The judgment we shall be talking about here is not
the judgment of a court as seen in modern society. It is
spiritual judgment. First and foremost, we must
recognize that unless we can discern, we will have trouble in serving
the Lord. For we can be too easily deceived. On this matter of
judgment or discernment, therefore, we need to take note of a few
principles.
The Five Principles (Criteria) of Judgment
The first principle concerns truth or the discipline of the Holy
Spirit. As you converse with a brother or a sister, you should notice if
his or her lessons are learned from the truth or from the discipline of
the Holy Spirit. Some incline to the one side and some lean to the
other. Some bend to the truth, while some tilt to the discipline of the
Spirit. Learning from truth means that a person acts according to the
word and relevant teaching of the Bible which he has heard. Or he
obeys the Lord when he is moved by what he reads of the Scriptures
or what he hears from preaching. On the other hand, learning from
the discipline of the Holy Spirit means that after a person has
experienced the dealing hand of the Lord upon him, he is gradually
broken by the Lord and is delivered from his early stage of
insubordination, murmuring, fret, or opinions into a state of
obedience. This is a learning from the circumstances of his
environment as so arranged by the Holy Spirit.
Hence one person may learn to obey through teaching and another
person may learn to obey through dealings. As a worker for the Lord
you need to discern on which side of this issue that brother or sister
belongs. If there is learning on both sides, that is the best. With such
a balance as this, a Christian can walk uprightly. God’s worker must
therefore be acquainted with both ways of learning. Then he can
detect which way is absent or present in a given brother or sister. He
must know in his heart where the need is in this person or that. Some
believers know nothing about the discipline of the Holy Spirit, and
hence they are hard and raw. Others are in just the opposite
ignorance; that is, they have no ability to learn from truth and
relevant teaching. Thus they are ignorant of many truths and are not
obedient to many commandments in the Bible.
The second principle or criterion by which to render judgment has
to do with the outside versus the inside. Some have only the first and
none of the second. They may learn much in matters of the truth, but
their obedience to these truths is all outward: they are outwardly
baptized, they outwardly practice head-covering, and so forth.
Nevertheless, there is no inward learning. Some others, though, may
encounter various unpleasant situations and pass through many
difficulties—all these being the result of the discipline of the Holy
Spirit upon their lives—and yet all these things touch only the
outside, stop there and never reach the inside. From this we may
conclude that a life under the discipline of the Holy Spirit may be
lived outwardly or lived inwardly.
Let us take, for example, the case of a person who is sick. He is
one who is under the Spirit’s discipline. Now on the one hand he
may appear to be submissive outwardly, but on the other hand he
does not have inward joy and praise because of his illness. Though
outwardly he may declare, “If I am sick, I am sick,” this is at most
patiently and passively accepting the discipline; it is not an inward
attitude of praise and thanksgiving. Such discipline has merely
touched the outside. Yet if in accepting the sickness he not only
patiently endures the discipline of the Holy Spirit but also takes the
further step of praising the Lord, such discipline impacts upon the
person inwardly.
As we have seen, however, this person can neither give thanks nor
praise. He is simply forcing himself to subject himself under the
mighty hand of God. The impact of such discipline upon him is only
outward. But if he can bring himself to praise and thank God for
giving him this discipline and if his heart can be full of joy, then
God’s discipline will reach its end in that life. When discipline
becomes something inward, the person will not ask for quick relief
from his sickness so as to feel comfortable. Instead, he will be able to
praise and thank the Lord for what He has done and to confess that
what the Lord has done is all well.
As another example, someone may see the error of being in a sect
and come out of it; but in his having done so, sectarianism has
unfortunately not left him. For his love of the brethren has not
increased and his fellowship is still restricted. For instance, when he
meets a brother he may appear to be open, even embracing and
kissing that brother. Even so, though he exhibits an outward
expression of brotherly love, there is no real sense of love inwardly.
All is acting and pretending. All is outward, not inward.
Let us who seek to serve the Lord understand that all the virtues
mentioned in the Bible point to the being of a person, not his doing.
So that in the process of discerning, we need to have a clear picture
of the life of a given brother or sister as to whether it is inward or just
outward. If only the latter, we must lead him to the inward. Many say
a certain brother is very good. But how good is he? Is it an inward or
an outward goodness? The difference is great. We must learn to
distinguish the inward and the outward of a life.
The third principle or criterion to be used by God’s workers in
rendering judgment or discernment pertains to the issue of the spirit
versus the mind. On the one hand many spiritual things register in
man’s spirit and on the other hand in man’s mind. It is very difficult
for some to judge from the words and terms which another person
uses whether the thing to be judged is emanating from the spirit or
from the mind. For people can adopt the same words and terms from
either source because they have had little or no dealings of renewal
in their mind. But if you as one who must judge in such matters have
had spiritual experiences and have learned much in your spirit, then
you can perceive whether a person’s speech is coming from his mind
someone speaks out of his spirit, you can touch that spirit as soon as
he speaks. Conversely, you touch the mind of the speaker when he
speaks out of his mind. Spiritual things that stay only in the mind
become ideals which carry no spiritual value. Furthermore, if
someone’s spiritual life relies solely on mental knowledge, his life
becomes empty and devoid of any spiritual worth.
The lives of believers must not be managed by the mind. Let us see, then, that to judge a speech whether it emanates from
the spirit or from the mind is the initial step in spiritual discernment.
He who cannot distinguish spirit from mind is unable to render
spiritual judgment. Such an inability is a serious problem in divine
service. For wherever we who serve the Lord come and go we must
learn to discern. We must be able to sense at once whether a person’s
spirit or mind has come forth. For though the words may be the
same, those which come out of the mind do not have the same flavor
as the words which come out of the spirit. People
frequently reported that a certain brother spoke well. When I went to
hear him, however, I found that all he said came out of his mind. I
made the same discovery when another person was reported to have
preached exceedingly well. In several contacts I then had with this
man I could only meet his mind.
Let it be recognized that some words we hear spoken are from the
spirit and some words from the mind; which means we must not be
deceived by the spoken words. Sometimes young people may think
they can speak the same words that other brothers have spoken, and
even speak better. But actually those other brothers speak out of their
spirit whereas the young people too often speak out of their mind.
The quality between the two is quite different. Yet unless you are
able to discern this qualitative difference, you will be easily
deceived.
A person who grapples with God’s word in his mind
without any engagement of his spirit in the learning process may
have something to say; but because his spirit was given no place,
what he said was useless. A worker for the Lord must learn to
differentiate between what is of the mind and of the spirit.
The fourth principle or criterion to follow when rendering spiritual
judgment relates to the natural and the spiritual. When you who are
God’s worker are dealing with a brother or listening to his testimony,
you should use your spirit to search out his spiritual condition. You
might make up a list showing what kind of person he is naturally and
what kind he is spiritually. As he opens his mouth, you will
recognize what kind of man he is: whether clever, fast-speaking,
lazy, confused, quick-tempered, careless, humorous, joking,
talkative, naughty, inaccurate, or whatever. Each person has his own
characteristics, and if you have the time, you can put the predominant
characteristics of each person on a list, for no one is able to conceal
himself for too long. True, at the beginning he may be able to control
himself; eventually, though, he will expose himself, for as he
continues to speak, he will reveal his characteristics to you. Hence
when you listen, you can generally disregard his initial words since
usually they are spoken under control. But after a while, his own self
will begin to show forth, for “out of the abundance of the heart the
mouth speaketh” (Matt. 12.34).
Now once you have discovered his natural characteristics, you can
then shift your attention to the other facet to this to learn how he is
before the Lord. Perhaps his temper has been dealt with; perhaps his
speech or attitude or self-love has been dealt with. Through his
experiences a person may have learned some lesson about physical
problems. By this you may know that God has done something in his
life. From the word of his testimony you can discern how much he
has learned before the Lord, how much God has worked in his life,
and how much Christ is being incorporated in him. All these are
building up his life. ;
For this reason, you need to know a person both on the natural side and the spiritual side. You must determine what kind of a man he is naturally, and also how much upbuilding is taking place in his life. You should also take note how his spirit and natural characteristic blend together. With regard to some people, of course, this point may be rather hard to ascertain. Yet even if you are able to
judge this, you may not be able to prescribe the remedy. For example, some people are quick in thought, but due to their much discipline, you will need to ask yourself whether such quickness needs to be dealt with. This depends on discerning whether their natural characteristic of quickness interferes with their being good Christians. How we must learn to discern! We need to know people’s condition clearly
before we can direct their way.
The fifth and final principle or criterion that needs to be
mentioned has to do with distinguishing between the spirit and
emotion: between what is emanating from a believer’s spirit and
what is emanating from his emotion. It is much easier to apprehend
the difference between the spirit and the mind than to discern the
difference between the spirit and emotion. It is quite difficult to
differentiate when man’s spirit comes forth and when his emotion
comes forth. Even so, we still must learn this difference, for some
speak out of their spirit while others speak out of their feelings.
The spirit, like the soul, has its knowledge and emotion. Spiritual
knowledge differs from mental knowledge in that the latter proceeds
from the mind and therefore you cannot touch the spirit at all. If a
person’s knowledge springs forth from his spirit you will inwardly
sense reality and respond with an amen. You will feel comfortable
inside. If a person’s speech originates from his mind, though, his
words may sound correct and yet you inwardly detest them.
Now when a believer’s speech sallies forth from his spirit, it gives
you a comfortable and joyful feeling. As his spirit comes forth, your
spirit echoes. If, however, what he says arises from his emotion, it is
difficult for you to discern whether he speaks from his emotion or
from his spirit. If the spirit of a believer launches out with thought
we will only sense his spirit and not his thought. But if his spirit
pushes forth with emotion we can feel both, for the spirit is in the
emotion. We will sense the spirit as well as the emotion. How easily
we mistake emotion for spirit.
How, then, are we going to distinguish between these two? It is
really difficult to explain, but I will try my best to elucidate. We say
that when a person’s spirit comes forth it carries with it emotion. If
his emotion and spirit are at one, his spirit will be echoed in you. By
this you know that his spirit is clean and gentle, yet strong. But when
a person’s spirit comes out with his emotion and you sense that his
spirit and emotion do not agree, then his emotion is released but you
cannot find his spirit. And as your spirit is being touched by his
emotion you have a sense of being defiled. As a matter of fact,
whenever there is emotion but not spirit present, you always feel
inwardly polluted. When the spirit and emotion are one, however,
you inwardly experience joy and can amen it. Now should we ever
detect any defilement of our spirit, we must reject it altogether. In
this entire matter, we must apply ourselves diligently to learn to
discern between the spirit and emotion.
Basic Condition for Spiritual Judgment
Let me mention one more thing. In our endeavor to exercise
spiritual judgment, there is a fundamental condition to be met: we
ourselves must receive strict judgment before God. I cannot give you
any method as to how to discern. I can only say that your knowledge
of others depends on your knowledge of yourself. Unless you know
yourself, you will not be able to know others. After you yourself
have been strictly judged by God, you can easily discern your
brothers and sisters. When another person’s spirit comes forth, how
can you know if his spirit is right or wrong? You can only know
because you have inwardly learned your own lessons, you have
passed through judgment, you have had inner experience. You can
measure those things which come out from other people by your own
experiences, and thus you will be enabled to know immediately
where they stand. If there is a lesson you have not learned, then you
cannot detect its error in others and thus you will unknowingly let it
pass. But if in that area you have been severely dealt with by God,
then as soon as something similar appears in others, you will know
and recognize it at once. Hence the basis of our knowledge of people is found in ourselves
being judged. To the degree that we know ourselves, to that degree
will we know our brothers and sisters. If we have not been judged
before God, no amount of methods will be effective. What we
ourselves have not passed through can never help other people
through. But with sufficient dealing we shall be able to detect others’
problems and help them get through their difficulties.
We ourselves need to have more dealing. The more we learn
before God about ourselves the better we are able to know our
brothers and sisters. Otherwise, we are unaware where and how they
have gone wrong. We need to be dealt with by the Holy Spirit in
large and small matters. What we ourselves have experienced
enables us to understand the actions or proclivities of others. For as a
matter of fact, men are more or less alike. Their temper, nature,
desires and so forth are not that far apart. Their ways of error and sin
lie within a limited range. Everyone is a descendant of Adam; all
therefore inherit Adam’s life. And hence, should we be enlightened
to better know ourselves, it is almost certain that we can better know
our entire world. Just bear in mind that in every descendant of Adam
can be found a full-fledged Adam. It therefore becomes relatively
easy to diagnose others if we have learned to know ourselves. Let us
not fancy that if we can just learn a certain technique we can know
people. No, we must first learn the lessons about ourselves before we
can ever use any method. Our usefulness depends upon our
willingness to be dealt with by God. Whatever dealings we avoid
experiencing before God will be precisely those areas in which we
cannot help others. So let us not be so foolish as to play truant in this
regard. For if we do play truant, it will only lessen our spiritual
usefulness.
What is ministry? Ministry is supplying others with what we have
learned before God. No learning, no supply. All our happenings,
arrangements and disciplines are for the sake of preparing us for the
ministry. True discipline of the Holy Spirit increases the richness of
ministry. The less you pass through, the less help you can give to
others. The more difficulties you encounter and the more discipline
you experience, the better you are able to lead people to fullness. The
scope of ministry will be determined by the amount of the Spirit’s
discipline in your life. If you have not learned anything, then all you
can say to your brothers and sisters are but trivial, humorous
words—words which can never hit the target. But if you have
learned much, you can discern whether or not people’s problems
have been resolved. Moreover, you will not be easily deceived.
Take, for example, the matter of the gospel. This is at least one
issue about which you know something. No person can deceive or
cheat you about whether or not he is saved. Even so, the principle
will be the same for you when it comes to deeper spiritual issues: it
all depends upon your learning and experience before the Lord. The
more you learn, the sharper will be your discernment. A casual touch
with a brother will quickly tell you what is wrong.
May I therefore beg you, for the sake of fulfilling your ministry in
serving the Lord, that you gladly and willingly put yourself in God’s
hand and accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Unless there is a
building up within, there can be no work without. All God’s works
are done deep within a man, not merely in his mind. Not because of
two or three years’ study of the Bible are you able to be a preacher.
How easy it would be if the Lord merely required His disciples to
recite some sermons. Instead, He desires to bring them through much
practical learning.
The reason why we desire to know people is for the sake of
helping them, not for the sake of curiosity. It is to build them up, not
to destroy them. In order to be useful, we must unconditionally,
unreservedly, and joyfully commit ourselves into God’s hand and
accept the discipline of His Holy Spirit. The measure of your acceptance here determines your future usefulness elsewhere. The
more the discipline, the more the enlargement and usefulness. We
should not instruct people merely with teaching. We must accept the
discipline of the Holy Spirit that can lead us into spiritual fullness
and service.
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