If Jesus didn’t come to condemn the world, that’s probably not our mission either!

耶稣降世不是要定世人的罪，我们也不应定人的罪！

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:17

因为上帝差祂的儿子降世，不是要定世人的罪，乃是要叫世人因祂得救。-约翰福音3章17节

In my work as a chaplain, some people occasionally ask if I am willing to give them some additional spiritual help. While I’m happy to spend time with anyone who asks for help, I often find myself doing more learning than teaching. This was especially true when one painfully honest new Christian said to me with resignation, “I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to read the Bible. The more I read what God expects from me, the more I judge others who aren’t doing what it says.”

身为职场牧师，有时会有人问我，是否可以给予他们进一步的属灵帮助。我很乐意花时间帮助这样的人，而且我经常发现，在这样的过程中，我其实也在学习而不只是教导。特别是有一次，一位坦率耿直的初信者，有点无奈地对我说：「我觉得我最好不要读圣经。因为我越了解上帝对我的期望，我就越会论断那些不按照真理去行的人。」

As he said this, I realized that I was at least partly responsible for instilling this judgmental spirit in him. At that time, one of the first things I did with those new to faith in Jesus was to introduce them to things they should no longer be doing. In other words, instead of showing them God’s love and letting the Holy Spirit reshape them, I urged them to “behave like a believer.”

听到他这样说，我领悟到他会有这种论断人的态度，我至少应负一部分的责任。那时，面对初信者，我总是会先让他们了解哪些事不应该做。换句话说，我没有先让他们明白上帝的爱，让圣灵重新塑造他们，而是要求他们「行为举止要有基督徒的样式」。

Now I was gaining a new appreciation for John 3:16-17. Jesus’ invitation to believe in Him in verse 16 is followed by these words. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

现在我对约翰福音3章16-17节有了新的领受。在第16节，耶稣邀请世人信靠祂，接着祂说：「因为上帝差祂的儿子降世，不是要定世人的罪，乃是要叫世人因祂得救。」

Jesus didn’t come to condemn us. But by giving these new Christians a checklist of behaviors, I was teaching them to condemn themselves, which then led them to judge others. Instead of being agents of condemnation, we are to be ambassadors of God’s love and mercy. 

耶稣降世并非要定我们的罪。但是，当我为初信者列出应遵守的行为，就是在教他们定自己的罪，并且造成他们去论断别人。其实上帝呼召我们，并不是要定人的罪，乃是要成为上帝爱与怜悯的使者。

Father, help me not to judge others today. Let me learn this until it changes me into someone more like You.

天父，求祢帮助我不要论断别人。

让我在这方面能不断地学习，直到我更像祢。

Read: John 3:9-21 NIV 

“How can this be?” Nicodemus asked. “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?