11/04/08

'Raca' - 'You Fool'

James 4:7-8 - "But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.

We have always been instructed by the Word of God to love our brothers. It also advices us not to get angry without cause, which does not mean that for any and every cause we are allowed to get angry. There are set parameters in the Word of God against which we can and should get angry. Our anger should be as much as possible not directed to a person. (I will write more on this topic in my next mail).

In Matt 5:22 Jesus tells us about two serious accusations we should avoid against our brother (includes females). They are 'Raca' and 'You fool'.

'Raca' is a Greek word which means 'empty'. This word is not directed just to knowledge or wisdom. It is not referred to as being mindless. What the Lord wants to tell us here is that we should not accuse our brother as not having the Spirit of Truth. If we do so, we will be bought to council, risk being judged without mercy.
The other accusation 'You fool' also is nothing to do with the condition of the mind. The word means 'godless'. Here the Lord warns us never by our own understanding accuse brother of being possessed with an evil spirit. When we do this we risk our own salvation.

There are many places in the Bible that Men of God (i.e. John the Baptist) have accused people to be foolish, and being sons of devil but they did not do so by their own understanding. Their judgments were based by the Spirit of Discernment (Holy Spirit). There are some territories that we should not venture and fear serious consequences, like 'Raca' and 'You fool' i.e. not having being baptized by the Holy Spirit (Spirit of Truth) or having being possessed by an evil spirit. It is best advice to keep our mouths shut on these matters unless the Lord reveals it to us (always double check on this).


[ Prayer Starter ]

Lord, I thank You for your Holy Spirit. Lord, let not my spirit lead me to judge my brothers and sisters and bring me foolishly out of your umbrella of mercy. Help me Lord to keep my mouth shut when not necessary. I ask this in Jesus' Name, Amen.


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