in the works which God wrought through me in this past 26 years. I am encouraged by the many responses and feedback from ordinary Christians, those who have read my book. I may want to write or compile these down so that in 10 years' time I won't forget all their kind words and encouragement. A large majority of these 15 or 20 feedback or so came from ordinary folks, even in Jesus' time, it was the common people who heard Him gladly while the religious leaders gnashed their teeth at Him (Mark 12:37). I am particularly happy with the feedback from readers who had been my former church members and students (in KK and Ranau plus a few friends in Singapore). The common people had nothing to lose but much to gain. It is the same now, as I speak, preach or write, many common folks listen gladly. Even my blog is gaining much traction in recent weeks. All I care is to speak, preach and write freely - it may be offensive to some but the many will be glad and turn to God. As Jesus confessed before Pilate - "to this I was born - to testify to the truth and everyone who is of the truth hears my voice" (John 18:37).